150 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK 24 - 30 JUNE 1874
This week's many stories include the woman described as old and wretched looking who was charged with theft in Parr, the heavy penalty for the burglar who broke into several St Helens pubs, the assault in Traverse Street that was justified by immoral conduct, the welcome downpour of rain, the shocking rise in mortality rates in St Helens, the Theatre Royal reopens and the woman who waxed exceedingly wroth.
Although there were plenty of thefts in St Helens, there were not many burglaries by outsiders. That I find surprising as despite people being far less mobile than today, criminals could use the railway network to make a quick getaway after burgling premises. There was always a lot of publicity when a spate of break-ins did take place in St Helens, reinforcing how rare an event they were.
On the 26th a man from Manchester called Thomas Howarth appeared in the St Helens Petty Sessions charged with stealing a number of articles including a coat and pipe from the George Hotel in Smithy Brow. The St Helens Newspaper said "an instrument of the ‘jemmy’ class" was found upon him, as well as cash. The licensee of the Gerard Arms at Dentons Green also reported that his house had been broken into and a drawer rifled and more than £3 stolen.
Howarth was arrested at the Salisbury Hotel in St Helens and the magistrates committed him for trial at Liverpool Assizes where in mid-August he strenuously denied his guilt. But the jury found the 30-year-old guilty and the judge said he was "evidently a dangerous person, and must be taken care of for some time to come". That was based on Howarth having been convicted of similar offences in Manchester and as a result he was sentenced to seven years in prison.
Margaret Donaghue appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions this week and I'd love to know just how old she was! Described as "old and wretched looking", I expect she was more 60 than 80, and, perhaps, only in her 50s. Enduring a hard life with not enough good food to eat and clean fresh air to breathe tended to age people. Margaret had been lodging in Parr and those she had been staying with had reported her to the police.
They found a very large box in her possession filled with 194 new handkerchiefs, as well as many stockings, wool etc. Although begging often resulted in a prison sentence, the Newspaper explained how in the past Margaret had been considered a worthy recipient of hand-outs, even from the police themselves: "She is well known to the police and to many tradesmen in the town as a sort of worthy old mendicant who subsisted apparently on charity. Some of the police themselves frequently assisted her with alms, and no one doubted her perfect honesty."
The stock was priced as worth over £10 and although most of it appears not to have been claimed by their owners, market trader Mary Bold identified one or two pieces as belonging to her. As a result the wretched Margaret Donaghue was sent to prison for a week and I expect would no longer receive any more hand-outs from the police.
As I've often said, violence in the 1870s was tolerated to a degree, as long as it was not too severe. And if you were prosecuted for assault and had a good excuse to justify your action, the case against you would likely be dismissed. Mary Banks appeared in court this week charged with assaulting Anne Woods.
The latter had gone into the shop kept by Mary's mother and after buying some bread Anne began to complain to the woman about her daughter's conduct. At that moment Mary Banks entered the shop and wanted to know if she was being talked about. The Newspaper in its report said that after being informed that she was indeed the subject of the conversation, Mary had "waxed exceedingly wroth".
Upon Anne Woods leaving the shop with her bread, Mary had chased after her, grabbed her hair and pulled her down. She then struck Anne in the face, cutting her lip. Anne admitted in court that she had called Mary foul names and the latter's solicitor, Thomas Swift, argued that the assault in the circumstances was fully justified. Despite witnesses corroborating Anne's description of the violent attack upon her, the magistrates decided to dismiss the case.
Immorality was also seen as an acceptable excuse for giving someone a bit of a beating. A woman called Dingsdale appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions to accuse Emma Atherton of assaulting her in Parr. Mrs Dingsdale told the court that as she was passing through Traverse Street, Emma Atherton had walked up to her and hit her. She then pulled off her bonnet and threw it down and then gave her shawl the same treatment before pushing Mrs Dingsdale down to the ground.
But Emma Atherton’s solicitor, Thomas Swift, told the court what the Newspaper called a "disgraceful story". After fifteen years of marriage Emma's husband had deserted his wife to live with Mrs Dingsdale and for the last ten months she had been his "paramour". The Newspaper continued:
"She made no secret of her position; but complained that the aggrieved wife, having an allowance of 4s 6d per week, ought to be content and let her alone. The husband and his new flame were coming along together when the assault was committed; and Mr. Swift used some strong language in characterising the conduct of the complainant and the husband of the defendant, who was listening to the case in court. The Chairman dismissed the charge. When complainant and her man left the court they were mobbed, and had to run for refuge."
It had so far been a very dry summer, which the St Helens Newspaper on the 27th said had "greatly retarded" the crops in the fields. And so they very much welcomed the rain that had fallen earlier in the week, particularly on Wednesday morning when a violent thunderstorm had struck the town accompanied by a heavy downpour.
This week the Medical Officer of St Helens issued his mortality report for the first quarter of the year, which continued to show a rise in the town's death rate. The St Helens Newspaper wrote: "A few years ago St. Helens was one of the healthiest places in the land, under ordinary circumstances; but since the period of the smallpox epidemic there has been a steady increase in the proportion of deaths; and now a glance at the returns from the principal towns in the Kingdom will show, if figures go for anything in such cases, that it is amongst the most unhealthy."
In the first three months of 1874 there had been 351 deaths in the town, compared to a mortality of 285 in the same quarter of 1873. The paper put the blame for the increase on "atmospheric impurities" and an astonishing 173 deaths had been of children aged under 5 – that's almost half the total. The Newspaper felt that the vast majority of all deaths were, to some extent, largely preventable, writing: "This shows how wholesale is the slaughter of human beings, either by acts of their own, or surrounding circumstances."
Interestingly, the table that was published in the Newspaper stated that there had been no deaths in St Helens during the last quarter from cancer. That, I imagine, was a combination of not having the means of detecting a tumour without a post-mortem – which were rarely carried out in the 1870s. And most people not living very long lives and so less vulnerable to the disease. Other factors could have been very few women smoking at that time and people taking more exercise than today.
The Theatre Royal in the building we know as the Citadel (pictured above) tended to take an early summer break but it was reopened to the public this week. The acts included John Millicent, who the Newspaper said was the "best and most graceful clog dancer" that had ever visited St Helens. Just what Queen Lilliput did on stage was not stated in the report but measuring just 33 inches tall she was described as proving a great attraction. There were also "unique and astounding" gymnastics, an opera singer and a comic.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include a shocking case of wife beating, the criticism of the bricks used in building the new town hall, the deadly kick from a cow in Prescot and the 11-year-old boys illegally employed in a brickfield.
Although there were plenty of thefts in St Helens, there were not many burglaries by outsiders. That I find surprising as despite people being far less mobile than today, criminals could use the railway network to make a quick getaway after burgling premises. There was always a lot of publicity when a spate of break-ins did take place in St Helens, reinforcing how rare an event they were.
On the 26th a man from Manchester called Thomas Howarth appeared in the St Helens Petty Sessions charged with stealing a number of articles including a coat and pipe from the George Hotel in Smithy Brow. The St Helens Newspaper said "an instrument of the ‘jemmy’ class" was found upon him, as well as cash. The licensee of the Gerard Arms at Dentons Green also reported that his house had been broken into and a drawer rifled and more than £3 stolen.
Howarth was arrested at the Salisbury Hotel in St Helens and the magistrates committed him for trial at Liverpool Assizes where in mid-August he strenuously denied his guilt. But the jury found the 30-year-old guilty and the judge said he was "evidently a dangerous person, and must be taken care of for some time to come". That was based on Howarth having been convicted of similar offences in Manchester and as a result he was sentenced to seven years in prison.
Margaret Donaghue appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions this week and I'd love to know just how old she was! Described as "old and wretched looking", I expect she was more 60 than 80, and, perhaps, only in her 50s. Enduring a hard life with not enough good food to eat and clean fresh air to breathe tended to age people. Margaret had been lodging in Parr and those she had been staying with had reported her to the police.
They found a very large box in her possession filled with 194 new handkerchiefs, as well as many stockings, wool etc. Although begging often resulted in a prison sentence, the Newspaper explained how in the past Margaret had been considered a worthy recipient of hand-outs, even from the police themselves: "She is well known to the police and to many tradesmen in the town as a sort of worthy old mendicant who subsisted apparently on charity. Some of the police themselves frequently assisted her with alms, and no one doubted her perfect honesty."
The stock was priced as worth over £10 and although most of it appears not to have been claimed by their owners, market trader Mary Bold identified one or two pieces as belonging to her. As a result the wretched Margaret Donaghue was sent to prison for a week and I expect would no longer receive any more hand-outs from the police.
As I've often said, violence in the 1870s was tolerated to a degree, as long as it was not too severe. And if you were prosecuted for assault and had a good excuse to justify your action, the case against you would likely be dismissed. Mary Banks appeared in court this week charged with assaulting Anne Woods.
The latter had gone into the shop kept by Mary's mother and after buying some bread Anne began to complain to the woman about her daughter's conduct. At that moment Mary Banks entered the shop and wanted to know if she was being talked about. The Newspaper in its report said that after being informed that she was indeed the subject of the conversation, Mary had "waxed exceedingly wroth".
Upon Anne Woods leaving the shop with her bread, Mary had chased after her, grabbed her hair and pulled her down. She then struck Anne in the face, cutting her lip. Anne admitted in court that she had called Mary foul names and the latter's solicitor, Thomas Swift, argued that the assault in the circumstances was fully justified. Despite witnesses corroborating Anne's description of the violent attack upon her, the magistrates decided to dismiss the case.
Immorality was also seen as an acceptable excuse for giving someone a bit of a beating. A woman called Dingsdale appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions to accuse Emma Atherton of assaulting her in Parr. Mrs Dingsdale told the court that as she was passing through Traverse Street, Emma Atherton had walked up to her and hit her. She then pulled off her bonnet and threw it down and then gave her shawl the same treatment before pushing Mrs Dingsdale down to the ground.
But Emma Atherton’s solicitor, Thomas Swift, told the court what the Newspaper called a "disgraceful story". After fifteen years of marriage Emma's husband had deserted his wife to live with Mrs Dingsdale and for the last ten months she had been his "paramour". The Newspaper continued:
"She made no secret of her position; but complained that the aggrieved wife, having an allowance of 4s 6d per week, ought to be content and let her alone. The husband and his new flame were coming along together when the assault was committed; and Mr. Swift used some strong language in characterising the conduct of the complainant and the husband of the defendant, who was listening to the case in court. The Chairman dismissed the charge. When complainant and her man left the court they were mobbed, and had to run for refuge."
It had so far been a very dry summer, which the St Helens Newspaper on the 27th said had "greatly retarded" the crops in the fields. And so they very much welcomed the rain that had fallen earlier in the week, particularly on Wednesday morning when a violent thunderstorm had struck the town accompanied by a heavy downpour.
This week the Medical Officer of St Helens issued his mortality report for the first quarter of the year, which continued to show a rise in the town's death rate. The St Helens Newspaper wrote: "A few years ago St. Helens was one of the healthiest places in the land, under ordinary circumstances; but since the period of the smallpox epidemic there has been a steady increase in the proportion of deaths; and now a glance at the returns from the principal towns in the Kingdom will show, if figures go for anything in such cases, that it is amongst the most unhealthy."
In the first three months of 1874 there had been 351 deaths in the town, compared to a mortality of 285 in the same quarter of 1873. The paper put the blame for the increase on "atmospheric impurities" and an astonishing 173 deaths had been of children aged under 5 – that's almost half the total. The Newspaper felt that the vast majority of all deaths were, to some extent, largely preventable, writing: "This shows how wholesale is the slaughter of human beings, either by acts of their own, or surrounding circumstances."
Interestingly, the table that was published in the Newspaper stated that there had been no deaths in St Helens during the last quarter from cancer. That, I imagine, was a combination of not having the means of detecting a tumour without a post-mortem – which were rarely carried out in the 1870s. And most people not living very long lives and so less vulnerable to the disease. Other factors could have been very few women smoking at that time and people taking more exercise than today.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include a shocking case of wife beating, the criticism of the bricks used in building the new town hall, the deadly kick from a cow in Prescot and the 11-year-old boys illegally employed in a brickfield.
This week's many stories include the woman described as old and wretched looking who was charged with theft in Parr, the heavy penalty for the burglar who broke into several St Helens pubs, the assault in Traverse Street that was justified by immoral conduct, the welcome downpour of rain, the shocking rise in mortality rates in St Helens, the Theatre Royal reopens and the woman who waxed exceedingly wroth.
Although there were plenty of thefts in St Helens, there were not many burglaries by outsiders.
That I find surprising as despite people being far less mobile than today, criminals could use the railway network to make a quick getaway after burgling premises.
There was always a lot of publicity when a spate of break-ins did take place in St Helens, reinforcing how rare an event they were.
On the 26th a man from Manchester called Thomas Howarth appeared in the St Helens Petty Sessions charged with stealing a number of articles including a coat and pipe from the George Hotel in Smithy Brow.
The St Helens Newspaper said "an instrument of the ‘jemmy’ class" was found upon him, as well as cash.
The licensee of the Gerard Arms at Dentons Green also reported that his house had been broken into and a drawer rifled and more than £3 stolen.
Howarth was arrested at the Salisbury Hotel in St Helens and the magistrates committed him for trial at Liverpool Assizes where in mid-August he strenuously denied his guilt.
But the jury found the 30-year-old guilty and the judge said he was "evidently a dangerous person, and must be taken care of for some time to come".
That was based on Howarth having been convicted of similar offences in Manchester and as a result he was sentenced to seven years in prison.
Margaret Donaghue appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions this week and I'd love to know just how old she was!
Described as "old and wretched looking", I expect she was more 60 than 80, and, perhaps, only in her 50s.
Enduring a hard life with not enough good food to eat and clean fresh air to breathe tended to age people.
Margaret had been lodging in Parr and those she had been staying with had reported her to the police.
They found a very large box in her possession filled with 194 new handkerchiefs, as well as many stockings, wool etc.
Although begging often resulted in a prison sentence, the Newspaper explained how in the past Margaret had been considered a worthy recipient of hand-outs, even from the police themselves:
"She is well known to the police and to many tradesmen in the town as a sort of worthy old mendicant who subsisted apparently on charity.
"Some of the police themselves frequently assisted her with alms, and no one doubted her perfect honesty."
The stock was priced as worth over £10 and although most of it appears not to have been claimed by their owners, market trader Mary Bold identified one or two pieces as belonging to her.
As a result the wretched Margaret Donaghue was sent to prison for a week and I expect would no longer receive any more hand-outs from the police.
As I've often said, violence in the 1870s was tolerated to a degree, as long as it was not too severe.
And if you were prosecuted for assault and had a good excuse to justify your action, the case against you would likely be dismissed.
Mary Banks appeared in court this week charged with assaulting Anne Woods.
The latter had gone into the shop kept by Mary's mother and after buying some bread Anne began to complain to the woman about her daughter's conduct.
At that moment Mary Banks entered the shop and wanted to know if she was being talked about.
The Newspaper in its report said that after being informed that she was indeed the subject of the conversation, Mary had "waxed exceedingly wroth".
Upon Anne Woods leaving the shop with her bread, Mary had chased after her, grabbed her hair and pulled her down. She then struck Anne in the face, cutting her lip.
Anne admitted in court that she had called Mary foul names and the latter's solicitor, Thomas Swift, argued that the assault in the circumstances was fully justified.
Despite witnesses corroborating Anne's description of the violent attack upon her, the magistrates decided to dismiss the case.
Immorality was also seen as an acceptable excuse for giving someone a bit of a beating.
A woman called Dingsdale appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions to accuse Emma Atherton of assaulting her in Parr.
Mrs Dingsdale told the court that as she was passing through Traverse Street, Emma Atherton had walked up to her and hit her.
She then pulled off her bonnet and threw it down and then gave her shawl the same treatment before pushing Mrs Dingsdale down to the ground.
But Emma Atherton’s solicitor, Thomas Swift, told the court what the Newspaper called a "disgraceful story".
After fifteen years of marriage Emma's husband had deserted his wife to live with Mrs Dingsdale and for the last ten months she had been his "paramour". The Newspaper continued:
"She made no secret of her position; but complained that the aggrieved wife, having an allowance of 4s 6d per week, ought to be content and let her alone.
"The husband and his new flame were coming along together when the assault was committed; and Mr. Swift used some strong language in characterising the conduct of the complainant and the husband of the defendant, who was listening to the case in court. The Chairman dismissed the charge.
"When complainant and her man left the court they were mobbed, and had to run for refuge."
It had so far been a very dry summer, which the St Helens Newspaper on the 27th said had "greatly retarded" the crops in the fields.
And so they very much welcomed the rain that had fallen earlier in the week, particularly on Wednesday morning when a violent thunderstorm had struck the town accompanied by a heavy downpour.
This week the Medical Officer of St Helens issued his mortality report for the first quarter of the year, which continued to show a rise in the town's death rate. The St Helens Newspaper wrote:
"A few years ago St. Helens was one of the healthiest places in the land, under ordinary circumstances; but since the period of the smallpox epidemic there has been a steady increase in the proportion of deaths; and now a glance at the returns from the principal towns in the Kingdom will show, if figures go for anything in such cases, that it is amongst the most unhealthy."
In the first three months of 1874 there had been 351 deaths in the town, compared to a mortality of 285 in the same quarter of 1873.
The paper put the blame for the increase on "atmospheric impurities" and an astonishing 173 deaths had been of children aged under 5 – that's almost half the total.
The Newspaper felt that the vast majority of all deaths were, to some extent, largely preventable, writing:
"This shows how wholesale is the slaughter of human beings, either by acts of their own, or surrounding circumstances."
Interestingly, the table that was published in the Newspaper stated that there had been no deaths in St Helens during the last quarter from cancer.
That, I imagine, was a combination of not having the means of detecting a tumour without a post-mortem – which were rarely carried out in the 1870s.
And most people not living very long lives and so less vulnerable to the disease.
Other factors could have been very few women smoking at that time and people taking more exercise than today.
The Theatre Royal in the building we know as the Citadel (pictured above) tended to take an early summer break but it was reopened to the public this week.
The acts included John Millicent, who the Newspaper said was the "best and most graceful clog dancer" that had ever visited St Helens.
Just what Queen Lilliput did on stage was not stated in the report but measuring just 33 inches tall she was described as proving a great attraction.
There were also "unique and astounding" gymnastics, an opera singer and a comic.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include a shocking case of wife beating, the criticism of the bricks used in building the new town hall, the deadly kick from a cow in Prescot and the 11-year-old boys illegally employed in a brickfield.
Although there were plenty of thefts in St Helens, there were not many burglaries by outsiders.
That I find surprising as despite people being far less mobile than today, criminals could use the railway network to make a quick getaway after burgling premises.
There was always a lot of publicity when a spate of break-ins did take place in St Helens, reinforcing how rare an event they were.
On the 26th a man from Manchester called Thomas Howarth appeared in the St Helens Petty Sessions charged with stealing a number of articles including a coat and pipe from the George Hotel in Smithy Brow.
The St Helens Newspaper said "an instrument of the ‘jemmy’ class" was found upon him, as well as cash.
The licensee of the Gerard Arms at Dentons Green also reported that his house had been broken into and a drawer rifled and more than £3 stolen.
Howarth was arrested at the Salisbury Hotel in St Helens and the magistrates committed him for trial at Liverpool Assizes where in mid-August he strenuously denied his guilt.
But the jury found the 30-year-old guilty and the judge said he was "evidently a dangerous person, and must be taken care of for some time to come".
That was based on Howarth having been convicted of similar offences in Manchester and as a result he was sentenced to seven years in prison.
Margaret Donaghue appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions this week and I'd love to know just how old she was!
Described as "old and wretched looking", I expect she was more 60 than 80, and, perhaps, only in her 50s.
Enduring a hard life with not enough good food to eat and clean fresh air to breathe tended to age people.
Margaret had been lodging in Parr and those she had been staying with had reported her to the police.
They found a very large box in her possession filled with 194 new handkerchiefs, as well as many stockings, wool etc.
Although begging often resulted in a prison sentence, the Newspaper explained how in the past Margaret had been considered a worthy recipient of hand-outs, even from the police themselves:
"She is well known to the police and to many tradesmen in the town as a sort of worthy old mendicant who subsisted apparently on charity.
"Some of the police themselves frequently assisted her with alms, and no one doubted her perfect honesty."
The stock was priced as worth over £10 and although most of it appears not to have been claimed by their owners, market trader Mary Bold identified one or two pieces as belonging to her.
As a result the wretched Margaret Donaghue was sent to prison for a week and I expect would no longer receive any more hand-outs from the police.
As I've often said, violence in the 1870s was tolerated to a degree, as long as it was not too severe.
And if you were prosecuted for assault and had a good excuse to justify your action, the case against you would likely be dismissed.
Mary Banks appeared in court this week charged with assaulting Anne Woods.
The latter had gone into the shop kept by Mary's mother and after buying some bread Anne began to complain to the woman about her daughter's conduct.
At that moment Mary Banks entered the shop and wanted to know if she was being talked about.
The Newspaper in its report said that after being informed that she was indeed the subject of the conversation, Mary had "waxed exceedingly wroth".
Upon Anne Woods leaving the shop with her bread, Mary had chased after her, grabbed her hair and pulled her down. She then struck Anne in the face, cutting her lip.
Anne admitted in court that she had called Mary foul names and the latter's solicitor, Thomas Swift, argued that the assault in the circumstances was fully justified.
Despite witnesses corroborating Anne's description of the violent attack upon her, the magistrates decided to dismiss the case.
Immorality was also seen as an acceptable excuse for giving someone a bit of a beating.
A woman called Dingsdale appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions to accuse Emma Atherton of assaulting her in Parr.
Mrs Dingsdale told the court that as she was passing through Traverse Street, Emma Atherton had walked up to her and hit her.
She then pulled off her bonnet and threw it down and then gave her shawl the same treatment before pushing Mrs Dingsdale down to the ground.
But Emma Atherton’s solicitor, Thomas Swift, told the court what the Newspaper called a "disgraceful story".
After fifteen years of marriage Emma's husband had deserted his wife to live with Mrs Dingsdale and for the last ten months she had been his "paramour". The Newspaper continued:
"She made no secret of her position; but complained that the aggrieved wife, having an allowance of 4s 6d per week, ought to be content and let her alone.
"The husband and his new flame were coming along together when the assault was committed; and Mr. Swift used some strong language in characterising the conduct of the complainant and the husband of the defendant, who was listening to the case in court. The Chairman dismissed the charge.
"When complainant and her man left the court they were mobbed, and had to run for refuge."
It had so far been a very dry summer, which the St Helens Newspaper on the 27th said had "greatly retarded" the crops in the fields.
And so they very much welcomed the rain that had fallen earlier in the week, particularly on Wednesday morning when a violent thunderstorm had struck the town accompanied by a heavy downpour.
This week the Medical Officer of St Helens issued his mortality report for the first quarter of the year, which continued to show a rise in the town's death rate. The St Helens Newspaper wrote:
"A few years ago St. Helens was one of the healthiest places in the land, under ordinary circumstances; but since the period of the smallpox epidemic there has been a steady increase in the proportion of deaths; and now a glance at the returns from the principal towns in the Kingdom will show, if figures go for anything in such cases, that it is amongst the most unhealthy."
In the first three months of 1874 there had been 351 deaths in the town, compared to a mortality of 285 in the same quarter of 1873.
The paper put the blame for the increase on "atmospheric impurities" and an astonishing 173 deaths had been of children aged under 5 – that's almost half the total.
The Newspaper felt that the vast majority of all deaths were, to some extent, largely preventable, writing:
"This shows how wholesale is the slaughter of human beings, either by acts of their own, or surrounding circumstances."
Interestingly, the table that was published in the Newspaper stated that there had been no deaths in St Helens during the last quarter from cancer.
That, I imagine, was a combination of not having the means of detecting a tumour without a post-mortem – which were rarely carried out in the 1870s.
And most people not living very long lives and so less vulnerable to the disease.
Other factors could have been very few women smoking at that time and people taking more exercise than today.
The acts included John Millicent, who the Newspaper said was the "best and most graceful clog dancer" that had ever visited St Helens.
Just what Queen Lilliput did on stage was not stated in the report but measuring just 33 inches tall she was described as proving a great attraction.
There were also "unique and astounding" gymnastics, an opera singer and a comic.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include a shocking case of wife beating, the criticism of the bricks used in building the new town hall, the deadly kick from a cow in Prescot and the 11-year-old boys illegally employed in a brickfield.