Farmers Refuse to Apply for Permits

Market day at Leighton Buzzard 1909 [Z1306/72/10/9]

Wednesday 16th October 1918: At a meeting last night of the Leighton Buzzard Branch of the National Farmers’ Union it was decided that they would all refuse to comply with instructions to apply for permits to feed damaged corn and screenings to livestock. It was considered that this was just another “ridiculous and arbitrary order” being imposed on farmers by Government Departments; it appeared that every week some new order came into force, “generally more ridiculous than those that had gone before”. Under this new plan two officials were to be appointed in each area – some of whom “did not know barley from wheat” – to receive samples and send them to London for a permit, which might take a week or two to arrive. This sub-standard corn was absolutely necessary for feeding livestock, and it appeared the Government did not trust farmers to know their own business. All other branches of the National Farmers’ Union in the area are believed to have passed the same resolution

Source: Leighton Buzzard Observer 22nd October 1918

Bakers Selling Bread to German Prisoners

Chalgrave Church [Z1130/26/2]

Friday 16th August 1918: Another case involving the passing of food to German prisoners of war was heard today at the Woburn Police Court. This time Hockliffe bakers Walter Harris, aged 28, and his brother John Harris, aged 17, were charged with selling bread on June 17th to a prisoner of war at Chalgrave. John Harris was also summoned for a second offence which took place the following day. Evidence was given by Police Sergeant Dennis of Toddington, that on June 18th, as a result of something he had heard, he hid near a field where the prisoners were working at Lord’s Hill, Chalgrave. He saw John Harris drive past. Some of the prisoners whistled; Harris then turned back and served the prisoners with four half-quartern loaves. He challenged Harris, who admitted he had done wrong, but said he had sold the prisoners only four loaves although they asked for six. He also admitted serving the prisoners with bread on the previous day, when his brother Walter had been with him.

When interviewed Walter denied selling any bread, saying “I have never served a prisoner with bread and I have repeatedly cautioned my brother not to do so”. He admitted being with his brother, but said he had only held the reins of the cart and did not know whether his brother had served the guard or the prisoners. The prosecuting solicitor pointed out that if Walter had been aware of the sale it was a ‘contemptible wriggle’ to blame his brother. Such actions showed a ‘gross want of patriotism’, with the men seeming to care nothing for their country provided they could get a bit of extra money in their pockets. William Garner, a postman from Dunstable said he saw the baker’s cart on June 17th standing opposite a field gate with several German prisoners round it. They had a bag with them which he assumed contained bread, although he did not actually see any bread change hands. As Harris drove on he called out “You ought to get six months for serving German prisoners!” 

Sergeant-Major Richard Malone of the prisoner of war camp at Leighton Buzzard said there were forty prisoners in the camp at this time, who were being sent out in gangs of six with one soldier in charge. The prisoners had breakfast at 6 a.m. of biscuit, bread, jam, cheese and coffee. When they came back from work they had potatoes, meat or fish, and there was no need for them to buy bread except out of greed or for other purposes. He had received no complaints that they did not have enough food from the prisoners.

John Harris gave evidence that on June 17th the guard in charge of the prisoners had asked for the loaf of bread, had paid for it, and then went back into the field with the prisoners. The next day the prisoners had come out of the field with a bag and asked for six loaves, but he only sold them four as this was all he had in the cart. He had told the policeman he was very sorry if he had done wrong, but the guard had told him that he could supply the prisoners – Sergeant Dennis however denied that Harris had said this. Unfortunately the prisoners’ guard, Private Rumble, could not be called as he was in hospital with double pneumonia and was given little chance of recovery. The element of doubt over whether the guard had neglected his duty and told John Harris that he could sell bread to the prisoners made it impossible for the magistrates to decide on the case without his evidence. Due to Private Rumble’s illness the hearing was adjourned indefinitely.

Source: Leighton Buzzard Observer, 20th August 1918

Assault at Tilsworth

Tilsworth, 1905 [Z1306/124/6]

Saturday 22nd June 1918: Bertie Royal Gutteridge, a 17 year old labourer from Dunstable, was charged at Woburn Police Court yesterday with maliciously wounding Private Arthur James Sanford at Tilsworth on 8th June. Private Sanford had been lent by the Army Service Corps to a Dunstable contractor, Mr. J. W. Ridgway of Skimpot, to drive a steam cultivator. Gutteridge had been hired to steer the cultivator, but on 6th June while working at Billington he refused to do any more work. On Saturday they moved on to Tilsworth and Gutteridge came and asked for his money. Mr. Ridgeway refused to pay him without compensation for the time the engines had been idle through his neglect. Gutteridge then threatened to bash Mr. Ridgway’s brains out and struck him with a shovel. Mr. Ridgway took an iron pin to defend himself  and went to Hockliffe for the police. Private Sanford was bending down washing himself in a bucket of water when Gutteridge came up behind him and hit him on the back of the head with the shovel, saying he would murder him. He was hit a second time while lying on the ground; Gutteridge then ran away.

When Gutteridge was arrested at Dunstable he told the police constable “I did it to get a bit of my own back”. Police Inspector Vincent said that when he was brought to Woburn Police Station Gutteridge said  “He did me one and I meant doing him one; I meant having my own back on him”. Dr. H. Stones Walsh of Toddington told the court that Sanford had a severe lacerated wound on the back of his head two inches long, which exposed the bone, and a bruise on his left shoulder blade. It should heal quickly, but the injury could have been serious. Gutteridge said that the reason he had refused to work was that the piece of ground they were ploughing was rough, and the drivers were pulling too fast and likely to break his arms on the cultivator. He had warned them on the Wednesday but they did not take any notice, so on Thursday morning he jumped off the cultivator and left it in the field. The magistrates decided to reduce the charge to causing bodily harm and committed Gutteridge to trial at the Quarter Sessions.

Source: Leighton Buzzard Observer, 25th June 1918

Maiden’s Day Women’s Recruitment March

Women Hoeing at Arlesey House, 1917 [Z49/495]

Sunday 2nd June 1918: Yesterday was Maiden’s Day in Luton, as members of the Women’s Land Army held a recruitment  drive. A bit platform was built in front of the Town Hall, and the building was adorned by banners with slogans such as “Men in the field; women in the fields”. A contingent of land girls wearing smocks, breeches and leggings paraded into the town and took up positions behind the speakers on the platform. One of the speakers was a Miss Bedford, a land worker and member of the National Service Corps (made up mostly of teachers), who has been working for a long time at Manor Farm, Caddington. She described how she and her colleagues have worked in all weathers, and slept in a leaky barn until accommodation could be found for them. Their employer could not speak too highly of them. She said she wanted the “sporting girl” who “can keep her lips up when everything goes dead wrong”.

The committee formed to organise the event where keen to go one better than Bedford, where a similar demonstration was held a week ago. The Mayor told the crowd that at least 30,000 women were needed immediately due to the shortage of men on the farms. Lady Trustram Eve made it clear that the country depended on women to win the war. For every man who went to the trenches a women was needed here to do his work. England was now producing more food than ever, and this required more labourers. The men at the front must be fed! It was hard work with no place for the wrong sort of girl, but she believed Luton would turn out the right sort, able to do men’s work. They would have to get up early, and would get muddy and dirty, but it was a healthy life. Councillor Primett advised girls to try the work as “It is one way to get a husband. The young ladies who will take the best husbands will be those who have joined the Land Army”.

As a result of the event about sixty new recruits volunteered. This is considered a satisfactory number for a town like Luton.

Source: Luton News, 6th June 1918

Bedford Pig Clubs

Two prize pigs in Brown & Merry Bedford sale yard c.1910 [BMB13/2]

Thursday 23rd May 1918: A pig raising scheme in operation in the Queen’s Park area of Bedford is looking extremely promising. The Queen’s Park Pig Club began with a meeting held on March 19th to discuss setting up a society for the purpose of buying, breeding, housing, feeding and fattening pigs, with each member to receive a share of the bacon produced. Twenty members contributed some capital, and during the Easter holiday they built two large pigsties with brick floors in Quenby’s field, off Bromham Road. Alongside the sties they also put up a building for storing foodstuffs, with a copper for boiling the feed. The idea rapidly became very popular, and within four weeks of the initial meeting the Club had acquired seventeen pigs and had around sixty members, many of whom are employed at the Queen’s Engineering Works.

On joining the club each member pays £3 to cover the cost of buildings and the purchase of pigs. There are already plans to build four more sties, each with a sleeping apartment and a forecourt. Members pay a weekly subscription towards the cost of feeding and looking after the pigs, including the services of an experienced pig-keeper. A collecting tank has been bought and swill is to be collected from the Club members’ houses and from the Allen Institute. The Club has also reserved a plot of ground on which to grow food for the pigs. Manure produced by the pigs is to be sold to the members at a nominal fee, which will no doubt benefit their allotments. Liquid manure is being collected in a sump, so that nothing is wasted. A member of the Club is a well-known local butcher, who will provide advice and experience when necessary, and it is proposed to insure the pigs. Each member is expected to receive half a pig in the autumn. Any profits from surplus meat will be used to replenish or increase the stock of pigs.

Proposals have also been made for a  Pig Club for the east side of town. This club proposes to set a minimum membership of sixty. The cost of building sties is thought to be prohibitive, but premises suitable for fifty pigs are available to rent. At the current time another forty names are required to make the scheme viable.

Source: Bedfordshire Times, 26th April 1918 and 31st May 1918

New Wage Scales for Farm Workers

Farm labourers at Prebendal Farm, Bedford c.1910 [PU246/90]

Friday 17th May 1918:  Following a meeting of the Cambridgeshire, Huntingdonshire and Bedfordshire District  Wages Committee earlier this week, the following scales of payment for boys, girls and women working on farms in Bedfordshire are to be recommended to the Wages Board:

Boys aged 14 – 13 shillings for a working week of 54 hours in the summer and 48 hours in the winter, with overtime of 4 pence per hour

Boys aged 15  – 16 shillings per week with 6 pence per hour overtime

Boys aged 16  – 20 shillings per week with 7 pence per hour overtime

Boys aged 17  – 26 shillings per week with 8 pence per hour overtime

Able-bodied women aged over 18 – 4½ pence per hour [1]

Girls aged 16 and 17 – 4 pence per hour

Girls aged 14 and 15 – 3 pence per hour

Source: Leighton Buzzard Observer, 21st May 1918

[1] This is a similar rate to the wages recommended for 16 year old boys.

Workers Fined for Damaging Crops

High Street, Leagrave c.1912 [Z1306/75/12/5]

Monday 27th August 1917: Six employees of the Leagrave Works have appeared at the Luton Divisional Court where they have admitted damaging the clover belonging to farmer Alfred Fensome. A few weeks ago Mr. Fensome complained to the magistrates that people from the works were crossing his field and causing damage to his crops. He was promised police help. Last Thursday, P.C. Howe was with Mr. Fensome in Beechwood Road when he saw the defendants walking across the oats field. The oats had been cut and young clover was growing. He stopped the defendants, took their names and addresses and told them they were doing damage. They said they did not know the field was sown with clover, that they had just left the works and were going to dinner by a short cut. They all stated that they did not know they were trespassing as the fields were open, and alleged that the police had allowed other people to go over. One of the defendants, Harcourt Bromley, said he came from Australia where they could walk anywhere, and he thought it was the same here – the Clerk of the Court pointed out that there was rather more acreage in Australia. The Bench accepted that there was no malicious intent, but the Chairman said it was a serious matter and that crops must be protected in these times. The defendants were “let off” with a fine of seven shillings and sixpence each.

Source: Luton News, 30th August 1917

German Prisoners-of-War at Woburn

German prisoners marching along Woburn Sands High Street to work in Duke of Bedford’s woods, 1917 [Z887/2]

Thursday 13th June 1917: The commandant of the internment camp for German prisoners of war at Woburn has been asked if he would allow some of the prisoners to help with the work of potato spraying; this is now being recommended to allotment holders to help avoid blight. He was rather reluctant as he had in the past taken a great deal of trouble to arrange to provide prisoners as labourers, only to find out that they were not wanted after all. When they were employed in gardening and agricultural work experience showed that the prisoners proved very satisfactory, and he would expect to get permission from the War Office if application was made to him in good time. However, he was now “sick of the labour question” and did not intend to waste time pleading with people to employ the Germans. There was plenty of lumber work available for them.

While the German prisoners may make efficient and civil labourers, not all have been prepared to co-operate with their captors. Only a couple of weeks ago one of the prisoners escaped from Woburn Camp and the special constables had to be called out to search for him. He was spotted coming out of Copse Spinney in the parish of Battlesden apparently making for Watling Street, and was recaptured and returned to Woburn by two policemen.

Source: Leighton Buzzard Observer, 5th and 19th June 1917

Order for the Ploughing Up of Grassland

Walkers Farm, Billington c.1920s [Z1432/2]

Thursday 17th May 1917: Food shortages caused by German submarine blockades have made it urgently necessary for British farmers to produce more corn for bread production. Farmers across the county have been told by the Bedfordshire War Agricultural Committee that three million acres of grass land will need to be broken up and sown with corn for the 1918 harvest, of which 30,000 acres must come from Bedfordshire. A further 47,000 acres will be needed from Buckinghamshire. A survey is to be carried out to divide the land into three categories: land to be broken up immediately; land to be broken up shortly; and land which may be broken up at a later date. It was necessary to keep up the milk supply, but the numbers of other cattle must be reduced as grazing land is now required for corn production. Targets have been given to each Petty Session division: Leighton Buzzard is to plough up 1,000 acres, Linslade 4,250 acres, Woburn 3,250 acres and Ampthill 4,375 acres.

The biggest question is where the men and machinery are to be found to take on this work. Over the country as a whole it has been suggested that 250,000 men will be required. With the Army still requiring more recruits it is hard to see where this labour can be found. The plan has been roundly condemned by the Bedford Branch of the Farmers’ Union which passed the following resolution unanimously: “That this meeting considers that the suggestion in regard to the ploughing up of three million acres of land in the country, and 30,000 to 35,000 acres in this county, is not a business proposition or a practical possibility, and will not tend to increase the food production. The meeting, however, pledges itself to produce all the food possible.”

Source: Leighton Buzzard Observer, 8th, 15th and 22nd May 1917.

10,000 Women Wanted for Farm Work

Women from agricultural college hoeing at Arlesey House [Z49/495]

Tuesday 10th April 1917: Advertisements have appeared in the local newspapers asking for 10,000 women to volunteer for National Service with the Women’s Land Army. 5000 milkers, 4000 field workers, and 1000 carters are needed immediately. Benefits for women who enrol will be:

1. A free outfit, high boots, breeches, overall and hat.

2. Maintenance during training.

3. Travelling expense in connection with the work.

4. Wages 18 shillings per week, or the district rate, whichever is the higher.

5. Maintenance during term of unemployment.

6. Housing personally inspected and approved by the Women’s County Committees of the Board of Agriculture.

7. Work on carefully selected farms.

8. Promotion – good work rewarded by promotion and higher pay.

9. After the War, special facilities for settlement at home or overseas.

Source: Luton News, 5th April 1917

How to Cook Potatoes

Potato queue at Kingsbury Farm, Church Street, Dunstable in April 1917 [Z50/36/142]

Monday 19th February 1917: Poor crops in many parts of the country have led to a serious shortage of potatoes. The Board of Agriculture has asked consumers to economise in their use, both by eating less and by considering their cooking methods. Much of a potato is made up of water, leaving only about one-quarter which is of direct value as food; the most valuable part being the part next to the skin. The most common method of cooking potatoes is to peel them, then put them into cold water and boil them. This wasteful approach can lead to the loss of as much as one-fifth of the whole tuber, with the peelings containing a larger percentage of nutritious solids than the rest of the potato. Boiling then dissolves out soluble ingredients and breaks down the surface into the water, which is thrown away. Experiments have shown that around 15.8% of the protein, 18.8% of the minerals, and about 3% of the carbohydrates are lost in cooking a potato this way. If they are plunged into boiling water immediately after paring on 8.2% of protein, 18% of minerals, and a small amount of starch is lost. When potatoes are boiled in their jackets only 1% of protein, just over 3% of minerals, and almost no starch is lost.

To reduce this waste people are advised to either boil or steam potatoes in their jackets, after making a cut in each end to allow the escape of steam. When baking potatoes they should be pricked or cut and then baked slowly. If potatoes must be peeled, then they should be steamed or cooked in the smallest possible amount of boiling water, which should then be reused in soups. Adding salt will also help to reduce the loss of nutrients. An alternative is to pare the potatoes as thinly as possible, then slice them for use in vegetable or meat pies. Potatoes may also be replaced by turnips and swedes, which should be sliced and steamed rather than boiled.

Source: Leighton Buzzard Observer, 20th February 1917

Fox Hunting and the Food Supply

Hunting meet at Southcott Green, Linslade [Z1432/2]

Thursday 1st February 1917: Leighton Buzzard Urban District Council  is resisting pressure to plough up parks and recreation grounds for food production, the more so as so much local land is being used to produce game for hunting rather than to grow food. The Vice-Chairman of the Council, Mr. F.G. Woodman, has published a letter stating that to plough up the park in order to let it as allotments would cost a great deal of public money while having very little impact on the food supply. Meanwhile the Council is doing its best to find suitable allotments for every applicant, but its appeals have not been met with offers of enough land to meet demand. He suggests that the Duke of Bedford’s large walled park in Woburn would be better used for producing food for the people rather than for grazing deer, raising pheasants and as fox cover. He suggests that “instead of trying to be publicly rude to men who are striving to do the best with the materials they have”, those complaining should try to “persuade the Duke of Bedford and his agent into increasing the food supply by beginning at home, then spend a few hours in the market sympathising with the poultry breeder whose roosts are being nightly, and in some cases daily devastated, and the farmer whose crop is continually being spoiled and whose livestock is menaced by the marauders to the serious financial loss and discouragement of both.”

The truth of Mr. Woodman’s comments is demonstrated by this letter from a small poultry keeper who lost fifty fowls to foxes in the last year. He says: “Last year more than 400 fowls were killed within a radius of three miles of the fox cover. One labouring man lost 64 in one night, which were valued at £15. Some time after he was rewarded with a cheque for £6 and told he must keep up his poultry while the foxes were about. This year foxes are killing poultry worse than ever, fetching them by daylight. I myself am only a small poultry keeper, but I have 10 fowl houses to shut up each night and open every morning. That means 140 journeys every week to shut and open fowl houses.”

Source: Leighton Buzzard Observer, 30th January 1917

Six Weeks as a Farm Labourer

Farm labourers at Prebendal Farm, Bedford c.1910 [PU246/90]

Saturday 30th September 1916: Mr S. A. Kahn, a member of the Inner Temple and form master at Balham Grammar School spent six weeks of his summer vacation working as a labourer on a Bedfordshire farm, intending to study the conditions of work at first hand. He shares some of his observations:

“The first thing that struck me was the bonhomie of the farm-hand. The natural heartiness of disposition so characteristic of the agricultural labourer was evident in every sphere of his activity. Another thing that was a constant matter of surprise to me was his powers of endurance. Probably, none but one who has been bred up to it from his infancy, could stick it. The length of hours, the duration of the cold season, the absence of holidays, and, in some cases, the insecurity of his service, tend to make agricultural work one of the most unpleasant occupations.
 After an experience of six weeks’ actual work on the farm, I have come to the conclusion that the hours are too long, and that there are too few intervals for rest, in hoeing, and twitching. I go even so far as to say that if the hours were shortened, the same amount of work would be done. It is no secret to the farmers that the men are obliged to ‘take it easy’ at times. I cannot blame them … Much nonsense has been talked about the women on the farm. I think that the life on the farm is not so easy as some of them think. The woman is not suited for it, simply because she has not the stamina and the strength to sustain a work of that nature. The experiences of some of the women working on the farm have not left a pleasant impression upon my mind, and the testimony of the farm hands upon this topic is conclusive.
 The third thing that struck me was the economic value of the agricultural labourer’s wages. I had heard so much of the agricultural labourer’s hard lot, that I determined to investigate the point upon the spot. After much inquiry, I have come to the conclusion that the £1 a week which the labourer receives at the present time is equivalent to 35s in London. I need not go into details. Suffice it to say that the labourer is free from some of the most burdensome privileges of town life. I mean the rent, the taxes and th high cost of living. For one of the Duke of Bedford’s excellent cottages he pays only 2s 6d a week. The amount includes rates, etc. A Londoner will pay 10s 6d a week for a small house, with dirty walls, smoky chimneys and crazy structure. Again, the farm hand gets vegetables free; he can pick up as much wood as he requires; and the cost of certain articles is not so high as in London. But the most important advantage of all is the comparative immunity from certain disease that he enjoys. He is not haunted by the spectre of disease, and his vitality and hardiness enable him to resist the onset of many diseases to which a town dweller is heir.”

Source: Leighton Buzzard Observer, 3rd October 1916

Blinded Soldier Turns Poultry Farmer

The Sun, Leighton Buzzard [© Bedfordshire Archives]

Wednesday 26th July 1916: Private Charles Henry Hills, the son of Mrs Hills of the Sun Inn in Leighton Buzzard, has returned to Australia to start poultry farming. This is a remarkable turn of events as Private Hills was blinded by a shrapnel shell at Gallipoli and only last summer was being led about the streets, apparently helpless. He soon learned to navigate the local streets, and remained in his naturally cheerful spirits. He has since learned to typewrite, and has written to his relatives from Wagga Wagga, where he was living before he enlisted:

“The people are very good to me and are anxious I should settle in the town as they say everything original goes to Sydney and Melbourne. I have been in the papers several times and the keenest possible interest is being shown in the poultry farming experiment. The difficulty of obtaining the necessary ground to start on is engaging the attention of all the best men in Wagga Wagga.”

Private Hills has been interviewed by the Sunday Times in Sydney and has told them it is a great consolation to him that he “got” five Turks before he was wounded. He spent time in nineteen hospitals before he was taken to St. Dunstan’s in Regents Park, a home established for blind soldiers and sailors. While there he occupied the same room in which the Kaiser had slept when he had been a guest at the same house before the war. While there he was trained first in typewriting, and then studied poultry raising in the country life section. This new industry for the blind is proving successful and Private Hills intends “hitting out in the hen departure”, confident he can make a success of the business. Private Hills is also a great reader, and is looking forward to receiving a supply of the latest works from the Sydney Blind Industrial Institute.

Source: Leighton Buzzard Observer, 1st August 1916

Request to Farmers

Milkmaids at Biddenham, 1916 [WW1/WA5/2/4]

Monday 19th June 1916: Rowland E. Prothero, the Charirman of the War Agricultural Committee for Bedfordshire has requested that Bedfordshire farmers consider the scheme for instructing women and girls in milking which has been drawn up by the Agricultural Education Sub-Committee of the County Council. He writes:

“Milkers are already difficult to find; in the near future they will become still scarcer. It is proposed that pupils should be taught on the farms by practical teachers, chosen by the farmers, and paid by the Education Committee. It is hoped that farmers who own cows will help the movement by giving local women and girls the opportunity of learning to milk, and so increasing the number of milkers in the county.”

 Any farm willing to help is asked to send his name to the Director of Education at Shire Hall, or to Mr. Trustram Eve, Secretary to the War Agricultural Committee. The latter committee also reminds all “starred” men, and all those who have not attested voluntarily, that if they wish to be exempted from military service they must apply for a certificate of exemption before June 24th. 

Source: Leighton Buzzard Observer, 20th June 1916

“Women on the Land” Demonstration at Biddenham

Miss M. Welch of Kempston ploughing [WW1/WA5/2/4]

Friday 9th June 1916: An interesting demonstration took place at Biddenham yesterday afternoon at Mr. Chibnall’s homestead, of the work which can be carried out on farms by women. Demonstrations were given be three expert women from Cornwall of milking, harrowing, hoeing, weeding, cutting clover, rolling, ploughing and the harnessing of a pair of horses. The demonstrations were interspersed with the competitions in the following events:

• Class 1. Milking
• Class 2. Handling and Management of Calves
• Class 3. Harnessing and Management of Horses
• Class 4. Driving Stock
• Class 5. Ploughing
• Class 6. Hoeing Corn
• Class 7. Weeding
• Class 8: Setting Out Roots

Most of the entrants were girls from agricultural backgrounds, some of them very young. Nerves meant they did not all perform as well as they might have done in less trying circumstances, but it was clear that in a more familiar and favourable field they would be quite expert. The work of many of the competitors was quite good, and would be serviceable and acceptable to farmers if it could be sustained for an entire day’s work. The milking was a picturesque scene, with “ten merry milkmaids, clad in ideal dresses and bonnets, armed with three-legged stools, and shining pails, tackled as many cows that were waiting patiently in the thatched hovel”. Unsurprisingly there were rather more entrants for the hoeing corn class (nineteen) than there were for ploughing (two). The work of these two girls with the plough was described as “fair”.  One of the most successful competitions was the Harnessing and Management of Horses, in which the thirteen candidates showed great confidence in handling the horses, and dexterity in putting on the harness.

Source: WW1/WA5/2/1-4

How Can You Save?

Gardeners at Turvey Hall c.1914 [Z1306/128/9/3]

Monday 5th June 1916: Tips for making war time economies:

1. Make up your mind to cut down expenses. There is sure to be something you can save money on.
2. Don’t waste food. Use up scraps. Be sparing of meat. Cheese, herrings, beans or split peas are as nourishing as meat. Freshen stale bread by moistening it and putting it in the oven. Cook potatoes in their skins.
3. Don’t buy lamb, veal or luxuries in food. Only get nourishing food, it goes further.
4. Plant and sow all the vegetables you can, especially turnips, potatoes, onions, beets. Store these with all the apples against the winters.
5. Help the Farmers get their crops in. We want all the food we can get for man and beast.
6. Don’t be tempted to buy anything unnecessary, either from shops or hawkers.
7. Don’t take an expensive holiday this summer. Spend your holiday at home.

HELP YOUR COUNTRY!   HELP YOURSELF!

Source: Bolnhurst, Colmworth, Roxton with Great Barford, Ravensden and Wilden Parish Magazine, June 1916 [P28/30/23]

Daylight Saving Time Introduced

Westoning Clock Tower, 2009 [© Beds Archives]

Sunday 21st May 1916: The main topic of conversation in Bedford this weekend has been the introduction of the Daylight Saving Act. Clocks were put forward one hour last night, so that despite the evidence of the sun that it was 9 o’clock in the morning, timepieces informed their owners that it was in fact 10 o’clock. The benefit will be felt this evening when it will remain light until ten. Inevitably, the change led to some mistakes. One cowman put his clock back one hour, and found when he went to milk the cows that he was two hours late. He described the Act as a “muddling affair”. One woman in the country was heard to ask whether she should put her clock on one hour every night, and a regular worshipper at one of the Biggleswade Chapels arrived  an hour late for this morning’s service, making his entrance ten minutes before it finished.

Soldiers are now allowed out until 10 p.m., but they are still expected on parade at 5.30 in the morning. An Aspley Guise correspondent reports: “You may be interested to know that our important village has fallen into line with the Summer-time hours quite easily, and almost without incident. The temperance people are already congratulating themselves upon the fact that it will mean much less time spent in tht public houses by men whose custom it was to spend the hours of twilight in the bar and taproom, and consequently a considerable saving will be effected. The hour’s extra daylight will enable to the workers to get more out-door recreation”.

Source: Bedfordshire Times, 26th May 1916

Servants Volunteer for Farm Work

Prebendal Farm, Bedford c.1910 [PU246/90]

Saturday 13th May 1916: The Chairman of the Bedfordshire War Agricultural Committee has received the following letter from Ellinor C. L. Close of 25, Montpelier Square, Knightsbridge, offering the services of three of her servants for farm work during the summer:

Dear Mr. Prothero 

Three of my women servants have volunteered to work on any farm on a well-managed estate from early in May until after the harvest. This seems to me a valuable precedent, as they are strong young country women, one is accustomed to milking cows, the others will learn to milk, if required, and all are willing to do any part of outdoor work. Not being as yet really skilled farm workers they will not at present deserve such high wages as experienced village women earn. 

Should my servants find employment I propose to live in a hut, caravan, or inn, upon or near the farm, so as to be at hand if required. 

Many of my friends in the same position as I am are waiting to see if I succeed, as if so, they hope to send out some of their people as well. We shall of course pay their regular wages throughout, as now. 

I write with the knowledge of the Women’s National Land Service Corps, who are very anxious for the success of this little scheme.

 Source: Luton News, 18th May 1916

Danish Labour for Farms

Cattle with farmworker at Riseley c.1920 [Z1306/96/6/3]

Friday 31st March 1916:  The Bedfordshire County War Agricultural Committee has been informed that the Centre Labour Exchange Department of the Board of Trade intend to try to obtain Danish men to work on farms in England and Wales. The farms must be outside prohibited areas, engagements must not be for less than 12 months, and farmer will be expected to pay third class travelling expenses of the men from Denmark (on the understanding that this advance can then be deducted from the men’s wages). It is expected that the labourers will be mainly single men aged between 18 and 25, who have practical agricultural experience, especially in dairy farming, and who have taken a short course at a farm school. Farmers would be expected to ensure they were provided with reasonably comfortable lodgings and their pay would be at the current rate for skilled farm workers. Any farmers wishing to obtain Danish labour under these conditions is to apply before the end of March [1] to the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries.

Source: Bedfordshire Standard, 31st March 1916

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[1] The letter was dated 28th March and published on 31st March, making this an impossibly tight deadline!