The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-06-21 00:00:00

KIDDERMINSTER.

BOARD OF GUARDIANS. MI. J. Brinton, M,P.,
presided at the meeting of this Board on Tuesday.
—lt was mentioned that there was only one per-
son remaining in the small-pox hospital. A gratuity
of .20 was voted to the master and matron tor
their special services during the epidemic.—With
regard to the recent discontinuance of the beer al--
lowance to the old people as a part of the regular
dietary, the Chairman mentioned that, on the re-
commendation of the medical officer, there were
sixty old men and twenty-seven old women who
were allowed half a pint of beer a day. Mr. Boycot
I am very glad to hear ft.—A letter from the Local
Government Board led to some further reference to
the defalcations of Tompkins, the ex-collector of
rates at St hurport. The Clerk said the total deficit
would be something like £3OO, as before estimated,
but it could not be ascertained exactly at present.
The sureties had paid the £2OO for which they were
liable, and as to theremainder, his present view was
that it could not be recovered from anyone, unless
there had been some legal default by any public
officers. Meantime the inhabitants of the parish
were at the loss.—lt was stated that during the ten
months the Worcestershire Vagrant Relief Society
had been in operation 5,239 persons had been re-
lieved, at a cost of £36 3s 6d ; and there had been a
decrease of 14,640 in the number of tramps relieved
at workhouses. The Chairman said that decrease
could not be altogether attributed to the society, but
still it had materially helped to diminish the number.
—The annual report of the King's Norton Board-
ing-out Committee was laid before the Board, and
the Chairman remarked that their contingent from
Kidderminster was small ; but he was glad the sys-
tem was working so well

TILE REYRESE-NTATION OF KIDDERMISTER.— A
large meeting of the Conservative party was held
in:the Lion Assembly Room, Kidderminster on Tues-
day night, with reference to the selection of a
eaudidate in readiness for the general election. Mr
U. Toye Woodward presided, and introduced the
businet,s of the meeting. Mr. G. Grosvenor pro-
posed that Mr. Frederick Augustus Godson, of the
Oxford Circuit, be adopted as the Conservative can-
didate for tho borough at the next election. This
was seconded by Mr. T. Moore, supported by Mr.
J. Chambers, Mr. C. Crowther, Mr. E. Morton,
and other speak(rs, and was carried with applause.
Some discussion followed on the organization of
the party. Mr. Godson's father was the first mem-
ber for Kidderminster after the first Reform Bill
and held the seat (with one exception) in the suc-
cessive Parliaments elected down to the time of his
death in 1848 or 1849.

AWFULLY SUDDEN DEATH AT KIDDERMINSTER,—
On Tuesday evening an inquest was held before Mr.
Miller Corbet, on the body of a married woman
named Ann Smith, aged 55 years, of Prospect Hill,
Kidderminster, who died very suddenly on Sunday
evening. The woman was in company with her
husband, on a visit at the house of a relative. She
appeared to be quite well during supper, but a few
minutes afterwards she rose from her chair ant er-
claimed "Oh, dear!" She then fell into the chair
quite dead. In the opinion of Dr. Weddell, who
was sent for, death was due to heart disease, and
the jury returned a verdict in accordance with the
medical testimony.