Yesterday I was with my friend in a rather lovely part of the County when we decided to short- cut across country to our destination. I was driving and trying to negotiate my way down some very narrow lanes when my friend said 'STOP......... there is a silver pot on the lane, go back'. Go back...it was taking all my driving skill to go forward in this narrow, pot hole, mud filled lane! She jumped out, ran back and retrieved the pot!
Expecting some kind of garden pot I was amazed when she produced a heavy silver hallmarked sugar bowl! Chortling at this we continued our journey. Suddenly I applied my brakes rather hard, my friend nearly jumped out of her skin and there in front of me, was a silver tray! Out she jumps again and sure enough there was a same quality sliver tray! We found five items in all.
When we got to our destination we discreetly asked if anyone had been burgled in the area, a question I was not too sure of as we had the 'booty' in my car! The locals looked slightly amused and then dismissed us.
We decided to phone the police (this could be a long wait in this neck of the woods!). When there was no signal for mobiles, we started looking for a phone box. Suddenly around the corner almost on two wheels came a Police van. We had no alternative, goodness knows when we would see another policeman around here, so we jumped up and down and we waved our arms until he stopped. 'We have found some pieces of silver' I said to the driver, 'Great' he said 'where is it?' 'in my car' I said in a small voice. We handed over our find and tried to explain where we had found it.
Now my friend is an academic and a Clerk in Holy Orders and was wearing her 'dog collar'. The reason I explain this is because these poor 'bobbies' could not understand exactly in what direction she was pointing them. Then one of them said 'why don't you show us love' so we found ourselves in the back of a police van, being helped in because the steps were so high!. This was all played out in front of the village! It looked for all the world as though we were being carted off! I couldn't stop laughing, but my friend found it slightly more disconcerting, before warming to the situation, and joining in the observation search for the remaining piece of silver, (one tea pot as reported by owner) thought to be in the hedgerow. We started to feel important.
A call came through to tell the Policeman to take the silver back to the owner and SOCO (Scenes of Crime Officers) would be there to meet them. We were nearer there than the village where we were 'picked up', so they asked us if we would mind going along with them and then the owner could thank us properly for retrieving his family silver. Ask us? We didn't have a lot of choice!
We eventually handed over our 'find' to the Lord of the Manor (yes, he really was!). He shook our hands and said 'Thank you, I suppose you would like a cup of tea?' This big burly 'bobbie' glared at him and said 'if it wasn't for these two ladies you wouldn't have your heirlooms back, not everyone would hand them in!'
When we left we were both steeped in thought. My friend wondering if clergy kept their jobs after being carted off in a Police car, and me, I thought 'well if that is the aristocracy, or what passes for it... I'm glad I'm from Tredegar!
If you think this has been made up, believe me, you are wrong! Before I handed the silver over to the Police ............I took a photo of it with my new camera! (Better not publish that on the Internet though!)
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