deciphering.....

Post by **Jean Jeanie** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 9:40 am

I go with pensioner

Jean

angel · Post by **angel** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 5:54 pm

Hello

Here is a bigger section to look at. To me the 1st few letters look like 'penun' and yes I was in bed when all you good folks were struggling to decipher.

Mathanks for your imput so far.

http://talkingscot.com/gallery/displayi ... p?pos=-472

Heather

Gallery URL revised - AndrewP

Post by **paddyscar** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 7:43 pm

Hi Angel:

My first thought was powermate/man, but that might only fit, if this was a more recent census.

Looking at it again, could it be permanent royal navy. If he were at sea during the census, would this have been a way of indicating that?

Just a thought,

Frances

angel · Post by **angel** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 7:57 pm

Hello Frances

He was on the Dover in 1820 when he married and is missing from the 1841 census.

Heather

LesleyB · Post by **LesleyB** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 8:46 pm

Even odder now - the enumerator appears to form quite round "o"s - they are not flattened. I can't see an "o" in the mystery word. (as much as I would like to!

)

Also, the only example on the page of a single lowercase "s" in a word is at the end of "Engineers" down the bottom of the page. Coming at the end of a word, this may not be the typical way he would form an "s" if it was in the middle of a word. However, I note that when he has a double S to write, as in Dressmaker & Caithness he forms the second of these two letters in quite an odd way which does seem to be similar to a letter shape in the mystery word.

Also, the letter "r" at the end of a word seems to finish on the horizontal as in "Major" when there are following words, or in a downwards direction as in "scholar" or "Labourer", "Cooper" when that is the final word. I can't see a horizontal "r" as would be expected, but then its difficult to see at all what is going on at the end of the word 'cos of that squiggle.

All in all, I'm none the wiser....

Best wishes
Lesley

Russell · Post by **Russell** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 9:30 pm

I think Frances may be right.

Permanent looks better than 'pensioner'
Using Irfanview bringing it up to about 400% takes the squiggly mark out of the equation a bit.
I think that it would be almost impossible to read even without the squiggle.
Letter definition is almost non-existent.
Write your final guess on a piece of paper then we'll hold a ballot on it!
I think thats as close as we're going to get.

Russell

JimM · Post by **JimM** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 12:27 am

k

I think that the word in brackets is connected to the job of sailor and not the person ..... does that make sense?

Look further down and you will see the Stoker with words in brackets to show that he's a "Steam Boat" Stoker.... as apposed to just any-old Stoker

Could it be something to do with power?
Jim