EXTRAORDINARY DEBAUCH OF NAVVIES.

Clutha Leader, Volume I, Issue 5, 6 August 1874, Page 5

EXTRAORDINARY DEBAUCH OF NAVVIES.

. — At the Bolton-by-Bolland Petty Sessions, five men, named George Pendlebury, - Robert Singleton, James Blezard, Thomas Bleasdale, and Joseph Gardner, were charged with robbery j and wilful damage. At Whitewell, over 200 navvies, in the employ of the Preston Corporation, are making a new reservoir, and huts have been erected for the accommodation of the workmen. The prosecutor, George Holden, of New Hey Farm, lodged about 40 men On the 14th inst. Holden went to Preston, and his wife followed on the Wednesday, leaving her father and a servant in charge of the house. From Thursday to three o'clock on the Saturday morning the men were drinking. About that hour they filled buckets with ale, went to the fellows who were in bed, and poured the-"." ; or on to them. 'Clocks, and crocke^ ..were broken, furniture' kicked to pieces, wearing apparel thrown .through, the windows, large pieces of meat flung about the floor and tramped upon, poultry were killed and boiled with feathers on, partly-boiled hens were thrown about, L2O of money was

stolen, and about L7O of damage done to property. The ends of the beer barrels were broken in, and buckets and other utensils were used in drinking the liquor. The contents of the whole 37 barrels were consumed. The father-in-law of the prosecutor, a man j of 60 years, was pulled out of bed, dashed to the floor, and repeatedly struck on the head With a cup by a stalwart navvy, who swore that he would kill him. Another man was pulled out of bed, kicked down stairs, and had his leg broken. A man, nicknamed "Wildfire," attempted to set the place on fire. The inebriates, some naked, others half-dressed, afterwards engaged in a general fight on a slope near the house. On his way home on the Saturday, prosecutor, whom the navvies had threatened to kill, was induced to stay at Chippin until Monday. His wife, however, went home, but had to beat a retreat. It was stated that Holden had been in the habit of selling drink to the men who had become so demoralised that it was dangerons to employ them 171, the making of the conduit to the reservoir. Pendlebury was the ganger over the navvies, and it was sought to be shown that he was the ringleader. „" The hearing of the case lasted four, hours. . The bench thought the evidence insufficient to convict the prisoners, and- expressed their disgust with the proceedings. An effective staff of police is to be imported into the district. The .prosecutor was served in court with a summons for selling liquor without a license.