Extracts from an Oral History interview with Tom Easton.
Tom was born in 1896 and lived in West Sleekburn as a child. He joined the Tyneside Scottish Brigade during the First World War. After training at Alnwick, Tom fought in France and Flanders until he was captured in April 1918. As a prisoner of war, Tom opted to work down a German coalmine near Brambauer in North Rhine West-Falia.
Mr P. M. Henderson appeared on behalf of the majority of the members of the Licensed Victualers’ Association and made proposals for the consideration of the Bench in regard to the fixing of what is known as “permitted hours” under the new Act of 1921. The Act fixed these hours temporarily until things were brought into working order. On 17th August these orders were put in force in the Borough. Under the old Ac of 1910 the hours were from 8 o’clock in the morning to 10 o’clock at night. In many cases, of course, license holders did not take advantage of these hours. The new Act recommended the hours per week-day at 8½, but the license holders in the Borough proposed 8 hours day. The Act recommended that the sale of intoxicating liquor should take place between the hours of 11.30 and 3pm, and 5.30 and 10pm on week days and what the license holders proposed as reasonable hours from 10am to 2pm and 5pm to 9pm. This of course, only affected week days. The license holders did say that they found the hour of 9 o’clock in the evening was late enough to keep open, and it was not an unreasonable closing hour either for the public.
Now, in regard to Sunday, continued Mr Henderson, the hours now in force are from12.30 to 2.30 in the afternoon, and from 7 to 10 in the evening. The license holders ask that the opening hour be 12.30 to 2.30 as at present, but that instead of from 7 to 10pm the hours should be from 6 to 9. At a recent meeting of the Licensed Victualers’ Association these were the hours agreed to by 38 out of 42 who attended the meeting. A Committee had been appointed, members of which would be prepared to give their views to the Bench and to say that 9 o’clock closing did not only meet their own views, but the reasonable requirements of the public.
ANOTHER VIEW
Mr H. R. Peters appeared for Mr Jas. Grey, wine merchant and said with the hours proposed his client could not agree. He was quite agreeable that the week day hours should be eight, and the Sunday hours as suggested, but he felt that in saying what these hours should be, a large part of the public had never been taken into consideration. There were the workers and visitor to the town and those who came into the town with the forenoon trains to do their shopping.
To start at 10 o’clock was an hour lost to the license holder, as large numbers of men were at work then and did not need refreshment; while the morning trains had not arrived. He suggested that the hours his client proposed were the best to meet the needs of everybody. The hours he proposed on week days were from 11 am to 4pm and from 6pm to 9pm. That he held gave reasonable time for refreshment, and in fixing the hours the Bench should consider the reasonable wants of the steady man, not he man whose idea of a reasonable amount of drink was a full skin (Laughter)
Mr Scott, proprietor of the King’s Arms, was of the opinion that the hours recommended by the Act should be adhered to. He also mentioned he was applying under Section 3 of the Act for all the privileges extended to caterers and hotel keepers, to sell drink with food with the evening meal. This meant that if the ten o’clock closing remained in force anyone arriving in the hotel could have a drink with their food between 10 and 11, but no drink unless they were having food.
Ultimately, Mr Scott agreed to fall in with the proposals of the License Victuallers’ Association, letting his application under Section 3 go forward separately.
The bench retired and on their return the Mayor announced that they had decided to fix the hours from 11 to 3pm and from 5 to 9pm on week days, with Sunday as suggested, 12.30 to 2.30 and 6 to 9. The Bench agreed to grant the application of Mr Scott under Section 3, he also having appeared for Mr Evans, of the Salmon Hotel.
On Monday, Berwick’s Autumn Holiday, a gymkhana, arranged by members of Berwick Motor Club, and cycling sports, arranged by members of Tweedside Cycling Club, took place at Scremerston Institute track. The proceeds were in aid of the track fund and the gate amounted to £25, and there might have been far more people present had the char-a-bancs been running as advertised. The weather was ideal.
Those who did attend had a capital afternoon’s sport and amusement. The Tweedside members provided the serious racing and put up some good finished, too, while the Motor Club provided the thrills and fun. It was a “day out” for the motor cyclists, who did anything , at times, up to 60 miles per hour, while the “limb of the law” appeared to enjoy the sport as much as anyone.
The most interesting events were the lemon-slicing, especially when speed was introduced, the variety race, in which the passenger on the carrier had to dismount and pick up an apple in his teeth, and the “T.T.” race. This latter was a burlesque of the famous motor cycle trials in the Isle of Man. There were four competitors and the prize at stake was the handsome Cooper Eye Cup, a massive “carbon” trophy on which “diamonds” from Scremerston’s famous seam glittered. The first holder was W. Rowley, the Club’s Vice-Captain, who, on a small push-bike with miniature gear got up no end of a pace. In what appeared to be a deliberate attempt to knock him off, T. Lilburn, on his giant prehistoric cycle, had a spill himself, causing no end of laughter. He, however, pluckly remounted and at the finish forged ahead of the “lady” competitor (Mr A. Fish, jun.) and took second place. We understand some of the Scremerston fair sex condemned the “lady” as “a brazen huzzy” for smoking on the field!
There was only one spill in the cycling events, and this was not due to the condition of the track, Purves accidently touching Coulthard’s pedal and bringing both to ground, Purves being much bruised and shaken, and Coulthard’s front wheel beyond repair.
At the close, Capt Carr presented the Cooper Eye Cup to Mr Rowley and, on behalf of Scremerston, thanked the members of the Motor and Tweedside Clubs for the excellent afternoon’s entertainment they provided.
Scremertson Band, which had played selections all afternoon, then played “God Save the King.”
Earlier in the year I was asked to write an article about Dr Ethel Williams, Newcastle’s first female GP and suffragist, who retired to Stocksfield in 1924. I was keen to continue learning more about the life of this remarkable lady and some of her friends and associates, in particular once the office re-opened exploring the resources available at Northumberland Archives. Whilst there are many areas of Ethel’s life I am keen to explore, I decided to find out about her final resting place first.
Newspaper articles and obituaries at the time of her death in January 1948 indicated that Ethel had died at home. The Newcastle Journal reported that the funeral was to be held at Hindley Churchyard, Stocksfield. The will of Mabel Annie Burnip, Ethel’s private secretary and main beneficiary, set aside a sum of money for the upkeep of Ethel’s grave at the burial ground at Hindley, Stocksfield. So, on a sunny Sunday afternoon in September that is what I set off to find.
Now I must admit, I’m not very familiar with that part of Northumberland, and without a postcode to put into the satnav I was just hoping that I would find it based on loose sense of direction with a little bit of luck thrown in. Hindley itself is a couple of miles outside of Stocksfield, the churchyard about quarter-mile from Hindley in the Bywell St. Peter parish. Exploring the country roads, I could see why Ethel had returned to Newcastle during World War Two; the temptation to explore the beautiful open countryside must have been strong, but perhaps not wise when petrol was rationed…I decided I better put some fuel in just in case!
What do we know about the church and cemetery? The balance sheet of the ‘Building Fund of St. Margaret’s Mission Room, Hindley, in Bywell St. Peters’ dated February 1891 indicates that building was underway at this time [EP 45/80]. The second edition Ordnance Survey map for the area (1895) shows St. Margaret’s Mission Chapel not far from Broomley. Minutes taken at the parish meeting of the Broomley and Stocksfield Parish Council in October 1930 ask that additional land is purchased at Hindley Church for a burial ground [PC 7/2]. By May 1931 this piece of land which was 3,383 and one-ninth yards squared had been fenced, drained and considered to be in a ‘fit and proper state’ for burials; a petition was raised for the land to be consecrated. The land was consecrated the following month [DN/E/4/1/27/1]. By 1979 the Chapel was in decline; “St. Margaret’s Church has not for some years been used for regular services, but only for occasional funeral services, and constitutes a potential liability for maintenance and repair”, the decision to sell the building was made. A stained-glass memorial window was removed and relocated to Bywell St. Peter and the building subsequently sold [DN/E/8/2/2/3848].
The building itself is now a private residence, the burial ground is accessible by a gate from the roadside. It looked small, neat and ordered. It didn’t take long to find Ethel’s grave, although it is hard to read as the stone is worn, some of the words illegible, but it is undoubtedly her final resting place. Continuing to look around, I also found the grave of Mabel Burnip, her will was instrumental in taking me to this peaceful corner of Northumberland. Mabel died in 1984, if anyone recalls her and would like to share their memories, we would love to hear from you.
