Police Memories

by Bill Williams

  A new phenomenon was to arrive in the rural area around Ashton, the travelling families from Southern Ireland. They were it seems not popular there and so spread their activities to the good old UK who always offered a welcome. These new arrivals were to become a new problem for the landowners and police who had to deal with the consequences of their arrival.

  The heath around Ashton was somewhat unusual in that it was believed locally to be common land to all but on the other hand someone claimed to own it.

  At that time common land was being reviewed and Claude as the local police officer attended the enquiry at the county shire hall.

  The outcome was that the land was in fact private property but again the position was complicated.

  In feudal times the landowner or the Lord of the Manor had people working for him. They worked and lived on the estate and in consequence they were given rights by the Lord.

  The rights varied, some could a graze a certain number of animals, others could take sticks for firewood whilst yet others had various other items, sand being one.

  The area had been unfenced for many years; being referred to as a common, the local people mistakenly believed they all had access to the area. In fact at the hearing it was held that the only persons with any access were the commoners with right of access, save for the public footpath over it.

  In addition the rights were invested in the properties and not the people, thus the rights were perpetual to whoever owned or lived in a property had the rights. There were restrictions of access being on foot or horseback or leading a horse. There was no right of access for a motor vehicle for obvious reasons in those days there were no motor vehicles. Nothing had been done over the years to amend this situation.

  This caused the police and Claude in particular a great deal of trouble resolving problems.

  Poachers were prosecuted on complaint from the Lord of the manor who made the statement of complaint. At one time the landowner had given permission for vehicles to be raced around the area much to the displeasure of nearby residents due to the noise. The complaints raised caused some disquiet but tragedy resolved the matter, for one Sunday a young man was killed whilst participating. Though unconnected the landowner ceased giving permission and the events stopped.

  One day Claude was attending the local Magistrates Court when he had occasion to see a local commoner from the heath sitting waiting to go into court. Claude spoke with him and learned he had been reported by a traffic officer attending an accident there when a car had struck a cow in the road. The officer had reported the commoner for permitting the animal to stray. He smiled as he related the story to Claude and Claude realised why. He approached the new station commander who had viewed the file and authorised prosecution.

  “Excuse me Sir,” said Claude.

  “Yes,” replied the officer.

  “The commoner over there, he will get off.”

  “Why?” Said the senior officer.

  Claude replied, “He is exempt from prosecution under an Act of Parliament commoners have a right from the old days to graze animals on the common and as the owner is barred from fencing it off, it is no offence committed by the commoner.”

  A frantic look in the books confirmed this and the case was dropped and the commoner told to go home.

  Claude recalled from that time on the commoner did in fact tether his cattle on a long lead.

  The new Irish nationals were to be a real source of work for Claude and trouble for the authorities for a variety of reasons.

  They moved from place to place arriving unannounced in large numbers. They carried no form of identification, it was difficult to identify them when enquiries were past from areas where they had been and to where they would go when they left.

  Many changed their names on any occasion to suit themselves.

  They normally had new vehicles and so obtained driving documents, but upon the initial expiration they failed to renew these.

  When stopped by the police and had no documents they were given a form to produce them. There was no power arrest in those days so they simply ignored the requirement. If they were visited the index number of their vehicle was taken and a check made.

  When the police visited their camping placer they were very polite and agreed with everything but complied with nothing.

  They would say “We have all got the same name Sir.”

  Almost like policemen thought Claude, people often said they all had the same but disrespectful name.

  As a result the travellers were known locally as “Tinkers” all gave exactly the same name, example, Dan Flynn, every man there gave the name Dan Flynn.

  On one occasion a “999” call was received of a disturbance on the site. When Claude arrived and asked what was happening he was told nothing. When he asked to speak with the caller he was directed to a man sitting by an open fire. Claude approached but on speaking learned he was in fact deaf and dumb.

  They devastated an area where they descended, they left litter all over the Heath and defecated anywhere resulting in a health risk. When they eventually chose to leave the area being open and flat and could be viewed from a great distance as a mass of waste paper, and old items and of course piles of human defecations.

  They eventually ascertained they were entitled to state benefits and so although being itinerants by way of life they often registered as unemployed. They were able to claim child benefit and other benefits. This tended to upset the local people. Unfortunately as in the case of the driving documents they were new phenomenon and the laws were not in place to do anything.

  Officers from the state benefits department visited the site to pay the benefits rather than have them descend on their office for they made a mess dropping their food and confectionary, papers and spilling drinks they brought in.

  In addition to shouting and generally being a nuisance.

  The visiting benefits officers would call at Ashton Police station for police officers to escort them. On one occasion one officer commented that she had counted 40 children on the site but the claim forms she had received were for 400 children. It was prudent, she added to just pay and say nothing,

  Eventually local people became fed up and there were occasions when they took the law into their own hands and would fire shotguns and airguns into the caravans in the dead of night.

  On an digger cum tractor, drove onto the heath and flattened a caravan.

  There was a case of one being burnt to the ground; this thought Claude was different from a custom of these new people. One day a family were parked just outside Ashton. Tragedy struck when the father was reversing out his lorry and in doing so accidentally ran over one of his children who was fatally injured. The funeral completed and before the family left they burned the caravan and lorry so that nothing remained of it. Another knew tradition that came with these new people.

  In the local pubs they were big spenders but were so noisy and made such a mess spilling drinks and breaking glasses that the locals would keep away. When the visitors finally left the area the pub landlord found he had no customers.

  Some put up a notice, “Travellers not welcome.” It was a waste of time said Claude to one landlord, for he pointed out many were illiterate and could not read the notice.

  The local council attempted to step in and made a local byelaw preventing their parking on the heath, the authority to do this was doubtful empower as the area was either private property with access only to commoners or was common land.

  There was a traffic law which said it was an offence to drive a motor vehicle elsewhere than on a road, so this law was of doubtful legality.

  When this law came into force local public health officers would visit the site in company with the police. They received the same treatment, all the same name or any name was used which came to the itinerants mind.

  This resulted in the subsequent summons simply saying to the owner of caravan ABC 123 etc. In most cases the travellers stayed only until the day of th
e court and then left. There was the odd occasion when one attended court and when this occurred the authorities were so surprised they felt sorry for the man, well almost.

  If found guilty they were given a fine with a prison sentence in immediate default, they always paid. It was also noted locally that when shopping or anything else involving the payment of money, it was the lady who always chose the items but it was the man who always paid.

  Claude recalled in recent years he had been out walking on the heath and there was a dispute between a man who alleged he was protesting about a gate placed to stop vehicles driving onto the common and others who represented some preservation society.

  Unless they had changed the law since he had visited the enquiry all those years ago, neither was right.

  The man unless he was an official commoner had no rights and the preservation society unless they had paid for the land from the owner or the lord of the manor had no rights. If they had purchased the land then Claude thought they were right. In any event the police arrived and the young officer appeared to have no idea of any enquiry or laws for according to the people there who were complaining the officer had arrived and left doing nothing. If only he could have done in 1969 thought Claude how easier life would have been.

  The travellers tended to deal in the selling of carpets and then when this proved unprofitable they changed to antiques. They had the gift of the gab and could get people to sell anything for almost nothing.

  After some time the residents became familiar with their methods, the itinerants changed tactics

  They would arrive at a large house often an isolated property then pressurised the owner to part with items. The itinerants then left a receipt so that on thinking upon it if the owner contacted the police who later stopped the offenders they produced the receipt to clear themselves.

  There is always the exception, one day Claude was called to a very nice house just off his area. The lady had complained that she had been put under pressure by two visiting itinerants. Claude attended and spoke with the lady.

  “What happened madam?” asked Claude.

  “Well these two men arrived in a transit van, they had Irish accents. I saw them looking through the windows before they arrived at the back door. I opened it and by one means or another they managed to get inside. They made all efforts for me to sell something, they wouldn’t take no for an answer.”

  “So you were intimidated and afraid,” replied Claude. The lady replied, “I was intimidated but not afraid; I told them I was not alone and I had called my associates. They laughed and told me they had seen my husband go out, they were certain I was alone.”

  “Where you alone?” asked Claude.

  The lady smiled and said, “No, I wasn’t alone like I am not alone now. I will show you what happened but please remain seated.”

  She pressed a handset in her hand. She waited a moment and said, “Look behind you.”

  Claude turned and looked there were Doberman dogs standing inside the door arriving through a hatch.

  The lady smiled and replied, “These dogs are specially trained to remain silent, they are kept in a secure pen, if I need them I press this, it opens the door to their kennel, they will attack you if I tell them to. I told the travellers the same and I said this. “Speak.” The dogs began to bark loudly and changed to an aggressive stance. On the command sit, they did just exactly that.”

  “I told the tinkers the same, I called the dogs from the door and said, now turn slowly and leave, oh and don’t come back, they will be running loose. I only reported the matter to inform you just in case they visit someone else locally.”

  Claude recalled years before whilst stationed at Broughton he had visited a house with another officer.

  The occupant was a man living alone and used a wheel chair. He had a dog, which he said was specially trained.

  The dog an Alsatian or German shepherd was friendly and so Claude had asked how it was specially trained; the man had smiled but said nothing. The cups of tea drunk Claude and his colleague were about to leave when as they did so Claude took hold of the door handle the dog took hold of Claude’s` hand on the door and growling held it until the owner called.

  He laughed and said, “It is trained to go for anyone who touches this wheel chair or the door handle.”

  Whilst travelling through Ashton town Claude saw a young man who was walking immediately behind one of the town patrol officers, there was group of youths nearby. It was clear the youth was walking behind the patrol officer and was mimicking his manner of walk.

  On arrival at the police station he was very argumentative and was obstructive. One of the senior constables was seated at the table typing a report. After some time listening to the youth, he stopped looked up didn’t say anything but gave the youth the worlds biggest slap across the face, knocking him off the chair. On getting up and sitting himself down again, the officer who did the deed, said, “Now shut up behave yourself and answer the questions.”

  The youth made no complaint, he answered the questions.

  Whilst down the town one day, a youth stopped Claude and pointed out his colleague who was, it appeared a bit of a “Slapper” and said, “See him, last week we were in the park I had a guitar and was singing a rude song about him. He stopped, walked back took the guitar off me and hit me over the head with it, smashing it, then he walked off and said, “Sing that again and you will get locked up.”

  The patrol motorcyclist who had forecast Claude was likely to kill himself on the police cycle wasn’t far wrong. Some time later Claude was travelling along the road when a mini car pulled out of a line of traffic and smashed directly into Claude. Claude was seriously injured and off duty for several months.

  He resumed and was ignorant of an incident that had occurred whilst he had been sick it had involved his very career but would not be revealed to him for many years. It was to prove how in those days local contacts with the influential could prove to be career saving.

  When he returned to duty the motor cycles had been replaced by small vans, Claude had bad luck. A fellow officer, in fact the one he had met on his very first visit to the police headquarters, the officer was then a cadet. He had now seemingly transgressed again, as a result of an allegation by a farmer involving the farmer’s wife, the officer was to be moved and Claude had been directed to change stations with him.

  The officer did not survive long for whilst undertaking an enquiry involving a major incident a complaint was made about him and his police career came to an end.

  A look at the clock indicated that it was time to leave off writing his book and he headed down stairs in time to get the transport into Copton.

  On Claude’s arrival a man arrived at the front door with the obvious intent of entering to visit someone. Claude knew the man and had done so for many years. He was a local character known to all by the nickname Bungy. A heavy drinker and likeable rogue, a painter and decorator by trade; Claude had many dealings with him and his close friend known as Randy Andy also a painter and an accomplished cartoonist.

  Bungy was stopped at the door by Matron who arrived rushing from her office, “You’re banned, you’re banned” she was calling for all to hear.

  Claude recalled many years previous he had been the sergeant at Ashton police station. One Saturday afternoon a motor patrol officer had brought in Bungy and his friend Andy on a case of drink driving. It seems the patrol car driver had been parked up waiting for the two miscreants to drive by, more than likely as result of a tip off.

  The officer had stopped the car and given the driver a breath test, it was positive. Both friends arrived at Ashton police station, Claude was the sergeant on duty and after the usual booking in a second test was given and this also proved positive.

  When the tests were completed one had said to Claude, “I was lucky sarge, I am usually driving, we always visit that pub on a Saturday the same time every week. It could have been me.”

  The next Saturday at almost
the same time Claude was again on duty when the same police officer brought the same two miscreants in once again but on this occasion it was the other man who was driving. The officer had given that driver a breath test that was positive and so was the second test.

  Both were eventually charged and pleaded guilty and were convicted, out of the mouths of babes and sucklings was the phrase that came to Claude’s mind all these years later.

  Meeting them in old age Bungy had said to Claude that one Christmas he was driving his car in Ashton when an old copper stopped him driving the wrong way along a one-way street. “I say” the officer had said, “You are going the wrong way along here by the look of you, you are pissed.”

  Bungy had replied, “Well it is Christmas officer, what you are going to do with us.”

  He replied “I am going to see you out of here the right way and then you buggers get out of my space,” and he let us off.

  Coming back to reality Claude could hear that Matron was refusing Bungy access and so outside he went. Claude feeling sorry for him followed and asked the cause of the problem.

  “Andy is in here, I am banned for bringing whisky in, it seems Andy had too much out of the bottle, had the shits and caused a major emergency so Matron has banned me.”

  “Dear, dear,” said Claude, “Haven’t got your tag on have you?”

  Bungy laughed and they both thought of the time, years ago when Claude had met Bungy who had committed some minor misdemeanour and rather than serve all his time in custody he had been tagged and released.

  Bungy had lifted his trouser leg and showed Claude the tag fixed to his leg. He laughed and said, “Tagged, I am over 70 I can hardly walk except with the stick and they tagged me, where am I going?” he laughed as usual and walked on.

  Bungy was not told of the palaver matron had caused as result of the vomiting after the whisky he had brought in.

  He then said to Claude, “I have been in hospital myself recently; I was there for weeks they wouldn’t let me have a drink so I discharged myself.” He laughed and walked off.