The Kitchen Sisters manufacturing workforce takes a glance into the lengthy held Scottish custom of honesty containers – the place you permit the cash within the field and take what you want.
SCOTT DETROW, HOST:
Honesty containers are an extended and wealthy Scottish custom. You may discover them alongside rural roads, on the finish of driveways, subsequent to farmhouses or out in the midst of nowhere. Typically they could be a rickety picket cupboard stocked with selfmade jam. Different instances, an deserted phone stuffed with cabbages or leaks or kale or perhaps rooster.
What all of them have is a worth listing and the implicit understanding that if you would like a shortbread or a dozen eggs or anything, you’ll depart cash within the honesty field. Nobody is there to observe you. It is a belief factor. At this time, the Kitchen Sisters, Davia Nelson and Nikki Silva, take us on a tour of the honesty containers of Scotland.
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UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: An honesty field is sort of a little magical factor that sits beside the street in rural Scotland. They’re fairly childlike. You type of anticipate to see animals or one thing in them or easter eggs. And in them, they’re stuffed to purchase, and you permit cash. There’s no person going to verify you. Was once eggs, largely – then it simply grew and grew. You get shortbread, traybakes, Scottish pill – you recognize, that tremendous candy, teeth-destroying, scrumptious factor – lots of knitted issues, a great deal of apples. Something that may be grown within the West of Scotland, you are going to get it unlocked within the honesty field.
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UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: (Laughter).
ANNIE: You’ve got received selfmade apple chutney, a tray of shortbread for six kilos, Gigha (ph) selfmade pill – an area, conventional Scottish candy – faculty cake. Yeah. My son’s nodding. He is 5 years outdated, and he will get a few of that in school. And a lemon drizzle – every good has a worth. Simply put some cash within the tin ‘trigger it is an honesty field. So I put in 20 kilos, and I take my change of 10 kilos. There’s fairly some huge cash in there, so I am assuming that others are doing the identical.
My identify is Annie, and I am right here visiting Gigha with my household. We’re from Northumberland within the northeast of England. And there is various honesty containers there, really. Once you’re in someplace so rural as this in Scotland, there is a respect for the area people, to make use of the honesty field because the locals would need. There’s lots of people that need to stay with these form of morals of belief.
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NICKY BROWN: I used to be nearly to go and get the eggs from the hens to place within the field.
Right here, women. Who has laid this morning?
The older women – you possibly can see they simply molted. That is why they have not received many feathers on a few of them. I am Nicky Brown. My husband, Pete, has simply left the island to take a bull to market. We’re at Clachaig Farm on the Isle of Arran.
We do not have a lot to place within the field simply now as a result of we have solely simply planted the greens, leeks, kale, all of the brassicas, and beetroot, peas, beans, pumpkins, courgettes.
My elder son’s in-laws got here to remain and stated, you have received so many cabbages. Why do not you promote some? I went, oh, no, nobody’s going to need to purchase our greens. And that is the place it began. Only a wee field on the finish there. It is an outdated plastic ice cream prime. And other people simply put their cash in there and take change if they should.
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BROWN: I’m positive issues may go lacking. Nicely, so what if it is the odd cabbage? I strongly consider that 99% of individuals are sincere. For those who belief folks, then they’re sincere with you, largely.
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MARK COUSINS: Very seldom are folks dishonest. I’d assume very seldom, I’d guess. We will not be too romantic or sentimental about this. You already know, in a metropolis like Glasgow, the most important metropolis in Scotland, there’s lots of poverty, lots of poverty, lots of social deprivation (ph) You possibly can not depart a field of cash sitting there as a result of individuals are going to take it ‘trigger they want cash to feed their children or to feed their drug habits or no matter.
My identify’s Mark Cousins. I am a filmmaker. I reside right here in Edinburgh. Once you go to the Western Isles the place you noticed these honesty containers, there is a much less excessive distinction between wealthy and poor and which means that only a few individuals are so determined for 5 kilos that they will take it out of your field. So I believe that is one of many sensible the reason why the cash is not nicked on a regular basis.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #3: Honesty field – you depend on folks’s honesty. You come to Gigha, you place your 15 kilos within the wee picket field, you signal within the e book to say, my identify’s John, and I’ve paid 15 kilos, after which go and play your golf and play as a lot or as little golf as you need, from first mild to final mild.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #4: John Bannatyne.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #3: He is up within the wheelhouse. He is on the wheelhouse.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #4: He is the person that appears after the golf course – he cuts the grass, dyes the greens, tidies all of it up. On his spare time, on his week off from the boat, that is what he does.
JOHN BANNATYNE: I am John Bannatyne. I am the secretary of Isle of Gigha Golf Membership. I am additionally the skipper of the ferry that goes from the Kintyre Peninsula. After I’m not driving the ferry and I’ve to get a while off, I volunteer on the wee nine-hole golf course on Gigha. We simply keep it up the custom of volunteering in order that the folks of Gigha have the chance to play golf.
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JAMES: Once you come to a spot like this in Scotland, there is no clubhouse as such. As you possibly can see, it is a shed, actually a backyard shed. They do not have the funds to employees a clubhouse. And a great deal of them have honesty containers, and it depends on folks simply placing their money in. And all people respects it, and it really works.
Out right here taking part in golf, appropriately – I am James. I am right here on the island of Gigha.
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SCOTT ELAND: Ah.
I am Scott Eland from Portland, Oregon. My objective is to play each golf course in Scotland, and I do not assume it is ever going to occur. We began on the farthest north that you may go. It was a one-way street for about an hour and a half, and no person was up there. No staffing, nothing, simply – it was nearly like a outdated bus cease. We put 5 kilos in a mailbox, and it is an honor deal, and then you definately go stroll 9 holes, and also you’re accomplished.
In Eire, we went to the farthest north golf course in Eire, and it was the very same factor, the respect golf. Every household on the town that performs golf is assigned a sure gap to mow and handle. And you may inform as a result of some holes had been higher than different ones. Some folks had a knack.
CHARLES COLIN MACLEOD CURRIE: My identify is Charles Colin Macleod Currie. My household have been on this space at Blackwaterfoot for over 300 years. My grandfather provided eggs. He additionally had a milk run down right here. He had a very battered outdated land rover. The doorways did not match. And after I was a wee boy, we might load up with milk and drive to the golf course first after which come alongside right here and ship milk to every of the homes.
Farming was a really laborious life. The honesty field would come about in the event you get surplus product and you’ll’t arrange a store. Folks would consider stealing as completely towards the lifestyle. And also you’re in a area people, so if stuff was being stolen, finally, anyone would discover out who was doing it, and you’d be utterly minimize adrift.
CATHERINE ANNE MACPHEE: My youthful sister, Holly (ph), simply opened up her first field, so it is vibrant pink. It is on the finish of my mother and father’ drive, and it says Holly’s field. She’s received a QR code on the door, and there’ll simply be a tin there to place the cash in. She’s promoting it on Fb. She’s additionally created its personal Instagram web page, as many others do, so you possibly can carry on prime each, like, what’s in that week. She’s been making muffins, jams, sticky toffee pudding, millionaire shortbreads – at all times fashionable by Scottish.
My identify’s Catherine Anne MacPhee (ph). I’m an archivist and activist within the Isle of Skye. Honesty containers appear to have boomed within the final 10 years in locations like Skye and different islands within the Hebrides. You see them in all places. Nicely, it is very nice to see one on the finish of the household dwelling.
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UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #5: Some folks may assume that honesty containers are from the previous, from a unique age, an easier age, a extra sincere age. However I’d say they are a future factor, as properly. For the reason that web and COVID, much more individuals are in a position to reside in rural communities, and these honesty containers are little embroidered edges to their lives.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #6: People are sincere. Most people are sincere. The truth that you are providing them one thing and trusting their honesty makes them much more sincere. I believe it is vital. Society will break down in the event you can’t belief the folks that you just’re in it with.
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DETROW: “The Honesty Packing containers Of Scotland” was produced by the Kitchen Sisters with Mark Buell and George Bull. It was blended by Jim McKee. You possibly can hear extra Kitchen Sister tales on their podcast, “The Kitchen Sisters Current.”
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