Too young to be Naughty
The sweep had said that the blackness of the soot
Would warm the summer soil.
But it must stand first
So they stored it in an old metal baby's bath
Safely in the garden.
Soot was an important addition to the London garden of the 1940’s. Added to the soil it darkened it, and this blackness absorbed the heat of the sun’s rays. However the soot had to be stored until the sulphur had been leached out of it, and this process, which could take six months or more, would often take place in an old tin bath. The bath had to be well away from small children – and small dogs!
This amusing description is of a real life incident which happened to Frances Grant (and a dog called Toby) when she was only two, which she has now recounted it in poetry form, and added two illustrations.
It has become an eight page pamphlet, letterpress printed in two colours, and sewn into card covers. A6 Landscape format. Edition of only 32 copies.