Which would pay more ?

[Peterjay123]

Do you think a woollen rag dealer would earn less than someone who ran a beer house in 1860 ?
I have an ancestor who moved from the latter to the former after the death of her husband. Does this indicate a definate downturn in fortunes do you think ?
Peter.

[Desperate Dan]

O K , I am guessing and I hope that this does not cut across a serious answer........but, I cannot think that many pub landlords would choose to go on to being a "Steptoe"

I reckon that it is a come down...

[Coromandel]

For an insight into the working lives and earnings of all manner of second-hand dealers, see Henry Mayhew's London Labour and the London Poor, Vol. II, 'The Street Folk' (first published 1861-2). You can read it on Google Books. Not a thing was wasted in those days: it puts our modern efforts at recycling to shame!

[Peterjay123]

Thanks guys, thought as much,
Peter.

[Guy Etchells]

Depends whether you are using the exact terms or not.
A person who ran a Beer House rather than a public house or an inn might not have made much at all.
A rag dealer as opposed to a rag collector could have been very wealthy.

If he owned a pub and changed to being a rag collector it was certainly a downturn in fortunes.
If hover he simply opened a room of his house and sold some beer to neighbours and friends then became a rag dealer or merchant it would almost certainly be a huge upturn in his fortune.
Cheers
Guy

[Peterjay123]

Thanks for that input Guy, The term is definitely rag dealer, and I'm not certain wether it was a beerhouse or 'proper' pub.
Peter