1961-10-28 — Page 5

One man's word

against the mob's...

X/HATEVER may be the case with individual

WHA

violence, mass violence is less common in England than it used to be. It has gradually diminished over the last half-century like the persistent drunkenness from which it largely

sprung.

There most now be few areas in any of our cities where rumpus and riot are regular events,

Mattern wero different' back in 1007. Schooling was often vestigial and primitive: the Welfare State was only a notion in Lloyd George's mind; and the resultant huge class of un- educated poor created numer ous peckels of endemle tunult. In London - as indeed In every big provincial centre there were numerous lanes and alleys where the inhabitants, however much they rulght rob and fight and beut each other, combined in an active defiance of the low, and where policemen found it prudent to patrol in pairs,

Their yersion of what follow- ed was 'given in court next morning. They had found Cirencester-street Like a mod- house in cruption. Mob-rule ugly inob at that. To have re- reigned-and the rule of An

frained from drastic action would have been a breach of trust, a neglect of that duty pollee are enlisted to perform.

the most conspicuous trouble- They had therefore sought out raiser and, despite his struggles, taken him into custody.

That, however, did not con- Paddington possessed a high dude the incident far from t propustivi of Such plague in the sizzling state of Ciren- spot: They seemed to cestar-strect. As ปาล offlecks compete for public notoriety,

were trying to get their prisoner and certainly among the most away, amla universal hoots and Jeers and occasional showers of come as 1 shock to is present residents- gravel, two other men--with the Was Cirencester-strol, a turn- unappropriate names of Church Ing off the Harrow-rond.

and Sexton-tried with some persistence to effect a rescue.

"No, you don't; he's our pal," they shouted, "Clear off; stand

notorious-il may

Its very name had come to strike the sane sinister chord that an earlier generation link- ed with Seven Dials...

August Bank Holiday night that year WYLA exceptionally by Cirencester-

KOSL

even

Iv street's undemanding standards. The shindy had been slowly brewing through the afternoon, During the evening, the ferment artd quickened. The ---aptives abandoned their hauses for the open air, where they nilted about In disorderly com

Quarrels

munion.

There were wordy and physical engagements: there discordiant singing WAS

discordant ecunter-song

anci there

were attempts to dance by those hard put to It to stand; there was a continuous sirupm of shrill obscenttles.

Uproar

At midnight the uproar in Cirencestr alrect rould be heard easily throughout the neighbourhood.

The police had alrendy, looked In once or twice, issued a few cautions, and watchfully with- drawn. They had been greeted and speeded-with no more than sotto voce grumbles.

But now

the situation had assumed a wider aspect,

and the two officers who appeared upon the scene at one o'clock

quickly recognised that mere cautions would be ineffective,

FOR TWO

LEONARD.

'No, you don't; he's our pal,’ they shouted. "Clear off; stand back,' cried the harassed police

back," crled the harassed pollec. And when they did not clear off to be shrugged off, even by an Now perjury is not a charge and weuld not stand back, and ordinary private citizen. For a intervened by forer, inevitably policeman Church and Sexton were arrest-mortal.

potentially ed, too.

That was what the two officers sald-and that was the truth.

HELPLESS

POLICEMEN IN

THE OLD BAILEY DOCK, HE WAS THEIR ONLY

CONCLUDING

THE POLICE & THE

PUBLIC

by Edgar

Lustgarten

A British Crossword Puzzle

B

15 16

9

10

11

12

13

14 115

16

17

18 19

20

121

22

23 24

25

26 27

28

30

31

32 33

34 35

36

37

38

40

39

ACROSS

1 Sende poles?

6 Unpleasant,

Inclined.

10 Dead spitl

11 Невроди.

12 Crib,

33 Hill dwellert

14 Organ.

16 Despondent.

18 Long weekend.

21 Don't swim where he ist

29 They're borne.

26 Puzzle.

29: Current measure.

31 No king of the air?

32. Definite article.

34 Miss Todd?

30. Took to task.

a7 Polson,

28 Prior to.

39. Like an overgrown

zeri.

30 Was biased.

1 Procession.

DOWN

Candid and accessible.

3 Asserted.

• Situations,

5 Mather-of-pearl.

0 Since.

7 BecomeR

tennis?

& Enclosure.

stiff because

16 Room at the top.

17 Objective.

10 Yes, i'a oldi

20 Quadruped,

22 Lower the lights, atupid!

24 Deserted.

25 Chose the best,

27 The kid's mother?

20 They causo disease,

29 Once more.

30 Prepare the way?

garden 3 in attendance.

35 Small boy!

HOPE

1111

it

Helpless

As Cirencester-street, dressed In its Sunday best, fled through the witness-box at the Old Bsi- fey, those helpless constables must have licked their lips anguish.

in

On a counting of heads, of starched collars, of best blbs and tuckers, how could they even hope for the acquittal they deserved?

Indeed they might well have Joined that tiny but disquieting elub of persons wrongfully con- and demned In British courts-Adolf Sexton, though, Beck, Oscar Slater, Florence put up a dif- Maybrick and

Church

ferent

Church

Edith Thompson story. are its most prominent members raid and exemplars-but for one wit- that he was sit- ness they could call on their be- ting quietly in half who had three credentials, his house when whereas others at most had two. the officers en- He was unimpeachably tered

and speciable. He had been present dragged him al the orrest. And he did not out without an live anywhere near Cirencester- explanation, atrect.

that he

re-

This witness eenfirmed the hill.

Sexton sald police account up to the

had and added that, in his unsolicited the opinion, the officers were for- Ko tunate to ecene through with

called at

station to bail for friend, that five

Intoxica ted

a

their lives.

So justies was dually served policemen had in two separate stages.

First, the officers were trium- Second, acquilted.

arrested him, phantly

and

Church

never set vyes

saine

and that he Church and Sexton were trium- (whom he had Phantly convicted of the

offence, arising out of the same exch received u en till that event-and moment) were sentence of nine inonths

It was a sharp blow to Ciren- subsequently charged together with obstruc- cestir street, and for long enough the nightly brawls lack- ed their former savour.

tion.

Both stoutly denied having been present at the appre- hension of the trouble-raiser in | Cirencester-street.

This was strong stuff, und beyond the usual scope of such defences.

suggested not merely mistake or exaggeration for omission, but deliberate fabri-

cation and creative falschood.

In effect, it accused the officers of Inventing miscon⚫

COPYRIGHT:

EDGAR LUSTGARTEN, 1981,

-London Express Service),

•BY THE®

WAY

duct by others in order to by Beachcomber

cover mlaconduct by them- selves.

'Fix 'em'

A

CORRESPONDENT

de.

plores the obsession of Dr Strabismus (Whom God Pre- scrve) of Utrecht with moon he rockels, and remarks that used to invent useful things for ordinary people. He all does this.

ch

As an unsupported riposte by Church and Sexton, this grave are a hat with sleeves, which Among his recent inventions imputation might have been dis- is put on like a shirt, missed with scorn. But, con- opaque glass tube to be used fronied by the common enemy, as a bootlace container, a broad Cirencester - street closed is egg-cup for poached ezga, а Tanks and rallied round.

china mulberry to lure silk- worms, and a bottle with A mato? neck at both endis, He is ni gut 'em, eh, present working on a gouze nel mate? Fix the tastards, eh, to keep fles off cows talls,

Two of ours,

Bleedin' coppors

mate? Right, mate. Right,

and an electric necktio that

What was Authority to make will do sixty knots an hour.

of all that evidence the evi- A reasonable compromise dener of Cirencester - street

deployed en masse?

A PSYCHIATRIST struined by

who, The men (and women)

overwork. who thought he was being followed had seen the officers enter about by a Tasmanian hunch- Church's house; the men (and back with a wheelbarrow ful! of women) who had seen them of bagolpes, went to a fellow- come out dragging Church; the practitioner. He, 100, was men (and wemon) who could suffering from straf, and he swear Church did not obstruct told the patient angrily that the police; the men (and what had followed him Inte women) who could swear that the room was a pellean ridden Sexton was not there at all. by an Arab sievedore. They got Each giving an address In into a violent argument, until Cirencester - alrecl or theru-a compromise was struck. They abouts. Ought everyone of agreed that what they both them to be wholly disbelieved? saw in the doorway an Arab hunchback pushing a wheel- Authority pondered-and then barrow withi 。 pellean in 1. somebody Acted. The two officers while Cirencester-street The penalty of famé was not yet organised, they had

KEDGAREE ntid secured

*** YESTERDAY'S CROSSWORD-Across: 3 Tripped, 7 En. tire, & Eat-ring, 9 Clam, 11 Skit, 12 Budge, 10 feet, to Rene, 17 Andes, 10 Over, to Lisp, 21 Comical, 32 Teased, 23 Deletet, Down: Best, 2 Stocked, 3 Treat, 4 Ream, 5 Perturbs, 0 Dng- ger, 10 Life-like, 11 Bon, 13 Deepeat, 14 Gay, 16 Raneld, jo Olled, 19 Late, 20 lide.

suminary

convictions AW

against Church and Sexton-nów | Trivia Tanky, emerging suddenly found the tablen from a nim tuulo, wore, set turned, Church.

by a and Sexton un

crowd howling

for

lo

and their royal band of aliter their autographs. Sald Dawn, werd the accusers; the officers "We shall have to learn were defendants on a charge of write, if only in self-defence," perjury,

-(London Express #ervier),

Wanted

“BOOK" THIS PERSON AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!

AGE HEIGHT WEIGHT EYES

HAIR

A

FROM 7 YEARS OLD ·

SEEMS TALLER EACH TIME SEEN:

NO EXACT DETAILS' AVAILABLE”. MISCHIEVOUS

OFTEN UNRULY

CHRISTMAS HOLIDAYS 1961 Special low fares for full-time students U.K.-Hong Kong-U,K.

BOAC Daily Jets

AGE 7-12 HK$2,996.00 (£187-4-0) return AGE 12-26 HK$3,328.00 (£208-0-0)* return

*The normal single fare pays for the return journey

BOAC Skycoach

From London 17th December-Arrives Hong Kong 19th December From Hong Kong 17th January-Arrives London 18th January 1962 AGE 7-12 HK$2;492.00 (£155-14-0) return AGE 12-26 HK$3,328.00 (£208- 0-0) return

Reward

Any person having any Information regarding the air bookings required for the above, or any other person, for visits to parents at Christmas, should communicate immediately with the nearest BOAC Travel Agent or ring Jardine's Airways Department, Tel. 35111, and have the satisfaction of knowing BOAC takes good care of children.

BRITISH

Department of Important Young People

OVERSEAS AIRWAYS

CORPORATION