In comes the doctor

In comes the doctor, in comes the nurse, in comes the lady with the alligator purse. So the children's rhyme goes. Once upon a time, before the National Health Service, doctors wore a top hat and tails for their home visits. My own grandfather was an Edwardian doctor in Salford and lived long enough to be part of the NHS. When I was younger I often had conversations with people at bus stops and in shop queues who recognised me as one of the family and remembered him with fondness. I have been told that he introduced free school milk in Salford. When this doctor's case and other medical paraphernalia was donated to the Old House Museum, I often wondered how much of it would have been familiar to him.