The mess was so overcrowded that hammock-slinging space became the perks of the badgemen the “ jack-dusties” invariably slept in their store-rooms and offices.

They double park. They park next to fire hydrants. They ignore meters, rarely troubling to fish for coins in the cushions of their seats (not that their zlotys, crowns, and francs would do them any good.)

During the early 1970s however in a period of rapidly increasing house prices it came to appear unfavourable to buyers since it allowed the seller to ‘gazump’, that is to refuse to sign the formal contract unless the buyer would agree to an increased price.

The main street had the usual bank, hotel, moving-picture theater, and stores.