Yorkshire Almanac Doncaster magistrates hear how Dr. Greene, a mountebank, assaulted those who sought to cancel his show

26 July 1699: Doncaster magistrates hear how Dr. Greene, a mountebank, assaulted those who sought to cancel his show

John Edward Jackson. 1855. The History and Description of St. George’s Church at Doncaster, Destroyed by Fire February 28, 1853. London: J.B. Nichols and Sons. Get it:

Unedited excerpt

If an excerpt is used in the book, it will be shorter, edited and, where applicable, translated.

Amongst some old magisterial proceedings of July 26, 1699, at Doncaster, we meet with informations laid before Peter Hudson, the Mayor, against one “Doctor Greene,” his servants, and Philip and Wm. Bassett, for assaults committed by them in some defence of their exhibitions. John Barnes deposed that Edw. Greene came forth with his hanger, and “swore and dambde that he would strike the first man,” etc. Another received several blows with a spade; and a third swore that “the doctor, in violent language, declared that he would go upon the stage, whether the Mayor would let him or not.”

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To facilitate reading, the spelling and punctuation of elderly excerpts have generally been modernised, and distracting excision scars concealed. My selections, translations, and editions are copyright.

Comment

John Hobson’s editor supposes that this is the mountebank Dr. Green whose death his diarist reported on 22 March 1729 (Hobson 1877).

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Comment

John Hobson’s editor supposes that this is the mountebank Dr. Green whose death his diarist reported on 22 March 1729 (Hobson 1877).

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4 September 1947: Conflicting hopes for the future of the nationalised coal industry, as a wildcat strike against increased hours at Grimethorpe spreads through the South Yorkshire coalfield

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Comment

Re this wave of unofficial strikes:

Major-General Sir Noel Holmes, chairman of the north-eastern division of the National Coal Board, in a statement yesterday on the strike at Grimethorpe Colliery, said that 140 coal-face workers, out of 2,682 employed at the pit, were not doing a fair day’s work. A committee representing management and workmen had decided that the stint for the 140 workers should be increased by 2ft., but they refused to accept its findings and came out on strike. The other coal-face workers came out in sympathy. “As much as I dislike mentioning this fact,” said Sir Noel Holmes, “it is only right to recall that at Grimethorpe since January 1, 1947, and before the present strike, there have been 26 sectional unofficial stoppages, which have lost 33,000 tons of coal to the nation. The present stoppage up to date represents a further loss of more than 40,000 tons.” (Times 1947/08/27)

Holmes’s Wikipedia article curiously doesn’t mention this phase of his career.

I’m guessing that the Welsh ex-Puritan authoritarian Communist Arthur Horner is the voice of the NUM in the above – see e.g. the Times for 9 September.

Interesting comments on the wartime coal boards by T.S. Charlton, colliery manager at Cortonwood:

The management of the collieries is in the hands of men trained primarily in management of mines and miners. They have a working knowledge of all the machinery available and how best it can be used, but the details of this side are left to the mechanical and electrical engineer. Labour costs are two-thirds of production costs, and therefore the handling and the best use of men are of the greatest importance to managers. Why it should have been decided that labour leaders should be good labour directors is, apart from the political issue, difficult to understand, unless it is on the old adage of “poacher turned gamekeeper.” Unless and until the production director has control of his labour side, I can see little hope of his schemes proving effective.

The miners have put forward suggestions to improve output, but they appear to do no more than improve the position of the miner. Can it be said that any suggestion already put forward by the men has put up the output figure? Why should it be assumed the men’s side of the pit production committees should be able to improve output in any way? Their training, inclinations, and very job depend upon their obtaining the best for their electors rather than for production.
(Charlton 1943/12/01)

Charlton was clearly a clever and capable man – it would be good to know more about him.

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