John W. Webster, of Lincoln Grove, Harwood, was reminded by the recent charter celebrations of a story relating to Viscount Leverhulme which he was told more than 40 years ago.

"It was at the time that my wife and I purchased our first chemist's shop, which was at the bottom of Chorley Old Road; soon afterwards I was made aware of a small wholesale company trading almost across the road, in Park Hill Street.

"I soon got to know the owner, Mr Albert Fletcher, and found it very convenient to buy goods in small quantities on a Cash and Carry basis. Mr Fletcher was a fascinating character and had a wealth of stories.

"On one occasion, he mentioned that, as a young boy, he attended the Sunday School at St George's Road Congregational Church and, on quite a number of times, William Lever, the future Lord Leverhulme, came to teach the children and tell them stories. It was one of these that stuck in Albert's mind for the rest of his life.

"It was about a new salesman who had been employed by Lever Bros. to cover the highlands of Scotland and, on one day when the wind was blowing a gale and rain was pouring down, the enthusiastic young man fought his way through the terrible conditions and made his final call to a little shop way off the beaten track in a tiny village set among the hills. The shopkeeper was astonished to see him and confessed that he was the only person who had crossed the threshold all day.

"After sharing a cup of tea, the lady placed an order for a small quantity of all the goods that she had been offered. She said she had been so impressed, that was the least she could do.

"It was the custom of Mr Lever to check personally all the orders that had been obtained, not surprising considering that he himself was a born salesman.

"He was amazed when he perused the orders placed with Angus Watson, especially that which he had received from the lady in the wee shop in the Scottish highlands.

"Needless to say, he asked that Angus be called to head office, where Mr Lever was delighted with what he saw. He offered Angus a high-powered job and, eventually, the likeable Scot became Sales Manager.

"From then onwards, things went well but, sadly, Angus became a workaholic and this caused him to have a breakdown in health.

"This alarmed Mr Lever who promptly sent him on holiday to Norway to recuperate. It was while there that Angus had a brilliant idea.

"He was up early in the morning and he was watching the fishermen landing their catch, he noticed that many of the smaller fish were discarded and thrown into the water. He enquired from a fisherman why this should be so and he was told that there was no sale for such small fish.

"On returning home, he mentioned this to his employer and suggested that he should build a canning factory and sell the unwanted fish.

"Mr Lever did not agree, but Angus was so sure of the viability of the scheme that he decided to leave Lever Bros. and start a business on his own account. The name was Skipper Sardines and, just as Angus had predicted, the business became a huge success.

"Strangely, the two men who still were good friends, did not meet for some time and, as Mr Lever told the children, who had become fascinated by the story, it was by chance that he met his protege, Mr Watson, on Leeds station.

"Soon they were in animated conversation and it concluded with Mr Lever asking his former salesman to come back to Levers. Angus asked what would happen to his canning company.

"Well, the great man said, he would buy it, and that was agreed with a handshake before each of them caught a train to their respective destinations.

"I found it such an incredible story that I put it at the back of my mind. And then I decided to read a biography, written by W P Jolly, of Lord Leverhulme who, incidentally, died the year that I was born in 1925. And, would you believe it, on page 221 it mentions the "large food company which had been owned by Angus Watson, an old friend and ex-employee, who had done well in business on his own account, with

Skipper Sardines his most famous product.

"So the story that William Lever told to his enthralled listeners on a Sunday afternoon in a Bolton church in the early 1900s, and related to me over 50 years later, gave some insight as to the kind of man Lord Leverhulme was.

"A credit to the town he loved and an inspiration to many, both young and old alike, including the late Albert Fletcher without whom I would never have known this story".