The death of Robert Peel 1850

The death of Margaret Thatcher has resulted in heated debated about her 11 years in office. The divisive nature of her politics has split the nation ,but there can be no doubt that she was a transforming political figure. Her demise and the way in which the news has been regarded bought to my mind the death of another Tory Prime Minister 163 years ago.

In many ways there are many similarities between Robert Peel and Margaret Thatcher, gender aside. Both came from provincial towns, Grantham and Bury. Both were outsiders. Peel was a representative of the new industrial class- the family had made money in textiles. Thatcher was the daughter of a shop keeper. And bought success and eventual damage on their own party- the Conservative Party and both were driven from office by erstwhile allies. The issue that bought Peel down was him changing his mind on legislation that protected the price of bread, the Corn Laws. This policy was bought in after the Napoleonic Wars to protect the income of the landowners who were the backbone of the Tory Party. Peel repealed the Corn Laws in 1846 after pressure exerted by the highly successful pressure group the Anti Corn Law League. It split the Tory Party between those who supported protection and those in favour of Free Trade. The divide led to the Tories being out of power for 30 years. Repeal had a dramatic impact on food halving its price directly benefiting those on low incomes.

When Peel died in a riding accident in 1850 there was a universal sense of loss especially among the working class. This sense of grief was felt in Leek when a meeting was held in the Swan in September 1850 to consider what to do to honour Peel's memory who incidentally was a Staffordshire MP- he represented Tamworth.

Mr Doxey a working man spoke at the meeting said that as a consequence of Peel's Government “ We are in a state of peace, our trade was good, and we are blessed with an abundance with food and clothing within the reach of the working man. We have also our Mechanic Institute where knowledge was cheap and many excellent institutions, where the needy were carried for. He was an admirer of a great man , through whose influences the condition of the poor had so much benefited”

 A show of hands at the meeting proposed that money raised in Leek should go to the building of almshouses for the poor. Another view outlined in a poster addressed to the Working Men of Leek favoured public baths in the town as had been erected to Peel's memory in Macclesfield.

 I don't know what happened to the funds that were collected, but around the industrial north still exist memorials to the Tory Statesman. Peel Park's still exist in Bradford, Blackpool and Salford.

Do you remember April 1962?

Leek's first ever road safety rally was held on the new Cattle Market site. It attracted 59 motorists who undertook rigorous tests  .Drivers who exceeded the speed level, for instance, were penalised. April 1962 also the first use of the panda crossing in the country although it was not accepted their flashing lights caused some confusion. Road  users had a reason to be worried as national road deaths were double they are now. Little consideration was given to safety in car design. The newest range of Ford   the Zodiac was being advertised. Its selling points were the style and the speed. It could cruise at 100 mph. The women motorist who might be interested in buying a Zodiac need not be intimidated as the motoring correspondent wrote reassuringly “Ladies will welcome the lightness  of the controls, feather like clutch and the rising ratio steering making manoeuvring finger tip easy”

A survey carried out by McKenzie Secondary School in Cheadle revealed the popularity of smoking amongst the pupils  with 79 students smoking regularly. A number routinely smoked at home with a boy of 11 and a girl of 12 the youngest smokers. This should not be a real surprise as smoking was a common activity with many participating in the habit.  However medical opinion was already at this time pointing out the health risks. In the 1950s a  study of some 40 thousand doctors over 20 years, confirmed the suggestion, based on which the government issued advice that smoking and lung cancer rates were related.  The teacher  who carried out the research in Cheadle felt that a combination of  a lack of decent role models and peer pressure was responsible for the high number of smokers. He was surprised by the pocket money many of the students were getting, some as much as £1 a week!

A good news story about the young people was coverage of the Scouts Show over a three day period held at Leek Town Hall. I was intrigued to read that the founder of the Gang Show Ralph Reader had strong connections with the town having contact with local scouts since 1939. In 1961 he  visited Leek and was made guest of honour . The Scout Show of 1962 had high production values with favourable notice of two numbers “ Wedding Group” and “Brighton”. It was indicated that in the production of the show the Leek Scouts had been helped by London.

There was comment in the editorial section of the paper on the disenchantment that the electorate had with the local Councils which showed itself in low turnouts at elections. Councils excluded the press from its meetings (a position that was  being rectified in law following the passage of a Private Members Bill by one Margaret Thatcher). The editor believed that confidence in councils could only be improved if the community was better informed of Council's plans. Some of the questions that were vexing the Councillors of the time were the growing menace of vandalism in Leek Town Centre. Outrage was expressed at the removal of 22 tulips from a flower bed outside the Nicholson Institute and the growing problem of old buses being parked on Ladydale and being used as weekend bungalows.

The  Fox Destruction Society held its annual dinner at the Hotel Rudyard with 190 supporters and guests attending. The guest of honour Mr PM Johnson the Council pest officer felt that the society were doing a really worthwhile job in keeping down such a large number of pests. Although the thought occurred to me on reading this that if the society were really committed to keeping down fox numbers then they should have had one on the menu.

Windsor Davies former Leek teacher was now seeking fame as a TV actor. He had a lucky break when the actor John Paul fell out with the TV company over his pay and left. The TV program in question was the “Probation Officer” Davies who was about to begin a distinguished career in TV was contracted to take Paul's role and was being paid £160.