IOO YEARS AGO THIS WEEK 22 - 28 JANUARY 1924
This week's stories include the one-eyed coal miner's compensation payment, the Sunday afternoon raid on a banana warehouse, the plans are passed for the new Globe Hotel in Hardshaw Street, why Rainford was proving to be an excellent place to live, the effects of the national railway strike on St Helens commuters and the miner that shot himself in the heart because of a row over furniture.
If there was one day of the week when boys got up to mischief it was definitely Sunday when there was very little for them to do. They weren't allowed to play football or other games in the parks or streets or go to the cinema or any other place of entertainment. And so inevitably lads in groups would be tempted to vandalise, commit minor thefts or other acts that we would call anti-social behaviour.
It was not until 1930 that a children's playground was created in what we call Queen's Park and I'm not entirely certain if it was open on Sundays. The amusements proved so popular that the neighbours complained bitterly about the noise of the kids enjoying themselves! But back in 1924 there was, as they say, nowt, which led on the 22nd of this week to two unidentified brothers living in Market Street appearing in St Helens Juvenile Court.
They and other boys had broken into a banana warehouse on a Sunday afternoon and stolen a few items that totalled just £1. The police subsequently recovered the goods and found a note with the older brother's name on it. He had a police record and was remanded but the charge against his brother was withdrawn.
A meeting of the council's Health Committee was also held on the 22nd when plans for the new Globe Hotel in Hardshaw Street were approved. The existing pub was on the corner of Barrow Street and Ormskirk Street (pictured above) but was being knocked down as part of the scheme to widen the corner at the top of Bridge Street. That was a congested spot and other nearby properties were also going to be demolished. Another scheme was also planned to widen the corner of Baldwin Street, Cotham Street and Westfield Street, which involved the demolition and rebuilding of the Sefton Arms.
There were many hidden pregnancies and secret births by unmarried women in St Helens. Ignorance of how to care for their new-born infant without any maternal or professional support could lead to death. Then the problem was what to do with the child's body if the female was frightened of reporting the matter to the authorities, perhaps also fearing what their parents would say.
Some girls or young women disposed of their baby's body in the canal or in a graveyard or some other such place – which must have been a traumatic experience for them. Recently a new-born had been discarded in Sutton and on the 22nd an inquest took place on the remains of another child found dumped at the rear of Silkstone Street.
Dr Reid gave evidence that he had conducted a post-mortem but found no evidence to show that the child had what was described as a "legal separate existence" – having been born alive, in other words. If that had been the case the mother, if traced, could have been charged with death by neglect or worse. As it was the Coroner returned a verdict of stillborn on the poor mite.
There'd been three Acts of Parliament since 1880 that provided compensation to injured workers and the widows of those killed at work. But employers did what they could to minimise payments and few claimants received lump sumps. In the case of someone injured at their job they were usually paid so much a week in lieu of lost wages.
But what they received was always a lot less than their usual wage and it often stopped or was reduced when the employee returned to work. And in most cases when they went back they were temporarily (and sometimes permanently) placed on light duties that paid them much less than their old job. So compensation would rarely fully compensate them for their lost earnings through injury.
On the 23rd John Ackers from Boundary Road appeared in St Helens County Court to seek a continuance of his compensation payments. In June 1917 the coal miner had lost his sight in his right eye in an accident down Ashtons Green Colliery in Parr (pictured above) where he had worked for over twenty years. Compensation at the rate of half his weekly wage was agreed and for a while he also worked at the pit as a labourer.
In March 1922 Ackers was deemed able to return to his old job as a miner (aka hewer on the coalface) and from that time he received an extra £1 a week in his pay packet. But after eight months that compensation payment was reduced to – would you believe – just a penny a week. And Mr Ackers had now gone to court to ask the judge to order the colliery to resume paying him the full pound.
But they said the £1 payments upon his return to work had been a mistake and an under-manager called Pimblett told the court they had at least six one-eyed miners in their pit who could earn just as much as those with two eyes. And so Mr Ackers' request was denied but at least he did not appear to have been asked to pay back the paltry £1 payments made in error.
Rainford was still proving to be an excellent place to live. The village's Medical Officer revealed this week that only one person had died in December – and he had been eighty! Eight babies had been born and all had so far survived. There had been two cases of pneumonia, one of diphtheria and many influenza cases in Rainford – but, again, no one had died.
On the 24th a fancy dress carnival and whist drive was held in St Helens Town Hall in aid of Holy Cross Church with over 600 people in attendance. They must have needed lots of those little round tables as 230 of the attendees played whist. One of the judges of the fancy dress was a member of the Ten Loonies that were currently performing their brand of madhouse musicianship and comedy at the Hippodrome.
This week a national railway strike was causing problems for commuters in St Helens, although some trains did run as only one of the two trade unions was taking part. The St Helens Reporter sent a man to the Central Station, where the police station and County Court buildings now stand. He wrote:
"There was an unwonted air of desolation hanging around the platform and station of the Great Central, St. Helens, when I made a call there about mid-day. There were not the usual earsplitting whistles from the trains as they entered and left the station, for there were no trains to be seen moving at all." The stationmaster was asked how the public was feeling about the strike and he replied: "Oh, of course, the travelling public are getting it in the neck, but so far as goods are concerned we still have plenty of coal in the yard."
The Reporter described how the evening concerts that were taking place on Sundays at Gartons Lane school in Sutton Manor were proving a great success. One who had attended the most recent event had said: "The evening was dark and wet and very inviting for those already at home to stay there; but once the concert fever is abroad there is no staying at home for some of us, especially if there is something good to draw us out."
The NSPCC had an office at Croppers Hill in St Helens and this week reported that during December they had dealt with 19 new cases of neglect and abuse concerning a total of 56 children.
Many soldiers brought guns back from France as souvenirs of their military service. The government – in the light of the Bolshevik revolution in Russia and troubles in Ireland – was so concerned about the possibility of an armed rebellion in Britain that a new Firearms Act was brought in. Gun possession was now taken more seriously, although people of good character could legally own weapons by registering them with the police.
Charles Ray of Robins Lane in Sutton had brought a revolver back home as a war souvenir and when the new Act came in he had done the right thing and obtained a police certificate. However, safe storage of the weapon does not appear to have been considered important, as this week Ray's brother-in-law, Philip Gavin, managed to get hold of the gun to kill himself.
The inquest on the 29-year-old was held on the 26th and heard that the miner had not worked for three weeks through illness and there'd been a dispute in the family over the possession of some furniture through his sister getting married. Those worries were thought to have contributed to his decision to shoot himself in the heart, although Charles Ray, the brother-in-law, said he did not know how Philip had obtained the ammunition.
Many people then had few possessions with furniture being highly prized. The coroner at Philip's inquest said that the family argument over ownership of the furniture was the most common type of dispute and it was a pity that the man had been so unwell that it had led to him taking his life.
And finally, on the 28th William Glover died. He was a member of the Glover family that had run a wire rope works in St Helens since 1818 and he'd been a founder member of St Helens Golf Club.
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the Parr woman who threatened to put a bread knife through her neighbour's gizzard, the Sunday mischief at Hardshaw Brook, the boy that slept in a midden and the improvements to Boundary Road baths.
If there was one day of the week when boys got up to mischief it was definitely Sunday when there was very little for them to do. They weren't allowed to play football or other games in the parks or streets or go to the cinema or any other place of entertainment. And so inevitably lads in groups would be tempted to vandalise, commit minor thefts or other acts that we would call anti-social behaviour.
It was not until 1930 that a children's playground was created in what we call Queen's Park and I'm not entirely certain if it was open on Sundays. The amusements proved so popular that the neighbours complained bitterly about the noise of the kids enjoying themselves! But back in 1924 there was, as they say, nowt, which led on the 22nd of this week to two unidentified brothers living in Market Street appearing in St Helens Juvenile Court.
They and other boys had broken into a banana warehouse on a Sunday afternoon and stolen a few items that totalled just £1. The police subsequently recovered the goods and found a note with the older brother's name on it. He had a police record and was remanded but the charge against his brother was withdrawn.
There were many hidden pregnancies and secret births by unmarried women in St Helens. Ignorance of how to care for their new-born infant without any maternal or professional support could lead to death. Then the problem was what to do with the child's body if the female was frightened of reporting the matter to the authorities, perhaps also fearing what their parents would say.
Some girls or young women disposed of their baby's body in the canal or in a graveyard or some other such place – which must have been a traumatic experience for them. Recently a new-born had been discarded in Sutton and on the 22nd an inquest took place on the remains of another child found dumped at the rear of Silkstone Street.
Dr Reid gave evidence that he had conducted a post-mortem but found no evidence to show that the child had what was described as a "legal separate existence" – having been born alive, in other words. If that had been the case the mother, if traced, could have been charged with death by neglect or worse. As it was the Coroner returned a verdict of stillborn on the poor mite.
There'd been three Acts of Parliament since 1880 that provided compensation to injured workers and the widows of those killed at work. But employers did what they could to minimise payments and few claimants received lump sumps. In the case of someone injured at their job they were usually paid so much a week in lieu of lost wages.
But what they received was always a lot less than their usual wage and it often stopped or was reduced when the employee returned to work. And in most cases when they went back they were temporarily (and sometimes permanently) placed on light duties that paid them much less than their old job. So compensation would rarely fully compensate them for their lost earnings through injury.
In March 1922 Ackers was deemed able to return to his old job as a miner (aka hewer on the coalface) and from that time he received an extra £1 a week in his pay packet. But after eight months that compensation payment was reduced to – would you believe – just a penny a week. And Mr Ackers had now gone to court to ask the judge to order the colliery to resume paying him the full pound.
But they said the £1 payments upon his return to work had been a mistake and an under-manager called Pimblett told the court they had at least six one-eyed miners in their pit who could earn just as much as those with two eyes. And so Mr Ackers' request was denied but at least he did not appear to have been asked to pay back the paltry £1 payments made in error.
Rainford was still proving to be an excellent place to live. The village's Medical Officer revealed this week that only one person had died in December – and he had been eighty! Eight babies had been born and all had so far survived. There had been two cases of pneumonia, one of diphtheria and many influenza cases in Rainford – but, again, no one had died.
On the 24th a fancy dress carnival and whist drive was held in St Helens Town Hall in aid of Holy Cross Church with over 600 people in attendance. They must have needed lots of those little round tables as 230 of the attendees played whist. One of the judges of the fancy dress was a member of the Ten Loonies that were currently performing their brand of madhouse musicianship and comedy at the Hippodrome.
This week a national railway strike was causing problems for commuters in St Helens, although some trains did run as only one of the two trade unions was taking part. The St Helens Reporter sent a man to the Central Station, where the police station and County Court buildings now stand. He wrote:
"There was an unwonted air of desolation hanging around the platform and station of the Great Central, St. Helens, when I made a call there about mid-day. There were not the usual earsplitting whistles from the trains as they entered and left the station, for there were no trains to be seen moving at all." The stationmaster was asked how the public was feeling about the strike and he replied: "Oh, of course, the travelling public are getting it in the neck, but so far as goods are concerned we still have plenty of coal in the yard."
The Reporter described how the evening concerts that were taking place on Sundays at Gartons Lane school in Sutton Manor were proving a great success. One who had attended the most recent event had said: "The evening was dark and wet and very inviting for those already at home to stay there; but once the concert fever is abroad there is no staying at home for some of us, especially if there is something good to draw us out."
The NSPCC had an office at Croppers Hill in St Helens and this week reported that during December they had dealt with 19 new cases of neglect and abuse concerning a total of 56 children.
Many soldiers brought guns back from France as souvenirs of their military service. The government – in the light of the Bolshevik revolution in Russia and troubles in Ireland – was so concerned about the possibility of an armed rebellion in Britain that a new Firearms Act was brought in. Gun possession was now taken more seriously, although people of good character could legally own weapons by registering them with the police.
Charles Ray of Robins Lane in Sutton had brought a revolver back home as a war souvenir and when the new Act came in he had done the right thing and obtained a police certificate. However, safe storage of the weapon does not appear to have been considered important, as this week Ray's brother-in-law, Philip Gavin, managed to get hold of the gun to kill himself.
The inquest on the 29-year-old was held on the 26th and heard that the miner had not worked for three weeks through illness and there'd been a dispute in the family over the possession of some furniture through his sister getting married. Those worries were thought to have contributed to his decision to shoot himself in the heart, although Charles Ray, the brother-in-law, said he did not know how Philip had obtained the ammunition.
Many people then had few possessions with furniture being highly prized. The coroner at Philip's inquest said that the family argument over ownership of the furniture was the most common type of dispute and it was a pity that the man had been so unwell that it had led to him taking his life.
And finally, on the 28th William Glover died. He was a member of the Glover family that had run a wire rope works in St Helens since 1818 and he'd been a founder member of St Helens Golf Club.
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the Parr woman who threatened to put a bread knife through her neighbour's gizzard, the Sunday mischief at Hardshaw Brook, the boy that slept in a midden and the improvements to Boundary Road baths.
This week's stories include the one-eyed coal miner's compensation payment, the Sunday afternoon raid on a banana warehouse, the plans are passed for the new Globe Hotel in Hardshaw Street, why Rainford was proving to be an excellent place to live, the effects of the national railway strike on St Helens commuters and the miner that shot himself in the heart because of a row over furniture.
If there was one day of the week when boys got up to mischief it was definitely Sunday when there was very little for them to do.
They weren't allowed to play football or other games in the parks or streets or go to the cinema or any other place of entertainment.
And so inevitably lads in groups would be tempted to vandalise, commit minor thefts or other acts that we would call anti-social behaviour.
It was not until 1930 that a children's playground was created in what we call Queen's Park and I'm not entirely certain if it was open on Sundays.
The amusements proved so popular that the neighbours complained bitterly about the noise of the kids enjoying themselves!
But back in 1924 there was, as they say, nowt, which led on the 22nd of this week to two unidentified brothers living in Market Street appearing in St Helens Juvenile Court.
They and other boys had broken into a banana warehouse on a Sunday afternoon and stolen a few items that totalled just £1.
The police subsequently recovered the goods and found a note with the older brother's name on it.
He had a police record and was remanded but the charge against his brother was withdrawn.
A meeting of the council's Health Committee was also held on the 22nd when plans for the new Globe Hotel in Hardshaw Street were approved.
The existing pub was on the corner of Barrow Street and Ormskirk Street (pictured above) but was being knocked down as part of the scheme to widen the corner at the top of Bridge Street.
That was a congested spot and other nearby properties were also going to be demolished.
Another scheme was also planned to widen the corner of Baldwin Street, Cotham Street and Westfield Street, which involved the demolition and rebuilding of the Sefton Arms.
There were many hidden pregnancies and secret births by unmarried women in St Helens.
Ignorance of how to care for their new-born infant without any maternal or professional support could lead to death.
Then the problem was what to do with the child's body if the female was frightened of reporting the matter to the authorities, perhaps also fearing what their parents would say.
Some girls or young women disposed of their baby's body in the canal or in a graveyard or some other such place – which must have been a traumatic experience for them.
Recently a new-born had been discarded in Sutton and on the 22nd an inquest took place on the remains of another child found dumped at the rear of Silkstone Street.
Dr Reid gave evidence that he had conducted a post-mortem but found no evidence to show that the child had what was described as a "legal separate existence" – having been born alive, in other words.
If that had been the case the mother, if traced, could have been charged with death by neglect or worse. As it was the Coroner returned a verdict of stillborn on the poor mite.
There'd been three Acts of Parliament since 1880 that provided compensation to injured workers and the widows of those killed at work.
But employers did what they could to minimise payments and few claimants received lump sumps.
In the case of someone injured at their job they were usually paid so much a week in lieu of lost wages.
But what they received was always a lot less than their usual wage and it often stopped or was reduced when the employee returned to work.
And in most cases when they went back they were temporarily (and sometimes permanently) placed on light duties that paid them much less than their old job.
So compensation would rarely fully compensate them for their lost earnings through injury.
On the 23rd John Ackers from Boundary Road appeared in St Helens County Court to seek a continuance of his compensation payments.
In June 1917 the coal miner had lost his sight in his right eye in an accident down Ashtons Green Colliery in Parr (pictured above) where he had worked for over twenty years.
Compensation at the rate of half his weekly wage was agreed and for a while he also worked at the pit as a labourer.
In March 1922 Ackers was deemed able to return to his old job as a miner (aka hewer on the coalface) and from that time he received an extra £1 a week in his pay packet.
But after eight months that compensation payment was reduced to – would you believe – just a penny a week.
And Mr Ackers had now gone to court to ask the judge to order the colliery to resume paying him the full pound.
But they said the £1 payments upon his return to work had been a mistake and an under-manager called Pimblett told the court they had at least six one-eyed miners in their pit who could earn just as much as those with two eyes.
And so Mr Ackers' request was denied but at least he did not appear to have been asked to pay back the paltry £1 payments made in error.
Rainford was still proving to be an excellent place to live. The village's Medical Officer revealed this week that only one person had died in December – and he had been eighty! Eight babies had been born and all had so far survived.
There had been two cases of pneumonia, one of diphtheria and many influenza cases in Rainford – but, again, no one had died.
On the 24th a fancy dress carnival and whist drive was held in St Helens Town Hall in aid of Holy Cross Church with over 600 people in attendance.
They must have needed lots of those little round tables as 230 of the attendees played whist.
One of the judges of the fancy dress was a member of the Ten Loonies that were currently performing their brand of madhouse musicianship and comedy at the Hippodrome.
This week a national railway strike was causing problems for commuters in St Helens, although some trains did run as only one of the two trade unions was taking part.
The St Helens Reporter sent a man to the Central Station, where the police station and County Court buildings now stand. He wrote:
"There was an unwonted air of desolation hanging around the platform and station of the Great Central, St. Helens, when I made a call there about mid-day.
"There were not the usual earsplitting whistles from the trains as they entered and left the station, for there were no trains to be seen moving at all."
The stationmaster was asked how the public was feeling about the strike and he replied:
"Oh, of course, the travelling public are getting it in the neck, but so far as goods are concerned we still have plenty of coal in the yard."
The Reporter described how the evening concerts that were taking place on Sundays at Gartons Lane school in Sutton Manor were proving a great success. One who had attended the most recent event had said:
"The evening was dark and wet and very inviting for those already at home to stay there; but once the concert fever is abroad there is no staying at home for some of us, especially if there is something good to draw us out."
The NSPCC had an office at Croppers Hill in St Helens and this week reported that during December they had dealt with 19 new cases of neglect and abuse concerning a total of 56 children.
Many soldiers brought guns back from France as souvenirs of their military service.
The government – in the light of the Bolshevik revolution in Russia and troubles in Ireland – was so concerned about the possibility of an armed rebellion in Britain that a new Firearms Act was brought in.
Gun possession was now taken more seriously, although people of good character could legally own weapons by registering them with the police.
Charles Ray of Robins Lane in Sutton had brought a revolver back home as a war souvenir and when the new Act came in he had done the right thing and obtained a police certificate.
However, safe storage of the weapon does not appear to have been considered important, as this week Ray's brother-in-law, Philip Gavin, managed to get hold of the gun to kill himself.
The inquest on the 29-year-old was held on the 26th and heard that the miner had not worked for three weeks through illness and there'd been a dispute in the family over the possession of some furniture through his sister getting married.
Those worries were thought to have contributed to his decision to shoot himself in the heart, although Charles Ray, the brother-in-law, said he did not know how Philip had obtained the ammunition.
Many people then had few possessions with furniture being highly prized.
The coroner at Philip's inquest said that the family argument over ownership of the furniture was the most common type of dispute and it was a pity that the man had been so unwell that it had led to him taking his life.
And finally, on the 28th William Glover died. He was a member of the Glover family that had run a wire rope works in St Helens since 1818 and he'd been a founder member of St Helens Golf Club.
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the Parr woman who threatened to put a bread knife through her neighbour's gizzard, the Sunday mischief at Hardshaw Brook, the boy that slept in a midden and the improvements to Boundary Road baths.
If there was one day of the week when boys got up to mischief it was definitely Sunday when there was very little for them to do.
They weren't allowed to play football or other games in the parks or streets or go to the cinema or any other place of entertainment.
And so inevitably lads in groups would be tempted to vandalise, commit minor thefts or other acts that we would call anti-social behaviour.
It was not until 1930 that a children's playground was created in what we call Queen's Park and I'm not entirely certain if it was open on Sundays.
The amusements proved so popular that the neighbours complained bitterly about the noise of the kids enjoying themselves!
But back in 1924 there was, as they say, nowt, which led on the 22nd of this week to two unidentified brothers living in Market Street appearing in St Helens Juvenile Court.
They and other boys had broken into a banana warehouse on a Sunday afternoon and stolen a few items that totalled just £1.
The police subsequently recovered the goods and found a note with the older brother's name on it.
He had a police record and was remanded but the charge against his brother was withdrawn.
The existing pub was on the corner of Barrow Street and Ormskirk Street (pictured above) but was being knocked down as part of the scheme to widen the corner at the top of Bridge Street.
That was a congested spot and other nearby properties were also going to be demolished.
Another scheme was also planned to widen the corner of Baldwin Street, Cotham Street and Westfield Street, which involved the demolition and rebuilding of the Sefton Arms.
There were many hidden pregnancies and secret births by unmarried women in St Helens.
Ignorance of how to care for their new-born infant without any maternal or professional support could lead to death.
Then the problem was what to do with the child's body if the female was frightened of reporting the matter to the authorities, perhaps also fearing what their parents would say.
Some girls or young women disposed of their baby's body in the canal or in a graveyard or some other such place – which must have been a traumatic experience for them.
Recently a new-born had been discarded in Sutton and on the 22nd an inquest took place on the remains of another child found dumped at the rear of Silkstone Street.
Dr Reid gave evidence that he had conducted a post-mortem but found no evidence to show that the child had what was described as a "legal separate existence" – having been born alive, in other words.
If that had been the case the mother, if traced, could have been charged with death by neglect or worse. As it was the Coroner returned a verdict of stillborn on the poor mite.
There'd been three Acts of Parliament since 1880 that provided compensation to injured workers and the widows of those killed at work.
But employers did what they could to minimise payments and few claimants received lump sumps.
In the case of someone injured at their job they were usually paid so much a week in lieu of lost wages.
But what they received was always a lot less than their usual wage and it often stopped or was reduced when the employee returned to work.
And in most cases when they went back they were temporarily (and sometimes permanently) placed on light duties that paid them much less than their old job.
So compensation would rarely fully compensate them for their lost earnings through injury.
On the 23rd John Ackers from Boundary Road appeared in St Helens County Court to seek a continuance of his compensation payments.
Compensation at the rate of half his weekly wage was agreed and for a while he also worked at the pit as a labourer.
In March 1922 Ackers was deemed able to return to his old job as a miner (aka hewer on the coalface) and from that time he received an extra £1 a week in his pay packet.
But after eight months that compensation payment was reduced to – would you believe – just a penny a week.
And Mr Ackers had now gone to court to ask the judge to order the colliery to resume paying him the full pound.
But they said the £1 payments upon his return to work had been a mistake and an under-manager called Pimblett told the court they had at least six one-eyed miners in their pit who could earn just as much as those with two eyes.
And so Mr Ackers' request was denied but at least he did not appear to have been asked to pay back the paltry £1 payments made in error.
Rainford was still proving to be an excellent place to live. The village's Medical Officer revealed this week that only one person had died in December – and he had been eighty! Eight babies had been born and all had so far survived.
There had been two cases of pneumonia, one of diphtheria and many influenza cases in Rainford – but, again, no one had died.
On the 24th a fancy dress carnival and whist drive was held in St Helens Town Hall in aid of Holy Cross Church with over 600 people in attendance.
They must have needed lots of those little round tables as 230 of the attendees played whist.
One of the judges of the fancy dress was a member of the Ten Loonies that were currently performing their brand of madhouse musicianship and comedy at the Hippodrome.
This week a national railway strike was causing problems for commuters in St Helens, although some trains did run as only one of the two trade unions was taking part.
The St Helens Reporter sent a man to the Central Station, where the police station and County Court buildings now stand. He wrote:
"There was an unwonted air of desolation hanging around the platform and station of the Great Central, St. Helens, when I made a call there about mid-day.
"There were not the usual earsplitting whistles from the trains as they entered and left the station, for there were no trains to be seen moving at all."
The stationmaster was asked how the public was feeling about the strike and he replied:
"Oh, of course, the travelling public are getting it in the neck, but so far as goods are concerned we still have plenty of coal in the yard."
The Reporter described how the evening concerts that were taking place on Sundays at Gartons Lane school in Sutton Manor were proving a great success. One who had attended the most recent event had said:
"The evening was dark and wet and very inviting for those already at home to stay there; but once the concert fever is abroad there is no staying at home for some of us, especially if there is something good to draw us out."
The NSPCC had an office at Croppers Hill in St Helens and this week reported that during December they had dealt with 19 new cases of neglect and abuse concerning a total of 56 children.
Many soldiers brought guns back from France as souvenirs of their military service.
The government – in the light of the Bolshevik revolution in Russia and troubles in Ireland – was so concerned about the possibility of an armed rebellion in Britain that a new Firearms Act was brought in.
Gun possession was now taken more seriously, although people of good character could legally own weapons by registering them with the police.
Charles Ray of Robins Lane in Sutton had brought a revolver back home as a war souvenir and when the new Act came in he had done the right thing and obtained a police certificate.
However, safe storage of the weapon does not appear to have been considered important, as this week Ray's brother-in-law, Philip Gavin, managed to get hold of the gun to kill himself.
The inquest on the 29-year-old was held on the 26th and heard that the miner had not worked for three weeks through illness and there'd been a dispute in the family over the possession of some furniture through his sister getting married.
Those worries were thought to have contributed to his decision to shoot himself in the heart, although Charles Ray, the brother-in-law, said he did not know how Philip had obtained the ammunition.
Many people then had few possessions with furniture being highly prized.
The coroner at Philip's inquest said that the family argument over ownership of the furniture was the most common type of dispute and it was a pity that the man had been so unwell that it had led to him taking his life.
And finally, on the 28th William Glover died. He was a member of the Glover family that had run a wire rope works in St Helens since 1818 and he'd been a founder member of St Helens Golf Club.
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the Parr woman who threatened to put a bread knife through her neighbour's gizzard, the Sunday mischief at Hardshaw Brook, the boy that slept in a midden and the improvements to Boundary Road baths.