1874

 A HISTORY OF FEATHERSTONE 

 1874

A WATER SUPPLY?

  A public meeting was held in February at the Junction Hotel with Mr D Longstaff in the chair to consider a proposal of the Wakefield Waterworks Company to supply the district with water. It was said the sanitary condition of the district was shocking, nearly the whole of the water courses being stagnant and the smell most offensive. Most of the wells were dry, and those who had a well with water in it had no difficulty in selling the water at up to 3d a can.

  Directors from the company attended the meeting to explain their scheme, and it was decided unanimously to support the company's proposal which would be presented to Parliament. 

DRAINAGE FOR SOUTH FEATHERSTONE?

  During an August case at the West Riding Court in Pontefract brought by the Pontefract Board of Guardians, the Bench remarked although their attention had been repeatedly directed to the fearful sanitary condition of South Featherstone, and the open water course (the Went Beck) being very objectionable, they (the Guardians) had not done anything about it. 

  Mr Fewster, the Guardians nuisance inspector, was told to report the sentiments they had expressed. Mr W A Glover, deputy clerk to the Guardians, then turned up and said they were pushing forward the works necessary for the proper drainage of Featherstone and Purston, and a sanitary engineer had been appointed to advise upon and carry out a scheme of drainage. However the Local Government Board had to approve, and he produced a letter from that Board saying because of pressure of other work it would take a while to give attention to the matter. The Bench said they were glad to find the Guardians were moving in the matter.

MORE TROUBLE AT THE MAIN

  Edward Hughes, checkweighman at Featherstone Main Colliery, was charged with inciting the colliers to strike on  September 12. Under the Coal Mines Regulations Act of 1872 a checkweighman could be appointed by the men to ensure they were not defrauded in the quantity of coal obtained by them. He must not interfere with or impede the working of the mine, and if the company could prove he had interfered he could be summonsed and an order made for his removal from his position.

  Earnest Andrew said he went in the pit at 6.15am on Saturday morning and was told the colliers were not at work. As a consequence the loss to the company was between £30 and £40. He went to see Edward Hughes on the Monday morning when the men were back at work and asked him why he had stopped the men from working.

  Hughes said he had not. The men had asked him if there were enough empty wagons and he had said no, and they would have to stack the coal. Andrew said there were 69 empty wagons though none suited for hard coal. Between 80 and 90 were needed each day. He normally chalked "play tomorrow" on the weigh house door if necessary, which was the usual practice.

  The defence was Edward Hughes had been asked a question by the men who paid him, and as their servant he answered them. As this was a gathering half a mile from the pit he was not a checkweighman at that time and therefore was not impeding the working of the pit under the Act.

  The Bench came to the unanimous conclusion Hughes had very much exceeded his duty, and he used his influence to prevent the men from going to work. They were quite agreed he ought to be removed from his present position at the pit.

  The 123 employees who had not turned up for work were charged with breach of contract and the company asked for five shillings compensation from each man. After a great deal of argument by both sides, the Bench said there was apparently only a misunderstanding between the masters and men; there was no ill-feeling on either side. It was finally agreed the men would go to work, the masters being allowed to stack what coal they could not sell. The men would pay the court costs of £52 12s and the masters would drop the compensation claim.
  The regular supply of empty wagons such as those below was a recurring problem. (See the March item below.) The photo is a postcard.

 

1874 NEWS ITEMS

JANUARY  It was recommended to the Board of Guardians the existing vaccination stations in Featherstone should be closed, or transferred to the vaccinator's residence at Purston. The Purston station should be kept open for three or four weeks each quarter.

  The Revd Thomas Hinde, Vicar of Featherstone, died aged 88.

  Henry Gledhill, a grocer of Featherstone, applied to the Petty Sessions for a pawnbroker's licence. His request was granted. The photo of Gledhill's pawnshop in Station Lane is from the Tony Lumb Collection.

     

FEBRUARY  Thomas Jackson was charged with sleeping in an outhouse in Featherstone. PC Robinson found him and he claimed he was a collier from Barnsley seeking work. He was committed to prison as a rogue and vagabond for a month.

MARCH  Ernest Andrew was summonsed for neglecting to find sufficient work for Michael Beaumont of Purston and John Copley of Featherstone. They had both previously been summonsed for leaving their work at Featherstone Main Colliery without proper notice and had been ordered to return. They now claimed the company had failed to employ them full-time because for four days the pit had "flushed" ie was idle because there were no empty wagons to be filled.

  For the defence it was said there was no agreement to find the men constant work, and it was a rule in all collieries when the wagons were full a flush be announced. There had been such a flush on the days named. The Bench, after considerable consultation, stated they thought that as the complainants had always been employed when the other hands had been getting coal they must dismiss the summons. There were many representatives of coal firms to hear this test case.

APRIL  There were three nominations for the Featherstone seat on the Board of Guardians. Mr Wilson was elected with 101 votes, Mr Fearnley got 73 and Mr Barratt 22.

  The Elementary Education Act was passed in 1870. It provided for the education of children between the ages of 5 and 12, but it was not free or compulsory. The Education Department sent a circular to all districts to find out what accommodation was already available. The return for Featherstone was:

     Featherstone National School          163 accommodated

     South Featherstone Infants School    74

     Purston National School                   152

  The Department decided no additional accommodation was required for the Featherstone district.

  Joseph Hambleton was fined £15 including costs for an aggravated assault on a neighbour, Ann Jolly age 69. She was unconscious for over a day and had been in great danger of her life.

JUNE  Thomas Woodforth, a farmer and publican, was summonsed for neglecting to have his son vaccinated. In his defence it was said the child was not in a fit state to undergo this operation, and the case was dismissed.

  John Waller, a farmer, was also summonsed on a similar charge. He said he called on Dr Buncle two weeks ago and he said he had no "matter". The child had since been vaccinated.

  Mr Glover applied for a magistrate's certificate for the renewal of his licence as a pawnbroker at Featherstone. His application was granted.

JULY  Ann Irving was charged by John Wood with stealing 6½ pounds of beef from his shop in Featherstone. She came into his shop but did not buy anything, and as she went out he noticed something peculiar about her shawl. He followed her to the Junction Inn where PC15 found the meat on her. The prisoner said she had four children at home who were crying for food or she would never have done it. Although crying "mercy, mercy" she was sentenced to fourteen days hard labour.

SEPTEMBER  Thomas Galway was charged by Ernest Andrew with having a pipe in his possession down Featherstone Main Colliery. Mr Andrew said only safety lamps were used by about 350 men. Smoking had been indulged in (by some men) in the pit, but it was difficult to get at the guilty parties. He had fined three men per week on average for the past seven weeks and now considered it necessary to bring the offenders to court.

  The Bench said several serious explosions had occurred in this pit, attended with the loss of many lives, and the practice complained of was extremely dangerous. To make an example Galway was committed to Wakefield Jail for a month with hard labour.
  (Note: The magistrate was almost certainly misquoted here. He was probably referring to explosions at other mines such as Oaks Colliery, Barnsley, where 334 miners died in 1866.)  

 OCTOBER  Three Featherstone men were charged with racing near a public road in an indecent state. For the defence it was said they were wearing running drawers. The case was dismissed on the men promising not to do it again since they probably did not know they were doing wrong.

NOVEMBER  Abram Allott was charged with burglary at the Bradley Arms. He had been drinking there one evening and was found after closing time by PC Edson trying to force his body between the iron bars of the cellar window, minus his boots and cap. When he was asked by the policeman what he was doing Allott replied he knew that well enough. PC Edson went to rouse the landlord and Allott took the opportunity to pick up his boots and run off. The officer quickly caught him and locked him up.

  Allott told the court he was desirous of surreptitiously paying court to a servant girl and he sought to enter by the cellar for that purpose. The jury found him not guilty.