The villagers could no longer leave town to get food, so they would soak money in vinegar (which they believed killed the disease) and leave it in an impression on top of a large stone, known as the Coolstone (see below) or in a near by stream or well. Neighbouring villagers would drop off food and medicine by the stone for collection. Sometimes they would take the money, sometimes they would leave it.
People in the surrounding towns and villages were eager to help the inhabitants of Eyam for two main reasons: firstly they were grateful that the people of Eyam had decided to cordon themselves off and probably pitied them. Secondly, they knew that if the village ran out of food they would surely break the village line in search of lunch. So locals knew that if they didn’t feed them, it could be their town next.
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