Another old custom, the crowning of the “ May Queen,” is carried out amid great pomp and splendour. Thousands of people flock to Knutsford annually to see the procession which passes through the principal streets of the town to the heath, where the coronation ceremony is performed. The sedan chair, used in the .old Cranford days, is regularly carried in the procession.
The principal street — King Street — is picturesque and quaint, owing to the irregularity of the buildings, some being oak-timbered, and many having thatched roofs. There is one old house, “ The Rose and Crown,” which bears the date 1041.1 Strangers who do not know that the top of the 6 (1641) must have been taken off at some time, have been known to remark that it is really astonishing that such houses should have been built in 1041.
1The top of the 6 has now been restored. — G.A.P
CHANGES IN KNUTSFORD
Knutsford is still in many respects “ the old ancient place, “ but great changes have been effected in its outward aspect since the time when Elizabeth Cleghorn Stevenson passed her girlhood here.
Among the most striking of these may be mentioned: —
(i.) The railway was constructed in 1862,1 and a bridge in King Street built upon the site of a few ancient cottages and three magnificent elms, which the oldest inhabitants can very well remember.
In one of these cottages an old milk- vendor lived, and on a waste piece of ground opposite stood the pump which supplied the people in the immediate vicinity with water. At one time, we are told, a local wag — Georgie Barnwell (Potter) — knocked the old man up in the night and informed him that his favourite cow had got a turnip in her throat, and was “ like to be choked; “ and his anger, not to say his language, will be better 1 The Railway was publicly opened on May 12th, 1862.
imagined than described when he was led across to the pump, the spout of which had been stopped up with a turnip.
(2.) Where the house now stands in which the governor of the gaol lives, the ancient White Hart Inn formerly stood, and the encouraging announcement, “ Good Provision for Man and Beast,” met the traveller’s gaze. Adjoining this were the village smithy, a wheelwright’s shop, and a few cottages, in one of which lived John Eden, for many years the sexton at the parish church.
(3.) A large number of detached and semi - detached villas have been built, thus bringing from Manchester a goodly number of men to the home of the “ Amazons.”
(4.) The stocks (long since removed) stood under the church wall in King Street. Here, we understand, the before- mentioned Georgie Barnwell, less than forty years ago, was spending a little time. When his brother Samuel, seeing him in this sad plight, said, “ Tha looks well naa,” George, pointing over to the churchyard, rejoined with, “ And so will thee when tha gets over th’ wall.”
(5.) The office of the bellman is now extinct, and the court-house, under which the bellman (who was also chief constable) lived, is now, though still standing in the market square, no longer used for its original purpose.
(6.) A number of houses and five cotton mills formerly stood at the “ top of the bottom street,” but they were pulled down by a gentleman who bought the property and improved the entrance to Tatton Park.
(7.) The river Lily, which Canute is supposed to have forded (for is it not Canute’s ford?), then ran across Brook Street.
The two following sketches, “The Bellman” and “The Rhymster,” are here introduced in order to give the reader a clear idea what kind of place Knutsford was, and showing types of the people to be met with, together with illustrations of the quaint customs which were strictly observed.
THE BELLMAN
In these days, when advertising is so general, with miles of hoarding, cheap and good printing, and apt illustration, there is no need for the services of the bellman or town crier, and consequently we find the office falling into disuse. In a few places, however, like Altrincham, for instance, the prefatory announcement, “Oyez! Oyez! Oyez!” may still be heard, though it is called “ Oh yes! Oh yes! Oh yes!” and then follows “ God bless the Queen and the lord of this manor.”
Concerning some of these bellmen there were traits and peculiarities which it seems to us we do well to recall.
Manchester has had her interesting bellmen, but Knutsford has had one or two which are almost equally interesting, though it is a difficult matter to get any authentic information concerning them.
Fifty years ago the bellman was very much in evidence on bonfire night. The carrying of the effigy of Guy Faux through the public streets of Knutsford at the head of a rabble of boys and youths was made one of the leading features of the festival. The boys for weeks beforehand were busy gathering together their piles of wood, and many a paling was stripped of a stake and many a tree was robbed of a bough.
The effigy was made by the leading tailor, and was a full-sized figure, which was carried by Bill Smith, the bellman, mounted on a mule. On such an occasion as this, of course, Bill Smith would wear his livery, for he was not only bellman but constable too.
He lived in the old market-place where, years before, the bonfire used to be kindled, at the lock-up, which to this day may be found beneath the now disused court-house. His under-garments the outside world knew little about, for they were covered by a huge overcoat reaching down nearly to his heels. He wore, if we may say so, a tall hat which was very short, broad-brimmed, and surrounded by a silver band, and he was a tall, burly man.
There must have been quite a stir in this quaint town in the good old time when Bill mounted his charger, and at the head of a rowdy gang led the way through the principal streets to the Common, where Guy was raised high up on the pile, and eventually brought down amid the roaring of the flames and the shouting of the boys.
But this was not the end of the festival. There was a feast, “ The Biff Stake Atin,” at the “ George,” for Bill went round to the butchers with a big basket, into which they each put a steak or a chop as their contribution to the fun of the evening, and for a small charge the townspeople could join in eating and drinking, especially drinking, to the memory of the traitor Guy. Bill Smith was succeeded in his office by Moses Coppock, whom many will remember, but his predecessor was a much more interesting man.
He is the Jeremy Low of whom the Rev. Henry Green, M.A., speaks in his “ History of Knutsford.” A lady had kindly undertaken to knit some woollen hose for Jeremiah, but, bethinking himself of the spindle-like condition of his legs, with great consideration he went to the lady to beg she would not trouble herself to make any cawlves to his stockings, “Because,” said the old man, “because I have no cawlves to my legs.” He was a very old man when the Queen ascended the throne, and made many a blunder, to the intense amusement of the bystanders, in repeating the familiar phrase, which was the preliminary to any announcement he had to make, “ God bless the King, and the lord of this manor,” to which the boys added, “ And John Long, the tanner.” Bill Smith, who was a tall, courtly man, used to take off his hat when he made this announcement. Not so Jeremy!
Jeremy Low was short and thin, a cripple with a short leg, and wore a boot with a high heel. He was a hunchback, the hump being made, it would appear, to carry his bell on. He had very thin legs and a wall eye, and was dressed in a drab coat with red collar, knee breeches, and a broad-brimmed silver-laced hat, and was assisted in his peregrinations with a stick and a crutch.
The fish sold in Knutsford used to be brought hither by coach, and Jeremy on the morning of its arrival used to do his rounds shouting out the kinds of fish to be purchased at Frederick Moult’s, while the boys added their portion —
“Frederick Moult has fish to sell,
And Jeremy Low goes round with his bell.”
THE RHYMSTER
The number of those who remember Knutsford as it was before the railway was opened up from Altrincham to Northwich, and when Chelford verily was “ Chelford for Knutsford,” is rapidly diminishing, and we fear some of the “characters” of that distant time are gradually being
forgotten.
The one we wish to revert to has claims upon our attention which we are unwilling to pass over. He was a silk weaver who had seen more prosperous times for the people of old Knutsford.
His father lived at that quaint cottage, which was afterwards occupied by old John Hough, at the junction of Adam’s Hill and King Street, where now stands a huge station wall, and opposite to which, on the site of the parochial school (now disused) and the lecture hall, stood eleven cottages. These cottages were demolished in 1829, some of the old bricks being used in the building of the parochial school in 1830. An ancient photograph which y)e are fortunate enough to possess shows the front of old Hough’s house, next to which was an outhouse, used at one time as a cooper’s workshop, and before that as a weaving shop, while, facing a row of seven (out of the eleven cottages), stood a cowshed.
It was in this weaving shop that Tommy Witter used to work at his loom, when he was sober. A small sliding door was the means of communication between the house and the shop, and many a time has old Betty Witter pushed aside the door to see if her ne’er-do-well son was at work or not. Her husband (old George) looked after the cattle and did odd jobs about the town, while she herself looked after the home — and Tommy; for, though he did not live at home for some reason, he worked at home, lodging in a cottage hard by. They were getting on in years, being born respectively in 1769 and 1765; and in 1842 old George, who had survived his wife three years, was laid to rest in the parish churchyard. It was in vain we looked for Tommy’s tombstone. He who had written so many epitaphs for pints of beer, and had composed verses and sung songs for a like remuneration, was laid to rest by the parish. But we do not wish to bring him to mind on account of his “ toping” propensities, but because he was a clever rhymster, and because his verses, such as we have seen, will give to the younger generation a pretty good idea of the Knutsford of long ago, when (he tells us in a poem which was written about the time) it was thought that the railway would be laid down, and that it would be the means of opening up trade.
“Seventy years with me have passed away,
Great changes in that time I’ve seen
In this little town of Knutsford,
Where I was born and still remain.’’
[“ Remain,” by the way, must be pronounced “remeen,” just as the Cheshire native talks of “ teeters “ and “ pleets.’’]
“I can remember well the day,
When in wages there was paid
Near three hundred pound per week,
Then in the town we had good trade.
Five cotton mills were running then,
A great deal of thread was made;
A poor man with his family
For his labour then was paid.
To make this an independent town
They would banish the cotton trade;
A great man pulled the factories down,
And a great mistake he made.
Now Knutsford men and men of Knutsford,
Let us hope the worst is past;
We shall have a trade when the railway’s made,
And that time is approaching fast.”
This, like four other poems we have, was printed on cards and circulated, and probably sold at a small charge. There is nothing very polished about his verse, but it is homely, and he tells his story in a straightforward way. When old John Eden, who had been the sexton at the parish church for many years, met Tommy, he was told right away what his epitaph should be: —
“Here lies the body of Eden John,
Who in his time had buried many a one;
Rejoice ye young men in his fall,
For, if he’d lived, he’d a-buried you all.”
His facility in verse-making must have been hereditary, for we find that old Joseph Witter, of Toft, who was born in 1715, and died at the age of eighty in 1795, left as his epitaph: —
“Farewell, my wife and children dear, Whilst here you do remain, The Lord of Hosts be your defence Till we shall meet again.”
In 1845 he wrote a poem of six verses, which is as good as anything we have seen of his. It is entitled: “ On the lamented death of Miss Egerton. Died November 10th, 1845, aged 21 years.” Two verses will suffice to show its quality: —
“Death hath stepped on the hearth with so rapid a stride That none thought his shadow was nigh; He had sought out a victim, and found one pre- par’d,
And has borne her in triumph on high.
But to sorrow is mortal in those left behind,
And who witness her premature flight; To see one so young, and so gentle and good, Pass away like a dream of the night.”
Another “ In Memoriam “ was written in 1853. This was “ In Memory of Mrs. Egerton, of Tatton Park, who died Feb. 28th, 1853, aged 74 years. Interred in Rostherne Church, March 7th.” This also contains six verses, but we will give the first and last, which will indicate the type: —
“Death has been, and borne away
The widows’ and orphans’ friend;
With a generous heart her bounty
To the poor she did extend.
And, speaking of “ Her aged partner left behind “: —
“God be his shield and comforter;
His life’s short journey through;
And may the good that she has done
Be always kept in view.”
The next card we take up contains seven verses, but it is this time on the occasion of a marriage: “ Lines on the Marriage of the Honourable Meriel Warren, to Allen A. Bathurst, Esq., M.P.”
The railway has done a great deal in opening up the country to the influences of the town, but at the same time it has done a good deal also in breaking down many of the simple manners and customs, and has been the means of introducing a new element which has been a disturbing factor in the relations between the cottage and the Hall. We regret the little we have lost, but gladly accept the large balance of gain. But to the marriage!
The metre in this poetical effusion — we were going to say poem — is like Tommy Witter himself, unsteadier than formerly; but here are a few of the verses, rugged as they are: —
“On the thirtieth day of January,
In eighteen hundred and sixty-two;
It was the joyful wedding-day —
The marriage ceremony was gone through.
In that ancient chapel in Tabley Park,
Some hundreds there were met,
For to witness a procession
That they will not soon forget.
It was the second daughter
Of that noble line, De Tabley;
We trust the bride and bridegroom
May for ever happy be.
Her virtue, wit, and charity meet —
All her merits we do admire;
To crown the whole, to be complete,
To relieve the poor it is her desire.”
The last card is entitled “Free Trade and the Railway,” and among ten verses are the following: —
“In Ashley, Mobberley, and Knutsford,
Stations there will be made;
We hope and trust from Manchester
We shall have commerce and trade.
The poor of Cheshire for many years,
They have greatly been distress’d;
For want of trade they are paupers made,
And ratepayers are much oppress’d.
When this line is made there will be trade,
As to coals you will have plenty —
For the starving poor brought to his door,
You will never find them scanty.”
The next verse is singularly appropriate to our own time: —
“The town of Knutsford you soon will see
With water well supplied; An advantage for both rich and poor,
Whate’er may be their wants beside.”
In March 1862, Knutsford seems to have been thoroughly roused by what appears, at this distance of time, a very small matter. George Gallop, the then governor of the
prison, had daughters who were said to be very haughty, and who it was alleged behaved in a very giddy way in church. One Sunday they were reproved by the curate from the pulpit by name, and immediately left the church.
Mr. Gallop protested in a poster headed ‘ Public Notice,” a tattered copy of which we have seen, and in which he said he had reported the whole matter to the bishop of the diocese, who promised to investigate the unjustifiable and outrageous proceeding of the Rev. D. S.
Spedding. The curate, however, had the sympathies of the people, by whom he was much beloved; and Tommy wrote several counterblasts, from one of which we quote: —
“It had been rumoured for many a day These young ladies were very unsteady and gay,
In church laughing, talking, reading, and sketching, Which to the curate was very vexing. So one Sunday morning he mounted the pulpit,
Gave out the text and then (he could not help it)
Said he, ‘ I’m sorry to see Miss Gallops doing wrong,
But this has been continued sadly too long.’“ Two lines from another declare: —
“For when the truth the bishop comes to know He will not wish our minister to go.’-
Tommy was a curio we thought worth preserving. Drunken he was, no doubt, especially in his later years, but he possessed qualities which made people recognise him as the village poet, punster, and wag, and who can say that he had not a work to do in the world?
IS KNUTSFORD THE ORIGINAL OF “CRANFORD”?
Into such a place as we have described entered Mrs. Gaskell, brought hither as a baby. Knutsford was the home of her childhood and early youth, the place in which she was married, the place she regularly visited from her home in Manchester; and it contains the ancient chapel, in the graveyard of which her mortal remains were buried.
Delphi Complete Works of Elizabeth Gaskell Page 581