Photo-a-Day  (Wednesday, 13th July, 2022)

And for me it brought to mind.......fair waved the golden corn.......
An ageless image Poet.

And I agree Poet..it is a lovely shot.

Funny there's mention of a Haywain, on this PAD, the only place I've seen a real one in the Wigan area is one next to Gathurst canal bridge.I sent in a photo of it to PADs but it wasn't chosen for PAD, but I have sent in another taken from a different angle so who knows maybe that one will appear one morning.

Lovely photo, Poet. With the clouds and the trees it reminds me of the scenes of the countryside that appeared in our schoolbooks in the early 1960s. although they were drawings rather than photos. They were "Blackie" or "Beacon Readers" books and I got a sudden vision of them stacked on the classroom window-ledge as soon as I saw the photo. It's odd where photo-a-day can lead us!

On Langtree pond
No float has cocked for a generation ,

Only wind and ducks , splashing rudd
And bubbles from tremendous tench
Have ruffled its surface in fifty year .

Stand in the corn . See the boys
With split cane rods stringed to crossbars
Throw down their bikes in the long grass ,
Stride the wire and cast
Red quills that tilt on the water .

And listen ! Was that the waft of rods
Or just the breeze , and is that sound of laughter
Merely the magpie in the long grown tree ?

Apart from Willy Lott’s cottage Poet. The cottage is now a bed and board for painters to use all year round I believe.

Where is this? Can you still fish in the pond, which I presume is the other side of the wire fence?

Wiganer , the pond is right there in the photo , in front of those two prongs of the dead tree . I suppose if you didn't know you would need to look closer to see it . The land is private now owned either by Langtree Hall Nursery or the Stables . I don't think anyone fishes there at all . Regards

I not usually driven to replying to somewhat 'sarky' comments, so it must be the hot weather. If a certain person on WW cant make constructive comments on P of the D they should busy themselves with something else.
And The Haywain is something painted by John Constable....
There you go, think I feel a lot less hot now !

Lovely photo poet, and poem, your a gem on WW. Thank you.

A nice countryside photo which is becoming a rare scene in Standish. Poet I hadn't heard of Langtree Hall so had a google and found it's a new build children's day nursery, was there a Langtree Hall? I know there was a Langtree Cottage . Does anyone see any Harvest Mice nowadays, they were quite common at one time, and they had to scutter off quick too, otherwise they could have the weight of the farmers boot heel on top of them.

Enlarge the photo and the pond becomes very clear .

Helen of T,stick around and watch this space.youll find out what sarky is.

I can see the pond now Dave and PS and most probably a haven for wildlife, let's then hope that the nursery doesn't fill it in for a play area or the stables for a paddock.

Cyril , there's a 1896 map which shows a Langtree Hall at this location .
I found it by googling Langtree Old Hall and selecting Francis Frith.com .
Interestingly, the present day Old Hall at Seven Stars isn't mapped .

Helen if you sarky comment are addressed to me, you've got it all wrong, because what I wrote are facts.
Cyril last time I saw a Harvest Mouse was in Devon, we used to see them every summer up here in Shevington, when we was in the middle of the cornfields doing our courting, little bugger would make your date jump up and run.

Wigan Mick.....if you are the Mick we all know from your regular contributions to p-a-d, , (Mick with the bike), can you just clarify if you are still here in Wigan? I think we've all been a bit lost as we thought you had moved to London, but your remark to Cyril with regard to harvest mice on today's p-a-d. ..."We used to see them every summer up here in Shevington" suggests that you are STILL "up here in Shevington". Can you just clarify if that is so, please? This is not a criticism in the slightest way, just that we are all a bit puzzled as to whether you moved to London or not. Hope you don't mind my asking.

Just had a google and had a look at the map Poet, strange too is how Mick's house is marked on the map.

We often saw Harvest mice in the fields around Stonehouse farm Mick, but if the farmer or the farm worker saw them or their nests they would get a boot heel stamped on them. With the local farmers for many years having been growing Rape rather than Grain maybe that's why the Harvest mice have all packed up and gone to live in Devon, hope the farmers there treat them better, though there are some folks who are partial to eating them.

The only heel for using , wuz to kick a two point goal ,
when Wigan played on mud fields ,
or Central Park of old .
The harvest mice would listen ,
and wait for one big cheer ,
As slotted ball went through the sticks ,
like farmers front and rear..
The farmer would come chasing ,
to catch the scattered tails ,
But like our good ole Billy ,
The mud faced ones did fail ...

Irene I would like to clarify to you that Mick didn't move to London, he was going to move and had sold the house but in the end decided not to do it, but hes asked me to ask you, to clarify if you have ever been in a corn field and had to jump up and run when you saw a Harvest Mouse.

Joe Soap. Shevington Solicitor

Thought it was too good to be true, more ‘pie in the sky!’ Attention grabbing? More than likely ….loves to rain on anybody else’s parade. Especially on a good photo ….watch out for more ‘Haywains’…in the future.
Credit to you Poet for this photo, seen with your own eyes and described with your own words and feelings. Nobody can take that away.

Dear Mr. Soap, , please thank Mick for clarifying that point....we were all a bit confused. No, I have never been in a cornfield,and had to jump up and run at the sight of a Harvest Mouse, but I did go bean-picking in a field at Rainford when I was 10 years old, and even remember what I earned....six shillings and threepence! I don't recall any mice except three blind ones who were running after the farmer's wife.

Very good e, you and poet are so o o o good!!