Bourne Diary - December 2002

Saturday 7th December 2002

In centuries past, there was a public official in Bourne known as the Inspector of Nuisances who was judged equally important in his role along with the Registrar of Marriages, the Medical Officer of Health and the Collector of Taxes. It was a much sought after appointment and one that commanded great prestige in the community because he had the power to bring those to book who made life miserable for others by their irresponsible and wayward conduct.

The suggestion that this office ought to be reinstated will appeal to many people, particularly those who are having problems with noisy neighbours, the type who play their hi-fi at full blast for the entire street to hear or wash their cars outside on Sunday mornings with the radio blaring out infernal music by boy bands, much to the annoyance of those trying to enjoy a weekend of peace and quiet.

A nuisance is a comprehensive term in law with many variations and it is difficult to determine what constitutes a public or common nuisance that could render the offender liable to criminal proceedings. Basically, a private nuisance affects a particular occupier of land, such as noise from a neighbour, while a public nuisance affects an indefinite number of the public, such as obstructing the highway. A hundred years ago, before wireless in the wrong hands had become so anti-social, there were other inconsiderations that could be reported to the town's Inspector of Nuisances. In those days, the matters he dealt with included such bizarre happenings as carrying on with offensive or dangerous trades and manufacturing, dumping rubbish on the roads, polluting a river, causing riotous crowds to assemble, keeping a disorderly house, holding gaming or betting sessions, exposing people to infectious diseases, eavesdropping on the neighbours and even leaving a corpse unburied. The cases reflected the times and if the inspector decided there was a case to answer, the person responsible would be ordered to abate the nuisance and might well have been arraigned before the local bench to explain his conduct to the magistrates. 

Those who have held this office in past times in Bourne include Frederick Vinter (1876) and Andrew Agnew (1907) and many others who have fulfilled their duties efficiently and without favour to ensure that people can enjoy life without unnecessary intrusions from individuals, businesses or public organisations. Today, we have no such arbitrary local official ready to stand up for those who feel aggrieved by the public nuisances of today. During Mr Agnew's tenure, the office was phased out and the inspector's duties eventually absorbed into the undertakings of Bourne Urban District Council that had been formed in 1899.

These matters are now in the hands of South Kesteven District Council which took over administrative affairs for Bourne under the local government re-organisation of 1974 and now comes under the umbrella of the environmental health department. But there is now a tendency to either ignore complaints or make the inquiry sufficiently protracted to dissuade the complainant from pursuing the case and this was how an example of intrusive audio bird scarers was dealt with in Bourne as recently as 1999, and so the culprits escaped without retribution. Nevertheless, the council still maintains a large staff in this department even though it cannot be depended upon to do anything for the individual who complains, certainly not about a rowdy Saturday night party or the noise from car radios on a Sunday morning.

This is where the town's Inspector of Nuisances could have stepped in with an effective solution, either on the spot or in court the following week. Not everything from the good old days deserved to survive but this is certainly one that does and might well have proved far more effective than the present system operated by the local authority which appears to reflect a climate of total inactivity, much to the detriment of the public it is intended to serve.

One of the lesser-known aspects of Bourne's history is the existence of the Hereward Camp, a collection of wooden huts on the edge of Bourne Wood in what is now Woodland Avenue, just off Beech Avenue. This institution existed during the early years of the last century and was in fact a Home Office approved school where wayward boys were sent to improve their conduct towards society, a lesser punishment than a Borstal but severe enough to warrant a strict daily routine on military lines. 

The boys sent here came mainly from deprived homes but soon adapted to a regime of vocational training and physical exercise and many took part in the town's activities, swimming at the outdoor pool and even joining the Home Guard during the Second World War of 1939-45, although they encountered a great deal of prejudice from a section of townspeople who regarded them as little more than criminals.

One of the part-time instructors was Charles Sharpe, a local man who had won the Victoria Cross during the First World War (1914-18), and who soon became a role model for many of the boys who admired his valiant deeds although he never talked about the events that won him Britain's most meritorious honour for brave conduct during enemy action. 

There were also others at the camp who influenced the boys in other ways and encouraged them to pursue the arts as part of their rehabilitation and one of their most popular subjects was music. A group known as the Collegians Concert Party, comprising both staff and inmates, was particularly active in the years before the Second World War and raised a considerable amount of money for charity with their concerts in Bourne, Stamford and other neighbouring towns.

One of the staff members of this versatile group was Leonard Hawke, baritone, who held the distinction of being the first artiste to be heard on the radio when daily broadcasts began in Britain. He had been associated with the stage since boyhood and took part in the first official broadcast from station 2LO, forerunner of the BBC, at Marconi House in the Strand, London, on 15th November 1922, when he was the opening artiste to appear on the programme and sang two songs, Drake Goes West and For You Alone.

"The conditions were vastly different from the efficiency of the BBC in later years", he remembered in 1939. "None of the artistes in the first broadcast were paid. We were all cramped in quite a small room, the temperature was hot, in spite of the time of year, and we all had to sit without our coats. The items were announced by a man called Stanton Jeffries into a microphone as big as a jam jar and then he had to dash over to the piano to play the accompaniments."

Mr Hawke subsequently broadcast eight times and in 1937 took part in the popular radio programme Scrapbook for 1922 when the early days of broadcasting were recalled.

By coincidence, I have received an email from Africa telling me that Charles Sharpe was injured during an opportunist attack by the Luftwaffe during the Second World War from 1939-45. A German plane returning home after a sortie over the Midlands dropped one of its remaining bombs in its direction, presumably mistaking the huts for a military camp, and although little damage was done, Sharpe was injured by a splinter from the explosion. This information comes from Colonel Paul Oldfield, an army officer on the General Staff and currently serving at Freetown in Sierra Leone, who is researching all of the Western Front VC winners of World War One for the past 13 years. His aim is to produce a guidebook to the sites where the crosses were won and which will include for each man, a detailed account of the VC action, biographical notes, a map and picture of the site and a photograph of the recipient. We have exchanged information on Sharpe and although I had a note of the bombing incident, I did not know that he had been injured and if anyone out there can add to this with dates or details, we would both be grateful.

The Hereward Camp closed in 1973 when the huts were dismantled during the Beech Avenue residential development but an illustrated history can be found on the CD-ROM A Portrait of Bourne together with a profile of our own local hero, Charles Sharpe (1889-1963) and a detailed report written by Colonel Oldfield of the action in which he won his VC during the Battle of Aubers Ridge near Rouges Bancs in France on 9th May 1915.

What the locals papers are saying: Home owners in Bourne will have received their latest copy of Lincolnshire County Council's 20-page newspaper County News, delivered to every address in the county and paid for by you and me through our council tax. The latest issue tells us that it reaches over one million readers but I know from experience that there is a resistance to reading publications issued by official organisations such as local councils and I wonder how many people even look at it before chucking it in the bin. One man who has been giving the newspaper a very close look is John Copeland who writes an acerbic weekly diary on the Internet (see Bourne Links) and I was interested to read his assessment, especially as he once worked for the council in a senior capacity before retiring. Here is what he said this week:

A fine example of appalling management and the wastage of scarce resources is the Lincolnshire County Council, whose self-congratulatory County News, Winter 2002, arrived with the newspaper yesterday, and which, regrettably, is going monthly from the start of the New Year, no expense to the council taxpayers being spared. A more worthless document, one that serves no purpose other than to emphasise how overstaffed the authority still is and how awful are so many of its councillors, would be difficult to imagine. If ever there was a good case for regional government, sweeping away all this nonsense, the County News certainly provides the evidence. This latest issue is full of new strategies that will never see the light of day; pilot schemes that will never get off the deck; seasonal campaigns that will grind into the mud; new partnerships for solving problems that will only issue glossy reports on expensive art paper, complete with a photograph of the chairman; revised targets that will have to be modified again later as being unrealistic; and pious priorities that will never be achieved. 

Take, for instance, the pie-in-the-sky statement of the council's priorities, which are: "Campaigning for investment in Lincolnshire's roads and infrastructure; building a network of strong, self-sufficient rural communities; securing safer, more confident communities; striving for excellence in education; working with others to provide better services to the public; and managing our resources in a businesslike way". You can just imagine one of the officers going home after work and replying when his wife asks him if he has had a nice day: "Not too bad, dear. I built a network of strong, self-sufficient rural communities south of Bardney, and made a start on securing a safer confident community at Little Snoring". It is a world of make-believe in which the council tax goes steadily up while the quality of the services goes down, many being withdrawn altogether. No doubt, though, the staff are all saying that they are terribly overworked and that the stress levels are becoming intolerable. As my old grandfather would have said: "Tell it to the marines, sonny boy!"

Santa's clarion call sounds forever nearer although Christmas is still three weeks away but the streets and shops are already full of jingle bells and festive cheer. But what was it like in times past, during the austerity years of the Second World War for instance, when food and clothing was rationed and fuel was scarce? It must have been particularly daunting for those who found themselves in a strange land, such as eight-year-old Christina Backman from Sweden, but she remembers these times with happiness and affection. Her delightful account of being an alien in Bourne at Christmas time sixty years ago is added today to Memories of Times Past.

Perhaps there are others out there who have similar reminiscences of Christmas past and if so, I will be pleased to hear from you and to add your memories to this popular feature.

Message from abroad: I log on regularly especially to see the beautiful photos week by week. I am an artist, so appreciate them immensely. I also look up the Bythams link, my ancestral area. You have done a marvellous job for Bourne through the years, a good work for posterity which is worthy of the accolades that come along. I'm sure you have derived great pleasure and satisfaction from your work. I am now 87 and have taught art to seniors for 20 years and have a very enthusiastic group of 16 oldies in the retirement village where I live, and know something of the pleasure and satisfaction that such work brings. I wish you a Happy Christmas and more progress next year. - Norman Mapperson, Wantirna, Victoria, Australia.

Message from home: Congratulations on a fantastic web site. It's a real pleasure to see someone so dedicated to their home town and a fantastic site compared to some of the terribly uninformative, content-lacking sites I usually come across. - Rob Davis, editor of the magazine Lincolnshire Pride.

Thought for the Week: Rich in history and blessed with a forward-looking council and lively townspeople, Bourne is among the most progressive small towns in Britain. - George Davies, divisional commercial manager of the East Midlands Gas Board in a speech at the annual civic dinner held in the Corn Exchange on Friday 19th May 1970.

Saturday 14^th December 2002

Work on restoring the row of four Victorian terraced houses in North Street is now well underway and they are even being offered for sale. Having seen the plans, the scheme appears to be totally in sympathy with the original designs and will enhance this part of the town. We do not yet know how much of the interior detail will be retained but the main thing is that the importance of these houses to our townscape has finally been accepted. 

This terrace was built circa 1880 by the Marquess of Exeter, Lord of the Manor of Bourne, as homes for artisans, and they were in continual occupation until bought for redevelopment in 2000. They were originally part of a longer row that extended further northwards along the roadside although the others were demolished in 1974 to make way for the town bus station and access to St Gilbert's Road. The houses are solidly built of red brick with roofs of blue slate in the urban style of the late 19th century with the distinctive bay windows of the period, chimney stacks and stone lintels over doors and windows still intact, together with a contemporary brick wall that serves as a frontage to the pavement. 

The Lindum Construction Group, who are carrying out the work, have now acquired the bungalow on the corner of North Street and Burghley Street and propose to remove it along with the old office building next door which will allow them build right to the corner, and they propose a house or flats to blend with the style of the existing terrace. The gap will be narrower and so allow a hollow square of houses in the former building yard and this appears to be in keeping with a well-designed development. The owners will no doubt build the maximum number of houses on the remaining land and so we can expect about ten new dwellings which will tidy up this corner of the town while the introduction of new residents here will be most welcome.

The recent award presented to the town cemetery for being so well kept is a reminder that this place has always been one of pride for Bourne. It was particularly so during the 19th century when its tidiness was entirely due to the dedication of the cemetery keeper John Peacock who worked there for 42 years. He lived in the cemetery lodge that was demolished circa 1960 and replaced by a modern bungalow, and he spent most of his time, officially and otherwise, keeping the place in trim and tending the graves which became his hobby as well as his work. 

Peacock died on 21st October 1922, aged 83, and is appropriately buried in the cemetery to which he devoted so many years of his life, with his wife Jane who died on 2nd November 1933. In the course of his duties, he organised more than 3,000 funerals and was therefore responsible for the bulk of the burials that took place there during the latter half of the 19th century. 

It was his habit, while digging and arranging graves ready for interment, to decorate them with flowers and foliage but he left instructions to his friends and family not to do the same for him because he desired a plain funeral, the actual spot of his own burial near to the southern boundary that was selected by himself shortly before he died. During his lifetime, it was his greatest joy to keep the cemetery spick and span and so it is today in the hands of a worthy successor, Peter Ellis, who was mainly responsible the for Cemetery of the Year award which was won in September and although there were no such prizes on offer in John Peacock's day, he was fond of describing his workplace as "one of the beauty spots of the locality".

What the local papers are saying: The Abbey Church at Bourne is in financial difficulties, according to a front page story in The Local which says that a deficiency of over £14,000 is looming in the budget for the coming year (December 13th). The shortfall is blamed directly on a lack of income because of poor support from parishioners who have a moral duty to help maintain this ancient building that was erected by our ancestors. The grey stone tower dominates the southern aspect of the town and visitors call here frequently to find a parish church that has been a bastion of faith in Bourne for almost 1,000 years and is now regarded as something more than a building devoted to Christian worship but also a place of sanctuary where anyone, irrespective of their beliefs, can go and sit in peace and quiet and enjoy a period of contemplation.

Our churches constitute the nation's greatest collective heritage of art, architecture and craftsmanship, but they are perpetually under threat either from neglect or a shortage of money. They are used when we need them, for baptisms, weddings and funerals, or for worship in times of national disaster or celebration, but we largely ignore them in between those occasions. It is therefore easy to forget our duty to help preserve them, either through our voluntary donations or perhaps by a compulsory levy such as that imposed in some European countries. The Abbey Church is our only Grade I listed building and has survived since the 12th century, perpetuating the age-old link between church and community, and it would be unthinkable that Bourne should ever be without it.

Money too dominates the front page of the Stamford Mercury which predicts that council tax payers are heading for a bill of £1,000 next year and yet services are still likely to be cut (December 13th). Bills for the average Band D properties demanding a four-figure sum are likely to land on the doormat in the spring as a result of under-funding by central government. The Mercury puts the situation quite simply: "In theory, the more councils get from the government, the less council tax bills will have to rise. But many councils feel that cash from the government is below what is needed and tough decisions will therefore be needed on the level of next year's council tax merely to sustain services."

This could push up some council tax bills in Bourne by £100, a devastating increase, especially when the government insists on claiming that inflation is currently running at 2.5%. It is at times like this that politicians should remember that their main role is to act as a buffer between government and the public and to warn when they are presented with proposals that are more than the people are either able or prepared to bear.

I have been listening to a voice from the past after being loaned a recording of Raymond Mays when he took part in the popular BBC radio programme Desert Island Discs more than 30 years ago. It was an eerie experience hearing someone now dead talking about their favourite music but as ever, Mays came over as a charming man, urbane, nostalgic, and totally dedicated to his lifestyle as an ex-racing car driver and builder of fast cars, but a boulevardier rather than a businessman, someone more at home in the dress circle at Drury Lane rather than sitting round the boardroom table running a company.

The programme was broadcast on 25th October 1969, with the famous Roy Plomley as the interviewer, and the music Mays chose reflected that period of his life in the twenties and thirties when he haunted stage doors and rubbed shoulders with the actors and actresses who trod the boards and gave so much delight to thousands in the musical comedies in which they performed. Those who captivated him on stage became his friends and came to stay for weekend parties at Eastgate House, his lifelong home, and until he died in 1980 at the age of 80, he never lost this love of the theatre that was reflected in his choice of eight records which he had selected to be with him were he ever to be cast away on a desert island.

Mays said that he was a musical person who once played the piano a little but now played records more and added: "I have made my choice to bring back so many sad and happy memories of many delightful times through the years." The records he chose were:

Roses of Picardy sung by the comedian Fred Emney. "It was a popular tune in its hey-day when I was a young man during and after the First World War and you would often hear it played in London in public and even by the band of my regiment, the Grenadier Guards."

Love will find a way from the stage show The Maid of the Mountains and sung by Jose Collins. "This means a lot to me. I first saw her in the show at Daly's Theatre with my parents when I was a schoolboy and I was captivated and in the years that followed, while at Cambridge and in the army, I saw it 84 times, always with Jose Collins, and she later became a very good friend. I was a terrific admirer of hers."

I love the moon played by Russ Conway, a song written for the musical comedy star Phyllis Dare. "I loved the tune and the words. Happy memories and Phyllis became a great personal friend."

Somewhere over the rainbow sung by Judy Garland. "This brings back a lot of sentimental memories for me. I liked it from the very moment I saw a very young Judy singing it in the film The Wizard of Oz and it impressed me forever."

I can give you the starlight sung by Mary Ellis from Ivor Novello's stage production of The Dancing Years. "I first went to see this show just before the war. I knew and admired Ivor Novello and often went to see it at Drury Lane. During the war my mother used to send Mary eggs because she couldn't get any. The producers would sometimes cut this particular number from the show but whenever I went to see it, I would send a little note round to the stage door to say that I was in the audience and would she sing it and she always did."

A stranger in paradise from the London stage production of Kismet sung by Richard Kiley and Doretta Morrow. "A beautiful song that I never tire of hearing. I love the melody and the words and it was played by orchestras around the world and if they did not, I always used to ask them to."

Tea for two from the show No, No, Nanette sung by Binnie Hale. "This always brings back fond memories of Binnie, a lovely person and a very good friend."

The Merry Widow Waltz from the London stage production of Franz Lehar's musical comedy and sung by June Bronhill. "My favourite composer and I was lucky enough to see him when I attended one of his opening nights at the Princes' Theatre. A wonderful experience and one that I have never forgotten."

Asked about his chances of survival on a desert island, Mays admitted that he had few of the necessary skills and would not be a practical man when it came to building a hut although he had some knowledge of fertilisers through the family business and could probably raise a few crops. He was not a brilliant swimmer or very good at fishing and so he would probably keep a weather eye open for a passing ship in the hope of being rescued. The book he chose to have with him, apart from the Bible and Shakespeare, would be about the theatre that would sustain his memories of the many happy times he spent there and so his selection was: Gaiety: Theatre of Enchantment by W McQueen Pope.

Castaways appearing on this show are allowed one luxury to which Mays replied: "I can't bear getting wet and so I would like an umbrella, a large blue umbrella, similar to that I used to take to the motor racing circuits around the world which was big enough to prop on the bonnet of a car to check the spark plugs when it was raining."

Message from abroad: Our home overlooks the Straits of Georgia and we can see the cruise ships coming and going to Alaska, not to mention the whales and seals out there in the water. At present, we have three deer in the garden, eating our trees and bushes. It is all so beautiful. - Christmas letter from former Bourne resident Heather Nash, Nanaimo, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, December 2002.

Thought for the Week: Police officers and special constables are being drafted into Bourne to ensure that the town centre is trouble free during the late night shopping event this evening. - news item from The Local, Friday 6th December 2002, when the current population is estimated at 13,000.

Permanent police strength in Bourne based at the county police station in North Street is one superintendent (Herbert Bailey), one inspector, two sergeants and 17 constables. - entry from Kelly's Directory of Lincolnshire, 1913, when the last population count for Bourne (1911) was 4,343 including six officials and 85 inmates of the workhouse.

Saturday 21^st December 2002

Charles Dickens appears to have given us our traditional Christmas for it is the word pictures which he painted in his novels during the 19th century that epitomise this festival today. The turkey, the tree, the conviviality of mulled wine and coaching inns, plum pudding and giving presents, all were part of this period, a Victorian family ideal that has imposed itself on our sub-conscious as the true meaning of Christmas while few give a thought to the real reason behind the celebration.

There are those who will say that this is a purely Christian festival to mark the birth of Jesus and of course, that does have a significance for those who believe, but we should remember that this time of the year has been a celebration for thousands of years, long before the myth of Bethlehem, the manger and the Magi, took popular hold, and was no doubt influenced by the Roman festival of the winter solstice, celebrated on December 25th as the turning point of the year when all things seemed to prepare for a fresh period of life and activity, although Celtic and Germanic tribes and the Norsemen had venerated this season from the earliest times and for their own reasons.

Many other ancient beliefs and customs about this period have been handed down to us and have crept into Christian usage. The lighting of the Yule log, for instance, celebrated today on confectionery and cakes, is an inheritance from Lithuanian mythology while the practice of decorating churches is pagan in its origin. The mistletoe so widely used for that purpose was the sacred plant of the druids and the custom of giving gifts to family and friends dates back to the time of the ancient Romans. The Christmas tree has its origins in the Roman saturnalia and was introduced into England from Germany during the reign of Queen Victoria while the story that Father Christmas or Santa Claus comes down the chimney and places gifts in children's stockings suspended by the fireplace has a parallel in practically every European country.

But the Christmas past described by Dickens, particularly in his novels The Pickwick Papers (1836-37) and A Christmas Carol (1843), are those that are closest to our hearts for they give us the warm glow of family and friends and fireside and even for those who do not believe, the carol service or midnight mass on Christmas Eve still have a place of affection in our lives for it conveys a potent feeling that this festival is a special one in the depths of winter and that apart from the merry-making, it is also a season of peace and goodwill. 

I have been looking at Christmas past here in Bourne and although it was invariably a time of great celebration, it was less protracted because holidays were shorter, people had less money to spend and the credit we have today was totally unknown. But the enjoyment that people had from the festival during the 19th century is evident, although the anticipation did not start quite so early and lasted no more than a few days and as this was the age of temperance, there was always someone ready to warn against the perils of drink with exhortations to sign the pledge promising to abstain from alcohol. 

Here is a sample of the way it was from the pages of the Stamford Mercury more than 100 years ago. The newspaper reported on Friday 23rd December 1887:

There is abundant energy being manifested in the seasonable decorations of the various business establishments at Bourne. The butchers have quite a fine show. Mr Mays [George Mays, butcher, Eastgate] has killed 300 sheep (two of which have been lately exhibited at the Smithfield Show, one weighing 211lb., the other 187lb.) and 9 beasts. Mr Williamson [Joseph Williamson, butcher, North Street] has on view one of the prize beasts at the Bourne show. Mr Mansfield [William Mansfield, butcher, Church Street] had a splendid show of fat stock on Tuesday, including Mr J Grummitt's [John Grummitt, farmer, North Fen] prize beast at Bourne show. The grocers' windows are tastefully adorned with appetising wares; and the milliners' and drapers' establishments also present an artistic appearance.

At the National Schoolroom in North Street, the vicar and churchwardens and members of various local charities made their annual distribution among the deserving poor, the gifts including 700 yards of flannel, 50 blankets, 700 yards of calico and 170 tons of coal.

Postal: On Monday (Bank Holiday) [Boxing Day having fallen on a Sunday], the money order and savings bank business will close at noon. There will be no morning despatch of letters and no delivery after the first at 7 am. The letter box will be closed on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve for all parts at 10.40 am; special mail letters and parcels for all parts at 6 pm; general despatch at 7.10 pm; for Sleaford and Folkingham at 8 pm.

On Monday and Tuesday, Mr Thomas Rosbottom, the celebrated Lancashire lecturer, addressed crowded meetings in the Victoria Hall, Bourne, in advocacy of temperance. The lectures were a great success, the audience being apparently entirely in sympathy with the lecturer, who interspersed anecdotes, humorous and pathetic, with his moving exhortations, in a manner quite irresistible. He claims that during his career as a lecturer he has induced thousands to sign the pledge.

The Christmas celebrations continued in the town for the next few days and the Mercury reported on December 30th:

Bourne Abbey was throughout adorned with seasonable decorations for Christmas. Though not so elaborately ornamental as in some previous years, the general effect was exceedingly pleasing. Over the communion table in white letters on a scarlet ground was the text "Emmanuel, God with us". The centre was occupied with a beautiful white cross. The miniature arches were filled with a pretty arrangement of evergreens interspersed with flowers. The reading desk was decorated with ivy and holly, the panels in front being ornamented with chrysanthemum crosses, the centre one of the St Cuthbert type. The pedestal of the lectern was gay with a choice selection of flowers and evergreens, a fine bunch of pampas grass being especially noticeable. 

Holly berries and ivy embellished the handsome pulpit. The sills of the windows in the south and south aisles were beatified with texts worked in white on a scarlet ground, and encircled with wreaths and evergreens. The font was decorated with exquisite taste; the cover was surmounted with a fine cross and chrysanthemums; the pedestal was encircled with ivy and a variety of evergreens prettily frosted. Great praise is due to the ladies who so admirably executed the decorations. The services were well attended. The sermons, morning and evening, were preached by the Rev H M Mansfield, Vicar, his texts being Isaiah ix.6, and the words Thy holy child Jesus. The musical portion of the service was executed with precision and taste, reflecting great credit on both organist and choir. 

The services were as follows:- At 8.30 am, full choral communion service, Agutter in G. During the administration of the Holy Communion the hymn The heavenly word proceeding forth was sung very softly by the choir. This formed a new and beautiful feature of the service. The morning service was fully choral, the hymn, Christians awake being sung as a processional. The anthem Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, concluding with a chorale, This is he whom seers in old time, which was finely rendered. The evening service was also fully choral. The processional hymn was Hark, the herald angels sing, the anthem was Behold I bring you glad tidings and the carols were The manager throne and All my heart once more rejoices. The Hallelujah chorus from The Messiah formed an appropriate conclusion to the day's services.

Christmas was ushered in at Bourne with merry peals of the bells of the old Abbey Church and the musical strains of the Bourne Brass Band who played carols and other appropriate pieces in an exceedingly creditable manner.

The Guardians of Bourne Union gave their annual treat to the inmates of the union-house [the workhouse] on Boxing Day. The seasonable additions to the usual plain fare were apparently highly appreciated. A thoroughly enjoyable day was suitably concluded with a merry evening entertainment.

A grand fancy fair [similar to our modern pantomimes] was held in the Corn Exchange on December 27th and 28th in aid of the funds of the Congregational Church. The room was fitted up as a street of nations or grand international bazaar. The scene was laid in Canton. The peculiar conglomeration of Oriental and European architecture was depicted with realistic effect. Proceeding down the left side of the street, the enterprising traveller passed in succession a Persian residence, an Indian cottage, a Chinese house, a delightful Japanese village, a Tyrolese chalet, a snug mountain home covered with snow and having icicles pendent from the roof, a magnificent Buddhist temple having its elaborate exterior embellished with representatives of the Oriental deity and dragons; the Japanese villa, "the Golden Lily"; a pretty view on the Yang-tse-Kiang. The last abode in the curious street was an Australian log hut. 

The entire series of buildings presented a charming appearance, and attested the well-known skill of Mr A Stubley [Alfred Stubley, painter, paperhanger, sign-writer and art decorator of 28 West Street]. The articles exhibited on the various stalls were both useful and ornamental. Various entertainments were given in the evenings. Vocal and instrumental music was performed at intervals. Amongst the amusements were The House that Jack Built and Æsop's fables personified, which were very popular. The promoters of the enterprise are to be congratulated on the success which has deservedly crowned their efforts.

A coveted blue plaque in now on display in Bourne to commemorate one of our famous sons. It is not, as many would presume, in memory of the motor racing pioneer Raymond Mays (1899-1980) but of Charles Worth, the founder of haute couture. The plaque can be seen on the front of Wake House in North Street where he was born in 1825 but he left the town as a boy to make his fortune as a dress designer in Paris where he created gowns for the world's rich and famous. When he died there in 1895, his reputation was so great that 2,000 people, including the President of the Republic, turned out for his funeral.

Blue plaques are the responsibility of English Heritage to draw attention to buildings of interest because of their associations with famous people, provided they have been dead for at least 20 years and (1) are regarded as eminent in their profession, (2) have made some important contribution to human welfare or happiness, (3) had such an outstanding personality that the well-informed passer-by immediately recognises the name, or (4) simply that they deserve recognition. Charles Worth has been adjudged as falling into one or more of these categories and has been so honoured, the first such distinction for Bourne, and so perhaps the time has come to change the name of this building to Worth House which would be more in keeping with its history.

Message from abroad: Raymond Mays who was mentioned last week, was a real gentleman. He always stopped and talked to us kids when he was out for his evening walk. I also remember another famous racer in Bourne, who, with the support of Raymond Mays, won the senior Manx Grand Prix in 1950 and was second, I believe, in Junior Manx Grand Prix the same year. He was Peter Romaine. I was only ten at the time, but I can still see his trophies standing in the front room window of his mother's house in the Austerby. - email from former Bourne resident Ted Middleton, Brandon, Manitoba, Canada, Sunday 15th December 2002.

We are taking a break for the Christmas holiday and so this is my last Diary of 2002. I began writing it on 28th November 1998 and there have been over 200 of them since, approaching half a million words in fact, or the length of four modern novels, commenting on life as I see it. Many local issues have been discussed here although my opinions have not always found favour with everyone but that is the way it is and will be in the coming year for free speech is one of the hallmarks of a democratic society. 

The web site remains open over the holiday and as 1st January 2003 is almost upon us, I will be posting a notice on the Forum suggesting that contributors might like to add any New Year resolutions they will be making or would like to see fulfilled in the coming twelve months. Such resolutions, we are told, are meant to be broken, but it might be an interesting exercise to discover some of the hopes and fears that are in our minds as the old year ends and the new one dawns.

Christmas greetings to everyone out there and may the New Year bring you all health and happiness. 

Thought for the Week: Among the letters of thanks received by the Board of Guardians which administers the Bourne Union [the workhouse] was one from an eleven-year-old boy inmate who wrote that all in the house had a happy Christmas and wished members of the board a bright New Year. He referred to the lovely toys which Santa Claus had brought them and added that the matron had said that if they were all good, they would have a New Year party. The letter was signed: "From one of the grateful little boys". The board members were highly pleased with the letter. - news report from the Stamford Mercury, Friday 12th January 1923.

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