Folkestone Herald
18-12-1920
Friday, November 17th: Before Dr. W.J. Tyson, Mr.
G.I. Swoffer, Mr. G. Boyd, Mr. W.J. Harrison and Miss E.I. Weston.
Albert Taylor, landlord of the Brewery Tap, was summoned for
a breach of the Shops Order. Mr. A.F. Kidson prosecuted, and Mr. V.D. De Wet
appeared for the defendant, who pleaded Not Guilty.
Mr. Arthur John Wort said at 6.10 p.m. on Wednesday,
November 21st, he visited the defendant`s house. He asked for a
packet of cigarettes, and he was served by the defendant`s son with a 6d.
packet.
Cross-examined, witness said defendant`s son and he had
played football together. He did not know him personally as he did not speak to
him in the street. (Laughter)
Mr. De Wet submitted that the Order did not apply to
licensed victuallers. They were exempted under the schedule which exempted
other trades. The licensed victuallers were never asked if they wished to be
exempted from being allowed to open on Wednesday afternoons. Were 110 licensed
victuallers, not consulted, to be bound by a three-fourths majority of the
tobacconists?
Defendant was fined 10s.
Mr. De Wet said this was a trade affair, and he asked the
Magistrates to state a case, which request was granted.
Gertrude Florence Lucas (True Briton Hotel) and Ernest
Mainwood (Harbour Hotel) were each fined 10s. for similar offences.
Folkestone Express
25-12-1920
Local News
On Friday morning at the Police Court summonses were heard
against three defendants for a breach of the Shops (Closing) Order, for having
sold cigarettes on a Wednesday afternoon, which day is the recognised half day
holiday for shops in Folkestone.
The Magistrates were Dr. Tyson, Mr. Swoffer, Councillors
Miss Weston, Boyd, Mumford, and Harrison. Mr. A.F. Kidson (Town Clerk)
prosecuted, and Mr. De Wet defended.
Albert Taylor, licensee of the Brewery Tap, was concerned in
the first case heard, and Mr. De Wet pleaded Not Guilty.
Arthur John Wort said he visited the Brewery Tap about 6.10
p.m. on the 24th November, and asked for a packet of cigarettes. He
was served by the defendant`s son, Albert George Taylor. He paid sixpence for
the cigarettes.
Cross-examined by Mr. De Wet: No-one was in the bar when he
went in, and defendant`s son was behind the bar, and he thought he took the
cigarettes from a shelf. He used to play football in the school team with
defendant`s son. He did not know him personally – he did not speak to him in
the street. Mr. Pearson went to the door, and he gave him the cigarettes.
Mr. De Wet submitted that the Order did not apply to
licensed victuallers. They were a class which were exempted by the very
schedule the Town Clerk had referred to. Licensed victuallers were not
retailers of tobacco and smokers` requisites. Had all the 110 licence holders
to be bound if they were not consulted for the purposes of securing a
three-fourths majority of what they were not – retailers of smokers`
requisites? He asked the Bench to hold that the case was not applicable to
licence holders.
The Bench retired, and on their return to Court the Chairman
said the Magistrates had decided to convict, and the defendant would be fined
10s.
Mr. De Wet said it was a trade offence, and asked the
Magistrates would agree to state a case.
Mrs. Lucas was summoned for the same offence.
Mr. De Wet said the case was similar to the other, and he
must plead Guilty, with compunction.
A.J. Wort said he visited the True Briton, and was served by
Mrs. Lucas with a packet of cigarettes.
Fined 10s.
Ernest Leonard Mainwood was similarly summoned, and A.J.
Wort said he visited the Harbour Hotel about 6.15, and purchased a packet of
cigarettes, for which he paid 6d.
Fined 10s.
Editorial Comment
Probably we have not heard the last of the licence holders
and their action concerning the sale of tobacco on the early half-closing day.
The penalty inflicted on Friday last was not a severe one, but it shows they
are breaking the law if they serve to their customers after the hours for the
sale of tobacco. It, on the face, appears unjust, that when those hours were
fixed by the Town Council, following a request by the tobacconists of the town,
that the licensed victuallers were not consulted as to their wishes. If they
had been the voting would doubtless have been different to what it was. It seems
an anomaly that at Cheriton and Sandgate cigarettes and tobacco can be
purchased on the early half-closing day, yet on the Folkestone side of the boundaries
a smoker, if he has run out of his choice weed, will have to wait until the
following day before he can enjoy his pipe or cigarette again. There are always
officials ready to pounce on innocent offenders, but to the man in the street
it seems strange that so much time can be devoted to pin-pricking tradesmen,
who are endeavouring to make an honest living, yet at the same time such danger
spots as that brought to the light of day by an inquest held last week are
allowed to exist in a civilised community and in a fashionable town like
Folkestone. It would be of interest to learn what action the Sanitary
Department took in that particular matter.
Folkestone Herald
25-12-1920
Editorial
Bumble oracularly declared that “the law is a hass”. It is
not unlikely that many people, after reading the reports of the cases in which
three licensed victuallers were fined for the heinous crime of selling
cigarettes on Wednesday afternoon, expressed themselves in a similar fashion.
We make no reflection upon the Folkestone Magistrates who heard the prosecutions.
The law being as it is, they probably felt they had no alternative but to fine
the defendants. At the same time they would have shown a greater appreciation
of the fitness of things by imposing a mere nominal penalty of one shilling.
But the amount of the fine is not a very serious matter one way or the other.
The material point is the state of things in which it is an offence for a
publican to sell a cigar, cigarette or tobacco after one o`clock on Wednesday.
One satisfactory result of the proceedings is that the Magistrates consented to
state a case, and, as we understand, the licensed victuallers intend to take
steps with a view to securing the removal of this gross anomaly. We are firm
believers in law and order, but when the application of the law leads to such a
pass as this we venture to suggest that it is time to enquire whether there is
not some error either in the application or in the law itself.
The cases were the outcome of the operation of the Shop
Hours Act, containing provision for the closing of shops one half day in every
week. That measure allows a certain amount of latitude to tobacconists. They
are set apart in a class distinct from shopkeepers generally; they are under no
obligation to shut on the customary closing day unless a two-thirds majority
petition the Town Council to make an order that they shall do so. That is what
happened some years ago. The tobacconists wished to come within the scope of
the general order, and the necessary majority memorialised the Corporation accordingly.
But – and this is a big “but” – the licensed victuallers, who are also
tobacconists, were not consulted in the matter at all. Yet they are expected to
conform to an order in the making of which they had no voice! Could anything be
more unfair? Simple justice and common sense alike dictate that either they
should be regarded as “tobacconists”, and therefore consulted before the order
is applied to them or they should not be affected by the order. Licensed
victuallers are, indeed, provided for by legislation as a separate class, and
they are hedged about and harassed by many restrictions from which other
traders are immune. They have therefore the stronger claim to consideration in
this matter.
Possibly the result of the case to be stated by the Justices
will be a decision that they cannot be regarded as coming within the scope of
the order. If not, then it must be hoped that the powers that be will rule that
the publicans must be classed as “tobacconists” in so far as the matter of
petitioning the local authority for an order is concerned. In justice to the
tobacconists it must be said – so we are informed on good authority – that the
majority of them are not opposed to licensed victuallers and cinemas selling
cigars, cigarettes, or tobacco on Wednesday afternoon. But it is not merely the
tobacconists or the licensed victuallers who have a claim to be heard on this
subject. The public generally has a voice in the matter, and many people
consider it is a serious grievance that they are debarred from purchasing their
smoking materials at hotels and public houses on Wednesday afternoons when the
ordinary tobacconists are closed. True, smokers living at Morehall, at
Cheriton, at Sandgate, and at Hythe can get what they want that afternoon from
the ordinary cigar stores, these being open for business as usual. Viewed in
the light of this fact, the state of things at Folkestone is a still greater
anomaly.
There is another aspect of the case. We are convinced that
it is detrimental to the interests of Folkestone as a health and pleasure
resort that the tobacconists as a body close on Wednesday afternoon, especially
in the summer. If, however, they elect to close, they are free to do so. But
let those who wish to meet the convenience of the public by supplying them with
cigarettes and the like and also the public itself be likewise free to do as
they wish. Let us have freedom all round.
Comment
The recent prosecution of certain licensed victuallers and
the Managing Director of a cinema, for selling cigarettes on Wednesday
afternoon has been the subject of much comment since the cases were reported in
last week`s Herald. The state of affairs is anomalous in the extreme. Whilst an
innocent cigarette is forbidden to freedom loving Britons in Folkestone on
Wednesday afternoons, he can cross the border either to Sandgate or Cheriton
and purchase all he desires in this respect. Surely it is time that steps
should be taken to bring about some alteration.
With the object of securing the views of “The Trade” on this
subject a Herald representative waited on the Chairman of the Folkestone and
District Licensed Victuallers` Association (Mr. Rivers) at the Victoria Hotel,
Risborough Lane. Unfortunately he was confined to his room through
indisposition, but he kindly sent a message through his daughter to the effect
that it was a most absurd position that a body of about a dozen men (an
insignificant minority) should be able to control a majority as was done in
this case.
Mr. Albert Hart, the energetic Secretary of the Licensed
Victuallers` Association, on being asked his opinion on the subject,
emphatically replied “Absolutely rotten. In the first place I should think the
Health Committee of the Town Council would be doing a good thing if they
directed Inspector Pearson to get on with his duties as Sanitary Inspector,
instead of hiding up behind walls and doors whilst a boy is utilised to trap
honest traders. Here is the situation. Some time ago about fourteen members of
the tobacco trade (if indeed there was such a number) asked the Council to
apply the provision of the Shop Hours Act to the tobacco trade in the borough.
Now the enforcement of the Act means that 300 licensed tobacco dealers in the
town are prevented from selling tobacco in any form after one o`clock on Wednesday”.
In answer to another query, Mr. Hart said “Yes, it applies
to hotels and restaurants. All liberty-loving Englishmen revolt at such a
situation, and they revolt also at the methods employed in order to secure a
paltry conviction. We as a trade – combined with other tobacco licensees –
intend to take steps to secure the revocation of this absurd application of a
law, which was never intended to apply to the tobacco trade”.
Our representative also interviewed the manageress of a
large hotel, and she kindly showed him her written instructions that tobacco
could not be sold in any licensed house after one on Wednesdays, nor after
eight p.m. on other days, with the exception of Saturday, when the hour was
extended till nine. It was possible if a chance bar customer ordered a meal to
secure a cigarette or cigar, but as to what constituted a meal there was some
doubt. Some men, she remarked, could make a good meal off a hunk of bread and
cheese, whilst another would probably require several courses to make up a
meal. Hotel guests cannot be served after the hours mentioned above unless they
are sleeping in the house.
The Manager of the Leas Tobacco Company, Sandgate Road, said
it was necessary in the interests, not only of the trade itself, but the public
generally, that the vexatious restrictions should be swept away. It was
intolerable that an insignificant minority should rule, as in this case.
Folkestone Express
28-10-1922
Local News
At the Police Court on Tuesday the licence of the True Briton
Inn was transferred from Mrs. G.G. Lucas to Mr. Walter Henry Purbrick, an
ex-sergeant in the Metropolitan Police.
The
following transfer of licence was granted at the Folkestone Police Court on Wednesday
morning: True Briton Hotel, Harbour Street, from Mrs. Lucas to Mr. Walter Henry
Turbrick.
At
the Folkestone Police Court on Tuesday (Mr. G.I. Swoffer in the chair), the
licence of the True Briton Hotel was transferred from Mrs. Lucas to Mr. Walter
Henry Turbrick.
Folkestone Express
25-11-1922
Local News
Folkestone Herald
25-11-1922
Local News
Folkestone Herald
21-7-1923
Local News
On Wednesday evening about 7 p.m., Mr. Reginald Baker, of
45, Chart Road, was walking along South Street when he was struck on the head
by a length of guttering, which had become detached from the roof of the True
Briton Hotel. P.C. Finn rendered first aid, and the injured man was taken to
the Hospital on a motor ambulance. He was examined by the House Surgeon, and
found to be suffering from a wound in the head and an injured left hand. After
being treated he was taken home.
Folkestone Express 17-11-1923
Inquest
On Tuesday evening Mr. G.W. Haines, the Borough Coroner,
conducted an inquest on John James Slingo, aged 24, a barman employed at the
London and Paris Hotel, who died suddenly when out walking in Warren Road, on
Sunday.
Alfred Passmore, barman at the London and Paris Hotel, said
he had known the deceased about a fortnight, he having been employed at the
same hotel. During that time he had not complained of his health. On Sunday
afternoon, after closing the bar, just before four o`clock they went for a walk
in the vicinity of East Cliff. They proceeded along Warren Road towards the
dust destructor, and when about 100 yards further on deceased staggered a few
yards, and then fell forwards on to his face. Deceased made no movement until witness
turned him over. He then saw foam coming from his mouth. He did not speak or
make any movement. He (witness) asked a boy to go for a doctor, and the boy
told him he was going for Dr. Crawford. The boy returned, and he said the
doctor could not come. He, therefore, went to see Dr. Crawford himself, and he
asked him to come to see a man who was seriously ill in the street, and he
replied he could do the man no good, and the best thing he could do was to get
him to the hospital. He did not tell the doctor he thought he was dead.
The Coroner: It seems strange a doctor should say he could
do the man no good.
In reply to further questions, witness said the doctor told
him if the patient was not very bad they would treat him at the hospital and
let him out again, but if he was very bad they would detain him. The doctor
also said if he came to see the man he would have to take the case on, but if
he had been one of his patients he would have come with him. He returned to the
spot, where he found P.C. Simpson had arrived. The motor ambulance then came,
and the deceased was taken in it to the hospital. The House Surgeon examined
the deceased in the ambulance and stated that he was dead. The body was
ultimately taken to the mortuary. The deceased was 24 years of age.
P.C. Simpson said he was at home on Sunday afternoon when
his wife called his attention to a large crowd on the private road leading to
the dust destructor. He went to the spot, and saw the body of a man lying on
the road. He tried artificial respiration for a time, but there was no
response. He could not feel any beating of the pulse, and ultimately he
assisted in conveying the deceased to the hospital in the motor ambulance, for
which he sent. The last witness told him that he had been to Dr. Crawford, who
refused to attend the man. On arrival at the hospital he told the House Surgeon
that he had a dead man in the ambulance, and asked her if she would certify
that he was dead. He told her that he was going to take the body over to the
mortuary, and subsequently did so.
Dr. Rachael Bamford, the House Surgeon at the Royal Victoria
Hospital, said on Sunday, shortly after four o`clock, the ambulance arrived at
the hospital. The constable asked her if she would certify that the man was
dead so that he could remove the body to the mortuary. She examined the
deceased and found that he was dead, informing the constable to that effect.
Subsequently she made a post mortem examination of the deceased, and found that
his heart was enlarged, and the aortic valve was diseased. There was evidence
of previous pericarditis. In her opinion deceased died from natural causes.
The Coroner returned a verdict in accordance with the
medical evidence. He said there was one thing which he could not help
commenting upon, and that was that a medical man was called upon in a case of
urgency, and when told that the man was very seriously ill he did not render
any help. It was very difficult to think that was so. Whether the witness
misunderstood him or not he could not say, but it was strange for a medical man
to say he could do no good, and that he could not go out because the man was
not his patient and he did not reside in a house. It was also strange that he
should advise the man to be taken to hospital when he did not know what he was
suffering from. He (the Coroner) was very loath to believe such a thing
happened, but that was as far as the evidence went. There might be some
explanation. It was certainly within the doctor`s power to go, but he
apparently did not even ask what was the matter. On the face of it there seemed
to be a want of feeling shown, particularly when he was asked for help and he
refused that help. The Coroner concluded by returning a verdict of “Death from
natural causes”.
Folkestone Herald
17-11-1923
Inquest
The Borough Coroner (Mr. G.W. Haines) conducted an inquest
at the Town Hall on Tuesday afternoon touching the sudden death of John James
Slingo.
Alfred Passmore, a barman employed at the London and Paris
Hotel, said that he had known the deceased, who was also employed at the hotel
as a barman, about a fortnight. During the time witness had known him he had
not complained of his health. On Sunday afternoon they went out for a walk.
That was about 4 o`clock. They went along Warren Road and across the line. When
about a hundred yards from the railway deceased staggered and fell forward on
his face. Witness turned him over and laid him on his back, but he did not say
anything, although he was conscious. Witness saw foam coming from his mouth. A
little later he called two little boys who were close by, and sent one of them
to a house for help. Presently two men came out. Witness then asked the other
boy to go to the nearest doctor, and the lad said that he would go to Dr.
Crawford. The boy was rather a long time gone, and later witness went himself
and when on his way met the boy coming back. The lad told him that the doctor
said that he could not, or would not come. He (witness) was not sure which it
was. Witness then proceeded to Dr. Crawford`s house and told him there was a
young man seriously ill in the street. The doctor refused to come and said that
he could do no good, but that deceased should go to the Hospital. He said if
the patient was not very bad they would treat him and let him out again, but if
bad they would detain him. He said if the man had been in a house he would have
come, if he had been one of his patients. He did not ask whether deceased had a
medical man and he (Dr. Crawford) did not suggest that witness should go to
another doctor or give witness any other medical man`s name. Witness went back
and found that P.C. Simpson was there. The ambulance arrived shortly after
that, and deceased was put inside. Witness accompanied the ambulance to the
Royal Victoria Hospital. On arrival there an attendant came out, followed a
little later by the House Surgeon. Witness explained to her what had happened,
and she examined the body and stated that Slingo was dead. Witness then went to
the Coroner`s Officer, and from there on to the mortuary, where he identified
the body in the presence of Mr. Chadwick. Deceased was twenty four years of
age.
P.C. Simpson stated that he was off duty and at home, when
his wife called his attention to a large crowd up the road leading to the dust
destructor. He proceeded there and saw the body of a man in the road. He was
apparently dead. Witness tried artificial respiration, but there was no
response. He sent for the Corporation motor ambulance and conveyed him to the
Royal Victoria Hospital. Witness explained that he had a dead man in the
ambulance and he wanted the House Surgeon to certify that he was dead, which
she did. He told her he would take the body to the mortuary, and subsequently
he did so.
Dr. Rachael Bamford, House Surgeon at the Royal Victoria
Hospital, said that on Sunday last, just after four o`clock, an ambulance
arrived at the hospital in charge of a police constable, who desired that she
should certify that a man in the ambulance was dead. Witness did so, and
informed the constable. Witness had since made a post mortem examination, and
found that the heart was very much enlarged, and the aortic valve was diseased.
There was evidence of previous pericarditis. In her opinion death was due to
natural causes.
The Coroner, in returning a verdict of “Death from Natural
Causes”, said that according to the evidence the doctor was informed that there
was a man lying seriously ill in a street nearby. He asked no questions
whatever. He refused to go, and said “Take him to the Hospital”. He did not
think the doctor put a very high premium on his professional abilities. In this
case, if he had attended, he could not have done anything, as the man was
apparently dead, but there was the evidence before him, very clearly stated by
the witness, and although it did not affect his verdict he felt that the facts
required some comment. It might be that the doctor might have some explanation,
but it was not before him that day.
Folkestone Herald
24-11-1923
Letter
Sir, In reference to your report of the inquest on the death
of John James Slingo in your issue of the 17th inst., I should like
to state a few facts to explain my position in the matter, which were not
brought out on that occasion.
As mentioned in your paper, a boy came to my house in Wear
Bay Crescent on Sunday afternoon (November 11th), and told me that a
man was lying unconscious on the road in Thanet Gardens, and requested me to go
and see him. On questioning him, I found that the man was a total stranger, and
that an attempt had already been made to get the motor ambulance in order to
take him to the Hospital, but without success. The ambulance is usually kept at
the dust destructor premises during the week, but not on Sundays.
As the man was a stranger, and evidently some distance from
his home, and in an unconscious condition, I felt that the most effective way
of helping him was to get him rapidly conveyed into Hospital. I therefore
promptly rang up the Fire Station, requesting that the motor ambulance might be
sent immediately to Thanet Gardens, and to facilitate matters I told the boy to
explain on the phone exactly where the man was lying. The lad then went away,
and a few minutes afterwards I again telephoned to the Fire Station and
enquired if the ambulance had started, and was told that it was leaving at
once. A young man then appeared and begged me to go and see the patient, but I
informed him that I had telephoned for the ambulance and that it would most
likely be on the spot before I could possibly do so myself. Being at my private
residence, I had no medical equipment at hand. I therefore impressed upon this
second messenger that I was acting in the best interest of the patient by
having him immediately carried to Hospital, where he would be at once received
as an emergency case.
I afterwards made some enquiries amongst those who were
actually on the spot at the time, and two very reliable witnesses stated that the
man was apparently dead before the boy was dispatched to call me.
Taking all the circumstances into account I think it will be
admitted that I took the most effective way of rendering a real service by
acting as I did, and that he could not be properly treated while lying on the
road.
Yours faithfully, T.W.W. Crawford.
Folkestone Express
22-12-1923
County Court
Tuesday, December 18th: Before Judge Terrell.
Reginald Herbert Baker v W. Purbrick: Claim for damage for
personal injury, £50.
Mr. C.T. Williams (instructed by Messrs. Berry, Tomkins and
Co., London) appeared for Baker, and Mr. A.K. Mowll defended.
The case was originally set down for trial by jury, but the
parties agreed that the case should be tried by His Honour, who ordered
plaintiff to pay 1s. each to eight members of the jury, who were drawn by
ballot. After they had received the shilling they were discharged.
Mr. Williams said they had agreed that the amount should be
£25 for damages, and the only point was one of liability. He would have thought
that the case was hardly open to argument, having regard to authorities on the
subject. He could not see that there was any defence in law.
Reginald Herbert Baker, 45, Chart Road, Folkestone, said
that on the 18th July, at 7 o`clock in the evening, he was walking along
South Street, and when passing the True Briton public house he felt a severe
blow on the top of the head. He was taken into the Princess Royal, and when he
came out, twenty minutes later, he saw the guttering lying on the floor. There
would be thirteen or fourteen feet. He saw Mr. Purbrick, who gave him
assistance. It was quite a calm evening.
Cross-examined by Mr. Mowll: He did not see anything fall;
he would have got out of the way if he had seen it. He would imagine that it
was the guttering that struck him. At the time of the accident he was alone.
There was no wind that evening. He remembered falling forward.
Mrs. Strode, 24, South Street, said she saw the accident,
when she was standing on the doorway of her house. She saw the guttering
falling from the True Briton, and it struck the plaintiff on the head, knocking
him forward. A large quantity of guttering came down, and it smashed on the
road.
Cross-examined by Mr. Mowll: She did not see the guttering
strike any part of the wall. Everyone was surprised that the man was not
killed.
William King Heritage, Princess Royal Hotel, said he was
standing in the doorway of the hotel, and saw the accident. The man staggered
after being struck by the guttering. He rendered assistance.
Cross-examined by Mr. Mowll: He did not see the guttering
strike the coping, but he would imagine that some of it did hit the coping.
That completed the plaintiff`s case.
Defendant said the True Briton was three storeys high, and
the guttering would fall 35ft. to 40ft. The agreement with the brewers for the
tenancy did not call upon him to do any exterior repairs. The landlords were in
liquidation at the time. The Receiver for the Brewery paid for the repairs to
the guttering. Some of the guttering might have struck the coping and the wall,
but he could not say as he did not see the accident.
Frederick William Parker, of Messrs. Cook and Parker,
builders, Folkestone, said he repaired the guttering, which was in a very fair
condition. The screw heads were rusty, but the fascia board was in good
condition. It would not be possible to see the defects in the guttering from
the road. It would require quite a minute inspection.
Cross-examined by Mr. Williams: Guttering was liable to
decay and fall if it was not attended to, but if attended to in time it would
not fall.
His Honour held that an occupant of a house that was in a
decayed state, either wholly or in part, was liable if by reason of the decay
an injury was done to the public.
He gave judgement for £25 and costs.
Folkestone Herald
22-12-1923
County Court
Tuesday, December 18th: Before Judge Henry
Terrell.
Reginald Herbert Baker v W. Purbeck: Claim for £50 damages
for personal injury. A jury had originally been called to deal with the case,
but the parties agreed to the matter being settled by His Honour. Mr. C.T.
Williams (instructed by Berry Tomkins and Co., London), appeared for the
plaintiff, and Mr. A.K. Mowll (Dover) for the defendant.
Mr. Williams stated that the parties had agreed to put the
amount of the claim at £25. The question was simply one of liability.
Plaintiff stated that he lived at 45, Chart Road,
Folkestone. On the 18th July he was passing the True Briton Hotel,
South Street, when he felt a severe blow on the head. He was stunned, and was
attended to in the Princess Royal Hotel. When he came out he saw a large piece
of broken guttering lying on the pavement in front of the True Briton. The defendant
rendered assistance when he was struck down. The weather was quite calm at the
time. The piece of guttering measured about fourteen or fifteen feet.
By Mr. Mowll: He would imagine that the pieces of guttering
he saw in the road were those which had struck him. There was no wind at all.
Mrs. Nellie Strode, of 24, South Street, nearly opposite the
True Briton, said that at the time of the accident she was standing in the
doorway of her house, when she saw a piece of guttering coming through the air.
It struck the plaintiff, who fell into the bar opposite. The guttering broke
into pieces in the roadway.
Cross-examined by Mr. Mowll, witness said that the guttering
fell from a great height. It was a wonder that the man was not killed.
Wm. Henry Heritage, of the Princess Royal, South Street,
said that on the day in question he was standing at his doorway, when he saw
the guttering fall on the plaintiff`s head. He staggered, and witness caught
hold of him, and sent for the police. The guttering was splintered into pieces.
By Mr. Mowll: He would imagine that some of the guttering
hit a coping before striking the plaintiff.
Defendant stated that the True Briton Hotel was three
storeys high, and the height was thirty five to forty feet. Under the terms of
his tenancy he had no exterior repairs to do. At the time of the accident the
landlords were in liquidation. Some of the guttering may have struck the coping
on the wall.
Frederick Parker, of Messrs. Cook and Parker, builders, said
that he repaired the guttering at the True Briton. It was in a good condition.
He could not account for the guttering falling.
By Mr. Williams: There should be no danger if the guttering
were inspected.
His Honour held that the guttering had decayed, therefore it
was a public nuisance, for which the tenant was responsible. He would give
judgement for the plaintiff for the £25 claimed and costs.
The following application for transfer of licence was granted: True
Briton, from Mr. Walter Hay Purbrick to Mr. Gladstone D. Martin.
Folkestone
Express 20-11-1926
Wednesday, November 17th: Before The Mayor,
Mr. G.I. Swoffer, Col. Owen, Mr. A. Stace, Mr. H.J. Blamey, and Mr. G. Boyd.
Folkestone Herald
20-11-1926
Wednesday, November 17th: Before The Mayor, Mr.
G.I. Swoffer, Councillor G. Boyd, Colonel G.P. Owen, Mr. A. Stace, and Mr. J.H.
Blamey.
The licence of the True Briton Hotel, 26, Harbour Street,
was transferred from Mr. Walter Hay Purbrick to Mr. Gladstone D. Martin.
Folkestone
Express 24-8-1929
Thursday, August 22nd: Before Alderman C.E.
Mumford, Mr. W.R. Boughton, Alderman T.S. Franks, Mrs. E. Gore, Mr. F. Seagar,
and Mr. R.J. Stokes.
Herbert Harold Green and Nellie Harwell were charged
with having attempted to steal 4,000 cigarettes, of the value of £8 2s. 4d.,
the property of Mr. Arthur Pain.
Mr. Arthur Pain, a wholesale tobacconist, carrying on
business as Messrs. Pain and Sons, at 8, Dover Street, said about twelve noon
on the previous day he received a telephone call in a male voice, which he did
not recognise. The voice said “I am short of cigarettes. Can you oblige me with
a few?” He asked who was speaking and the voice replied “Mr. Martin, True
Briton Hotel”. The voice, continuing, said “I will send one of my girls for
them”. He replied “I will send them for you”. The voice then replied “I will
send the girl as I am in a hurry for them”. He asked the man what he would
like, and the reply came “One thousand Players cigarettes in tens, one thousand
Players in twenties, one thousand Gold Flakes in tens and one thousand Gold
Flakes in twenties”. He rang off and packed up the goods. He had almost
finished packing them when the female prisoner came into the shop, and said “I
have come for the cigarettes for the True Briton Hotel”. He then said to her “I
think the parcel is too heavy for you”, but she replied “I think I can manage
it”. He handed her the parcel and she left the shop. He had become suspicious
by then and he followed her. She proceeded to Harbour Street, and there she was
met by the male prisoner, who took the parcel from her. They walked together
towards the Harbour and the young woman got into a Red car bound for Cheriton.
He then approached the man, who was carrying the parcel, and taking it from his
hand, to which he made no objection, he said “Thank you. I will deliver this
myself”. He replied “I was just going to deliver the parcel, but was seeing
this lady on to the bus”. He went to the True Briton Hotel and had an interview
with Mr. Martin junr. As a result he communicated with the police. He went in
search of the prisoners and about 12.25 he was in Cheriton Road and saw both of
them together. They walked down Coolinge Road, Guildhall Street, Bournemouth
Road and Ship Streeet into Foord Road, where he saw P.C. Spain and from what he
said the constable arrested them. The cigarettes produced were his property and
the value of them was £8 2s. 4d.
Mr. David Alfred Martin said he was the son of the
proprietor of the True Briton Hotel, Radnor Street (sic). His father was
confined to bed with a fractured ankle and he (witness) was managing the
business. He had never seen the prisoners before and he did not give them or
any other person authority to order four thousand cigarettes on his father`s
behalf from Mr. Pain. He knew nothing about that transaction until Mr. Pain
called upon him shartly after noon on the previous day.
The Clerk (Mr. J. Andrew), at this stage, said from the
evidence given the charge would be altered from attempting to steal to one of
stealing.
P.C. Spain said at 12.35 p.m. the previous day he was
in Foord Road, when the witness, Mr. Pain, made a communication to him. In
consequence he stopped the two defendants and told them that from information
he had received he should take them both to the police station for inquiries to
be made. The man said “Is it necessary for her (meaning his companion) to
come?”, and he replied “Yes, it is necessary”. He brought them to the police
office where they were charged in his presence by Det. Constable Southey with
attempting to obtain the cigarettes by false pretences. They were cautioned,
but neither made any reply. The man gave his name as Jack Dale, and said the
woman was his wife, Joan.
The Chief Constable (Mr. A.S. Beesley) said that was as
far as he proposed to take the case that morning. He asked for a week`s remand
in order that he could make further inquiries.
The Chairman said the prisoners would be remanded until
Thursday next.
Green asked that the statement he made to the police
the previous day might be put in.
The Clerk said the Chief Constable stated that he did
not propose to put the statement in at that hearing. There was a strong prima
facie case against the prisoner. It was a matter for the discretion of the
Chief Constable. Mr. Andrew then asked if there was a probability that there
might be further charges against the prisoners.
The Chief Constable said there was.
Folkestone
Herald 24-8-1929
Local News
Herbert Harold Green and Nellie Green, who were both
well dressed, were remanded in custody for a week at Folkestone Police Court on
Thursday.
Their names appeared in the charge sheet as Jack Dale
and Joan Dale. They were charged in the first instance with attempting to steal
4,000 cigarettes from Messrs. Pain and Sons, wholesale tobacconists, but during
the hearing the charge was amended to one of stealing. The value of the
cigarettes was stated to be £8 2s. 4d.
Mr. Arthur Pain, wholesale tobacconist, a member of the
firm trading as Pain and Sons, 8, Dover Street, Folkestone, said that at about
noon yesterday he received a telephone call in a male voice which he did not
recognise. The voice said “I am short of cigarettes. Cany you oblige me with a
few?”, to which he replied “Who is speaking?” The voice replied “Mr. Martin,
True Briton Hotel”. The voice continued “I will send one of my girls for them”.
Witness replied “I will send a boy”. The voice then replied “I will send a girl
as I am in a hurry”. Witness then asked “What would you like?”, and the reply
came “1,000 Players cigarettes in tens, 1,000 Players cigarettes in twenties,
1,000 Gold Flake in tens, and 1,000 Gold Flake in twenties”. Witness rang off,
and packed up the cigarettes himself. He had almost finished packing them when
the woman prisoner came into the shop and said “I have come for the cigarettes
for the True Briton Hotel”. He then said to her “I think the parcel is too
heavy for you”, but she replied “I think I can manage it”, or words to that
effect. He handed her the parcel and she left the shop with it. By then he had
become suspicious and followed her from the shop. She went into Harbour Street
and he there saw her met by the other prisoner, who took the parcel from her.
They walked together towards the Harbour and the woman got in a red car bound
for Cheriton. He then approached the man, who was carrying the parcel, and,
taking the parcel from his hand, to which he made no exception, he said “Thank
you, I will deliver this myself”. The man replied “I was just going to deliver
the parcel but was seeing this lady on to the bus”. He went straight to the
True Briton Hotel, and there interviewed Mr. Martin jun., and as a result
communicated with the police. He himself went in search of the prisoners, and
about 12.25 he saw them together in Cheriton Road. They walked down Coolinge
Road, Guildhall Street, Bournemouth Road and Ship Street into Foord Road. He
there saw P.C. Spain, who arrested the two. He identified the parcel of
cigarettes as the property of his firm.
Mr. David Alfred Martin, son of the landlord of the
True Briton Hotel, Harbour Street, said that his father was confined to bed
with a fractured ankle and he was managing the business. He had never seen
either of the prisoners before and did not give them or any other person
authority to obtain cigarettes on his father`s behalf from Mr. Pain. He knew
nothing whatever about the transaction until Mr. Pain called on him.
At this stage the charge was amended from one of
attempting to steal to one of stealing the cigarettes.
P.C. Spain said that he was on duty in Foord Road at
about 12.35 p.m. yesterday and Mr. Spain made a communication to him. In
consequence he stopped the two defendants, who were together, and told them
that upon information he had received he would take them both to the police
station for enquiries to be made. The main prisoner said “Is it necessary for
her (meaning his companion) to come?” He replied “Yes. Both must come”. He then
brought them to the police station and both were charged in his presence by
Detective Constable Southey with attempting to obtain the cigarettes by false
pretences. They were cautioned and neither made any reply. The man gave his
name as Jack Dale, and said the woman was his wife, Joan Dale.
Chief Constable A.S. Beesley said that was as far as he
proposed to take the case and asked for a week`s remand in order to make
further enquiries.
The man asked if a statement he made last night could
be brought forward, and Mr. Beesley said his reason for not bringing it forward
was that it would not help prisoners at that stage.
The Clerk: Is there a probability that you may have
other charges?
The Chief Constable: Yes.
Folkestone
Express 31-8-1929
Thursday, August 29th: Before Alderman C.E.
Mumford, Mrs. E. Gore, and Mr. F. Seager.
Harold Herbert Green, of Leeds, and Nellie Harlow, a
young woman of 20, who comes from Ilkeston, appeared on remand charged with
stealing 4,000 cigarettes, from Mr. A. Pain, tobacconist, of Dover Street. The
evidence was heard on the last occasion.
The Clerk (Mr. J. Andrew) said there was another charge
against the prisoners, that of stealing a suitcase containing a quantity of
wearing apparel valued at £45, from a van belonging to the Southern Railway
while in course of transit.
Miss Elsie Bacchus, nursing sister at the Royal
Victoria Hospital, said on the 20th she was on holiday at
Southborough, and left there by bus which arrived at five minutes past eight in
the evening. The suitcase (produced) was her property and previous to leaving
she had packed it with various articles of wearing apparel. She handed it over
to a collector of Messrs. Martin and Sons, carrier, about a quarter to ten in
the morning for despatch to Folkestone by passenger train. When she arrived at
the Hospital her suitcase had not got there. On the following evening she was
called to the police station, where she was shown the suitcase. She examined
the contents, and although they had been disturbed, practically all of them
were there. The contents she valued at £45.
Alfred Charles Gardner, of 175, Clarendon Road, Dover,
said he was employed as a van driver by the Southern Railway Company. About
4/50 p.m. on August 20th he was in Guildhall Street delivering passengers`
and other luggage in transit. He was near the back of the van and he saw the
male prisoner, who came to him and asked if he had a case on the van for Miss
Bacchus, of the Royal Victoria Hospital. He said “Yes”, and then he asked how
long he would be before he delivered it. He replied it would be about twenty
minutes or more because he had four or five more places to deliver at. The
prisoner said it would be rather a nuisance, as the lady was not staying on,
and she wanted him to despatch it to her. He believed the man was authorised to
receive it, and asked him if he would like to take it. He said “Yes”, and
signed the delivery sheet (produced) in the name of “Fred Terry, R.V.H.”. The
suitcase was standing halfway along the van on the top of a box, and there was
a label showing to the back of the van, and anyone going to the back of the van
could see it. The label bore the name and address “Miss Bacchus, Royal Victoria
Hospital, Folkestone”.
Mr. Alfred John Blake, 6, Shorncliffe Road, said he was
a boarding house proprietor. The prisoners came to his house on August 17th
as man and wife, and remained there until the 21st, the day of their
arrest. When they arrived they had not the bag produced, but they had another
bag. He was present in the afternoon when Det. Con. Southey arrived, and showed
him into the bedroom occupied by the prisoners. The officer took possession of
the suitcase. He saw the male prisoner, who came in alone, bring the suitcase
into the house the day before they were arrested. The female prisoner had taken
his little girl to the pictures that afternoon previous to that, and they had
not returned when the man came in with the suitcase. His wife was with them.
Det. Con. Southey said at 2.45 p.m. on the 21st
August he went to 6, Shorncliffe Road, where he was shown by the last witness
into a room on the first floor. He there found the leather suitcase produced.
It was closed, but not locked. The case had been obviously forced by the
leather being cut away from the lock. He examined the contents of the case, but
some of the contents now in it were found by him in a chest of drawers in the
room. The articles consisted principally of ladies` underclothing. There was no
address label on the case at the time. He saw the prisoners at the police
station on the 21st, shortly after they were brought in by P.C.
Spain. About 5 p.m. he went into the cell occupied by the man, who said he
wished to make a statement with a view to clearing the girl. He took him into
the C.I.D. office and asked him if he wished to make a statement, and he
replied that he preferred to write it himself. He cautioned the prisoner, who
wrote out the statement.
The Clerk (Mr. Andrew) read the statement out as
follows: August 21st. I wish to make this statement with a view of
squaring matters and to assist Nellie Harlow (Joan Dale), who is implicated in
the present charge. My name is Herbert Harold Green, native of Leeds,
Yorkshire, though I have been living as Jack Dale for the past few weeks. I was
discharged from H.M. Prison at Leeds on May 6th, and after
registering at the Employment Exchange and signing on there for three weeks I
was informed that I was not eligible for benefit, and being unable to obtain
work in the district I left. I have received information since I left Leeds
that there was an inquiry there for me by the police. However I kept on moving
still in search of employment, but failed to obtain any. Some four weeks ago I
met Miss Harlow, who is mentioned in this charge, and having become acquainted
and taking a like to each other, we decided to stick to each other with a view
to being married at the first opportunity. We would have been married, but
owing to thinking that I may really be wanted at Leeds I did not register for
marriage until I was certain. But now that I am in trouble I feel that I would
like to settle up and so get a chance of making a new start in life with a view
to undoing the harm that I was responsible for to Miss Harlow. With regard to
the present charge of attempting to obtain cigarettes by a trick I plead
Guilty, but I beg for leniency for Nellie Harlow, who was not, in any way,
responsible, only in that she called at the shop for the parcel. This girl has
never been in trouble before, and although I had informed her of my downfall
she decided to stick to me, and, when I got a situation, to settle down. Things
have gradually got worse. I being unable to obtain anything honestly, I am
sorry to admit that I turned my thoughts to getting something with which to pay
my bill at the apartments and my railway fare back to London, and the present
charge was the result. I did not stoop to obtain goods in this way because I
did not like work; I did it because I could not get any work, or any
unemployment benefit, or anything else to allow me to be honest. I have no
further defence to make than that to once again plead that you will be lenient
towards Miss Harlow, who prior to this time has an unblemished character, and
who has really tried to help me to a better future. I have received warning
before making this statement, and declare that it is quite voluntary. Signed
Herbert Harold Green. Cases concerning myself only. I also plead Guilty to
obtaining a lady`s suitcase and contents from the Southern Railway at
Folkestone, and would ask that this matter be taken into consideration at the
same time as the other charge, but I state here that Nellie Harlow has had
nothing to do with this matter, or the matters of a similar nature at Hastings
and Brighton, where I also obtained a suitcase. I was driven to desperation at
the time, and was unable to get any money to travel further in looking for
something honest. I may say here that my object in coming to the coast was not
that I could get a living crookedly, but because I thought a seaside resort
would probably offer more chance of employment than an inland town at the
present time. Trusting that my request for these cases to be taken into
consideration is quite in order, I would ask that you may see my struggle for
existence has really been my downfall. If I could obtain some form of
employment, I can assure you that I would not stoop to the kind of things I
have done. Signed, Herbert Harold Green.
Det. Con. Southey, continuing, said that morning he was
present when the prisoners were charged with stealing the suitcase and contents
by Det. Sergt. Rowe, and Green replied “She was not involved in it”. The woman
made no comment.
The prisoners had nothing to say, and they were
committed for trial at the next Quarter Sessions, the man stating that he
raised no objection to waiting until then for his trial, and the woman
concurred with him.
Folkestone
Herald 31-8-1929
Local News
When Herbert Harold Green and Nellie Harrow were
charged on remand at Folkestone Police Court on Thursday with stealing 4,000
cigarettes from Messrs. Pain and Son, wholesale tobacconists, of Dover Street,
a further charge of stealing a suitcase and contents, valued at £45, the
property of the Southern Railway, was preferred against you. They were
committed for trial at Folkestone Quarter Sessions in October on the two
charges.
Miss Elsie Bacchus, nursing sister at the Royal
Victoria Hospital, identified the suitcase in Court as her property. She had
packed it with articles of clothing belonging to her and handed it over to a
collector of Martin and Sons, carriers, of Southborough, at about 9.45 in the
morning for despatch by passenger train to Folkestone.
Mr. Arthur Charles Gardner, of 175, Clarendon Road,
Dover, a vanman employed by the Southern Railway, said that on the afternoon of
the 20th at about 4.50 he was in Guildhall Street, Folkestone,
delivering passengers` and other luggage in course of transit. He was near the
back of the van when the male prisoner came to him and asked him if he had a
case on the van for Miss Bacchus, of the Royal Victoria Hospital. He said
“Yes”, and the prisoner asked him how long he thought he would be before he
delivered it. He said he would be 20 minutes or more because he had four or
five other places to deliver at. Prisoner said that would be rather a nuisance
as the lady was not staying on and he wanted to despatch it to her. He
(witness) believed that the man was authorised to receive it and asked him if
he would like to take it. He said “Yes”. Witness gave it to him. He signed the
delivery sheet and walked away with it. He signed the sheet with the name “Fred
Terry, R.V.H.”. There was a label on the suitcase showing to the back of the
van, which anybody could see as the suitcase rested in the van.
Mr. Alfred John Blake, proprietor of a boarding house
at 6, Shorncliffe Road, said that on Saturday, August 17th,
prisoners came to him for apartments as man and wife. They remained until
arrested on the 21st. When they arrived they had two bags with them,
but not the one now in Court. On the 20th the woman left the house
just before 3 o`clock to take his little girl to the pictures in the afternoon.
He himself saw the man bring the suitcase now produced into the house between 4
and 7 p.m., when the woman prisoner had not returned. The woman returned with
his wife and little girl.
Detective Constable Southey said that at 2.45 p.m. on
the 21st he went to 6, Shorncliffe Road, and was shown by Mr. Blake
into a bedroom on the first floor. He there found the suitcase produced. It had
been obviously forced by the leather being cut away from one lock. He saw the
prisoners at the police station on the 21st shortly after they were
brought in by P.C. Spain. Late in the afternoon, at about 5 p.m., he went to
the man`s cell in response to his request, and the prisoner said that he wished
to make a statement with a view to clearing the girl.
The Magistrates` Clerk (Mr. J. Andrew) read the alleged
statement, which was as follows:- “I wish to make this statement with a view of
squaring matters and to assist Nellie Harlow (Joan Dale), who is implicated in
the present charge. My name is Herbert Harold Green, native of Leeds,
Yorkshire, though I have been living as Jack Dale for the past few weeks. I was
discharged from H.M. Prison at Leeds on May 6th, and after
registering at the Employment Exchange and signing on there for three weeks I
was informed that I was not eligible for benefit, and being unable to obtain
work in the district I left. I have received information since I left Leeds
that there was an inquiry for me by the police. However I kept on moving, still
in search of employment, but failed to obtain any. Some four weeks ago I met
Miss Harlow, who is mentioned in this charge, and having become acquainted and
taking a liking to each other, we decided to stick to each other with a view to
being married at the first opportunity. We should have been married at once,
but owing to thinking I might really be wanted at Leeds we did not register for
marriage until I was certain. With regard to the present charge of attempting
to obtain cigarettes by a trick I plead Guilty, but beg for leniency for Nellie
Harlow, who is not in any way responsible, only in that she called at the shop
for the parcel. This girl has never been in any trouble before, and although I
had informed her of my previous downfall she decided to stick to me, and, when
I got a situation, to settle down. Things have gradually got worse. I being
unable to obtain anything honestly, I am sorry to admit that I turned my
thoughts to getting something with which to pay my bill at the apartments and
my railway fare back inland, and the present charge was the result. I did not
stoop to obtain goods in this way because I did not like work; I did it because
I could not get any work, or unemployment benefit, or anything else to allow me
to be honest. I have no further defence to make than that but once again plead
that you will be lenient towards Miss Harlow, who prior to this time has an
unblemished character, and who really tried to help me to a better future”.
The Magistrates Clerk said that under the heading
“Cases concerning myself only” the statement proceeded: “I plead Guilty to
obtaining a lady`s suitcase and contents from the Southern Railway in
Folkestone, and would ask that this matter be taken into consideration at the
same time as the other charge. But I would state here that Nellie Harlow has
had nothing to do with this matter, or other matters of a similar nature at
Hastings and Brighton, where I also obtained suitcases. I was driven to
desperation at the time, and was unable to get any money to travel further in looking
for something honest. I may say here that my object in coming to the coast was
not that I could get a living crookedly, but because I thought a seaside resort
would probably offer more chances of employment than an inland town at the
present time. Trusting that my request for these cases to be taken into
consideration is quite in order, I would ask that you may see my struggle for
existence has really been my downfall. If I could obtain some form of
employment, I can assure you that I would not stoop to the kind of things I
have done.”
Prisoners were committed for trial as stated.
Folkestone
Express 9-11-1929
Quarter Sessions
Saturday, November 2nd: Before Roland Oliver
Esq.
On Saturday at the Folkestone Quarter Sessions, the
Recorder (Mr. Roland Oliver K.C.) sentenced Harold Herbert Green, 30, described
as a salesman, of Leeds, to three years` penal servitude, when he took into
consideration fourteen other offences, excluding the two in Folkestone for
which he was charged.
Green was accompanied in the dock by Nellie Harlow,
aged 19, a machinist, of Ilkeston, and they were charged with stealing 4,000
cigarettes to the value of £8 2s. 4d., the property of Mr. Arthur Pain,
tobacconist, of Dover Street, on August 21st, and also with stealing
a suitcase and its contents, valued at £45, the property of the Southern
Railway Company, on August 20th. They both pleaded Guilty to the
theft of the cigarettes, and Green admitted stealing the suitcase.
The Recorder asked if anyone was representing the young
woman.
Mr. L.S. Fletcher (instructed by Mr. C.F. Nicholson,
the Town Clerk) said he did not think there was.
The Recorder said he thought that a plea of Not Guilty
should be entered by her against that charge.
Mr. Fletcher said he would agree that should be done,
and in view of a certain difficulty which might arise, he would say that the
prosecution would offer no evidence against her in respect of that charge.
Green then admitted a previous conviction for a
fraudulent conversion on July 5th, 1928, at the Leeds Quarter
Sessions.
Mr. Fletcher said with regard to the young woman there
was a scintilla of evidence against her in connection with stealing the bag and
contents, but there was nothing on which counsel for the prosecution could hope
to convict. The prisoners appeared to have arrived at Folkestone on August 17th,
and took a room at a boarding house in Shorncliffe Road, where they remained
until they were arrested in consequence of those charges on August 21st.
In order of date the first charge was that of stealing the suitcase and
contents. A nirse sent her suitcase containing clothing and other articles by
train, and it was on a van belonging to the Southern Railway Company on its way
to the Royal Victoria Hospital, where it was to be delivered. The suitcase had
a label upon it, and anyone passing the back of the van could have read the
label. When the man in charge of the van was delivering luggage in Guildhall
Street, Green went up to him and asked him if he had got a case for a
particular nurse at the Royal Victoria Hospital. The man said he had, and after
a conversation with Green he eventually handed over the case belonging to the
nurse to the male prisoner, who signed the sheet in the name of “Fred Terry”.
That offence was not brought home to either of the prisoners until Green made a
statement on the following day after the other offence took place. The tobacconist
concerned was rung up by a voice, which he did not recognise, on the telephone,
but which stated that he was Mr. Martin of the True Briton Hotel, and that he
wished to order some 4,000 cigarettes. The speaker stated he was in a hurry,
and he would send a girl to fetch them. Mr. Pain packed the goods, and shortly
after Harlow came and said she had come from the True Briton Hotel. Mr. Pain
was suspicious, and he followed her when she took the cigarettes as far as the
Harbour, where she was joined by the male prisoner. Mr. Pain went up to them
and said “I will take those cigarettes”, and Green said “I was going to deliver
the parcel and was seeing the young lady on the bus”. The young lady had got on
the bus by then, and was followed by the man. Mr. Pain went to the True Briton
and found the story of the man and the girl was not correct, and he went into
the streets, and subsequently saw the prisoners together. He followed them
until he found a police officer, and they were arrested. At the police station
Green made a statement, which was before the Recorder. It was because of that
statement that the police became aware of the other offence and recovered the
suitcase. The scintilla of evidence to which he had previously referred was
that a portion of the lady`s underclothing was found in a chest of drawers in a
room occupied by both the prisoners. They had both been in custody since August
21st, and the Recorder would see that Green took full blame for all
that had occurred.
Mr. A.S. Beesley, the Chief Constable, said the girl
came under the spell of the man some little time since. Her parents were very
respectable people at Ilkeston. She met Green when her sister was cohabiting
with another man. Both girls had come inder the influence of men who had been
convicted. At the time Harlow did not know Green was engaged in criminal
pursuits. Undoubtedly later she did, because she apparently acquiesced in what
he did. The mother was quite willing to take her back home and forgive her.
The Recorder: How old is she?
The Chief Constable: She was born in 1909. She seemed
to be very fond of this man. Although reasons have been advanced to her why she
should break her association with him, she would not listen to them.
The Recorder: When did they meet?
The Chief Constable: Only last August.
The Recorder: I have a letter from her parents stating
that she was quite an excellent daughter until she left them.
The Chief Constable said there was nothing against the
young woman at all previous to then. With regard to the man he produced the
certificate of conviction on July 5th, 1928, for fraudulent
conversion of a banker`s cheque of £10, when he was sentenced at Leeds Quarter
Sessions to twelve months` hard labour. He also submitted an abstract of
offences which he states he has recently committed, and which he wishes to be
taken into consideration. With regard to his convictions, his first was on
November 3rd, 1925, at Leeds Assizes, for stealing a diamond ring,
and he received six months, and also for fraudulent conversion six months
concurrent. On the 22nd September, 1927, at Leeds City Police Court,
for embezzlement, he was sentenced to six months. His third conviction was that
to which reference had been previously made. Green was born at Leeds, and
educated at a secondary school. On leaving school he was apprenticed to a
chemist. He joined the R.A.M.C. in 1914, and served in that unit until he was
demobilised in April, 1919. His military character was good. On leaving the
Army he obtained a position in the City Treasurer`s Office of the Leeds
Corporation, but in September he was ordered to resign owing to his dishonesty.
He had been in employment at Liverpool and at York. Since his third conviction
in 1928 he did not appear to have done any work. He was released from prison in
May last. Whilst in prison his wife divorced him, and she had the custody of
the two children. He was described as an inveterate liar, and of being fond of
the company of women. From May until he was arrested in August he was
undoubtedly gaining a livelihood by crime. He had been associated with a man
whom he met in prison, and in company with that man he committed a number of
crimes between the time of his release and the time he met the prisoner. They
then parted company, the other man going north, and the prisoner brought the
girl south. At Brighton the couple lived together, and they commenced a series
of systematic and clever thefts, and they committed a number of criminal
offences in which they were concerned together. The offences which Green asked
to be taken into consideration included the following, dated from May 27th:
At Leeds for presenting a cheque and receiving £1 10s. 11½d., the cheque being
subsequently returned marked “No Account”; a similar offence in July; at
Barnsley being concerned with the other man in stealing a man`s gold watch and
chain from their lodgings; at Nottingham intercepting a messenger with a parcel
of shoes, valued at £7; on the next day intercepting a messenger with other
articles, valued £6 1s. 6d.; two days after stole a number of suits, valued at
£2 1s.; on August 6th stole from the Brighton railway station a
suitcase and contents valued at £35; two days later stole five £1 notes and two
10s. notes, and clothing valued at £8 10s.; on the following day at Eastbourne,
obtained by false pretences a leather suitcase and contents of the value of £7,
the property of the Southern Railway Company; three days later stole from a
bedroom a Post Office Savings Bank book, and on the same day, with intention to
defraud, received 30s. by means of a forged document in connection with the
stolen Post Office Savings book; on the same day at Hastings stole from the
railway station a bag and contents valued at £10 0s. 3d.; two days later being
concerned in stealing a suitcase and contents, valued at £10 4s.; on August 15th,
at Hastings, stole 4,000 cigarettes, valued at £8 5s. In the last case, the man
admitted stealing the cigarettes, and the woman stated that she knew that the
theft had been committed.
A long statement written by the prisoner was handed up
to the Recorder, who read it.
The Recorder (to Green): You have heard the Chief
Constable read that long list of criminal offences which he states you admit.
Do you admit them all?
Green: Yes.
The Recorder: Do you wish me to take them into
consideration in considering sentence upon you?
Green: Yes.
The Recorder: Have you anything to say to me besides
what you have written in your statement?
Green: No.
The Recorder: I do not think it is much use talking to
a man like you. It is difficult to imagine a worse record than the one before
me. Apart from your three convictions within three years, and the offences of
which you have been convicted today, I am asked to take into consideration and
to include in my sentence punishment for fourteen other cases of crime, which
you admit having committed since your last release from prison last May and the
time you were put into prison in August. These cases were a series of offences
of stealing, in one case forgery, and a number of false pretences. I suppose
no-one would doubt that during that time you would be called in the strict
sense a habitual criminal. Morally, you have done nothing that taking this girl
away from her home, ruining her and teaching her to be a criminal. You will not
be punished for that by me, but you will be punished for the things you have
done against the law. The one redeeming feature about it is that in your
statement you ask me to extend mercy towards her. When you write to me “She is
a good girl and nothing wrong with her”, I think you will carry to the grave
the recollection of what you have done to her. I am sending you to penal
servitude for three years.
When the Recorder announced the sentence the girl
commenced to weep bitterly, and the warders quickly removed the man from the
dock.
The Recorder, addressing the girl, said: I am sorry for
you. You come from a good home. You have been completely ruined by this man.
You are quite young. I want you to have a chance of doing better. Are you ready
to go back to your parents?
Harlow: Yes.
The Recorder: I will not say any more to you than to
say I bind you over to be of good behaviour for twelve months, and make it a
condition that you live with your parents. Go and try and make a fresh start,
will you?
Harlow: Yes.
The Recorder: Then you may go.
The Recorder said he would like to know if there were
any means of the young woman being sent to her home.
Mr. A.D.Z. Holmes, the Police Court Missioner, in reply
to the Recorder, said the Police Court Mission would see that the girl went
back to her parents. They would be able to find the railway fare. If necessary
they could keep her in Folkestone at the hostel, but they would see that she
was sent back home.
Folkestone
Herald 9-11-1929
Local News
How a young woman had been lured from her home to a
life of crime by a clever crook was told at the Folkestone Quarter Sessions on
Saturday, before the Recorder (Mr. Roland Oliver), when Herbert Harold Green
(30), a salesman, and Nellie Harlow (19), a machinist, were indicted together
with stealing, at Folkestone, on August 21st, 4,000 cigarettes,
valued at £8 2s. 4d., the property of Mr. A. Pain, a tobacconist, and further
with stealing, also at Folkestone, on August 20th, a suitcase and
its contents, valued at £45, the property of the Southern Railway Company.
Green pleaded Guilty to both charges, and also admitted
having been convicted at Leeds Quarter Sessions in 1928 of fraudulent
conversion. Harlow pleaded Guilty to the first charge, but Not Guilty to the
second charge, the prosecution, on the advice of the Recorder, not offering any
evidence against her.
Mr. L. Fletcher, who prosecuted, said the prisoners
appeared to have arrived at Folkestone on August 17th, and then
taken rooms at a boarding house in Shorncliffe Road, where they remained until
they were arrested on August 22nd. In order of date the first charge
related to a suitcase. It appeared that a nursing sister had been spending a
holiday at Southborough. She returned to Folkestone by motor bus on August 20th,
sending her suitcase by rail. Whilst a Southern Railway vanman was delivering
luggage on August 20th in Guildhall Street, Green came up to him,
and asked if he could have the case belonging to Miss Backhurst, of the Royal
Victoria Hospital, as she wanted it in a hurry. The vanman handed over the case
to the male prisoner, who signed the delivery sheet “Fred Terry”. That suitcase
was taken by Green to his lodgings. That offence was no brought home at once to
either of the two prisoners. It was only traced to them in consequence of a
statement by Green after his arrest.
With regard to the 4,000 cigarettes, Mr. Pain, a
tobacconist, was rung up at his shop by someone whose voice he did not know,
but the person speaking said he was Mr. Martin, of the True Briton Hotel, and
that he wanted 4,000 cigarettes, and these were packed up. The speaker on the
telephone said he had run short, and as he wanted the cigarettes quickly would
send a girl to fetch them. The female prisoner shortly after called for the
cigarettes. Mr. Pain handed them over, but as he was a bit suspicious, he
followed Harlow when she left the shop as far as Harbour Street, where she
joined the male prisoner. Harlow boarded a bus for Cheriton, and Mr. Pain went
to the True Briton Hotel, where he learnt there was no truth in the story of
the cigarettes being required. Later he saw both the prisoners in Cheriton
Road, and he followed them until he found a police officer, to whom he made a complaint,
and the prisoners were arrested. At the police station the male prisoner made a
statement, and it was as a result of that statement that the police became
aware of the second offence (the theft of the suitcase). They went to the
boarding house, where they recovered the suitcase. The only evidence against
the girl in regard to the suitcase was that she had a portion of the
underclothing from the suitcase in her drawer. Both prisoners had been in
custody since August 21st, and the male prisoner took full blame for
all that had occurred.
The Chief Constable said the girl seemed to have come
under the spell of the man. She came of a very respectable family, living at
Ilkeston, in Derbyshire. She met Green early in August, apparently through her
sister, who was living with another man known to Green, and also a criminal. At
the time apparently she did not know that Green was engaged in criminal
pursuits, but undoubtedly later she did. The girl`s mother was willing to take
her back home and forgive her. She appeared to be very fond of the man, and had
refused to break her association with him.
The Recorder: I have had a letter from the girl`s
parents, saying that she had been an excellent daughter up to the time she left
home.
The Chief Constable said that Green was sentenced to 12
months` hard labour at Leeds on July 5th, 1928, for the fraudulent
conversion of a cheque of £10. On November 23rd, 1925, at Leeds,
Green was charged with stealing a diamond ring, and sentenced to six months`
imprisonment. On September 22nd, 1927, he was sentenced to six
months` imprisonment for embezzlement. Green was born at Leeds, and educated at
a secondary school. After leaving school he was apprenticed to a chemist.
During the war he served with the R.A.M.C. in France, his character being
assessed as good when demobilised. On leaving the Army he was engaged by the
Treasury Department of the Leeds Corporation from October, 1919, until
September, 1924, when he was ordered to resign owing to dishonesty. For a time
he was a partner in Theatre Publications Ltd., Leeds. Then from May, 1925, to
November, 1925, he was at work at Liverpool. Whilst he had been in prison
Green`s wife had divorced him. Since his release from prison in May of this
year Green had done no work. He was described by the Leeds Police as “an
inveterate liar and fond of the company of women”. From May of this year until
his arrest at Folkestone there was no doubt that he had gained a livelihood by
crime. After committing a number of crimes in the North of England, prisoner
then came to the South, and at Brighton on August 6th commenced a
series of clever and systematic larcenies and frauds. Green asked for these
cases, admitted by him, to be taken into consideration when sentenced. On May
27th, 1929, at Leeds, Green presented a cheque for £2. He received
£1 11s. 10½d. change, and the cheque was returned “Account Closed”. On July 5th
he presented another cheque for £4 10s. 6d., received change, and the cheque
was again marked “No Account”. At Barnsley, on the 11th of the same
month, Green was concerned, with another man, in stealing a gentleman`s gold
watch and chain, valued £16 16s., from lodgings. At Nottingham four days later
Green stole parcels of shoes (valued £7), cotton (£6 1s. 6d.), and suits (£22).
On August 6th, at Brighton Railway Station cloakroom, he stole a
suitcase and contents, valued £35. Two days later at Brighton he stole a number
of Treasury notes and a Mackintosh, valued £8 10s. Going to Eastbourne on the
next day, he stole a suitcase and contents, valued £7. Three days later at
Eastbourne he stole from a bedroom, at 3 Pevensey Road, a Post Office savings
book, and on the same day received 30s. by the conversion of a certain forged
document. On the same day at St. Leonards (Warrior Square) Station he stole a
suitcase and its contents (£10). Two days later, at Hastings, he obtained
another suitcase and contents (£10 4s. 6d.). Three days later, on August 15th,
at Hastings, he stole 4,000 cigarettes (£8 5s.).
Green told the Recorder that he admitted all these
charges.
The Recorder, after reading long statements made by the
male prisoner, passed the sentence of three years` penal servitude. He (the
Recorder) said he did not suppose it was much use talking to a man like him. He
could hardly imagine a worse record than the one read out to him. Apart from
three convictions during the past three years and the charges he had pleaded
Guilty to that day, Green had asked him to take into consideration and include
in his sentence 14 other cases of crime which he admitted having committed
since he had been released from prison in May and arrested again in August.
They were crimes of stealing, forgery, and a number of cases of false
pretences. During that time he had been what one may call, in a strict sense, a
habitual criminal. Morally he had done worse, for he had been guilty of taking
away from her home this young girl, ruining her, and teaching her to be a
criminal. He would not be punished by him for that; he could only punish him
for offences against the law. The one redeeming feature was that he had asked
for mercy for the girl, but he thought he would carry to the grave the
recollection of what he had done to her.
The Recorder, addressing the girl, who sobbed after
Green had been sentenced and removed from the dock, said he was sorry for her.
She had come from a good home, and had been completely ruined by Green. She was
quite young, and he wanted her to have a chance of doing better. Was she
willing to go back to her parents?
Harlow: Yes.
The Recorder: Then I will bind you over for 12 months
on condition you go back and live with your parents, and try and make a fresh
start.
When the Recorder asked how the girl would get back to
her home, the Probation Officer (Mr. A.D.Z. Holmes) said he would find the money
for the fare, and see that she reached her home safely.
Folkestone Herald 19-4-1930
Local News
When Gladstone Martin, the licensee of the True
Briton public house, and W. Surtees, the licensee of the Castle Inn, made
applications at the Folkestone Police Court on Wednesday for music licences to
enable them to give wireless entertainments in their houses, the Chief
Constable (Mr. A. S. Beesley) said there were now 16 of these particular licences in the
borough in respect of public houses.
The Magistrates granted the application, the hours
being from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays, and 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Sundays.
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