THE DEAD SOW
Mr. Wisson's daughter, Sally, helped her
father and brother on the farm. She told the story that every summer the Romany
gypsies used to come to Everton as there was demand for extra labour at harvest
time. They used to stay with their horses and caravans in the sandpit.
One day they asked Mr Wisson "Have you
got anything to give us for the pot mister!" Mr Wisson replied, "If
you had been here last week you could have had my old sow, she died, and I
buried her in the garden".
"Can we dig her up?" asked the gypsies, "She will be good
to eat now, the earth will have absorbed the fever". "Yes! if you like," said Mr Wisson. So the gypsies dug up the sow scrubbed and cleaned it and roasted
it over their wood fire. When it was
cooked they brought Mr Wisson a joint but he would not eat it, but his son did
and he said it was the best roast pork he had ever tasted. (Brooker, p. )