He added another story “We have a Sergeant stationed in our town,” said the man I believe he has been there five years I never saw him or her once.”
Joe said, “Last winter, Spud the home transport driver rang the police just to see if there was any snow on the roads in Copton to save us going out in bad weather.”
“When he rang up to ask, thinking someone might either know or have a look out of the window, the police had said they don’t give weather forecasts and suggested he ring the weather centre in London.”
There was louder laughing as the same police car drove past once again.
Claude said, “See that police car, its been going round and round in ever decreasing circles I won’t be surprised if we stay here it will evaporate away up its own ass. I will bet a quid the occupants won’t stop and get out have a walk around and speak to anyone.”
“Yes,” said one of the visitors, “This new Commissioner and the council need to get these security camera watchers to note how many times they see an officer walking in say a week or a month. I suspect they will be few or none.”
Claude replied as he stood to leave, “We all know one can only do one job at a time and it’s easy to criticise when you are retired.”
“All I would say is when they are in the nick there if there are no calls they should answer the door to the public and come out and walk about.”
“If there is more than one officer, one should walk and the other ride. They have radios and telephones they could always be diverted to attend calls a distance away.”
“Just look around this town and many others in these rural areas in spite of what one reads I am sure it is safe for one officer to patrol alone in the middle of the day.”
With that the police car stopped and the driver got out, all stopped it appeared to be a time to eat their words.
The police driver in fact went to cash machine took out some money; the other went with no headgear into a shop and bought something.
They had left the police car parked on the pavement causing a lady with a pram to walk into the road.
Moments later they returned to their vehicle and drove off as they did so they stopped to allow a group of boys carry bottles of beer and another rode down the street the wrong way.
The police car drove off the crew speaking or taken not action regarding the boys as to where they had their beer from or their intentions nor to the mad cyclist riding in and out of the pedestrians.
Claude was surprised at the next story when one of his old friends related that years ago when he was on CID at Copton they kept a White coat and a stethoscope in a cupboard in the CID office.
If they had a prisoner in who wouldn’t admit it, one of the detectives would dress up in the coat put the stethoscope round his neck and introduce himself as the Police surgeon. A quick examination of the prisoner revealed that he appeared to be suffering from some mental illness.
He was told that unless he admitted the offence when he would be bailed he would have to stay in custody and be committed to the local mental hospital. It appeared from what the old detective said that the rouse often worked.
It takes all sorts thought Claude but said nothing and winked at Joe; there was every chance they both thought the old detective was himself losing it.
The old cops and Joe shook their heads and as usual Joe ended with a laugh, “Did you see that kid with a camera taking the photo of the cop at the cash machine?”
“No doubt he was taking a photo of a policeman in the street; he must have been taking it to show his mates in case they didn’t know what one looked like.”
They all laughed and went on their way, hoping those current serving officers would at least keep paying their 11% of their pay contributions into the police pension fund for a few years anyway thought Claude.
During the early evening the firework display was just about to get under way when a fire engine arrived, the crew on standby.
This reminded Claude of years ago there had been a fireworks display at Copton Headquarters. It was the police and therefore all done according to the rules. To ensure all went smoothly the man in charge of the force four-minute warning system of impending nuclear attack was appointed to take charge.
The ropes pegging out the area were set out, all the senior officers having a ringside standing position, the count down began, ten nine and so on. As the bomb man was about to get the first firework going, he dropped the fire lighter into the box and whoosh, bang oh nasty, the whole lot went up and all was gone in a flash so to speak so were the crowd in all directions.
The event held by the Lions went ahead without a hitch and was enjoyed by all.
It was going to be an early night for Claude after a full day. He was soon asleep.
The next morning it was breakfast as usual
Claude was leaving the dining room and on passing the lounge a lady called to him, “I say Mr Friendly is that you?”
He turned and did recognise the lady as a local resident from years ago; he nodded his head and she came over.
“Well I never,” she said then looking at Angelina, she continued, “Oh I recall you also from the shop.”
“I remember Mr Friendly here; he came to our house when he was sergeant in the police.”
“We had a man who was trespassing with a gun. My husband went to speak with him but the man ignored him and my husband was sure he took a pot shot at him.”
“I called the police and sergeant Friendly arrived and went over the fields to the man. I told my husband to stand by to ring the police again as I thought sergeant friendly might be shot at any moment.”
“The man was arrested and taken to the police station and all went well but you never know these days do you.”
“Nice to see you again I am here to visit my mother so I must go."
In a moment she was gone.
Angelina turned to Claude and said, “Sounds as if you may have had a close a shave Claude.”
He replied, “Well it didn’t seem like that at the time however the man concerned did eventually commit a murder and I believe he is still locked up.”
Claude continued, “They weren’t all, that bad, I recall one day I saw a boy coming out of school he had a catapult, shooting stones here and there. I stopped my car and took the catapult off him. I went to his house and told his parents and that was the end of the matter. Over twenty years later when I came to retire I found the catapult in my office desk. I took it back and handed it to the owner, now man, regretfully he had not improved with age.”
“In those days the police often played things unofficial I recall that now and again someone would arrive at the police station with a naughty son.”
“Often answering his mother back or worse, stealing from her purse. I used to get them in the office and if it seemed a bad case I would have a word with the parents and with the agreement this is what I did.”
“Once I was sure the child had not been to the police station before and certainly never in trouble, if they had my method wouldn’t work.”
“I would then say to the parents leave him here with us and they would go outside. I would get the boy and put him in one of the cells, lock the door. I would then stand outside the door joined by the parents.”
“Normally after a moment or so the boy would start shouting, I would of course then open the door and ask what he wanted, and it was always boys, Invariable he would say to get out. The parents would then run into the front office and I would bring him out. Giving him a talking to that next time he may well stay inside. I didn’t have the same boy twice.”
“From time to time I would invoke the method adopted by the old coal mines for transgressing miners.”
On one occasion I was on patrol with a special constable and on receiving a report of a prowler we arrived at a house set back from the main road, it had a very large front garden.”
“We arrived, quietly in those days no flashing lights or sirens, the intention was to catch the
villain not frighten him off. We saw the dark figure in the garden and so crept up.”
“We grabbed the figure and it was a young man. He had been picking flowers out of the garden. We took him to the street lights and could see he had spent daffodils.”
A voice from the house called, “Who is that?”
I replied, “It is the police and shone our torches on us. I left the youth with the Special and on arriving at the house I updated the house holder what had transpired.”
“ I then said to him, he has walked over your garden a bit but there is no real damage the flowers are spent I doubt we can get him for much, possibly criminal damage or that he is drunk. The thing is we can’t let him get away with it he needs to learn a lesson.”
“I agree,” replied the old man but no one wants to be bothered these days.”
I said, “I will bring him down here, when he arrives tell him what I tell you to say.”
“The man agreed, the young man was brought and the old man said "You ought to be ashamed of yourself coming here in the middle of the night frightening old people my wife was scared to death. I am however prepared to let you off with the police if you will make a one pound donation to Ashton hospital.”
“The youth agreed and his next stop was the hospital. A knock on the door brought the night nurse and when the door was opened seeing Claude she said, “Another donation.”
I replied in the affirmative and stepped inside with the youth who was shown the miniature strong box with the word donations written upon it.”
“The transaction completed the youth was taken home.”
She got up and excused herself.
He now thought back all those years.
Some weeks later he happened to come upon the youth’s father at a function, he was a decent man, a fire officer. At an opportune moment he spoke with Claude who guessed the reason and wondered if trouble was a foot for his unofficial action.
His fears were unfounded for the man said, “Thank you for what I believe you did with my son; it was good for him to learn a lesson. He is away now on an officer’s course in the army, had he been arrested he wouldn’t have got in.”
Claude nodded but didn’t say anything as the father was about to leave he stopped and said “How did you come up with the idea of a donation to the hospital? A great idea I thought,” then walked on.
He thought of the occasion a report was received of a major accident involving a heavy goods vehicle in a small village some miles away from Ashton. Claude attended with a constable who had just arrived in the force having transferred from Liverpool. After some time a lady arrived from a nearby house carrying a tray containing two mugs of tea and two pieces of cake.
“Here you are officers” she said I have been watching you out here in the cold all day so I have brought you a warm drink and something to eat.”
“Thank you,” replied Claude.
When the lady had gone, the constable said, “You are not going to eat and drink that are you.”
“Why of course,” answered, Claude.
The new man said, “In Liverpool we would never do that, more than likely she would have spit in it.”
“Not round here,” replied Claude as he thought what a difference there was between the police and the public in this area than what it must be in other places.
The incident also caused Claude to stop typing and he recalled how some year or two ago he had been speaking with a current serving officer who was complaining the authorities were going to close the police canteen and officers were up in arms they would be out working and had nothing hot to eat.
In the old days thought Claude officers having something hot to eat and drink was a topic that never came up in a senior officer’s conversation.
Whether it be standing for eight hours on a farm gate where there was a foot and mouth disease outbreak or some other major enquiry possibly a murder or similar no one ever consider that the officers on duty would need a break and or something to eat.
He did recall at the foot and mouth outbreak when farmers at some farms did set up a supply of hot food and drink for those attending dealing with the incident but the farmers made a charge even to the duty police officer.
The police service was a job where the unexpected was always around the corner or even behind a lorry.
Early one morning two lorries had collided on a bend in frosty weather. There were no injuries and little damage save that the lorries were locked to together. It was, as far a road accident were concerning, a minor collision but was only a major event due to waiting for heavy breakdown vehicles to arrive to separate and remove the vehicles.
It was not until several hours later when the lorries were moved and the road cleared that someone gave a shout and all attention turned to the side of the lorry on the nearside.
As it was pulled away from the rock face there was a motorcycle and its rider still seated but quite dead. As the lorry had rounded the bend the driver had pulled left into the rock face in an attempt to avoid the lorry coming in the opposite direction. No one knew of the involvement of the motorcycle until all those hours later. The accident then became a fatal accident but of course all the items had been moved and what evidence there was had been lost.
Angelina arrived back and picked up his papers, then read them.
They contained the latest accounts of the exploits of Claude.
He was on duty when he had occasion to meet with an old colleague Reg Thomas, in fact an old senior officer whose command he had been under. Whilst in conversation another retired officer, Phil Davison had walked by spoke to Claude but had ignored Reg.
There appeared to be some animosity between the two men, Reg must have realised Claude was aware of it and so he said to Claude, “See him there I have not spoken to him since one night in 1943, forty years ago.”
“Whatever happened?” asked Claude.
“We worked together, he was my Sergeant. One evening I was off duty and so I rode my bike down the road a couple of miles, just over into the adjacent beat covered by the next police station. I met my girlfriend, now my wife she had cycled the mile or so to meet me. We were talking there when Phil rode passed on his cycle he had been to the other police station to meet the Inspector. As he rode passed he saw us talking and the next day reported me for being absent from my station area without permission. I was put on a discipline and received a fine. We have never spoken since.
Claude asked, “How did you work together?”
“Just sent notes to each other,” and he walked off.
This reminded Claude of another similar situation when an old copper had told him he also received a fine for being absent from Ashton police station in the same era, his sin was also visiting his girl in the next village which was located in the next county. He had been required for something whilst off duty and when not found because he had gone out on his cycle; he was also disciplined and fined.
It was a common practice apparently relating to the condition of service Claude had signed on his application, “You will devote the whole of your time to the police service.” It appeared even from the comment made on his own application to leave his station to visit his parents in 1964 that things hadn’t changed much since the nineteen forties.
There was obviously animosity even between senior officers for Claude was speaking with another colleague and the subject of the amalgamation of police forces came up in conversation. The officer then working at the hub of things related how there were two superintendents, each in charge of a division. When the forces were joined, the divisions within the areas were also joined so that one of the superintendents was to be promoted to chief superintendent and the other to remain a plain old Super, second in command.
Both officers applied for the job as the chief, after the decision was made, the two bosses had run the division without speaking again, just leaving notes or speaking to each other via a third person.
With such an organisation as a police force
there are always personality clashes.
Claude next recalled an officer who, he had on his shift and he was good worker, did as he was asked, turned in the work. Claude had given him good observations for his annual reports and was surprised one day when a senior officer had asked
"Why do you always give him good reports?” “He can’t even speak properly.”
Claude had taken this, to mean the officer used the word "Nuffin instead of nothing and similar.
Claude had said he gave the officer the comments he deserved. This “Nuffin” officer’s fortunes were changed when he temporarily moved to another department at another police station and the supervising officer there took to the young man and made it known how good he was. From that time on the officer who thought a speech impediment mattered, no longer did and had a completely different view of the "Nuffin" man and they became close friends and the “Nuffin” was no longer relevant.
Claude it seemed, was often reminded of the incident, even after retirement.
A sin he had committed one night. Whilst on mobile patrol the officer driving the police car had noticed Claude had fallen asleep. There was shouting and a horn blowing, when Claude opened his eyes there was a lorry by the side of the police car, which had its blue light flashing on. The lorry driver was shouting, “Are you alright?” The car was parked in the middle of the road at a junction with its blue light on. The constable driver had left the vehicle and his sergeant asleep inside it and walked to the police station across the road. He and his colleagues were standing in the police station looking through the window at the hilarious scene outside.
The officer never forgot the incident and news spread, for years later even after Claude had left. Such was the officer impressed with the incident that upon his own retirement party one of the officers who had attended took the trouble to tell Claude his falling asleep at the traffic light had come up on that night. Claude smiled and thought it was a “Nuffin.”
Police Memories Page 40