150 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK 13 - 19 JANUARY 1875
This week's many stories include the annual ball in the Volunteer Hall of the 47th Lancashire Rifle Volunteers, the renewal of interest in the creation of a Mersey Tunnel, the case of a bottle of beer that was bought from a Nutgrove pub on a Sunday, the boy sent to prison for stealing his mother's dress, the Parr rabbit trap that was known as a grin and the death of a Sutton pit sinker employed at what would become Bold Colliery.
We begin on the 13th when the tenth annual ball of the 47th Lancashire Rifle Volunteers (St Helens' part-time soldiers) was held in the Volunteer Hall. An "efficient" quadrille band provided the music in which sets of four couples danced in a rectangular formation. It was a late evening event with dancing only starting at 9pm. All members of the services who attended were instructed to dress in military uniform and have their horse-drawn carriages arrive by Duke Street and leave by North Road.
The ticket prices at 5 shillings each were quite high. What were described as "loyal toasts" always followed such meals and they included "The Queen" and "The Prince and Princess of Wales and the rest of the Royal Family". As there were a number of vicars present, Major Pilkington proposed a toast to the health of "The Bishop and Clergy of the diocese and Ministers of all denominations".
As a result of the three fires that had taken place at St Helens old Town Hall that had also served as a courtroom, all court proceedings were currently taking place in the County Court in East Street (pictured above). That was only a temporary arrangement until the new town hall could be built in what would become Corporation Street. The County Court building was a very congested place at the best of times but the St Helens Newspaper on the 16th described how on one day it had been bursting at the seams.
That was when 89 persons had been summoned to court for non-payment of their water rates. The procedure was for such defaulters to appear in court and unless they could offer some satisfactory explanation, the magistrates would issue an order for them to pay their debt immediately, along with costs.
If they failed to do so they would be returned to court, with the ultimate penalty for defying the magistrates being prison. None of the defendants appear to have had good excuses, as the Newspaper said that in each case payment orders were issued.
The most unusual court case this week concerned a 15-year-old boy called George Wagstaffe. The lad was charged with stealing a dress valued at eight shillings, which was described as being the property of George Abbott from Bold. I don't think Mr Abbott was in the habit of wearing dresses. It was simply that in most cases, a wife's property belonged in law to her husband.
Abbott's wife, who was also the mother of George Wagstaffe, had brought the case. She told the court that her son had slept in the same room where the dress was stored and after missing her garment she had reported the matter to the police. They traced the dress to a Mrs Smith in Sutton who had bought it from the lad for one shilling, after claiming that he had found the dress in Liverpool Road.
Mrs Abbott told the magistrates that her son was lazy and would not work and was out of her control and the policeman in charge of the case corroborated her claim. George Wagstaffe pleaded guilty but the lad promised to behave better in future and as a result was "leniently dealt with" – as the Newspaper put it – and only sent to prison for 7 days.
Another curious case heard in the St Helens Petty Sessions this week concerned a poacher who was using a trap in a field. However, the newspaper reports called the trap a "gin" or "grin", with the latter being the Lancashire version of the term. Thomas Hankinson was accused of using his trap on farmland at Clover Root in Parr, adjacent to where he lived.
It was common for game watchers to be employed by landowners to supplement the work of their game wardens and early one evening a watcher had heard a rabbit's scream coming from a field at Clover Root. Upon going to the place, the watcher found Thomas Hankinson in the act of taking a rabbit out of a grin and in the field a little farther along he found a poor cat fastened in another trap. The defence tried to establish an alibi, although the prosecution were positive as to the identity of the poacher and Hankinson was fined 10 shillings and costs.
Publicans and beerhouse keepers were regularly prosecuted for breaching the strict Sunday drinking regulations. Usually these concerned the illicit serving of alcohol in the morning, as pubs were not allowed to open on the Sabbath until noon. But John Barnes who kept a beerhouse in Nutgrove was accused of serving beer late on a Sunday afternoon. That was during the few hours that pubs needed to be closed before reopening for the evening.
Sgt Robinson gave evidence to the court that he had seen a woman named Ann Garrett coming out of Barnes' beerhouse at 5pm carrying a bottle of beer. The woman's explanation was that she had been cleaning the house and had obtained the bottle in question prior to the place's closing time. A reasonably plausible explanation but unfortunately the landlord had not turned up to answer the charge against him and corroborate Mrs Garrett's account.
The magistrates were used to hearing all sorts of fanciful excuses when defendants were accused of breaching the Sunday drinking laws. And when the police told them that John Barnes had been summoned for a similar offence only a few weeks before and fined 10 shillings, they immediately convicted the landlord in his absence and fined him £5 and costs.
That was a hefty amount and there was every possibility of his conviction leading to the loss of his licence. But shortly after the case had concluded, a solicitor called Paine dashed into court. He explained that while the Bench had been adjudicating on the case he had been receiving instructions from John Barnes "who had a perfect answer to the charge".
The defendant and his solicitor had apparently not realised that the hearing was taking place and Mr Paine applied to the magistrates for them to rehear it. But the law on the subject said cases could not be reheard "after the sitting of the court". The solicitor argued that the magistrates were still sitting, even though they had concluded John Barnes' case but the Bench still refused to reopen it.
A proposal to create what would become known as the Mersey Tunnel had been discussed for some time but according to the St Helens Newspaper this week, the scheme had been languishing of late. Such a project would clearly be an engineering challenge and cost a fortune and so it was not something that anyone wanted to rush into.
However, the Newspaper reported that the scheme for a tunnel and railway to run under the Mersey had received fresh impetus as a result of some recent disasters that had affected two ferry steamers. No one had been killed but both vessels conveying passengers from Liverpool to Birkenhead had been disabled by collisions, with one sunk and the other confined to dock. The Newspaper wrote:
"The comments of the local press on this topic have created quite a “scare” amongst the residents on the Cheshire shore, and will certainly drive many to the Liverpool side of the river. Simultaneously, the subject of the proposed tunnel and railway under the bed of the river has come into prominence, and it will now be looked upon with much greater public interest than has hitherto been accorded to it."
One of the most dangerous aspects of coal mining was pit sinking. Many men lost their lives while creating shafts or extending existing ones. With minimal safety measures in place, it only took one mistake for a pit sinker to die, often after being hurled to the bottom of the pit. However, Charles Jones of Frederick Street in Sutton was fatally injured in a different fashion. He was one of several pit sinkers employed at the site of what eventually would become Bold Colliery.
Mr Jones had been using a crane to fix a problem when his foot slipped and his subsequent fall led to him receiving a severe blow on the back of his head. Despite the St Helens Cottage Hospital having been created in Peasley Cross, it was still common practice for the injured to be conveyed to their home and a doctor summoned. But there was nothing that Dr Gaskell could do and Charles never regained consciousness, dying on the following morning.
And finally, on the 18th a tea party and concert was held to mark the opening of a new Catholic School at Thatto Heath. The event was so popular that what was described as a wooden tent had to be installed to provide additional accommodation. And then on the following day a children's tea party took place followed by a magic lantern exhibition. Later in the evening for the general public a "grand panoramic exhibition (illuminated by the oxy-hydrogen lime light)" was held.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the reckoning Monday row at Thatto Heath, the St Helens seedsman's stolen watch, the perils of going to work at 4am and the horseplay at the Holt in Rainhill that had potentially serious consequences.
We begin on the 13th when the tenth annual ball of the 47th Lancashire Rifle Volunteers (St Helens' part-time soldiers) was held in the Volunteer Hall. An "efficient" quadrille band provided the music in which sets of four couples danced in a rectangular formation. It was a late evening event with dancing only starting at 9pm. All members of the services who attended were instructed to dress in military uniform and have their horse-drawn carriages arrive by Duke Street and leave by North Road.
The ticket prices at 5 shillings each were quite high. What were described as "loyal toasts" always followed such meals and they included "The Queen" and "The Prince and Princess of Wales and the rest of the Royal Family". As there were a number of vicars present, Major Pilkington proposed a toast to the health of "The Bishop and Clergy of the diocese and Ministers of all denominations".
That was when 89 persons had been summoned to court for non-payment of their water rates. The procedure was for such defaulters to appear in court and unless they could offer some satisfactory explanation, the magistrates would issue an order for them to pay their debt immediately, along with costs.
If they failed to do so they would be returned to court, with the ultimate penalty for defying the magistrates being prison. None of the defendants appear to have had good excuses, as the Newspaper said that in each case payment orders were issued.
The most unusual court case this week concerned a 15-year-old boy called George Wagstaffe. The lad was charged with stealing a dress valued at eight shillings, which was described as being the property of George Abbott from Bold. I don't think Mr Abbott was in the habit of wearing dresses. It was simply that in most cases, a wife's property belonged in law to her husband.
Abbott's wife, who was also the mother of George Wagstaffe, had brought the case. She told the court that her son had slept in the same room where the dress was stored and after missing her garment she had reported the matter to the police. They traced the dress to a Mrs Smith in Sutton who had bought it from the lad for one shilling, after claiming that he had found the dress in Liverpool Road.
Mrs Abbott told the magistrates that her son was lazy and would not work and was out of her control and the policeman in charge of the case corroborated her claim. George Wagstaffe pleaded guilty but the lad promised to behave better in future and as a result was "leniently dealt with" – as the Newspaper put it – and only sent to prison for 7 days.
Another curious case heard in the St Helens Petty Sessions this week concerned a poacher who was using a trap in a field. However, the newspaper reports called the trap a "gin" or "grin", with the latter being the Lancashire version of the term. Thomas Hankinson was accused of using his trap on farmland at Clover Root in Parr, adjacent to where he lived.
It was common for game watchers to be employed by landowners to supplement the work of their game wardens and early one evening a watcher had heard a rabbit's scream coming from a field at Clover Root. Upon going to the place, the watcher found Thomas Hankinson in the act of taking a rabbit out of a grin and in the field a little farther along he found a poor cat fastened in another trap. The defence tried to establish an alibi, although the prosecution were positive as to the identity of the poacher and Hankinson was fined 10 shillings and costs.
Publicans and beerhouse keepers were regularly prosecuted for breaching the strict Sunday drinking regulations. Usually these concerned the illicit serving of alcohol in the morning, as pubs were not allowed to open on the Sabbath until noon. But John Barnes who kept a beerhouse in Nutgrove was accused of serving beer late on a Sunday afternoon. That was during the few hours that pubs needed to be closed before reopening for the evening.
Sgt Robinson gave evidence to the court that he had seen a woman named Ann Garrett coming out of Barnes' beerhouse at 5pm carrying a bottle of beer. The woman's explanation was that she had been cleaning the house and had obtained the bottle in question prior to the place's closing time. A reasonably plausible explanation but unfortunately the landlord had not turned up to answer the charge against him and corroborate Mrs Garrett's account.
The magistrates were used to hearing all sorts of fanciful excuses when defendants were accused of breaching the Sunday drinking laws. And when the police told them that John Barnes had been summoned for a similar offence only a few weeks before and fined 10 shillings, they immediately convicted the landlord in his absence and fined him £5 and costs.
That was a hefty amount and there was every possibility of his conviction leading to the loss of his licence. But shortly after the case had concluded, a solicitor called Paine dashed into court. He explained that while the Bench had been adjudicating on the case he had been receiving instructions from John Barnes "who had a perfect answer to the charge".
The defendant and his solicitor had apparently not realised that the hearing was taking place and Mr Paine applied to the magistrates for them to rehear it. But the law on the subject said cases could not be reheard "after the sitting of the court". The solicitor argued that the magistrates were still sitting, even though they had concluded John Barnes' case but the Bench still refused to reopen it.
A proposal to create what would become known as the Mersey Tunnel had been discussed for some time but according to the St Helens Newspaper this week, the scheme had been languishing of late. Such a project would clearly be an engineering challenge and cost a fortune and so it was not something that anyone wanted to rush into.
However, the Newspaper reported that the scheme for a tunnel and railway to run under the Mersey had received fresh impetus as a result of some recent disasters that had affected two ferry steamers. No one had been killed but both vessels conveying passengers from Liverpool to Birkenhead had been disabled by collisions, with one sunk and the other confined to dock. The Newspaper wrote:
"The comments of the local press on this topic have created quite a “scare” amongst the residents on the Cheshire shore, and will certainly drive many to the Liverpool side of the river. Simultaneously, the subject of the proposed tunnel and railway under the bed of the river has come into prominence, and it will now be looked upon with much greater public interest than has hitherto been accorded to it."
One of the most dangerous aspects of coal mining was pit sinking. Many men lost their lives while creating shafts or extending existing ones. With minimal safety measures in place, it only took one mistake for a pit sinker to die, often after being hurled to the bottom of the pit. However, Charles Jones of Frederick Street in Sutton was fatally injured in a different fashion. He was one of several pit sinkers employed at the site of what eventually would become Bold Colliery.
Mr Jones had been using a crane to fix a problem when his foot slipped and his subsequent fall led to him receiving a severe blow on the back of his head. Despite the St Helens Cottage Hospital having been created in Peasley Cross, it was still common practice for the injured to be conveyed to their home and a doctor summoned. But there was nothing that Dr Gaskell could do and Charles never regained consciousness, dying on the following morning.
And finally, on the 18th a tea party and concert was held to mark the opening of a new Catholic School at Thatto Heath. The event was so popular that what was described as a wooden tent had to be installed to provide additional accommodation. And then on the following day a children's tea party took place followed by a magic lantern exhibition. Later in the evening for the general public a "grand panoramic exhibition (illuminated by the oxy-hydrogen lime light)" was held.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the reckoning Monday row at Thatto Heath, the St Helens seedsman's stolen watch, the perils of going to work at 4am and the horseplay at the Holt in Rainhill that had potentially serious consequences.
This week's many stories include the annual ball in the Volunteer Hall of the 47th Lancashire Rifle Volunteers, the renewal of interest in the creation of a Mersey Tunnel, the case of a bottle of beer that was bought from a Nutgrove pub on a Sunday, the boy sent to prison for stealing his mother's dress, the Parr rabbit trap that was known as a grin and the death of a Sutton pit sinker employed at what would become Bold Colliery.
We begin on the 13th when the tenth annual ball of the 47th Lancashire Rifle Volunteers (St Helens' part-time soldiers) was held in the Volunteer Hall.
An "efficient" quadrille band provided the music in which sets of four couples danced in a rectangular formation.
It was a late evening event with dancing only starting at 9pm. All members of the services who attended were instructed to dress in military uniform and have their horse-drawn carriages arrive by Duke Street and leave by North Road.
The ticket prices at 5 shillings each were quite high. What were described as "loyal toasts" always followed such meals and they included "The Queen" and "The Prince and Princess of Wales and the rest of the Royal Family".
As there were a number of vicars present, Major Pilkington proposed a toast to the health of "The Bishop and Clergy of the diocese and Ministers of all denominations".
As a result of the three fires that had taken place at St Helens old Town Hall that had also served as a courtroom, all court proceedings were currently taking place in the County Court in East Street (pictured above).
That was only a temporary arrangement until the new town hall could be built in what would become Corporation Street.
The County Court building was a very congested place at the best of times but the St Helens Newspaper on the 16th described how on one day it had been bursting at the seams.
That was when 89 persons had been summoned to court for non-payment of their water rates.
The procedure was for such defaulters to appear in court and unless they could offer some satisfactory explanation, the magistrates would issue an order for them to pay their debt immediately, along with costs.
If they failed to do so they would be returned to court, with the ultimate penalty for defying the magistrates being prison.
None of the defendants appear to have had good excuses, as the Newspaper said that in each case payment orders were issued.
The most unusual court case this week concerned a 15-year-old boy called George Wagstaffe.
The lad was charged with stealing a dress valued at eight shillings, which was described as being the property of George Abbott from Bold.
I don't think Mr Abbott was in the habit of wearing dresses. It was simply that in most cases, a wife's property belonged in law to her husband.
Abbott's wife, who was also the mother of George Wagstaffe, had brought the case.
She told the court that her son had slept in the same room where the dress was stored and after missing her garment she had reported the matter to the police.
They traced the dress to a Mrs Smith in Sutton who had bought it from the lad for one shilling, after claiming that he had found the dress in Liverpool Road.
Mrs Abbott told the magistrates that her son was lazy and would not work and was out of her control and the policeman in charge of the case corroborated her claim.
George Wagstaffe pleaded guilty but the lad promised to behave better in future and as a result was "leniently dealt with" – as the Newspaper put it – and only sent to prison for 7 days.
Another curious case heard in the St Helens Petty Sessions this week concerned a poacher who was using a trap in a field.
However, the newspaper reports called the trap a "gin" or "grin", with the latter being the Lancashire version of the term.
Thomas Hankinson was accused of using his trap on farmland at Clover Root in Parr, adjacent to where he lived.
It was common for game watchers to be employed by landowners to supplement the work of their game wardens and early one evening a watcher had heard a rabbit's scream coming from a field at Clover Root.
Upon going to the place, the watcher found Thomas Hankinson in the act of taking a rabbit out of a grin and in the field a little farther along he found a poor cat fastened in another trap.
The defence tried to establish an alibi, although the prosecution were positive as to the identity of the poacher and Hankinson was fined 10 shillings and costs.
Publicans and beerhouse keepers were regularly prosecuted for breaching the strict Sunday drinking regulations.
Usually these concerned the illicit serving of alcohol in the morning, as pubs were not allowed to open on the Sabbath until noon.
But John Barnes who kept a beerhouse in Nutgrove was accused of serving beer late on a Sunday afternoon.
That was during the few hours that pubs needed to be closed before reopening for the evening.
Sgt Robinson gave evidence to the court that he had seen a woman named Ann Garrett coming out of Barnes' beerhouse at 5pm carrying a bottle of beer.
The woman's explanation was that she had been cleaning the house and had obtained the bottle in question prior to the place's closing time.
A reasonably plausible explanation but unfortunately the landlord had not turned up to answer the charge against him and corroborate Mrs Garrett's account.
The magistrates were used to hearing all sorts of fanciful excuses when defendants were accused of breaching the Sunday drinking laws.
And when the police told them that John Barnes had been summoned for a similar offence only a few weeks before and fined 10 shillings, they immediately convicted the landlord in his absence and fined him £5 and costs.
That was a hefty amount and there was every possibility of his conviction leading to the loss of his licence. But shortly after the case had concluded, a solicitor called Paine dashed into court.
He explained that while the Bench had been adjudicating on the case he had been receiving instructions from John Barnes "who had a perfect answer to the charge".
The defendant and his solicitor had apparently not realised that the hearing was taking place and Mr Paine applied to the magistrates for them to rehear it.
But the law on the subject said cases could not be reheard "after the sitting of the court".
The solicitor argued that the magistrates were still sitting, even though they had concluded John Barnes' case but the Bench still refused to reopen it.
A proposal to create what would become known as the Mersey Tunnel had been discussed for some time but according to the St Helens Newspaper this week, the scheme had been languishing of late.
Such a project would clearly be an engineering challenge and cost a fortune and so it was not something that anyone wanted to rush into.
However, the Newspaper reported that the scheme for a tunnel and railway to run under the Mersey had received fresh impetus as a result of some recent disasters that had affected two ferry steamers.
No one had been killed but both vessels conveying passengers from Liverpool to Birkenhead had been disabled by collisions, with one sunk and the other confined to dock. The Newspaper wrote:
"The comments of the local press on this topic have created quite a “scare” amongst the residents on the Cheshire shore, and will certainly drive many to the Liverpool side of the river.
"Simultaneously, the subject of the proposed tunnel and railway under the bed of the river has come into prominence, and it will now be looked upon with much greater public interest than has hitherto been accorded to it."
One of the most dangerous aspects of coal mining was pit sinking.
Many men lost their lives while creating shafts or extending existing ones. With minimal safety measures in place, it only took one mistake for a pit sinker to die, often after being hurled to the bottom of the pit.
However, Charles Jones of Frederick Street in Sutton was fatally injured in a different fashion.
He was one of several pit sinkers employed at the site of what eventually would become Bold Colliery.
Mr Jones had been using a crane to fix a problem when his foot slipped and his subsequent fall led to him receiving a severe blow on the back of his head.
Despite the St Helens Cottage Hospital having been created in Peasley Cross, it was still common practice for the injured to be conveyed to their home and a doctor summoned.
But there was nothing that Dr Gaskell could do and Charles never regained consciousness, dying on the following morning.
And finally, on the 18th a tea party and concert was held to mark the opening of a new Catholic School at Thatto Heath.
The event was so popular that what was described as a wooden tent had to be installed to provide additional accommodation.
And then on the following day a children's tea party took place followed by a magic lantern exhibition.
Later in the evening for the general public a "grand panoramic exhibition (illuminated by the oxy-hydrogen lime light)" was held.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the reckoning Monday row at Thatto Heath, the St Helens seedsman's stolen watch, the perils of going to work at 4am and the horseplay at the Holt in Rainhill that had potentially serious consequences.
We begin on the 13th when the tenth annual ball of the 47th Lancashire Rifle Volunteers (St Helens' part-time soldiers) was held in the Volunteer Hall.
An "efficient" quadrille band provided the music in which sets of four couples danced in a rectangular formation.
It was a late evening event with dancing only starting at 9pm. All members of the services who attended were instructed to dress in military uniform and have their horse-drawn carriages arrive by Duke Street and leave by North Road.
The ticket prices at 5 shillings each were quite high. What were described as "loyal toasts" always followed such meals and they included "The Queen" and "The Prince and Princess of Wales and the rest of the Royal Family".
As there were a number of vicars present, Major Pilkington proposed a toast to the health of "The Bishop and Clergy of the diocese and Ministers of all denominations".
That was only a temporary arrangement until the new town hall could be built in what would become Corporation Street.
The County Court building was a very congested place at the best of times but the St Helens Newspaper on the 16th described how on one day it had been bursting at the seams.
That was when 89 persons had been summoned to court for non-payment of their water rates.
The procedure was for such defaulters to appear in court and unless they could offer some satisfactory explanation, the magistrates would issue an order for them to pay their debt immediately, along with costs.
If they failed to do so they would be returned to court, with the ultimate penalty for defying the magistrates being prison.
None of the defendants appear to have had good excuses, as the Newspaper said that in each case payment orders were issued.
The most unusual court case this week concerned a 15-year-old boy called George Wagstaffe.
The lad was charged with stealing a dress valued at eight shillings, which was described as being the property of George Abbott from Bold.
I don't think Mr Abbott was in the habit of wearing dresses. It was simply that in most cases, a wife's property belonged in law to her husband.
Abbott's wife, who was also the mother of George Wagstaffe, had brought the case.
She told the court that her son had slept in the same room where the dress was stored and after missing her garment she had reported the matter to the police.
They traced the dress to a Mrs Smith in Sutton who had bought it from the lad for one shilling, after claiming that he had found the dress in Liverpool Road.
Mrs Abbott told the magistrates that her son was lazy and would not work and was out of her control and the policeman in charge of the case corroborated her claim.
George Wagstaffe pleaded guilty but the lad promised to behave better in future and as a result was "leniently dealt with" – as the Newspaper put it – and only sent to prison for 7 days.
Another curious case heard in the St Helens Petty Sessions this week concerned a poacher who was using a trap in a field.
However, the newspaper reports called the trap a "gin" or "grin", with the latter being the Lancashire version of the term.
Thomas Hankinson was accused of using his trap on farmland at Clover Root in Parr, adjacent to where he lived.
It was common for game watchers to be employed by landowners to supplement the work of their game wardens and early one evening a watcher had heard a rabbit's scream coming from a field at Clover Root.
Upon going to the place, the watcher found Thomas Hankinson in the act of taking a rabbit out of a grin and in the field a little farther along he found a poor cat fastened in another trap.
The defence tried to establish an alibi, although the prosecution were positive as to the identity of the poacher and Hankinson was fined 10 shillings and costs.
Publicans and beerhouse keepers were regularly prosecuted for breaching the strict Sunday drinking regulations.
Usually these concerned the illicit serving of alcohol in the morning, as pubs were not allowed to open on the Sabbath until noon.
But John Barnes who kept a beerhouse in Nutgrove was accused of serving beer late on a Sunday afternoon.
That was during the few hours that pubs needed to be closed before reopening for the evening.
Sgt Robinson gave evidence to the court that he had seen a woman named Ann Garrett coming out of Barnes' beerhouse at 5pm carrying a bottle of beer.
The woman's explanation was that she had been cleaning the house and had obtained the bottle in question prior to the place's closing time.
A reasonably plausible explanation but unfortunately the landlord had not turned up to answer the charge against him and corroborate Mrs Garrett's account.
The magistrates were used to hearing all sorts of fanciful excuses when defendants were accused of breaching the Sunday drinking laws.
And when the police told them that John Barnes had been summoned for a similar offence only a few weeks before and fined 10 shillings, they immediately convicted the landlord in his absence and fined him £5 and costs.
That was a hefty amount and there was every possibility of his conviction leading to the loss of his licence. But shortly after the case had concluded, a solicitor called Paine dashed into court.
He explained that while the Bench had been adjudicating on the case he had been receiving instructions from John Barnes "who had a perfect answer to the charge".
The defendant and his solicitor had apparently not realised that the hearing was taking place and Mr Paine applied to the magistrates for them to rehear it.
But the law on the subject said cases could not be reheard "after the sitting of the court".
The solicitor argued that the magistrates were still sitting, even though they had concluded John Barnes' case but the Bench still refused to reopen it.
A proposal to create what would become known as the Mersey Tunnel had been discussed for some time but according to the St Helens Newspaper this week, the scheme had been languishing of late.
Such a project would clearly be an engineering challenge and cost a fortune and so it was not something that anyone wanted to rush into.
However, the Newspaper reported that the scheme for a tunnel and railway to run under the Mersey had received fresh impetus as a result of some recent disasters that had affected two ferry steamers.
No one had been killed but both vessels conveying passengers from Liverpool to Birkenhead had been disabled by collisions, with one sunk and the other confined to dock. The Newspaper wrote:
"The comments of the local press on this topic have created quite a “scare” amongst the residents on the Cheshire shore, and will certainly drive many to the Liverpool side of the river.
"Simultaneously, the subject of the proposed tunnel and railway under the bed of the river has come into prominence, and it will now be looked upon with much greater public interest than has hitherto been accorded to it."
One of the most dangerous aspects of coal mining was pit sinking.
Many men lost their lives while creating shafts or extending existing ones. With minimal safety measures in place, it only took one mistake for a pit sinker to die, often after being hurled to the bottom of the pit.
However, Charles Jones of Frederick Street in Sutton was fatally injured in a different fashion.
He was one of several pit sinkers employed at the site of what eventually would become Bold Colliery.
Mr Jones had been using a crane to fix a problem when his foot slipped and his subsequent fall led to him receiving a severe blow on the back of his head.
Despite the St Helens Cottage Hospital having been created in Peasley Cross, it was still common practice for the injured to be conveyed to their home and a doctor summoned.
But there was nothing that Dr Gaskell could do and Charles never regained consciousness, dying on the following morning.
And finally, on the 18th a tea party and concert was held to mark the opening of a new Catholic School at Thatto Heath.
The event was so popular that what was described as a wooden tent had to be installed to provide additional accommodation.
And then on the following day a children's tea party took place followed by a magic lantern exhibition.
Later in the evening for the general public a "grand panoramic exhibition (illuminated by the oxy-hydrogen lime light)" was held.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the reckoning Monday row at Thatto Heath, the St Helens seedsman's stolen watch, the perils of going to work at 4am and the horseplay at the Holt in Rainhill that had potentially serious consequences.