150 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK 1 - 7 JULY 1874
This week's many stories include a shocking case of wife beating, the deadly kick from a cow in Prescot, more on the criticism of the bricks used in building the new town hall, the 11-year-old boys illegally employed in a brickfield, the cow driven through Water Street that was brutally beaten and the arrested man who encouraged people to throw stones at the police.
We begin on the 1st when the monthly meeting of St Helens Town Council took place and its members continued their discussion on the state of the new Town Hall, which was currently under construction. At last month's meeting there had been much criticism of the work, with Councillor Fidler declaring that he had never seen a "more shameful kind of brick" as was being installed at the front of the building. The architect of the Town Hall was Henry Sumners and he asked to be present at the July meeting to counter the allegations, which he said had brought him into "public odium".
Mr Sumners admitted that many of the bricks that arrived on site were bad ones. But he said that could not always be avoided and two men were employed to sort the good from the bad and take away the inferior ones. At times a few bad bricks had been laid but these had been removed once complaints were made. The architect suggested that the critics of the bricks might well have seen the bad ones loaded on a cart ready to be removed and assumed they were going to be used on the new building.
Mr Sumners did say that the bricks came from the Roughdale Fireclay Company (pictured above) who made bricks, pipes and pots at their Chester Lane works in Sutton and the sand that was used in the construction mainly came from Joseph Pilkington of Parr. George Rome from Liverpool was the builder involved and he sent in a letter asking for his reputation to be vindicated.
In November 1870 the St Helens magistrates had told Luke Connolly that he was a "disgrace to society" as they sent him to prison for seven days for drunkenness in Parr Street. That was his tenth conviction but in the 3½ years that followed he had made 13 more appearances in court. In the 1871 census Connolly is even listed as "living" in the Police Office at the Town Hall – in a cell, in other words, where the 26-year-old had eleven other inmates to temporarily keep him company.
This week Luke returned to court after a warrant had been issued for his arrest. That was after he had failed to turn up to face a summons for committing a breach of the peace. PC Murney had been the unlucky officer given the task of bringing him in. Perhaps arresting Connolly on a Saturday night when he was unlikely to be sober was not wise, as he resisted strongly. And on the journey to the police station, Connolly encouraged people to throw stones at the constable – one of which struck PC Murney on the back of his head.
Another officer identified only as PC 7 said Luke's wife, Catherine Connolly, had hit the officer several times during the arrest and she was also in the dock to face an assault charge. Catherine was fined 2s 6d and costs but her husband was told to pay £5 and costs – probably the equivalent of 4 to 5 weeks' wages – or go to prison for three months. Almost certainly the latter option had to be taken.
The Factory Act of 1833 stated that children under thirteen years of age could only undertake what was known as "half-time" working, that is no more than 6½ hours a day, as the average working week for adults was 70 hours. They were also not permitted to work before 6am or after 6pm. Additionally the employer had to ensure that the child possessed a certificate stating they were attending school and that he or she had been passed fit to work by a doctor.
There were many abuses and this week James Harrison, a well-known builder from Peasley Cross, appeared in the Petty Sessions charged with employing two lads under 13 on a full-time basis. In fact the boys were only eleven and had been working in a brickfield without going to school half the day as required by law. Harrison insisted that he knew nothing of the case. He said he employed a moulder to shape clay into bricks and the moulder hired other workers.
But the Bench said Harrison should know the law better as he was ultimately responsible and the builder was fined 10 shillings and costs. George Clare and Peter Bradbury were the boys' fathers and they were also summoned to court for allowing their lads to work full time while under age. Both were fined what was described as a mitigated penalty of five shillings and costs as their sons were now attending school regularly.
The St Helens Newspaper on the 4th published this account of the arrest of a brutal wife beater: "A labourer named Michael Redmond is in custody on a charge of committing a murderous assault upon his wife with a poker, on Saturday evening. The prisoner lives in Rifle-row, near the Volunteer Hall, and has long manifested a brutal disposition towards his wife, who is represented as an exemplary and industrious woman.
"He has frequently threatened in the hearing of others, that on some occasion he would murder her…He beat her with great violence on the head and face, and when he had rendered her insensible, and destroyed all semblance of humanity in her features, he flung her downstairs…The condition of her head and face is frightful, and it is questionable if ever she will recover the use of her eyesight." In fact Redmond had caused his wife Anne great suffering by using his fist, as well as by pitching her down the stairs, and had not used a poker. I'll have a report on Redmond's court appearance next week.
It could be more dangerous than you might think to look after animals, particularly if the sheds that they were kept in were overcrowded. The Newspaper reported that Joshua Fenney had died at Prescot from the injuries he had sustained while milking a cow in his shippon (cowshed). A kick from the beast had knocked Joshua to the ground and then another cow had trampled over him causing fatal injuries. One might have thought that an inquest would have been held into the death to see if any lessons could be learned – but none was.
Then on the following day, a lad called Edward Moss had been severely injured by the kick of a horse, which he had received while driving the animal out of a field in between Prescot and Huyton. Edward had been walking close behind the animal when it suddenly threw out its hind feet and struck him in the face, smashing his jaw.
There were various names for the offence in law caused by those that could not find a bed for the night and were forced to sleep outside. "Wandering abroad" was one but "lodging out" was probably the most common charge, although on the 4th three people separately appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions accused of simply "sleeping in the open air".
I was surprised to read recently that homeless people still get arrested on Merseyside but I expect many are charged with committing other offences. But in 1874 being caught sleeping outside meant an automatic prison sentence of at least a week and on the 4th seven days in Kirkdale Gaol was the penalty imposed on James O’Donnell, William Curser and Mary Ann Woods.
In another case Phillip Riley was sent to prison for a month for deserting his family and leaving them chargeable to the Prescot Guardians. The Newspaper wrote: "This fellow had to be brought from Flint, which seemed to have a hardening effect upon his heart, for whenever he went there he ceased to do anything for his family."
During the 19th century there was increasing concern for the welfare of animals. But that only stretched so far and if you had a good reason for beating your animal a prosecution brought against you could easily fail – as it did in the case of John Webster and John Ashall. The two butchers appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions on the 6th charged with cruelty to a cow.
PC Callister gave evidence of seeing the two defendants driving the beast through Water Street and after the cow had dropped to the ground, Webster had repeatedly beaten it with a stick until it was covered in bruises. Ashall wearing clogs also jumped on the animal's legs causing injuries to them. The constable added that the cow's head had been tied to one of its forelegs and as a result of walking like that for some time, it had become exhausted and "done up", causing its collapse.
Despite the animal's beatings – which PC Callister said had lasted 15 minutes – the cow could not be induced to get up and eventually it had to be taken away in a cart. Water had even been poured down the poor beast's ears – but to no avail. The two defendants denied that they had been cruel, insisting that they were simply trying to get the stubborn cow up and out of the way and the case against them was dismissed.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the society wedding of the year, the horse stealing in Rainford, the brutal wife beater is sentenced, a new church for Earlestown, the suicide of a Rainford doctor and the diorama in the Volunteer Hall.
We begin on the 1st when the monthly meeting of St Helens Town Council took place and its members continued their discussion on the state of the new Town Hall, which was currently under construction. At last month's meeting there had been much criticism of the work, with Councillor Fidler declaring that he had never seen a "more shameful kind of brick" as was being installed at the front of the building. The architect of the Town Hall was Henry Sumners and he asked to be present at the July meeting to counter the allegations, which he said had brought him into "public odium".
Mr Sumners admitted that many of the bricks that arrived on site were bad ones. But he said that could not always be avoided and two men were employed to sort the good from the bad and take away the inferior ones. At times a few bad bricks had been laid but these had been removed once complaints were made. The architect suggested that the critics of the bricks might well have seen the bad ones loaded on a cart ready to be removed and assumed they were going to be used on the new building.
In November 1870 the St Helens magistrates had told Luke Connolly that he was a "disgrace to society" as they sent him to prison for seven days for drunkenness in Parr Street. That was his tenth conviction but in the 3½ years that followed he had made 13 more appearances in court. In the 1871 census Connolly is even listed as "living" in the Police Office at the Town Hall – in a cell, in other words, where the 26-year-old had eleven other inmates to temporarily keep him company.
This week Luke returned to court after a warrant had been issued for his arrest. That was after he had failed to turn up to face a summons for committing a breach of the peace. PC Murney had been the unlucky officer given the task of bringing him in. Perhaps arresting Connolly on a Saturday night when he was unlikely to be sober was not wise, as he resisted strongly. And on the journey to the police station, Connolly encouraged people to throw stones at the constable – one of which struck PC Murney on the back of his head.
Another officer identified only as PC 7 said Luke's wife, Catherine Connolly, had hit the officer several times during the arrest and she was also in the dock to face an assault charge. Catherine was fined 2s 6d and costs but her husband was told to pay £5 and costs – probably the equivalent of 4 to 5 weeks' wages – or go to prison for three months. Almost certainly the latter option had to be taken.
The Factory Act of 1833 stated that children under thirteen years of age could only undertake what was known as "half-time" working, that is no more than 6½ hours a day, as the average working week for adults was 70 hours. They were also not permitted to work before 6am or after 6pm. Additionally the employer had to ensure that the child possessed a certificate stating they were attending school and that he or she had been passed fit to work by a doctor.
There were many abuses and this week James Harrison, a well-known builder from Peasley Cross, appeared in the Petty Sessions charged with employing two lads under 13 on a full-time basis. In fact the boys were only eleven and had been working in a brickfield without going to school half the day as required by law. Harrison insisted that he knew nothing of the case. He said he employed a moulder to shape clay into bricks and the moulder hired other workers.
But the Bench said Harrison should know the law better as he was ultimately responsible and the builder was fined 10 shillings and costs. George Clare and Peter Bradbury were the boys' fathers and they were also summoned to court for allowing their lads to work full time while under age. Both were fined what was described as a mitigated penalty of five shillings and costs as their sons were now attending school regularly.
The St Helens Newspaper on the 4th published this account of the arrest of a brutal wife beater: "A labourer named Michael Redmond is in custody on a charge of committing a murderous assault upon his wife with a poker, on Saturday evening. The prisoner lives in Rifle-row, near the Volunteer Hall, and has long manifested a brutal disposition towards his wife, who is represented as an exemplary and industrious woman.
"He has frequently threatened in the hearing of others, that on some occasion he would murder her…He beat her with great violence on the head and face, and when he had rendered her insensible, and destroyed all semblance of humanity in her features, he flung her downstairs…The condition of her head and face is frightful, and it is questionable if ever she will recover the use of her eyesight." In fact Redmond had caused his wife Anne great suffering by using his fist, as well as by pitching her down the stairs, and had not used a poker. I'll have a report on Redmond's court appearance next week.
It could be more dangerous than you might think to look after animals, particularly if the sheds that they were kept in were overcrowded. The Newspaper reported that Joshua Fenney had died at Prescot from the injuries he had sustained while milking a cow in his shippon (cowshed). A kick from the beast had knocked Joshua to the ground and then another cow had trampled over him causing fatal injuries. One might have thought that an inquest would have been held into the death to see if any lessons could be learned – but none was.
Then on the following day, a lad called Edward Moss had been severely injured by the kick of a horse, which he had received while driving the animal out of a field in between Prescot and Huyton. Edward had been walking close behind the animal when it suddenly threw out its hind feet and struck him in the face, smashing his jaw.
There were various names for the offence in law caused by those that could not find a bed for the night and were forced to sleep outside. "Wandering abroad" was one but "lodging out" was probably the most common charge, although on the 4th three people separately appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions accused of simply "sleeping in the open air".
I was surprised to read recently that homeless people still get arrested on Merseyside but I expect many are charged with committing other offences. But in 1874 being caught sleeping outside meant an automatic prison sentence of at least a week and on the 4th seven days in Kirkdale Gaol was the penalty imposed on James O’Donnell, William Curser and Mary Ann Woods.
In another case Phillip Riley was sent to prison for a month for deserting his family and leaving them chargeable to the Prescot Guardians. The Newspaper wrote: "This fellow had to be brought from Flint, which seemed to have a hardening effect upon his heart, for whenever he went there he ceased to do anything for his family."
During the 19th century there was increasing concern for the welfare of animals. But that only stretched so far and if you had a good reason for beating your animal a prosecution brought against you could easily fail – as it did in the case of John Webster and John Ashall. The two butchers appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions on the 6th charged with cruelty to a cow.
PC Callister gave evidence of seeing the two defendants driving the beast through Water Street and after the cow had dropped to the ground, Webster had repeatedly beaten it with a stick until it was covered in bruises. Ashall wearing clogs also jumped on the animal's legs causing injuries to them. The constable added that the cow's head had been tied to one of its forelegs and as a result of walking like that for some time, it had become exhausted and "done up", causing its collapse.
Despite the animal's beatings – which PC Callister said had lasted 15 minutes – the cow could not be induced to get up and eventually it had to be taken away in a cart. Water had even been poured down the poor beast's ears – but to no avail. The two defendants denied that they had been cruel, insisting that they were simply trying to get the stubborn cow up and out of the way and the case against them was dismissed.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the society wedding of the year, the horse stealing in Rainford, the brutal wife beater is sentenced, a new church for Earlestown, the suicide of a Rainford doctor and the diorama in the Volunteer Hall.
This week's many stories include a shocking case of wife beating, the deadly kick from a cow in Prescot, more on the criticism of the bricks used in building the new town hall, the 11-year-old boys illegally employed in a brickfield, the cow driven through Water Street that was brutally beaten and the arrested man who encouraged people to throw stones at the police.
We begin on the 1st when the monthly meeting of St Helens Town Council took place and its members continued their discussion on the state of the new Town Hall, which was currently under construction.
At last month's meeting there had been much criticism of the work, with Councillor Fidler declaring that he had never seen a "more shameful kind of brick" as was being installed at the front of the building.
The architect of the Town Hall was Henry Sumners and he asked to be present at the July meeting to counter the allegations, which he said had brought him into "public odium".
Mr Sumners admitted that many of the bricks that arrived on site were bad ones. But he said that could not always be avoided and two men were employed to sort the good from the bad and take away the inferior ones.
At times a few bad bricks had been laid but these had been removed once complaints were made.
The architect suggested that the critics of the bricks might well have seen the bad ones loaded on a cart ready to be removed and assumed they were going to be used on the new building.
Mr Sumners did say that the bricks came from the Roughdale Fireclay Company (pictured above) who made bricks, pipes and pots at their Chester Lane works in Sutton and the sand that was used in the construction mainly came from Joseph Pilkington of Parr.
George Rome from Liverpool was the builder involved and he sent in a letter asking for his reputation to be vindicated.
In November 1870 the St Helens magistrates had told Luke Connolly that he was a "disgrace to society" as they sent him to prison for seven days for drunkenness in Parr Street.
That was his tenth conviction but in the 3½ years that followed he had made 13 more appearances in court.
In the 1871 census Connolly is even listed as "living" in the Police Office at the Town Hall – in a cell, in other words, where the 26-year-old had eleven other inmates to temporarily keep him company.
This week Luke returned to court after a warrant had been issued for his arrest.
That was after he had failed to turn up to face a summons for committing a breach of the peace.
PC Murney had been the unlucky officer given the task of bringing him in. Perhaps arresting Connolly on a Saturday night when he was unlikely to be sober was not wise, as he resisted strongly.
And on the journey to the police station, Connolly encouraged people to throw stones at the constable – one of which struck PC Murney on the back of his head.
Another officer identified only as PC 7 said Luke's wife, Catherine Connolly, had hit the officer several times during the arrest and she was also in the dock to face an assault charge.
Catherine was fined 2s 6d and costs but her husband was told to pay £5 and costs – probably the equivalent of 4 to 5 weeks' wages – or go to prison for three months. Almost certainly the latter option had to be taken.
The Factory Act of 1833 stated that children under thirteen years of age could only undertake what was known as "half-time" working, that is no more than 6½ hours a day, as the average working week for adults was 70 hours.
They were also not permitted to work before 6am or after 6pm.
Additionally the employer had to ensure that the child possessed a certificate stating they were attending school and that he or she had been passed fit to work by a doctor.
There were many abuses and this week James Harrison, a well-known builder from Peasley Cross, appeared in the Petty Sessions charged with employing two lads under 13 on a full-time basis.
In fact the boys were only eleven and had been working in a brickfield without going to school half the day as required by law.
Harrison insisted that he knew nothing of the case. He said he employed a moulder to shape clay into bricks and the moulder hired other workers.
But the Bench said Harrison should know the law better as he was ultimately responsible and the builder was fined 10 shillings and costs.
George Clare and Peter Bradbury were the boys' fathers and they were also summoned to court for allowing their lads to work full time while under age.
Both were fined what was described as a mitigated penalty of five shillings and costs as their sons were now attending school regularly.
The St Helens Newspaper on the 4th published this account of the arrest of a brutal wife beater:
"A labourer named Michael Redmond is in custody on a charge of committing a murderous assault upon his wife with a poker, on Saturday evening.
"The prisoner lives in Rifle-row, near the Volunteer Hall, and has long manifested a brutal disposition towards his wife, who is represented as an exemplary and industrious woman.
"He has frequently threatened in the hearing of others, that on some occasion he would murder her.
"…He beat her with great violence on the head and face, and when he had rendered her insensible, and destroyed all semblance of humanity in her features, he flung her downstairs.
"…The condition of her head and face is frightful, and it is questionable if ever she will recover the use of her eyesight."
In fact Redmond had caused his wife Anne great suffering by using his fist, as well as by pitching her down the stairs, and had not used a poker. I'll have a report on Redmond's court appearance next week.
It could be more dangerous than you might think to look after animals, particularly if the sheds that they were kept in were overcrowded.
The Newspaper reported that Joshua Fenney had died at Prescot from the injuries he had sustained while milking a cow in his shippon (cowshed).
A kick from the beast had knocked Joshua to the ground and then another cow had trampled over him causing fatal injuries.
One might have thought that an inquest would have been held into the death to see if any lessons could be learned – but none was.
Then on the following day, a lad called Edward Moss had been severely injured by the kick of a horse, which he had received while driving the animal out of a field in between Prescot and Huyton.
Edward had been walking close behind the animal when it suddenly threw out its hind feet and struck him in the face, smashing his jaw.
There were various names for the offence in law caused by those that could not find a bed for the night and were forced to sleep outside.
"Wandering abroad" was one but "lodging out" was probably the most common charge, although on the 4th three people separately appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions accused of simply "sleeping in the open air".
I was surprised to read recently that homeless people still get arrested on Merseyside but I expect many are charged with committing other offences.
But in 1874 being caught sleeping outside meant an automatic prison sentence of at least a week and on the 4th seven days in Kirkdale Gaol was the penalty imposed on James O’Donnell, William Curser and Mary Ann Woods.
In another case Phillip Riley was sent to prison for a month for deserting his family and leaving them chargeable to the Prescot Guardians.
The Newspaper wrote: "This fellow had to be brought from Flint, which seemed to have a hardening effect upon his heart, for whenever he went there he ceased to do anything for his family."
During the 19th century there was increasing concern for the welfare of animals.
But that only stretched so far and if you had a good reason for beating your animal a prosecution brought against you could easily fail – as it did in the case of John Webster and John Ashall.
The two butchers appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions on the 6th charged with cruelty to a cow.
PC Callister gave evidence of seeing the two defendants driving the beast through Water Street and after the cow had dropped to the ground, Webster had repeatedly beaten it with a stick until it was covered in bruises.
Ashall wearing clogs also jumped on the animal's legs causing injuries to them.
The constable added that the cow's head had been tied to one of its forelegs and as a result of walking like that for some time, it had become exhausted and "done up", causing its collapse.
Despite the animal's beatings – which PC Callister said had lasted 15 minutes – the cow could not be induced to get up and eventually it had to be taken away in a cart.
Water had even been poured down the poor beast's ears – but to no avail.
The two defendants denied that they had been cruel, insisting that they were simply trying to get the stubborn cow up and out of the way and the case against them was dismissed.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the society wedding of the year, the horse stealing in Rainford, the brutal wife beater is sentenced, a new church for Earlestown, the suicide of a Rainford doctor and the diorama in the Volunteer Hall.
We begin on the 1st when the monthly meeting of St Helens Town Council took place and its members continued their discussion on the state of the new Town Hall, which was currently under construction.
At last month's meeting there had been much criticism of the work, with Councillor Fidler declaring that he had never seen a "more shameful kind of brick" as was being installed at the front of the building.
The architect of the Town Hall was Henry Sumners and he asked to be present at the July meeting to counter the allegations, which he said had brought him into "public odium".
Mr Sumners admitted that many of the bricks that arrived on site were bad ones. But he said that could not always be avoided and two men were employed to sort the good from the bad and take away the inferior ones.
At times a few bad bricks had been laid but these had been removed once complaints were made.
The architect suggested that the critics of the bricks might well have seen the bad ones loaded on a cart ready to be removed and assumed they were going to be used on the new building.
George Rome from Liverpool was the builder involved and he sent in a letter asking for his reputation to be vindicated.
In November 1870 the St Helens magistrates had told Luke Connolly that he was a "disgrace to society" as they sent him to prison for seven days for drunkenness in Parr Street.
That was his tenth conviction but in the 3½ years that followed he had made 13 more appearances in court.
In the 1871 census Connolly is even listed as "living" in the Police Office at the Town Hall – in a cell, in other words, where the 26-year-old had eleven other inmates to temporarily keep him company.
This week Luke returned to court after a warrant had been issued for his arrest.
That was after he had failed to turn up to face a summons for committing a breach of the peace.
PC Murney had been the unlucky officer given the task of bringing him in. Perhaps arresting Connolly on a Saturday night when he was unlikely to be sober was not wise, as he resisted strongly.
And on the journey to the police station, Connolly encouraged people to throw stones at the constable – one of which struck PC Murney on the back of his head.
Another officer identified only as PC 7 said Luke's wife, Catherine Connolly, had hit the officer several times during the arrest and she was also in the dock to face an assault charge.
Catherine was fined 2s 6d and costs but her husband was told to pay £5 and costs – probably the equivalent of 4 to 5 weeks' wages – or go to prison for three months. Almost certainly the latter option had to be taken.
The Factory Act of 1833 stated that children under thirteen years of age could only undertake what was known as "half-time" working, that is no more than 6½ hours a day, as the average working week for adults was 70 hours.
They were also not permitted to work before 6am or after 6pm.
Additionally the employer had to ensure that the child possessed a certificate stating they were attending school and that he or she had been passed fit to work by a doctor.
There were many abuses and this week James Harrison, a well-known builder from Peasley Cross, appeared in the Petty Sessions charged with employing two lads under 13 on a full-time basis.
In fact the boys were only eleven and had been working in a brickfield without going to school half the day as required by law.
Harrison insisted that he knew nothing of the case. He said he employed a moulder to shape clay into bricks and the moulder hired other workers.
But the Bench said Harrison should know the law better as he was ultimately responsible and the builder was fined 10 shillings and costs.
George Clare and Peter Bradbury were the boys' fathers and they were also summoned to court for allowing their lads to work full time while under age.
Both were fined what was described as a mitigated penalty of five shillings and costs as their sons were now attending school regularly.
The St Helens Newspaper on the 4th published this account of the arrest of a brutal wife beater:
"A labourer named Michael Redmond is in custody on a charge of committing a murderous assault upon his wife with a poker, on Saturday evening.
"The prisoner lives in Rifle-row, near the Volunteer Hall, and has long manifested a brutal disposition towards his wife, who is represented as an exemplary and industrious woman.
"He has frequently threatened in the hearing of others, that on some occasion he would murder her.
"…He beat her with great violence on the head and face, and when he had rendered her insensible, and destroyed all semblance of humanity in her features, he flung her downstairs.
"…The condition of her head and face is frightful, and it is questionable if ever she will recover the use of her eyesight."
In fact Redmond had caused his wife Anne great suffering by using his fist, as well as by pitching her down the stairs, and had not used a poker. I'll have a report on Redmond's court appearance next week.
It could be more dangerous than you might think to look after animals, particularly if the sheds that they were kept in were overcrowded.
The Newspaper reported that Joshua Fenney had died at Prescot from the injuries he had sustained while milking a cow in his shippon (cowshed).
A kick from the beast had knocked Joshua to the ground and then another cow had trampled over him causing fatal injuries.
One might have thought that an inquest would have been held into the death to see if any lessons could be learned – but none was.
Then on the following day, a lad called Edward Moss had been severely injured by the kick of a horse, which he had received while driving the animal out of a field in between Prescot and Huyton.
Edward had been walking close behind the animal when it suddenly threw out its hind feet and struck him in the face, smashing his jaw.
There were various names for the offence in law caused by those that could not find a bed for the night and were forced to sleep outside.
"Wandering abroad" was one but "lodging out" was probably the most common charge, although on the 4th three people separately appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions accused of simply "sleeping in the open air".
I was surprised to read recently that homeless people still get arrested on Merseyside but I expect many are charged with committing other offences.
But in 1874 being caught sleeping outside meant an automatic prison sentence of at least a week and on the 4th seven days in Kirkdale Gaol was the penalty imposed on James O’Donnell, William Curser and Mary Ann Woods.
In another case Phillip Riley was sent to prison for a month for deserting his family and leaving them chargeable to the Prescot Guardians.
The Newspaper wrote: "This fellow had to be brought from Flint, which seemed to have a hardening effect upon his heart, for whenever he went there he ceased to do anything for his family."
During the 19th century there was increasing concern for the welfare of animals.
But that only stretched so far and if you had a good reason for beating your animal a prosecution brought against you could easily fail – as it did in the case of John Webster and John Ashall.
The two butchers appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions on the 6th charged with cruelty to a cow.
PC Callister gave evidence of seeing the two defendants driving the beast through Water Street and after the cow had dropped to the ground, Webster had repeatedly beaten it with a stick until it was covered in bruises.
Ashall wearing clogs also jumped on the animal's legs causing injuries to them.
The constable added that the cow's head had been tied to one of its forelegs and as a result of walking like that for some time, it had become exhausted and "done up", causing its collapse.
Despite the animal's beatings – which PC Callister said had lasted 15 minutes – the cow could not be induced to get up and eventually it had to be taken away in a cart.
Water had even been poured down the poor beast's ears – but to no avail.
The two defendants denied that they had been cruel, insisting that they were simply trying to get the stubborn cow up and out of the way and the case against them was dismissed.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the society wedding of the year, the horse stealing in Rainford, the brutal wife beater is sentenced, a new church for Earlestown, the suicide of a Rainford doctor and the diorama in the Volunteer Hall.