The sounds of the city have changed haven't they? I remember the sounds of the dray horses in the mornings on the cobble stones. The horses would have been from Pickfords or the railway line and there was a short cut otherwise they would have to dip down under the bridge. Poor old horse, they were big shire horses but they would have to dip under Bute Street bridge where the Golden Cross is now, so if they had a heavy load they would come around past our house. I can remember the sounds of their hooves hitting the cobbles and as they were getting up speed their hooves would throw up sparks. The guy would be sat at the top with big heavy-duty oilskins in the bad whether and the rest of the time they would wear waistcoats with a collar and tie. They used to have these big aprons for hauling stuff around. They were replaced by lorries at the end of the 50's and with them went the sounds they made and their droppings. If they did droppings we would run out with a bucket for the tomatoes.