Brighouse & Rastrick Gazette. — 1890-12-13 (Brighouse, West Yorkshire, England)

THAMES FLOTSAM AND JETSAM.  Canvey Island, the great alluvial swamp, now reclaimed from the sea and river, is the point on which the human flotsam and jetsam of the Thames is cast. The ;island runs along the Essex shore from Leigh to Hole Haven, where the Dutch eel boats anchor last before facing once more the North Sea gales after leaving their slimy cargo at Shad. well. It is on the low point near Hole Haven, facing the downward flaw of the Thames, that the bodius are usually thrown up, not far from the inn of uhich we have spoken. A body is worth 7s. ed. if taken to the coastguard station—a fact of which the inhabitants are well aware. It was my fortune, says a G/ohe writer, to spend a fortnight on this strange soil. half land, half water, one black November, and evening usually found me sitting by the blazing fire in the inn parlour, listening to the talk of the habituis. They were all battered, weather-beaten men, connected in various ways with the sea, or watermen, lightermen, or long. shore men of the tideway of the Thames. But what excited my curiosity about one man was his mysterious absence every evening from dusk till 11 o'clock or later. Some nights he would return earlier than others, and, seating himself by the fire, will for a glass of "rum hot," and smile successfully. Then a friend would join him. "Any luck ?" the friend would inquire. "OJT," would be the answer. "Where?" " 'Bout N.N. East of the point." "Watch on ?" "Yes; stopped 11.35." "Ali, that would be the one they was a wanting. Any money?" "Nawt'e! Do yer think 'e 'd a done it if e'd 'ad a bloomin' copper? Nawt'e!" These conferences excited my curiosity. What luck did the frieze-coated fowler have at that hour of the night ? Whose watch had stopped? And what would lie not have done if he had had a copper? One evening the friend enlightened me. "Bill's in luck again to-night," he said. "What luck ? " I asked. "Woman." he replied, laconically; "reg'lar swell," lie added, "sealskin jacket, and allito-rights; come down with the ebb about 10; not been in above four hours. That's what he's arter. That's what he've been arter every night—floatin' corpses. That bit of shore is better for them than a dozen miles anywhere else. Some times they comes thick; just now—that's the time. Folks gets down on their luck, and then they gets to the bridges or the embankment, and one night they says, Well, here goes,' and then they comes down to Bill. Bill he knows. Once there was a chap as was advertised for. Bank clerk he was, as had drawn what wasn't his to draw. and was last seen in a pleasure boat off Greenwich and s'posed.either to have got on board an 'ocean tramp' outward bound, or to have upset. Boat was found but not 'in. Bill gets the notice, with time and place they found the skiff. 'Well,' he says, if lie did upset lie should be due here next ebb about four.' So down we goes to the shore; an blame me if we didn't see him a washin' up almost to our very toes, not ten minutes later than Bill was expectin' of him. And in his coat— though you mayn't believe me—was £4OO worth of notes as the poor beggar hadn't dared to cash, and not a sixpence more."  A hitherto unknown degree of cold has-fallen upon Spain. So severe was it on Sunday night that a sentinel was frozen to death at his post at Valladolid.  Francis ‘Villaim Hooky has been found guilty at Chester Assizes of setting fire to certain farm buildings, and also of assaulting Amelia Bottsell, with intent to murder her, at Sutton, near Macclesfield. Four farm outbuildings were found to le on fire at the same Moment, and one fire was clearly traceable to the prisoner. The assault was of a Very violent character.—Mr. Justice Vaughan Williams sentenced the prisoner to eight years' penal servitude for the arson and passod a nominal sentence of one week's imprisonment fGr the assault