The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1878-10-05 00:00:00

BROM SGROVE.

ALL SAINTS' CHURCH.—Harve3t thanksgiving services
were held in this church on Sunday last. The services
were fully choral, and the sermon in the morning was
preached by the Right Rev, the Lord Bishop of Wor-
cester, from Dent. xxv., 11. In the evening the church
was crowded to excess, and several hundred perscus
were unable to obtain admission. The sermon was
preached by the Rev. A. C. Higgs, curate of the Church
of the Holy Apostles, Charlton Kings. The anthem in
the morning was " I will give thanks unto Thee," and in
the.evening, "Ye shall dwell in the laud." The church
was profusely and tastefully decorated with corn, fruit,
and flowers, and at the close of the evening service
many hundreds of persons of all denominations visited
the sacred edifice. Mr. J. C. B. Tirhutt played a very
pleasing selection of organ voluntaries. The collections
for church expenses amounted to £22 4s 41.

OLD HILL.
PASSING COUNTERFEIT COIN.— tt the Police Court,. on

Wednesday before Messrs. W. 8A543110 and B. Hingley,
George George was brought up on remand, charged with
passing a bad florin, on the 14th ult, at Joseph Down-
ing's shop. From the evidence given it appears that on
the above date the prisoner went into prose3utor's shop
to purchase two penny worth of apples cud tendered a
florin. It was afterwards found that it was a bad one.
Information; was given to the police and prisoner was
apprehended.—Police-constable Wickstead proved appre-
hending the prisoner. On searching him he found a
bad two shilling piece.—Mr. Hems, jeweller, proved that
the coin was bad, and prisoner Vrte conamitted.;to take
his trial at the next Stafford Sessions.
ASSAULT CASE.—Robert Hitchin, a youth, was charged
with assaulting Harriet Perkins, on the 27th ult.—Com-
plainant said that there was a lot of boys stopping up
the road and she ordered them away. They all went
away except the defendant and he made use of bad
language. He struck her and knocked her down in the
road.—Tha defence was thit he put his hand out and
she fell down but he did not touch her.—The case was

dismissed.
DRUNK AND DISORDERLY.—WiIIiam Evans was charged
with being drunk and disorderly, on the 28th ult.—
Pohce•constable Stiles proved the case and said the de-
fendant was very drunk and wanted to fight,—Fined 5s

and costs.
CHARGE OF USING PROFANE LANGUAGE. William
Rhodes was charged with making use of profane language
on the 23rd ult.—Police•constable Stiles proved the case
and said the defendant was drunk at the time.—
Defendant was fined 2s and costs ; in default seven days
imprisonment,
DRUNK AND DISORDERLY.—George Parkes was charged
with being drunk and disorderly, at Blackheath, on the
23rd ult.—Police-constable Frost proved the case, which
was admitted.—Defendant was fined 5s and coats; in de-
fault fourteen days.
CARD PLAYlNG.—B3ojamin Willitts, Benjamin Belling-
ham, Isaiah Williams, and James Stevens were charged
with card playing, on the 23rd ult.—Police-constable
Barker proved the case.—asfendauts pleaded guilty and
the Bench fined Willitts, Billingham, and Stevens 2.; 61
each ; in default fourteen days. The case against
Williams was dismissed.
OBSTRUCTING THE FooTrxra.—Henry Homer, Alfred
Yarnold, James Yarnold. Joseph Garrett, Benjamin
Homer, William Morgan, George Mallen, and George
Homer, chainmakers, were charged by Inspector Price
with causing: an obstruction on the footpath, on the
17th ult.—Police constable Gaskin said that he saw all
the defendants on the footpath at Cradley Bridge.
They were pigeon flying and the passengers had to go
into the road to pass by and they were making use of
bad language.—Police-constable Barker corroborated.—
The Bench considered there was a great deat deal of
that going on in the district, men got together to fly
pigeons and the consequence was that the passengers
had to go into the road. They did not wish to fine them
heavily but they must put a stop to the nuisance and
fined all the defendants is each and costs, except Mallen,
who was fined 5s and costs.
CAUTION TO CARTERS —Alfred Smith was charged by
Inspector Price with not being in such a position as to
have proper control over his Corse and cart, on the 27th
ult,—Police-constable Mcaorty said lie saw a horse and
cart in Dudley Road. He went to the cart and saw the
defendant asleep in the cart and the reins were hanging
downi.loose.—Defendant was fined 2s 6,1 and costs ; in
defamt seven days.
MINERS' MEETING AT OLD HILL.—A. well attended
meeting of the miners of Old Hill district was held on
Thursday night last, at the Duke William Inn, Old Hill.
Mr. W, Breakwell, miners' agent, was voted to the chair,
and (xplained the object of the meeting. the Chairman,
after complaining of the effects of disorganisation
amongst the men, asserted that they were forced now to
do more work for 3s than they did in 1873 for ss. It
might appear startling, seeing they worked by the same
rule then as now ; but it was, nevertheless, true. There
men working together in the pit had to do exactly the
same amount of work for their " stint " as in 1873, and
in addition to that they were required to put in timter
and do other things for which it was formerly the custom
to employ an odd man. If the pikemen failed to do this
additional work he was informed that a certain per-
centage would be deducted from his earnings, though he
might have done his full " stint " of the proper work
It was such impositions as this which must be looked
for`where they were not able to defend themselves by
combination. He had read that day of certain persons
having laid before the Queen a project for making pro-
vision for their widows and orphans left in poverty
through accident. He was glad to see the movement;
but when others where showing their desire to afford
them help, surely they ought to be alive to their own
interests and take up the great questions now being
brought under their notice. Mr. Southall (Brierley
Hill), in the course of an address in which he character-
ised the miners' present state as deplorable, reminded
the men of efforts made by the masters to prolong the
working hours, and of one proposal in particular—that
they should work twelve hours daily. Let the :sacrifice
be ever so great, they must retain the eight hours
system, and must not agree to the proposition to work
mere hours for increased wages, If they did they
would make a fatal mistake. There were 30,000 miners
in the district, and if they consented to welrk one hour
extra per day, one man in every eight would be thrown
out of employment, and the surplus labour market would
ultimately bring ruin upon the trade. He moved:
" That we, the miners of this district, seeing that our
position is so deplorable, believe that unionism is an
absolute necessity, and pledge ourselves to support the
same.—Mr. El, Shakespeare seconded the motion, which
was unanimously passed.—Mr. Allport (Brierley Hilt),
referring to the letters sent to the newspapers by Mr.
Levi Brittain relative to the conference held at Tipton,
contended that the raiuents representatives were invited
to attend the meeting at which it was decided to hold a
conference. The action Mr. Brittain had taken in this
matter had taught him (the speaker) one fact—that any
movement which the miners brought about themselves
apart from their agents would be sure to have all the
opposition the latter could give it. Speaking of the
decrease in the number of unionists amongst the
miners of the South Staff)rdshire district generally, he
had no hesitation in saying that the agencies employed
had contributed largely to the- falling off. Bad trade
might have had some effect, but the agents were to
blame, and there must be a cbange, though they had
occupied their positions so long they thought no one
else could do their work. He was sure they would get
closer to their employers if they acted without any
agent at all to come between them in case of a disp
—A. resolution relating to the Hartley Balance Fund
was afterwards passel.