A Disturbance in Dunstable

Poster issued following the Dunstable Riot [SJV11]

Tuesday 11th August 1914 (Dunstable): Food prices are still a source of discontent and there have been accusations that some grocers are profiteering and charging more than they should. Suspicion that prices are being put up unnecessarily led to a disturbance in Dunstable last night.

A crowd of over a thousand people gathered in High Street North. To start with they were quite good humoured, singing patriotic songs. Then the mood turned angry. A brick was thrown through the plate glass window of Mr Mowse’s grocer’s shop and was followed with a shower of stones.[1] All the windows in the front of the shop and house were broken. The police lost control and there were threats to loot the shop. Major S J Green, the commander of C Squadron of the Beds Yeomanry drove up in his motor car and spoke to the angry crowd. The Major was greeted with cheers, but after he left the mood turned nasty again and more stones were thrown before the mob finally broke up and went home at around one o’clock.

Another crowd gathered early in the morning, this time to see off Major Green’s Bedfordshire Yeomanry Squadron from the LNW railway station. His men had mobilised in Dunstable on Thursday and had been billeted in Messrs. White’s mineral water factory since. While the Yeomanry were at Dunstable many young men applied to join them, but they were turned away because the Squadron was already at its full war strength.

Sources: Luton News, 13th August 1914 and 29th October 1914; correspondence file SJV11

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[1] A police report on the incident dated 7 November 1914 explains the grievance against the shopkeeper, Ernest Mowse of 81 High Street North:

There was a strong feeling amongst the people against Mr Mowse, on account of him having raised the prices of his goods, and it having been reported that he said he could do without the trade of the poorer classes. Mr Mowse also did a little wholesale trade with some smaller shop-keepers, and it was stated that he had been round and got them to raise their prices also. The feeling of the people were entirely against Mr Mowse only.

A claim was made for payment under the Riot Damages Act of 1888 by the Luton Mutual Plate Glass Insurance Association Ltd which had paid for repairs, but this was refused on the grounds that the Riot Act had not been read and the incident could therefore not be classified as a riot.