PERHAPS a catchphrase for this feature could be "there really is nothing new under the sun".
Take recycling. We now happily store our glass bottles and put them out for collection once a fortnight or so, but from July 2022, under the Scottish Government's Deposit Return Scheme, you'll pay a deposit of 20p every time you buy a drink in a single-use container and get the deposit back when you return the empty bottle (or can) – just like you used to get pennies back when you returned to empty ginger bottles to your local shop.
Similarly with the recycling of clothes. We now think nothing of putting our clothes in black plastic bags that are put through our doors by charities, or take them to local civic amenity sites. There are even shops that specialise in that very thing.
Not so long ago, we used to recycle our clothes through the auspices of a local character live by children everywhere – the rag and bone man.
He would tour our streets with horse and cart, usually announcing his arrival with a bugle – although the character this writer knew in Leith in the early 1960s clearly did not have a musical bent: he just used to shout.
Children everywhere would pester their mums for something to give the rag and bone man in exchange for a balloon, or sometimes a cheap trinket. He would sell the old clothes on, no doubt for a pittance – it wasn't a trade in which fortunes could be made, despite the dreams of Harold in the legendary sitcom Steptoe & Son.
Our pictures show rag and bone men plying their trade in Glasgow – in Finnieston in 1964 (main picture) and Lyon Street, off Garscube Road, in 1962.
These days we recycle our old clothes as and when we choose, and charities benefit, so that's good. But we miss the balloons.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here