| Rushlights Rushes grow on wet marshy ground. Poor people used rushlights. They picked the rushes in the summer to make into rushlights for the dark winter evenings. |
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| After picking the rushes were soaked in a nearby stream to make them soft. | |
| Then they were peeled. A sharp finger nail was used to cut up the side of the rush and the white pith in the centre was pulled out. | |
| Fat was melted in a greasepan near the fire. Bacon, beef or mutton fat was used. Then the peeled rushes were pulled through the melted fat. |
| The rushes were gripped
in a special rush light holder. They could give only a weak light and they did not take
long to burn to the end - perhaps lasting just long enough to get ready for bed! Rushlights could be lit at both ends to give more light. But they would then burn up much more quickly. |
