Chim Chim Cher-ee

Chim chiminey

Chim chiminey

Chim chim cher-ee!

A sweep is as lucky

As lucky can be

Chim chiminey

Chim chiminey

Chim chim cher-oo!

Good luck will rub off when

I shake 'ands with you

Or blow me a kiss

And that's lucky too [...] 

 
An article in today's La Côte discusses a local family of chimney sweeps (ramoneurs) which brought to mind the song sung by Dick Van Dyke as "Bert," the fun, agile, cheery and melodic chimney sweep pirouetting over the London rooftops with Julie Andrews in Walt Disney's "Mary Poppins."  There is a great photo with the story.  Dressed in their tophats and traditional black clothing, the father and his two sons look cheery enough to be Bert's companions, even though pirouetting over rooftops is hardly the Swiss style.
 

 
The father got a taste for climbing rooftops while accompanying his own father who was a carpenter (charpentier).  So when it was time for him to begin an apprenticeship, the profession of chimney sweep was a natural choice.  His older son initially began his career as a carpenter, but had difficulty finding work whenever there was a crisis in the construction industry.  So he became a chimney sweep and is now an independent contractor in Geneva.  The younger son, even as a child, preferred following his father on his rounds rather than staying home with his mother.  He now has his own business in Coppet.

The occupation of chimney sweep is considered to be one of the oldest in the world.  Even today they maintain a "thriving industry" in many parts of the world.  The profession has expanded from the maintenance of wood-burning systems to include venting for many types of heating and appliance systems.  An interesting historical footnote is that in 1937, Heinrich Himmler revised the chimney-sweep law in Nazi Germany.  His rules tied the sweeps to their districts and decreed that they needed to be German.  Part of the law gave sweeps the power to enter houses without permission or court order in order to check chimneys.  Himmler was not simply xenophobic.  There was method to his madness.  He saw this as an opportunity to use chimney sweeps as spies.

Apart from this limited sinister use during a very dark era, chimney sweeps have generally been considered signs of good luck in many cultures, especially when they are seen in traditional clothing.  They are favored ornaments at Christmas time and marzipan versions can be found in the local sweet shops (confiseries) around New Year.

Chimney sweeping where buildings have fireplaces is required by law in Switzerland.  Depending on the fireplace use, sweeps clean chimneys from one to three times a year.  According to today's article, the Vaud Chimney-Sweep Association (l'Association vaudoise des maîtres-ramoneurs) has thirty members and the prices here are standard.  In German-speaking Switzerland, the market is more flexible and prices vary accordingly.

[...] Chim chiminey

Chim chiminey

Chim chim cher-ee!

When you're with a sweep

You're in glad company

No where is there

A more 'appier crew

Than them wot sings

"Chim chim cher-ee

Chim cher-oo!"

On the chim chiminey

Chim chim cher-ee

Chim cher-oo!