There were only two kinds of ointment so you can see our treatment was very basic.
I suffered a lot with toothache and put up with it most of the time as we couldn’t afford the dentist’s fees. The only alternative was from Dr. Rutherford, who was the school doctor, who practised from the clinic which was only a corrugated iron building at the bottom end of Wallsend near the swimming baths and fire station. He was well named “butcher Rutherford” for his harsh treatment. Small complaints were handled by nurses, of whom Miss Maddison was my favourite. I was treated there for eczema. Nurse used to use some ointment from a big 7 lb stone jar. There were only two kinds of ointment, so you see our treatment was very basic. I was given some in a small cardboard box to use at home till the next visit. It took a long time to get better.