78-80 Brandon Street, Hamilton.
Mr Anderson T Donald. 1939.
Hamilton Licenceholder’s Device For Broaching Beer Barrels.
Has Many Advantages, He Claims.
A Hamilton Man who has been 30 years in the licensed Trade has invented a gadget the object of which is to simplify the broaching of beer barrels. He is Mr Anderson T Donald, who has a public house at 78-80 Brandon Street, Hamilton, and he claims that his device is easy to work, will prevent spilling and ensure that the beer is served in better condition than is possible under the methods usually employed at present.
Beer barrels are usually fitted with corks, says Mr Donald, and when a barrel is to be brought into use the usual method of broaching it is to remove the cork with the end of a tap which is jammed firmly into the barrel when the cork is displaced inwards. To do this, Mr Donald says, a rather heavy tap is usually used; inserting it requires a fair amount of strength; the presure in the barrel has usually to be reduced to prevent undue spilling; but, in spite of this, there usually is a certain amount of spilling. The present method is, in his opinion, specially unsuitable where barmaids have to undertake the task.
It is with a view to obviating these difficulties that Mr Donald has thought of another method.
His idea is that while the cask would still have its cork, the latter would be placed at the inner end of a metal bush- part of the barrel and fitted with a screw thread inside it. The tap would also have a thread on the outside of its barrel end.
When the end of the tap is placed in the bush all that is then required is screwing until the cork is displaced as before. This, says Mr Donald, does not require much strength; the presure of the barrel doed not need to be reduced; and not a drop need be spilt.
The innovation of his method, therefor are:- Barrels to be fitted with metal bushes as well as corks; and licence-holders to have in their possesion taps with screw threads to fit the bush. Both of these, he sys can be produced quite cheaply, and exising taps can also be altered to suit.
Beer Undisturbed And Ready For Use.
Another advantage he claims for his method is that as there is nho forcing, the bunghole never gets enlarged and the beer is left undisturbed and ready for use. the present method, he says, involves a certain amount of knack; whereas, with his idea, anyone temporary holiday employees, for example can easily broach a barrel.
“My method,” Mr Donald says has been tested with presure of 20 pounds to the aquare inch inside the cask, and there is absolutely no loss whatever. |It could he used in a drawing room and not a drop would be spilt.
While Mr Donald is thinking chiefly of the Licensed Trade, he also condiders that his idea would be suitable for barrels which contain liquids other than the alcoholic variety, oil, for example. He will be pleased to give demonstrations at any time.
A Native of Uddingston.
Mr Donald, who is a native of Uddingston first joined the Licensed Trade there about 30 years ago. After some time in Uddingston he came to Glasgow to enter the employment of Mr Thomas Brown who was a director of Messrs. John Haig & Co., Markinch. He remained in Mr Brown’s employment for four years, being manager and stocktaker for no less than 20 public houses. belonging to Mr Brown. The pubs were situated in different districts including Glasgow, Paisley, Motherwell, Cambuslang, Renton, Alexandria, Blantyre, Johnstone and Rutherglen.
Mr Donald’s next move was to take over the Central Bar in Rutherglen, the licence of which he held for two and a half years. Unfortunatly, he fell a victim of Local Veto and had to quit when the side of the street in which his pub was situated became dry.
He then moved to Glasgow as manager of the Ingram Restaurant in Queen Street. In 1921 he moved to Hamilton and has held the licence ever since. Mr Donald has various family connections with the licensed trade. Mr Anderson Turner, a brother of his mother, was manager at one time for Messrs Steel Coulson & Co’; the brewers. An uncle of his mother was also well known to the Trade as “Dandy Jimmy.”
Mr Donald gets his own Christian names from his granfather, Anderson Turner, who was in his day the Scottish champion ten-mile runner and was known as the “Scottish Deerfoot.”
