Vaporisings of a Locoman

‘Vaporisings of a Locoman’ is a wonderfully entertaining, varied and beautifully observed memoir by ‘Buffer Beam’ (Frank Leonard Button) of his life early in the twentieth century. Yes, much of Frank’s life was spent working on the railways, but this memoir takes the reader into many of the nooks and byways of a life well lived by an observant and deeply and cheerfully witty man. For example…

‘Our boss was a chemist-cum-farmer, who had bought this half-derelict farm, situated on the lonely Essex marshes, out of the proceeds of a dubious remedy he had been selling through the agency of the cheap periodicals of the day. This was advertised and subtly worded as to cure all ‘female irregularities’ at 1/1 ½ per box, post free, and was sent out from a small chemist’s shop in the East End of London.

The only irregularity it cured was the vendor’s bank balance.’

Welcome to Buffer Beam’s world!