Wool thief! That industry was ours, in Gloucestershire and in Devon. All that red cloth that native peoples the world over wanted, and clothed every soldier, t

Wool thief! That industry was ours, in Gloucestershire and in Devon. All that red cloth that native peoples the world over wanted, and clothed every soldier, that was our broad cloth. You meanies undercut us and put us out of business. We had teasels and Fuller's Earth, you had machines (and brains). Let's be honest, that was no 'heavy haulage'. That cloth that took whole families months to make did not need an articulated lorry convoy to take it away, to be sold by the East India Company. In Gloucestershire we had pack horses to collect the woollen goodies, which would not be finished cloth from villagers, the people in London had the cloth making sewn up, before then it was in Flanders. The public house was where it all happened, the merchant brought goods from outside and sold any old rubbish for a huge mark up to a captive audience. Journey times were huge for relatively short distances, when you see the old roads and how they remorselessly go over steep hills, you can see why, it is very much like hill climbing, where 20 miles a day is good going with a camping rucksack, but imagine massive wool sacks and some horse. 4 mph, is that optimistic? I should say so. Today, with mountain bike, a lot of pushing is involved, with descents being technical. Thinking of the inns and pubs that used to be inns, there are quite a few in small villages that make sense at pack horse speed, but no sense in today's world, blazing past at 70 mph, latte in cup holder, burger on seat, A/C on full blast, Spotify playlist also on full blast, sat-nav telling you about the hazards ahead, on your way for some clothes shopping in the big city that is another dozen miles up the road, to be there in fifteen minutes, in a car that is five thousand miles away from needing to be looked at under the bonnet, texting whilst driving. That inn might have had a heyday when everyone stopped by, to get hay, beer, a bed, advice from fellow travellers coming the other way regarding the road ahead, entertainment, specialist leather services, blacksmith services, a small shop, parlour games, female company, live music, the warmth of a fire and much else. Anyway, just to explain your local history, you guys STOLE our trade. This is why you went from nothing to mills, bypassing aeons of cottage industry. A few clearances later, you have got your labour force. Instructions to readers: mod parent down as he shows no remorse for his ancestors stealing the wool trade from the hard working people of Gloucestershire and Devon!