Volume: CBÉ 0220 (Part 1)
- Date
- 1936
- Collector
- Location
Archival Reference
The Main Manuscript Collection, Volume 0220, Page 0190
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“My grandmother made her own candles and the way she used to make them was....”
My grandmother made her own candles and the way she used to make them was, she used to gather up all odds and ends of fat and lard and drippin' and then she melted them all in a small skillet which was called a grisceen. She then got some rushes and took the pulp out of them and then let this pulp dry and season well so that it became tough then they caught each wan of these by each end and dragged it back and forward in the grease and then left them in a cool place to dry. Well when they'd be dry they'd drag it through again and leave it in a cool place again to let it harden. Then the same process would continue again until the candle was thick enough. These were called the farthing lights. These were burnt on the hob and they were a poor light enough as the people could hardly see wan another at each side of the fire. The candle stick they had was a turnip and a hole cut in it to stick the rush down in and the bottom would be cut level. At that time(continues on next page)