|
Saturday 5th October 2013
Public penitence seems to be in the air this week with the Mail on Sunday apologising “unreservedly” after a reporter intruded into a private memorial service for the uncle of the Labour leader, Ed Miliband, the latest saga in the spat between the two after an article appeared describing his father as someone who “hated Britain". Perhaps this is the way forward as a means of settling disputes at all levels because it would certainly save a lot of public time and expense. One of the objectives of our criminal justice system is to point the defendant towards the path of repentance and if remorse were more widespread today then fewer cases need come before the courts. Apologies proffered before a hearing no longer expiate the crime although they may reduce a sentence if the guilty are seen to be truly contrite. Two hundred years ago, there were occasions when someone accused of a crime could escape a hearing before the magistrates, thus saving the court’s time and a great deal of public money and such a case in Bourne in 1820 illustrates the method then adopted. William Mason, a yeoman or smallholder with land in the South Fen, found himself in trouble with the law after a violent assault on George Naylor, assistant sheriff’s officer, who was going about his lawful duties. The exact circumstances of the altercation are unknown but the encounter between the two led to the assault and Mason was subsequently informed that he would be prosecuted, a familiar scenario for those who have lost their temper and then regretted their action when it was too late. A conviction would almost certainly have led to a spell in jail, a particularly dismal prospect in those days, and so he offered his deepest regret to the officer and it was accepted on certain conditions. The result was the publication of a public apology by Mason which appeared in the Stamford Mercury on Friday 28th July stating: “A prosecution has been commenced against me for this offence which the prosecutor has agreed to discontinue on my consenting to testify in this public manner, my sorrow for having committed the offence aforesaid: now I do hereby engage to pay all expenses incurred in such prosecution and promise never to offend again in like manner; and further, I agree to pay the sum of £10 to be given to the High Sheriff for some charitable institution.” Ladies were not immune either from this form of public penance and the following year, a young woman made similar redress after admitting to writing a series of poison pen letters to several ladies she once worked with while an apprentice with Mrs Jemima Todd, a dressmaker, with premises in Bourne. One of the recipients, her daughter, Elizabeth, was so incensed with the contents that she had the handwriting analysed and on discovering the culprit, instituted proceedings against her. When faced with the evidence, the accused woman, Miss Elizabeth Thurlby, then working as a straw bonnet maker at Morton, admitted that she had written the letters but agreed to make a public apology and pay the costs provided the charges were withdrawn. So it was that a notice appeared in the Stamford Mercury on Friday 20th April 1821 headed “Pardon asked” and then stated: “I did write and circulate the letters for which I publicly ask forgiveness of all the said parties as they never directly or indirectly gave me any cause whatsoever for such malicious conduct which they have agreed to grant.” The injured parties in both cases were therefore appeased and the culprits duly punished and warned about their future conduct and in these circumstances it is doubtful if either would ever offend again. The first case is also interesting in that the £10 the culprit agreed to pay by way of compensation went to charity, a practice still used as a means of expressing regret without resort to the law and perhaps the public apology might also be usefully deployed today in certain cases to help reduce the work load in our courts of justice. From the archives – 86 years ago: At the police court in Bourne on Thursday, 22nd December, Richard Jackson, of Bourne, was summoned by Walter Palmer, of Bourne, for assault on December 9th, and there was a cross summons by Jackson. Mr Kelham appeared for Palmer and stated that the assault was committed after Jackson had been deprived of a whist drive prize in which some evidence of a wrong score had been given by Palmer. The alleged assault took place near to Palmer's home and consisted of a blow on the left eye, and Palmer's teeth being broken in three places. It was alleged that Jackson had threatened the M C at the whist drive. The magistrates ordered the parties to pay their own court costs and advised them to shake hands before they left the court and be friends. - news report from the Stamford Mercury, Friday 30th September 1927. During the Second World War, queuing became a way of life. Rationing and a general shortage of practically everything meant standing in line for most purchases and although this had its social benefits through gossip and making new friends it did try the patience although we bore it stoically because, as we were always being reminded, there was a war on and so sacrifices had to be made. Unfortunately, although that rationing which had begun in 1939 ended in 1954, queuing had become a habit and is therefore still with us. It has become part of the English way of life and nowhere is this old custom practiced more than in our supermarkets for although they have brought new ideas into mass retailing they have not yet grasped the fact that people dislike waiting. The reason for queuing today, however, is quite different to what it was seventy years ago because supplies of everything are now plentiful but we are experiencing a shortage of manpower because in their haste to maximise profits, supermarkets are unwilling to employ sufficient staff to keep the tills manned at all times. No one can complain when the aisles are completely full and every checkout occupied but these occasions are a rarity and perhaps restricted to the Christmas rush. But at normal times, when the stores are doing their usual daily business, after shopping for ten or twenty minutes you are likely to arrive at the checkout to find half of the positions closed and a crush of people waiting at those which are open. By far the worst offender is Tesco/Express, the garage forecourt outlet in North Road where the line of waiting customers frequently extends to the door while one cashier struggles to cope and only when she spots the ever lengthening queue does she ring the bell to summon help from other staff who have been stacking shelves elsewhere in the store. Admittedly, the situation here is exacerbated by the sale of petrol but surely a company with the retail experience of Tesco should know this and enforce remedial measures for the benefit of its customers. Sainsbury’s in Exeter Street comes a close second and although this is most people’s favourite supermarket, having been with us since 1999, we have yet to see all of the tills operating, even on the busiest of days such as Saturday mornings when we invariably face a long wait at the check-out, sometimes even having it closed just as we are about to unload our purchases as staff clock off for their shift, despite the waiting masses. Tesco, which opened in South Road in 2012 is slightly better although their original promise of no queuing lasted for only a few months and you may still have to wait when some of the check-outs remain closed. This must be deliberate policy by the store in exacting every minute of work they can from staff because the slightest lull at the tills means that they are moved elsewhere to work, even sent to stack shelves in slack periods. The perfect solution would be for customers to vote with their feet and go elsewhere but the problem seems to be universal and as our supermarkets do provide a superb service by offering practically everything we need and of the highest quality, we grin and bear it. But there are now so many complaints that they do need to go that extra mile and sort out this problem at the check-out because the money we spend there certainly justifies a speedier service. Oh, to be in England now that autumn’s there, to paraphrase Robert Browning, although it is another of our distinguished poets who gets undue exposure in this “season of mists and mellow fruitfulness”. As autumn advances, we can expect to hear that familiar line from his most famous lyric poem working overtime as it is used repeatedly in the media by writers and broadcast presenters who seem to have included it automatically and without thought. Every year it is the same with the result that this beautiful and descriptive metaphor has now become a cliché, a situation that is of particular importance in a week when we have been celebrating National Poetry Day (on Thursday 3rd October) and there will be many mentions before the season is out. The words are the first line of To Autumn written by John Keats (1795-1821) and here it is in its correct context in the first stanza from this famous ode:
Season
of mists and mellow fruitfulness, Keats wrote the poem on 19th September 1819 after enjoying a lovely autumn day and he described his experience in a letter to his friend John Hamilton Reynolds: "How beautiful the season is now. How fine the air. A temperate sharpness about it. Really, without joking, chaste weather. Dian skies. I never lik'd stubble fields so much as now. Aye better than the chilly green of the spring. Somehow a stubble plain looks warm in the same way that some pictures look warm. This struck me so much in my Sunday's walk that I composed upon it." It is obvious that his perceptions were at their most acute and shortly afterwards he was taken dangerously ill and died a few months later. The beautiful and subtle verse has been described as close to perfect as any shorter poem in the English Language and is acknowledged as the most anthologised, pored over by the purists and quoted interminably. This accounts for the popularity of the opening line which has been used so many times over the years as the summer closes but is now having such exposure as to devalue its real worth, trotted out by writers with no thought for its actual context but merely to fill a few seconds of reference to the changing season. My old editor always warned about using words that fall easily together and this has happened to this line from Keats that has become part of the lexicon of every writer and broadcaster with little inclination to either use their imagination or spend time in the library to find a new analogy or another writer, rather than grab repeatedly at the low hanging fruit. Popular is an acceptable description but hackneyed is hard to bear and so we must close our ears whenever we hear another reference coming on. Poor old Keats. He deserves better than this.
Thought
for the week:
Autumn
is a second spring when every leaf is a flower. Saturday 12th October 2013
Land for burials at the town cemetery in South Road is likely to be used up within the next five years and as the acquisition of additional acres would be too costly, alternative systems are now under investigation. As a result, representatives from the town council recently visited the Walsall Burial Park in Staffordshire to take a look at a space-saving design in which up to four coffins can be buried in one plot, a system which could extend the life of our own cemetery by up to ten years although government approval is first needed for the re-use of existing graves. Although this system has been hailed as innovative, the stacking of coffins on top of each other in the same plot is far from new and was, in fact, the very reason that the cemetery was opened in the first place. In past times, the traditional place for burials was the churchyard adjoining the Abbey Church but by the mid-19th century, there was no more space and some plots had been used two, three and even four times for interments with bodies stacked one upon the other and the only solution was to acquire more land. As a result, four acres were bought in 1854 for use as the new cemetery which opened the following year. In 1904, this was extended up to 5½ acres and in 1999 when land for further burial plots was exhausted, a further two acres were added beyond the brick wall and this is known today as the new cemetery. Since it opened, there have been an estimated 10,000 burials but as with many other local authorities in England, space is now running out and a solution is needed as a matter of urgency. Perhaps the time has come for housing developers to contribute towards the cost of additional acres through the planning gain which is imposed before new estates are sanctioned. After all, they are currently required to make substantial grants for the infrastructure such as new roads and schools, all of which benefit the living, yet the needs of the dead are ignored. Money from this quarter would soon solve the current problem. Furthermore, it is unlikely that a shared grave will find favour with many people, except perhaps married couples and close relatives, and so any decision on this will need careful consideration. But one fact that should not be ignored is the growing acceptance of cremation that has been steadily increasing since it was first introduced under the Cremation Act of 1902 which was passed to regulate the burial of ashes. This would seem to be a far more satisfactory solution to the current problem at the town cemetery yet the work currently underway by the Bourne Preservation Society to establish a columbarium in the old Victorian chapel of rest is being thwarted by those who should be helping solve the problem rather than create an obstruction. The society was formed in April 2008 to restore this stone building after the town council was prevented from pulling it down when a Grade II listing was granted by the government on the advice of English Heritage but progress has been slow and the road forward filled with obstacles, the latest being approval from the Diocese of Lincoln which is still awaited after almost two years, despite continual promptings from the society and the town council. The delays of office have been an iniquitous barrier to goodwill for centuries and even Shakespeare railed against them, but in this instance it is unforgivable that such valiant voluntary effort is being impeded in this manner. Burials are almost a daily occurrence in a town the size of Bourne and space must be made available, either through the acquisition of new land or the provision of amenities for an acceptable alternative system which the restored chapel would provide. The stacking of coffins in the existing cemetery described by The Local newspaper (October 4th) will not appeal to many people because the proposal carries with it an air of disrespect for the dead which is why the churchyard closed almost 160 years ago. Most of us are wary of strangers in life and would have no wish to lie next to them when dead. The solution therefore seems to be a little more land financed by our wealthy developers or an encouragement towards cremation or, better still, a combination of both which would enable the current annual rate of burials, thirty traditional graves in the cemetery and thirty cremation urns in the columbarium, to continue without interruption. One of the more disturbing episodes from English literature is the sale of a wife which is described in the 19th century novel The Mayor of Casterbridge, an incident which shocked and intrigued Victorian society. The eponymous hero Michael Henchard, then a humble journeyman hay trusser, is spurred on by alcohol when he auctions his wife and baby daughter to a sailor for five guineas but next day, when sober and full of remorse, it is too late to recover his family. Thomas Hardy wrote the book in 1886 as part of his Wessex novels set in a fictional rustic England but he is known to have drawn many characters and incidents from life and so there is all probability that the sale of a wife actually happened somewhere in the country at that time and may even have been reported by the local newspapers. The English custom of wife selling began in the late 17th century when divorce was a practical impossibility for all but the very wealthiest. The town crier or bellman was known to announce such events and after parading his wife with a halter around her neck, arm, or waist, often adorned with ribbons, a husband would publicly auction her to the highest bidder. Although the procedure had no basis in law and frequently resulted in prosecution, particularly from the mid-19th century onwards, the attitude of the authorities was confusing. At least one magistrate is on record as stating that he did not believe he had the right to prevent wife sales and there were cases of local Poor Law Commissioners forcing husbands to sell their wives, rather than having to maintain the family in workhouses. The custom of wife selling spread to Wales, Scotland, Australia and then to the United States before dying out in the early 20th century. It was not unknown in Lincolnshire and there is even evidence of a case here in Bourne some sixty or more years before Thomas Hardy’s fictional account but the incident so shocked the local newspaper that the editor refused to print it although he did publish sufficient information to establish that it did actually happen. The report was filed to the Stamford Mercury by their Bourne correspondent who claimed that the transaction took place on Saturday 29th April 1820 and the following Friday, May 5th, this report appeared in the newspaper: “The dealing parties are represented to be a native of Rippingale and a tradesman of Bourne: the scorn of every decent person will reprove them. As this is a case in which we are not hampered by the consideration due to an advertisement, and have therefore a full option, we shall decline publishing the disgusting particulars; and we shall embrace the opportunity of saying a few words for ourselves respecting some advertisements that have lately stained our columns. “In whatever comes to us as an announcement that is to be paid for, it is considered to be our duty to allow the utmost latitude to the public that is consistent with our own legal safety; and the use which is made of the privilege by some persons, should not lead others to conclude that we catch at scurrility for profit: we are sensible of the pollution which some matters give to our pages, and would gladly, if we could, avoid it. The situation of the conductor of a newspaper is always arduous and dangerous, and often painful.” The belief that a wife could be disposed of by means of a public sale was therefore well entrenched in folklore although the last known case in the county occurred in 1852 when the Stamford Mercury reported on Friday 2nd January: “Sale of a wife – a barbarous exhibition of this kind took place in Spalding market on Tuesday last. A notion prevalent amongst the ignorant, that by this means a husband gets rid of his liability to maintain a disagreeable partner.” No further details were given, indicating yet again the attitude of the newspaper and, indeed, the public at large. The foundation stone for the Town Hall which was laid to mark the start of construction almost 200 years ago can no longer be seen. It was no doubt inscribed with the date and the name of the man who officiated at the grand ceremony, the Marquess of Exeter on 30th April 1821, yet today it appears to have been hidden by structural changes to the building over the years. It is an important feature because the stone contains within it coins of the realm and a document describing the times in which it was laid together with a list of those who subscribed towards the cost of construction, a reminder that it was built by and for the people. A search for it around the base where it must be situated, most probably at the front, reveals just how much the building has been changed over the years and not always for the better. The modern extensions at the back were necessary to increase floor space in the last century but the red brick office block style of construction would be unlikely to be given planning permission today for a Grade II listed building of such merit and although it is tucked away from the town centre, a stone addition to blend with the original would have provided a more sympathetic treatment. The alterations at the front of the building which date from an earlier time are far worse because they have changed the appearance of the entire façade and it is the addition of a small office space in the north archway that has not only ruined the symmetry of the frontage but may also be responsible for hiding the foundation stone. Further damage to the original design has been done in the south passageway which leads to the new market where the stonework has again been completely hidden in places as windows and sills were introduced to create more light for staff in a burgeoning administration. These are unwelcome blemishes on architect Bryan Browning’s original building which was beautifully described by the Stamford Mercury soon after it was finished in October 1821 when the newspaper reported: "The new and elegant Town Hall is one of the greatest improvements ever made in a town. By the removal of the old building from the market place, and the erection of this new one in a better situation, Bourne is wonderfully altered; its appearance of closeness and heaviness is removed as if by the hand of a magician, and the town puts on the 'jaunty air' of a lively and prosperous place." This is now little more than a memory of past glory because today our Town Hall stands empty and unused and likely at any moment to be put up for sale to some speculator who will turn it into a nightclub or carpet warehouse. In the meantime, as day-to-day maintenance has been withdrawn, the building has already taken on an air of dereliction with windswept rubbish piling up in the alcoves, a symbol of past civic pride sacrificed on the bonfire of public services. History will record this abandonment as surely as it recorded its opening. Thought for the week: The Marquess of Exeter, Lord of the Manor of Bourne, left the town in his carriage and four amidst the hearty thanks and good wishes of all parties concerned and the blessings of the poor, who were through His Lordship's bounty regaled in the evening with ale distributed in the market place and bread delivered to each family the following day. Thus finished a gratifying ceremony which will not be easily erased from the recollection of those present. - news report from the Stamford Mercury, Friday 4th May 1821, following the laying of the foundation stone for the new Town Hall. Saturday 19th October 2013
The refurbishment of Wherry’s Lane is now running many months behind schedule. Work began in May 2012 when South Kesteven District Council indicated that it would be completed by the spring of this year although the area remains a building site and Burghley Street is frequently obstructed by construction vehicles and one-way traffic lights. There are those who will dismiss this delay as small beer when compared with almost ten years of obfuscation and frustration over the original town regeneration scheme, first mooted in 2001 at a cost of £27 million and finally scrapped in June 2010 without a single brick being laid, although then there was nothing to see of that ambitious venture whereas here we have a daily reminder that the work is not yet finished as promised. But then promises made and not kept is de rigeur for government at all levels and the public take it all in their stride, knowing that there is little they can do about it other than shrug their shoulders and hope for the best. The work, which has involved the demolition of the old masonic lodge and the refurbishment of the early 19th century grain warehouse which is being converted into fourteen flats with an arcade of seven shops, is now expected to be completed in the New Year, nine months later than expected, but the good news is that the delay will not add to the original cost quoted at £2.2 million. The council’s property development manager, Neil Cucksey, said this week: "We are behind where we would have liked to be at this stage, but despite what has been a great summer weather wise we were hampered at the start of the year between January and May when we had poor weather and freezing conditions. However, this delay has not increased the costs and we are still within budget. We are buoyed further by the fact that the four apartments within Wherry's Mill are sold subject to contract, we have active interest in all of the new build apartments to either buy or rent and six of the seven retail units have interest.” He added: “What is important to remember is that this development has preserved a historic landmark in the town for future generations and will provide high quality town centre living accommodation and purpose built retail units just off the main street, as well as a landscaped area primed for development at a later stage and an improved roadway. All of the properties will be complete by the end of this month with external works including landscaping and work on the road due to be completed in January." There is, however, another aspect of the Wherry’s Lane development that is infuriating the public and that is the continued closure of fourteen spaces in the adjoining public car park in Burghley Street that have been reserved for buyers of the flats now under construction. Motorists have been turning up daily to leave their vehicles only to find every space taken with this area marooned in their midst, unused and fenced off, and they have every right to be angry as they drive off on a fruitless search to find a space elsewhere, most probably heading for Stamford, Spalding or Peterborough to do their shopping and so deprive our own hard pressed traders of much needed business. These spaces have been enclosed by wire barriers since June, reserved as an inducement for the buyers of the warehouse flats, but none have yet been taken up and it seems to be a flagrant disregard for the town's current need not to have left them open for public use. It is not only motorists who have cause to be angry. We have mentioned before the arrival of the October Fair which has been held in this car park for the past 40 years but as predicted by this column some months ago, the annual event has been cancelled for this year and its future is now in doubt. The fair was due to arrive on Friday 25th October for three days but Roger Tuby, who runs the business with his son, also Roger, said this week that the outstanding building work and the loss of the car parking spaces had forced them to postpone the engagement. “It is our intention to be back as soon as possible and ideally before the end of the year but it is all up in the air at the moment”, he told The Local newspaper (October 18th). “Until the council has finished work I cannot say what will happen and we may have to look for another site.” All in all, the Wherry’s Lane development has not been a satisfactory undertaking for South Kesteven District Council. Work is almost a year behind schedule, it includes new shops that are being built when retail outlets are standing empty in the town centre and apartments for sale to private investment buyers when there are 4,000 names on the council housing waiting list, fourteen public car parking spaces have been forfeited in the Burghley Street car park at a time when demand from motorists is increasing and now Bourne has lost its traditional October Fair. Unfortunately, we cannot turn back the clock. One of Bourne’s old established businesses is up for sale. Jessie Bellamy, the men’s and ladies’ outfitters which has been trading from North Street for almost eighty years, has been put on the market as a going concern. The business was started by Mrs Jessie Simpson in 1937, using her maiden name of Bellamy and in partnership with her husband Stephen. Their original premises were on the east side of North Street, now demolished as part of the Burghley Arcade development which opened in 1989, where they sold mainly children and ladies’ clothing and knitting wools. In 1949, they moved across the road to No 23 North Street which is now occupied by the ladies’ clothing department but in 1975 expanded into the premises next door at No 21, now used for the sale of men’s clothing and hire wear and, until recently included a school wear department which provided a considerable service to the town. Their son Richard joined the business on leaving school at 15 and as soon as he could drive, took their trade into the surrounding countryside, making regular trips to villages such as Rippingale and Thurlby with goods in his car. The business prospered and soon Jessie Bellamy became one of the best known trading names in Bourne, a reputation that survives today. Stephen Simpson died in 1975, aged 66, and Jessie in 1989, aged 76, leaving Richard as sole proprietor but he now runs the business with his wife Judith and daughter Caroline by his first marriage as partners. There have been buildings on the site of the present shops since the mid-17th century but a modern frontage was added in 1949 which was greatly improved eight years ago to enhance the appearance of the premises while a stone plaque over one of them records the date of the earlier property as 1666. The freehold premises are substantial with an extensive frontage on North Street and apart from the retail shopping areas there is a flat above with car parking at the rear together with a garage, stores and office. The asking price is £450,000. Once the sale is complete, Richard, now 70, plans to retire. “After 55 years in the business I think I deserve a rest”, he said. The cemetery chapel is again under threat, this time from bureaucratic delays that are likely to be the cause of lasting damage to the Victorian building because the volunteers who offered to save it are anxious to proceed with their plans for restoration as soon as possible. They have a case and the current chapter of indecision over its future which last week prompted a public display of impatience with authority must be a grave deterrent to anyone who seeks to help with good causes in this town. The chapel has been at risk for the past decade with wind and weather taking its toll on the roof and fabric and in January 2007, the town council in whose care it has been entrusted since 1974, decided on the easy option by voting to pull it down and sell its ancient stones for scrap. Their proposal reached the ears of English Heritage who sent an inspector to Bourne to take a look and as a result, the chapel was listed Grade II by the Department of Media Culture and Sport on April 4th as being of architectural interest to protect it from demolition and so this proposed act of official vandalism was foiled at the last moment. Conservationists joined a Save our Chapel group to protect it for the future, forming the Bourne Preservation Society in March 2008, and the following month they handed a dossier to the town council outlining their plans for the building’s restoration. There was originally opposition to their initiative but by 2010 the council had become supportive of the idea although now there are problems with the Diocese of Lincoln whose officers have refused to lift a covenant on the building restricting its future use, a necessary requirement before the society can go ahead. Since then, progress has been slow with little being achieved and after two years a decision is still awaited despite continual promptings from the society and the town council, and exasperation among society members finally surfaced at their meeting last week when they decided that enough was enough. Members have now given the town council six months to sort out the problem and if the issue is not resolved by next April then they will break off negotiations. “It is time for us to move on and look at other buildings”, said Jack Slater, the chairman, in an interview with The Local newspaper (October 11th). “We cannot hang on forever and so we have made this ultimatum. We would not want to walk away from it completely but if we can proceed without conditions then we would be prepared to resume our role.” The current saga over the chapel began in 2001 when funeral services ended and the building closed after being declared structurally unsound although cemetery staff continued to use it as a maintenance workshop and store which was agreed under the existing covenant but the diocese is now reluctant to allow any change of use which may not be within the orbit of the church. Other possible uses currently under review by the town council and the society are as shops, financial and professional services, a restaurant and café, business offices, storage and distribution, a hotel or even a house, while non-residential uses such as a clinic, day centre or gallery, have also been given as a possibility. All of these suggested roles need to be included in the options appraisal to embrace the wider population and therefore assist in fund raising opportunities but the society has not lost sight of its original intention to reopen the chapel and perhaps convert it for use as a columbarium, a particularly important role at this time when space at the cemetery is fast running out and cremations urns and memorial plaques would take up less space than traditional burials. But none of these issues can be resolved while the current impasse continues and the town council now plans to write to the diocese again in the hope of moving the scheme forward and so prevent any withdrawal of support. If a favourable decision is not forthcoming, we may expect the chapel to continue on its downward slide. It was built in 1855 as an integral part of the cemetery, receiving favourable mentions in 2002 and again in 2006 when it won Cemetery of the Year awards. Urgent maintenance work is carried out periodically but the major restoration envisaged by the society is now long overdue if this building is to survive for the future. Delay will mean further and lasting damage with the onset of each winter while a valuable property remains empty and unused and it is incumbent on those in office with the power of authority to ensure that this unsatisfactory situation does not continue. Thought for the week: These old buildings do not belong to us only, they belong to our forefathers and they will belong to our descendants unless we play them false. They are not in any sense our own property to do with as we like with them. We are only trustees for those that come after us. - William Morris (1834-96), English architect, designer, artist, writer and socialist associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and the English Arts and Crafts Movement. Saturday 26th October 2013
Bonfire Night will be celebrated with great enthusiasm in Bourne next weekend although it is unlikely that we will see the unruly behaviour that was manifest in past times. During the 19th century, this annual event frequently developed into civil disturbances due to a belief that Guy Fawkes and his friends met at the Red Hall to hatch the Gunpowder Plot to blow up King James I and the Houses of Parliament, a suggestion still repeated in some guide books and magazine articles. The mistake arose because one of the leading conspirators, Sir Everard Digby, was thought to have owned the Red Hall and the story persisted until sixty years ago when it was totally discredited by Mrs Joan Varley, archivist to Lincolnshire Archives Committee, after studying parish registers and deeds of the hall, and so the popular theory was well and truly laid to rest. When the conspirators met in 1605, the Red Hall had hardly been completed and so this version of events would have been impossible. It has also been established that Sir Everard Digby, although one of the great landowners in the Midlands, had no connections with Bourne and lived at Stoke Dry, Uppingham, Rutland. But over a century later, the building did pass into the hands of a Digby family who owned and inhabited the Red Hall from then until about a century later and this fact appears to have been the cause of some wishful deduction that Sir Everard was a direct ancestor of the Digbys of Bourne which was certainly not the case. After an exhaustive search through the archives, Mrs Varley published her findings in April 1964, with some reluctance it would seem, because she said at the time: “I am sorry in a way that I have robbed Bourne of its best known legend but I was merely trying to get at the truth. It is very easy for incorrect statements to get into local town guides. Stories grow up about places, following generations believe they are true and eventually they are accepted as fact. They are written into books and other authors do not take the time to check and revise them.” Nevertheless, this became one of the reasons why Bonfire Night had had special significance in Bourne and riotous behaviour and criminal damage became an annual event on every Fifth of November. In 1855, for instance, a fire was started in the market place by a gang of men who had been drinking in the Nag’s Head, accompanied by a crowd of noisy boys egging them on, letting off fireworks and burning an effigy of Guy Fawkes. There were many arrests and five people were sent to prison for 21 days. More alarming incidents occurred twenty years later when the authorities became seriously concerned that matters were getting out of hand. In 1873, there was uproar in the streets on the night of Wednesday 5th November accompanied by the discharge of fireworks and even pistol shots. Several fires were also lighted in various parts of the town and on Thursday 20th November, three summonses were heard before the magistrates at the town hall when each defendant was fined £1 plus costs. The accused men remained defiant and that evening, a pony and cart containing an effigy of the Superintendent of Police, Stephen Pidgeon, headed by a drum and fife band, was paraded through the town and burned in a field off North Road. A large number of people joined in and although there was a great deal of commotion caused by the procession, the demonstration passed off without the need for police intervention. The worst riot of this kind was in 1877 when 40 men and youths were arraigned on charges relating to disturbances in Bourne and the surrounding villages, their main enjoyment being the rolling of lighted tar barrels down the street, a popular although illegal method of celebration at that time, and of starting bonfires on the highway. Other offences included assaulting the police, firing guns, discharging fireworks and causing a general commotion to the annoyance of the public. Among those who were concerned about these events was Superintendent Willerton Brown who had just been appointed head of the police force in Bourne and was determined to put an end to these annual disruptions that were causing so much distress to law abiding citizens. His position was one of authority and respect in those days when police strength in the town was one superintendent, an inspector, two sergeants and 15 constables, and he also had the support of the magistrates. The riots of 1877 gave him an added determination and he introduced a hard line policy that paid off the following year when he drafted in reinforcements from other police stations and there were no incidents as a result. Superintendent Brown therefore succeeded in bringing the tar barrel tradition in Bourne to an end, much to the relief of the residents and shopkeepers, and although there were sporadic outbreaks in later years, the occasions never reached the alarming levels of earlier times. Disturbances of this magnitude are now unknown, mainly because the use of fireworks is now generally confined to organised demonstrations held under strict supervision and this would seem to be the perfect solution for the celebration of this annual event. One of the best known citizens in Bourne, Jack Wand, has died at the age of 88. He was a kind and friendly man who had been associated with the town and district for over sixty years and could even be credited with introducing television to hundreds of homes when the medium was in its infancy, working long hours to fit aerials and install sets. Indeed, it was his dedication to the task that earned him an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List in 1999 for services to the electronics industry. John Holliday Wand was born at Rippingale in 1925 and a childhood disability instilled in him an urge to succeed. He left school at thirteen, worked as a baker’s assistant and then became interested in electricity and radio, a passion that won him an apprenticeship with Edward Pearce and Company at their shop in North Street where he was soon learning to repair receivers and charge the accumulators needed to power them. He took over the amplifier rental side of the business, always willing to work long hours if the equipment was needed for an evening dance or weekend garden fete and in 1947 he visited the Radio Olympia exhibition in London, then the shop window for the industry and displaying the latest trends and innovations and promoting the new television sets that were just coming on to the market. This was a life changing experience and in 1948 he left Edward Pearce to set up on his own and with his £15 in savings, built workshop premises in the back garden with lengths of wood and sections of zinc sheeting purchased from Bourne market and although little more than a shed, it was perfect for his needs. In 1950, he began to assemble a television set from scratch, believed to be the first in Lincolnshire, an idea so new that no one knew where he could buy the necessary licence to view it. He had discovered a circuit diagram in a magazine and then purchased the individual parts which he put together slowly and with care ready for the initial switch on. The picture was pale green and black but it was a start. Jack opened his first shop at Billingborough in 1960, selling hardware and electrical appliances as well as radio and television sets which were now becoming popular and in 1971, he rented the former ironmonger’s premises in North Street, Bourne, for a similar purpose, eventually purchasing the property and the one next door and soon it became a thriving family business that at some time must have supplied every home in Bourne with a television or radio set, an electric kettle, iron, oven or refrigerator. Yet he still found time to raise a family and to help and entertain numerous gatherings of senior citizens over the years at the keyboard of his electronic organ which he played at many functions for old people, notably the annual Christmas parties at the Digby Court retirement home and Stanton Close sheltered housing complex. He and his wife, Jessie, retired to live in Maple Gardens and in his final years, he became a familiar figure in the town where he could be seen most days, usually in the Burghley Arcade where he and his friends, many of them in disabled cars and scooters, gathered to chat about the weather and old times, always ready with a cheery wave to anyone who passed by for Jack had become very much a part of Bourne. He died on Saturday 12th October, at home as he had wished, but his legacy remains. J H Wand continues in business in North Street, now managed by his son Trevor who also runs Town and Country electrical services, while son John is head of Roadphone Ltd and son Paul has his own business, Paul’s Aerial Solutions, all influenced by the enterprise and enthusiasm of their hard-working father. The cancellation of the October Fair is a reminder of an ancient tradition enjoyed by this town from the earliest times. For the past forty years, the swings and roundabouts have been erected at the Burghley Street car park but because work has fallen behind on the refurbishment of Wherry’s Lane nearby there is a shortage of space this year resulting in the event being called off and its future is now in doubt. The fairs sprang from the weekly markets held under a royal charter granted to the Lord of the Manor of Bourne, Baldwin Wake, by King Edward I in 1279. The original charter document, dated two years later, is now in the British Museum giving permission for a market to be held on a Saturday and this tradition continues today although a Thursday market was later added and this has become the more popular of the two. Most of the English fairs have their origins in Norman times but may even have been held much earlier, going back to the days of the Roman occupation and the name itself, fair, is derived from the Latin feria meaning a holiday. They have also been coupled with the annual statute fairs for the hiring of servants which were also held here, although this was not strictly a fair but was derived from the mediaeval Statutes of Labourers of which the first was enacted in the reign of Edward III (1327-1377) when there was a shortage of agricultural workers. These fairs sprang from the entertainments and amusements provided by itinerant showmen and performers who flocked here to delight the crowds attracted by the markets and the hiring of servants. It is likely that Bourne had only one fair a year in the Middle Ages but eventually there were three, held on March 7th, May 6th and October 29th. Towards the end of the 18th century, both the fairs and markets appear to have fallen into disuse but the building of the new Town Hall in 1821 coupled with a growing expansion of the town, brought with them a new civic pride and the Marquess of Exeter, Lord of the Manor of Bourne, inspired a group of farmers and landowners to revive the tradition which was resumed in 1824. The market rights which he held were sold to the old Bourne Urban District Council in 1961 and passed to the present holder, South Kesteven District Council, in 1974 as a result of the re-organisation of local government. In modern times, the fairs have gradually diminished along with the markets and all have died out in Bourne except for the October Fair which clings precariously to the age-old tradition but as this latest decision indicates, is unlikely to survive for much longer into the 21st century. Thought for the week: It takes an endless amount of history to make even a little tradition. - Henry James (1843-1916), distinguished America-born novelist who spent much of his life in England and became a British subject shortly before his death. Return to Monthly entries |
