[Band of Hope was a temperance organisation]

In autumn, winter and spring we attended at the Garfield Band of Hope, at the little chapel. The meeting commenced at seven, but we would be waiting at 6.30 for the caretaker to open the doors [.]

[…]

Once the meeting commenced, we settled to sing a hymn, listen to a very brief prayer, sing another hymn, generally of a bright and narrative nature, and then be entertained. […] A really outstanding occasion was when a “majjiklant’n” [magic lantern] was to be on; an extra big audience would turn up on those nights, swelled by ‘kids’ who were not of the temperance Band, like us. The lantern operator would show us pictures on the screen [of the dire effects of drinking alcohol] […] but – and this was the crowning delight, and what we’d waited for all evening, wriggling in joyous anticipation—a multi-pointed star that moved, yes, went round and round and round. Everyone burst into spontaneous applause, and further, musical honours, to “Twinkle, twinkle, little star”, the whole first verse repeated ad lib as long as the star was there. And then home, to describe the almost undescribable, a picture that really moved!