Birch's money chute system

T Birch & Company is one of the oldest outfitting and tailoring businesses in South Africa and opened up in Port Elizabeth in 1860.  They expanded to Grahamstown in 1864 and has become the designers and official robe makers to most of the tertiary institutions as well as courts and churches in the country.  But that isn't why I took Chaos Boy to have a look at their historic building in Grahamstown.

I took him there to see their old  money chute and cable system with which money was sent from various spots in the shop to a central cashier in the past.  Although the system isn't in use anymore, its still in working order.

As I was explaining to Chaos Boy how the system worked, one of the shop assistants stood closer and asked him if he would like to see how it works.  Do birds have wings? I picked him up and he pulled the lever closest to us in the photo.  The front section pulls back to spring load before it shoots off along the cable to the central cashier point.  Just more proof that its always possible to find something interesting to show a child, doesn't matter where you go.