Norfolk Annals Volume Ii Part 81

15.-The Rev. O. W. Tanc.o.c.k, it was announced, had resigned the headmastership of King Edward VI. School, Norwich, on accepting the living of Little Waltham, near Chelmsford. He was succeeded by the Rev.

E. F. Gilbard.

18.-Mr. Melton Prior, special artist on the staff of the "Ill.u.s.trated London News," lectured at Noverre's Rooms, Norwich, on "What I saw in Burmah."

21.-Two large granaries at North Walsham, belonging to Messrs. Cubitt and Walker, were destroyed by fire. The damage amounted to 4,000.

22.-Died, at the residence of her sister, at Weybridge, Surrey, Lady Sophia Jane Beevor, in her 66th year. She was the daughter of the Rev.

Clement Chevallier, of Bedingham, Suffolk, and was twice married. Her first husband was Mr. Isaac Jermy Jermy, one of the victims of the terrible murders committed by James Blomfield Rush at Stanfield Hall on November 28th, 1848. In that outrage Mrs. Jermy Jermy narrowly escaped with her life; she was. .h.i.t in the arm by a bullet, and the limb was afterwards amputated. In 1850 she married Sir Thomas Beevor, Bart., and became greatly esteemed at Hingham, where she resided for many years.

24.-A military tournament given by the 20th Hussars in aid of the city charities, commenced at the Agricultural Hall, Norwich, and was continued until March 1st.

25.-The Norwich Town Council addressed a memorial to the Postmaster-General praying for the cessation of the Sunday delivery of letters. The Post Office authorities declined to accede to the request.

-The City Committee recommended the Norwich Town Council to sanction the opening of St. Andrew's Hall on Sunday evenings for two months for the purpose of giving recitals of sacred music therein by and under the direction of the committee. A memorial, signed by the clergy and Nonconformist ministers, was presented, protesting against the proposal, and requesting the Corporation to receive a deputation upon the subject.

The meeting declined to accede to the latter request, and the recommendation of the committee was deferred. Meanwhile sermons were preached in churches and chapels for and against the proposal, and public meetings were held at which remarkable opinions were expressed. At the adjourned meeting of the Council, held on March 4th, the committee's recommendation was negatived by 30 votes against 14.

MARCH.

1.-Severe wintry weather was experienced in Norfolk; snow fell heavily on the 2nd, accompanied by a keen north-east wind and frost of great intensity.

-The Rev. Ambrose Johnson, rector of Toftrees, arrived at Norwich for the purpose of consulting a firm of solicitors about bankruptcy proceedings.

After transacting his business he was seen walking in Prince of Wales Road in the direction of Thorpe railway station; then all trace was lost of him. On the 12th the unfortunate gentleman was discovered in a shrubbery at Bramerton Hall, in a weak and emaciated condition. He was at once removed to the Norfolk and Norwich Hospital, and upon recovering somewhat, stated that he took shelter in the shrubbery during a heavy snowstorm on the 1st or 2nd, and had remained there up to the time of his discovery. His feet were severely frostbitten and he was in a most feeble state of mind and body, the result of starvation and exposure.

One foot dropped off upon his admission to the Hospital, and it was found necessary to amputate the other. Mr. Johnson lingered until May 2nd, when death put an end to his sufferings.

5.-The course of "Science Lectures for the People," arranged by the Corporation of Norwich, was continued at St. Andrew's Hall. The lecturer was Mr. Louis f.a.gan, of the Prints and Drawings Department, British Museum, and the subject, "Egyptian, a.s.syrian, and Babylonian Antiquities." The concluding lecture was given on the 26th by Mr. Henry Seebohm on "Adventures in Siberia." It was descriptive of the lecturer's travels with Captain Wiggins, whom he described as "a Norwich man whose father drove one of the coaches which ran between Norwich and London in those dark days before railways were introduced. Captain Wiggins as a young man did not think that driving a coach was sufficiently ambitious for him, and he therefore made up his mind to drive a ship." Another course was commenced on November 13th, when Sir Robert Ball lectured on "An Astronomer's Thoughts about Krakatoa." (_See_ January 6th, 1891.)

7.-The Norwich School Board agreed by a majority to pet.i.tion Parliament to enact that public elementary schools be thrown open free of all charge, and that they be placed under "popular control."

12.-Died, at Old Post Office Street, Norwich, Mr. John Goldsmith Atkinson. A son of Mr. Funnell Goldsmith Atkinson, he was born July 14th, 1814, and was admitted a solicitor in the Easter Term of 1836. He represented the Second Ward as a Conservative from 1872 to 1881, and had served for twenty-nine years in the Norwich Artillery Volunteers, of which he was honorary quartermaster.

12.-Died, at Oby Rectory, the Rev. Wm. Cufaude Davie, M.A. He was born at Yarmouth on November 13th, 1822, and educated at the Grammar School in that town and at St. John's College, Cambridge. After fulfilling for two years the duties of a.s.sistant mathematical master at Eton, he was in 1846 appointed headmaster of Yarmouth Grammar School. In 1852 he became curate-in-charge of Intwood and Keswick, and from 1858 to 1875 was princ.i.p.al of the Norwich Diocesan Training College. Mr. Davie was closely identified with educational work in the diocese, and was a candidate for the headmastership of Norwich Grammar School in opposition to the Rev. Dr. Jessopp.

23.-Father Ignatius held a mission service at the Agricultural Hall, Norwich, and on the 24th preached to a crowded congregation at the church of St. John de Sepulchre.

26.-Died, at Rokeles, Watton, Mr. Henry Woods, agent for the Merton estate. He was a well-known authority upon the breeding and management of sheep.

APRIL.

2.-A meeting was held at the Guildhall, Norwich, for the purpose of furthering the efforts made by Mr. T. W. Richardson and Mr. W. S.

Warlters for the formation in the city of a bearer company of the Volunteer Medical Staff Corps. A few weeks afterwards Mr. Richardson was gazetted surgeon, Mr. Warlters acting surgeon, and Mr. Frederic Mills quartermaster.

10.-The Norwich Diocesan Conference met at Noverre's Rooms, Norwich, under the presidency of the Lord Bishop. The session was concluded on the 11th.

20.-Died, at Northrepps Hall, Mr. John Henry Gurney, in his 71st year.

The only son of Joseph John Gurney, of Earlham Hall, so prominently a.s.sociated with Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton in his efforts to abolish slavery in the West Indies, Mr. Gurney married Mary Jary, daughter of Richard Hanbury Gurney, of Thickthorn. Of the marriage there were two sons, Mr. J. H. Gurney and Mr. Richard J. H. Gurney. In 1854 he entered Parliament as member for King's Lynn, and sat for that borough until his resignation in 1865. As a naturalist Mr. Gurney was a recognised authority both in Europe and America, more especially on raptorial birds, and the magnificent collection in the Norfolk and Norwich (now the Castle) Museum owes its existence almost entirely to his energy and liberality. He was for many years a member of the East Anglian banking firm of Gurneys and Birkbecks, a justice of the peace for Norfolk, senior member of the Norwich Bench, and a magistrate for Lynn.

23.-Bellringers from all parts of the diocese a.s.sembled at Aylsham to ring opening peals on the church bells, which had been re-hung at the cost of 301.

26.-Died, at Cromer, where he was staying for the benefit of his health, Mr. Henry Blake Miller, Town Clerk of Norwich, aged 65. He was a son of Mr. Henry Miller, solicitor, of the Town Close, and had been officially connected with the Corporation since 1853. For upwards of twenty years Mr. Miller was clerk to the Board of Health, and on the death of Mr. W.

L. Mendham, in July, 1876, when the two offices were amalgamated, he was appointed Town Clerk and clerk to the Sanitary Authority. Legal work of great importance had devolved upon Mr. Miller. He was entrusted with the drafting of the Norwich Act, 1867, relating to the sewerage and drainage of the city, and after his appointment as Town Clerk he prepared the way for the pa.s.sing of the Norwich Improvement Act. He acted for the Corporation in the Mousehold Heath litigation, and in the dispute with the freemen as to the Town Close Estate; he had also much to do with the London and Castle Street improvements, the Chapel Field improvement, and the framing of the Norwich Corporation Act, 1889. A Liberal and Nonconformist, Mr. Miller was senior deacon of Princes Street Congregational church, and for twenty years treasurer to the Norfolk Auxiliary of the London Missionary Society. He was also some time president of the Norwich Solicitors' Amicable Society.

30.-The stables and coach-houses at Merton Hall, a range of buildings sixty yards in length, were destroyed by fire. The horses, including two valuable stallions and twelve carriage horses, were rescued uninjured.

MAY.

3.-A disorderly scene occurred at a fire at the furnishing shop of Mr. H.

Cole, St. Giles's Gates, Norwich. The Chief Constable (Mr. Hitchman) was hooted by the mob, who also impeded the work of the fire brigade. The contents of the shop were destroyed.

5.-A remarkable charge was investigated at Grimston Petty Sessions. Mr.

Algernon Charles Fountaine, of Narford Hall, was summoned for obstructing a railway engine "by placing himself in the four-foot-way of the Lynn and Dereham branch of the Great Eastern Railway, and making signals thereon, on March 18th, at East Winch." The defendant wished to travel to Narborough by a fast train which was not advertised to stop at East Winch, and notwithstanding the warning of the station master, he placed himself in the four-foot-way, and as the train approached made the customary signal for it to stop. The engine-driver obeyed the signal and brought the train to a standstill, whereupon Mr. Fountaine entered one of the carriages and travelled to Narborough. Proceedings were taken against him under Section 36 of 24 and 25 Vic., chapter 95, and the magistrates committed defendant for trial. On July 9th, at the adjourned Norfolk Quarter Sessions, at Swaffham, the defendant pleaded guilty, and was sentenced by Lord Walsingham to pay a fine of 25 and to enter into his recognisances of 100 to be of good behaviour and to keep the peace for six months.

10.-A fire occurred at Messrs. Boulton and Paul's timber yard at Norwich, and resulted in damage to the amount of between 4,000 and 5,000.

13.-Mr. George b.u.t.tler Kennett, clerk to the justices, was appointed Town Clerk of Norwich, in place of Mr. H. B. Miller, at the salary of 1,200 per annum.

15.-Died, at his residence, Pine Banks, Thorpe, Mr. John Oddin Howard Taylor. The son of Mr. John Oddin Taylor, he was born March 2nd, 1837, and received his education under the tuition of his uncle, the celebrated Dr. Brewer, at Mile End School, Norwich, and was afterwards placed with the Rev. Francis Valpy, rector of Garvestone. Having adopted the legal profession, he became a partner with his father in the firm of Taylor and Son. In addition to carrying on a large and responsible private practice, they acted as local solicitors to the Great Eastern Railway Company. As secretary to the undertaking for the improvement of the Cattle Market and the construction of Prince of Wales Road, Mr. Taylor discharged the duties relating to the legal and Parliamentary business with great efficiency. In October, 1862, he was appointed secretary to the Norfolk and Norwich Musical Festival. In collaboration with Bishop Fraser he was instrumental in bringing about a change of the law with reference to the system of employing women, and children of tender years, in hard agricultural labour. In later years Mr. Taylor devoted himself to the task of developing the fisheries of East Anglia, and was the princ.i.p.al author, in conjunction with Mr. Field, of the Act for the preservation of the inland waters of Norfolk and Suffolk. His literary ability was of a very high order. He was a great chess player, and as a writer on that game acquired world-wide fame by his "Chess Brilliants"

and "Chess Skirmishes."

16.-Mr. Gladstone visited Norwich. The right hon. gentleman, accompanied by Mrs. Gladstone, arrived by special train at Thorpe station, where he was received by Mr. Colman, M.P., and Mrs. Colman, and by the representatives of Liberal a.s.sociations in the city. On his way to Carrow Abbey, the residence of the senior member for Norwich, Mr.

Gladstone was warmly welcomed by the citizens. In the evening a great meeting was held at the Agricultural Hall, under the presidency of Mr.

Henry Birkbeck, at which Mr. Gladstone was presented with an illuminated address by the Liberal and Radical a.s.sociations and trades unions in Norwich and Norfolk. After addressing the vast a.s.semblage Mr. Gladstone proceeded to Stoke Holy Cross as the guest of Mr. Birkbeck. Returning to the city on the 17th, the ex-Premier visited the Castle and the Cathedral, and in the afternoon left for Lowestoft, _en route_ to Corton, where he remained as the guest of Mr. Colman until the 20th.

21.-Mr. Sims Reeves made his farewell appearance at St. Andrew's Hall, Norwich.

28.-Died, at Norwich, Mr. John Gunn, M.A., F.G.S., many years rector of Irstead with Barton Turf, aged 89. "It was with painful surprise that the public received a few years ago the announcement of Mr. Gunn's retirement from the Church on the ground of conscientious scruples concerning certain Biblical statements which he conceived to be irreconcilable with the teachings of Natural Science, and of his desire no longer to be addressed by his clerical t.i.tle. He did not dissociate himself from the observances of religion, for he was a constant attendant at the Cathedral services." Mr. Gunn, in 1864, was one of the founders of the Norwich Geological Society, and its first president. "He has left behind him in his great collection of fossils a monument, _aere perennius_. His a.s.sociation with the investigation of the Mammalian remains of the Cromer beds is recorded in the cla.s.sics of English geology, and will be handed down to posterity long after the fossils in our Museum have crumbled into dust."

JUNE.

2.-Major F. A. Cubitt was presented by past and present officers, non-commissioned officers, and men of the 1st Volunteer Battalion Norfolk Regiment with a silver candelabrum upon retiring from the adjutancy of the battalion, after nearly fifteen years' service.

6.-Mr. W. R. Cooper, solicitor, was elected Clerk to the Norwich magistrates in succession to Mr. G. B. Kennett, resigned.

11.-Died, at Unthank's Road, Norwich, Mr. James Calthrop Barnham, aged 82. He was descended from an old Norwich family, and one of his ancestors, James Barnham, was a Sheriff of the city in 1738. Mr. Barnham was a governor of Norwich Grammar School, and one of the original members of the Norfolk and Norwich Horticultural Society.

12.-Died, at Newmarket Terrace, Norwich, Mr. Samuel Daynes. Born in December, 1815, he was a member of the Town Council, and a persistent advocate of the adoption of the wood pavement scheme. A Guardian of the Poor, he was thoroughly versed in the details of Poor-law administration, and as a member of the School Board he displayed great earnestness as a public economist. Mr. Daynes was prominently a.s.sociated with the Manchester Unity of Oddfellows, and in 185152 served the office of "Grand Master" of that body.

-The Rev. William Pelham Burn, curate of St. Mary Abbot, Kensington, was elected vicar of St. Peter Mancroft, Norwich, in succession to the Rev.

F. Baggallay, who had accepted the living of Holy Trinity, Weymouth.

13.-At a meeting of the Yare Preservation Society, it was resolved, "That the society be called the Yare and Bure Preservation Society, whose objects shall be the preservation of the rivers Yare and Bure, and their tributaries, from illegal fishing."