Well-behaved cattle

“The recent Traces Through Time featuring Scotlandwell brought back many childhood memories of going to school there in the 1940s and helping out on the family farm which was situated in the village,” writes Edna Barbour of Cupar.

“In the winter two or three milking cows and eight or 10 cattle were kept indoors in a byre and cattle stalls across the road from the lane going down to the Well. It was my job, when I came out of school every day, to see that the cattle were watered. I had to let the animals out to cross the main road to go down to the well to drink from the Well Burn.

“The cattle made their own way there and marshalling them back into their stalls was usually straightforward. This 10-year-old had no fear of such big cattle, but I was always a bit apprehensive when it came to squeezing up alongside the milking cows to put on their chains for fear of being kicked.

“There wasn’t ever a problem with the cattle crossing the road as there were very few cars passing through the village in those days. My main concern was making sure I got the cattle back up the lane and across the main road before the bus was due to pass at 4.45pm.

“When the lane was icy or covered in snow as it often was for long periods in winter, the water had to be carried from the well in buckets to the cattle. This was a strenous and exhausting task and not one of my favourite chores.”