Diary: Veto on Town Hall pro-Russia meeting

Digest of stories from The Luton News: Thursday, June 7th, 1917.

"Russia's Appeal" advert

The attitude of impatience which is evident in this country generally concerning Russia was reflected at the Luton Town Council meeting on Tuesday night. The demonstration at Leeds on Sunday [advert associated with the event from the Beds & Herts Saturday Telegraph reproduced above] is being copied throughout the country, and an application for the use of the Town Hall was vetoed by Luton Town Council.

Although not on the agenda proper, the application for the hire of the Town Hall came in a letter received by the Town Clerk from Mr T. A. Spencer, of 50 Wellington Street. The letter read: "On behalf of the Committee of Anglo-Russian Co-operation, I beg to apply for the use of the Town Hall on Sunday, July 8th, from 7.45 to 10 o'clock. This is a meeting of the citizens of Luton to support and congratulate the new Government of Russia in its charter of freedom, and to call upon the Government of Great Britain to place itself in accord with the democracy of Russia by proclaiming complete political rights to all men and women, freedom of the Press, freedom of speech and a general amnesty to all political and religious prisoners."

Following a pause, Alderman Williams rose and said: "I will move that the request be not granted. I am not in any way opposed or wishing to interfere with a free Press, free speech or free discussion, but it is so obviously a trap to institute a line of anti-national feeling in the town that I think it very much better there should be no such meeting held in our hall."

Councillor Impey seconded. "I see no useful purpose," he said' "It will only stir up strife at the present time."

To a chorus of "ayes" Alderman Williams' resolution was carried unanimously.

  • Once again the old-time ceremonies of the Court Leet of the Manor of Luton have been observed. The time-honoured event took place on Thursday, but under war conditions it is shorn of its festive side. An arbour of beech boughs was erected at the entrance to the Corn Exchange, this being a survival of the shelter on the market-place where the Court used to meet in an earlier period. Among reports was one thanking Lady Wernher for the erection of a strong iron fence round Someries Castle, and another complaining of damage done on the green near Stopsley's old school house by the carting of timber.

  • On Saturday an interesting event took place at the Diamond Foundry, when Managing Director Mr H. Newsom Davis and Mrs Davis formally opened new tennis courts which have been installed for the benefit of the workers. As a result of the big fire at the works some months ago, the old grass courts were rendered useless, and with great generosity Mr Davis had provided two fine new hard tennis courts which will altogether be more suitable.

  • Alderman Edwin Oakley told Luton Town Council on Tuesday that since Mr J. J. Wooding, the sub-postmaster of High Town, had resigned there had been a notice in the shop window for the last two months asking for another trader to take on the job, but there had been no application. He felt almost certain that no responsible trader would take the position with the workload involved, and the Post Office authorities seemed to treat High Town with small consideration, even though there were thousands of inhabitants on the side of the [railway] bridge. Alderman Oakley thought it was time representations were made for a Crown office in that district, but if such a thing were mentioned to the Post Office authorities the idea was pooh-poohed. Closure of the New Bedford Road Post Office meant there would seen be no office at all but the G.P.O. [in Cheapside] and there was nearly always a crowd there.

  • A further request was sent from the Court Leet to Luton Rural District Council for the fencing of Leagrave Common to keep cattle from straying but not interfere with public rights. Following a meeting opposite the Three Horse Shoes, the District Council had decided the matter should be left in abeyance until after the war. The new request would be accompanied by an offer from Lady Wernher, Lady of the Manor, to pay for materials and labour.

  • Yesterday the first case in Luton for an offence under the entertainments tax law was heard at the Borough Court. Stephen Case, a Kettering showman, was charged with non-compliance with the Finance Act 1916 at a fair in Park Street, Luton, on April 16th. No tickets were issued to visitors paying 4d to see a freak animals show. It was impossible to say how much the revenue had lost. The defendant, who pleaded guilty, was fined £3.

  • Luton Town Council's Tramways and Electricity Committee reported receipt of a letter from the Tramways Manager stating that the Board of Trade had decided not to hold an inquiry into the Midland Road accident on December 28th. The Tramways lessees did not feel able to add anything further until legal proceedings against them for damages had been disposed of.

  • With Pc George Stanbridge and Pc John H. Wood voluntarily joining up, Luton Borough Police now had 14 in the Army. The estimated strength of the force now, according to the population, should be about 60. At the beginning of the war it was 52, but today, inclusive of Chief Constable Griffin, it is 36. Without the excellence of the special constabulary it would be impossible for the work to be carried on with such a depleted force.

  • A man who had suffered fits, including a seizure at the Recruiting office in Luton, re-appeared before Luton Borough Tribunal for exemption from military service. He was given four months' temporary exemption to see if, as hoped, there was any progress in his condition.

  • "A Lad in France" sends us a couple of picture postcards picked up on the battlefield. One is a view of Newcombe Road, Luton, addressed to Pte T. Lewis, R.A.M.C., in June of last year (address in England), and the other is a photograph of two young girls - Olive and Gipsy. The cards are sent to us in the hope they may find the owner.

  • Arbitrators awarded workers in the building trade in Luton an increase in wages of 1¼d an hour from May 21st - half the amount sought at a mass meeting held at the Corn Exchange, under the auspices of the Luton and District Building Trades Committee, a month ago. The Luton Master Builders' Association had rejected a 2½d pay demand. New conditions of employment were also set out.

  • An extraordinary phenomenon was witnessed over the town on Saturday afternoon about 5 o'clock. It was a peculiar cloud of brown dust, reaching from the ground to a considerable height, which, while it almost blotted out everything from sight like a fog or mist, was not felt by those enveloped in it. It passed over the New Bedford Road and the Wardown end of the town and hovered there for a few minutes. It travelled in the direction of Stopsley, and subsequently passed over that village. An old inhabitant of Stopsley says he had never seen such a sight before.

  • After reading recent accounts of the cruelty of the Germans towards British prisoners of war, Mr and Mrs Donne, of 274 Dunstable Road, Luton, are naturally uneasy concerning the welfare of their son, Rifleman Leonard Donne, who, after being wounded on April 23rd, was captured by the enemy the following day. In a letter from Lager Lazarett, Langensalza, Prussia, he wrote that a machine bullet entered his right shoulder, penetrated his lungs and passed out of his left side. [Rifleman Donne, who had previously been employed by Commercial Cars, died of his wounds in captivity on June 23rd, 1917].

  • Mrs Hayward, of 68 High Town Road, Luton, has been notified that her husband, Cpl Hayward (Royal Engineers), was wounded in the right hip on May 1st in a battle near Gaza. He is in hospital, making satisfactory progress.

  • An employee of the Skefko Works, Pte F. Clark (Machine Gun Section of the Beds Regiment), of 10 Blyth Place, Russell Street, Luton, was wounded in the right shoulder in France on May 3rd. He is now progressing favourably in Nottingham Military Hospital.

  • Among those reported missing, later confirmed killed in action, were: Pte Charles William Peet (Royal Warwickshire Regiment), 64 Warwick Road; Pte Stanley George Maskell (Essex Regiment), 168 Dallow Road, Luton; Pte William Charles Griffiths (Essex Regiment); L-Cpl George Trott (Beds Regiment), 43 Elizabeth Street, Luton. Confirmed killed: Pte Sidney George Burnage (Suffolk Regiment), 108 Tennyson Road, Luton; Sgt William Cyril Frederick Meakins (Machine Gun Corps), 12a Cardigan Street, Luton.

  • With full military honours, Pte Gustavus Bass (East Kent Regiment), of 2 Cross Street, Luton, was laid to rest at the Church Cemetery, Luton, on Saturday. He died in a Leicester hospital last week as a result of gunshot wounds in the right arm and right side received three weeks ago. Pte Bass, who leaves a wife and two young children, was formerly in the employ of Mr George Warren.

  • Capt Robert Edwin ('Ted') Oakley, son of Councillor Albert A. Oakley and Mrs Oakley, of Hill Croft, High Town Road, has been awarded the Military Medal for courageous conduct during 1916. His name appeared in the list of military honours awarded on the occasion of the King's birthday for war services. Capt Oakley had previously been mentioned in despatches for meritorious work with the Bedfordshire Regiment at the Front.