Vestry Meetings (St Mary Magdalen)
Overseers named for selection at a meeting on March 20th, were Mr. G. Church, Chas. Cope, Lowie Dearing, B. Bickle and H. R. Putland.
A Poor-Rate at 9d. was agreed upon.
For Vestry Clerk George Meadows and William Savery were proposed, and the show of hands being in favour of the latter, a poll was demanded for the former. The poll took place on the 27th, and resulted in 448 votes being recorded for Savery, and 405 for Meadows, thus giving a majority of 43 for Savery.
A Poor Rate at 6d. was passed at the meeting held at the Norman Hotel on the 27th of August. Five persons only were present.
Accidents and Fatalities
Crinoline Accidents at this time were so numerous all over the country, and so persistent were females in wearing the cumbrous crinoline, that it appeared as useless as it was trite to protest against that absurd fashion. The St Leonards Gazette, noticed these accidents that had occurred lately in the immediate neighbourhood, fortunately more vexatious than alarming. The first was that in which a gentleman gave great offence by unavoidably treading on a lady's skirt of unwieldy dimensions, and thereby causing a rent of unsightly appearance, to the no small amusement of bystanders and discomfort of the lady. The next occurrence was the upsetting and dispersion of some baskets of fruit at White-rock place, a lady's hoops having caught hold of the said baskets and tumbled their contents into the road. Whether rejoiced or ashamed was not observed, but it was certain that the lady and her servant or companion hurried on and left the tradesman and his wife to sigh over and pick up their damaged fruit. A third occurrence was one in which a gentleman had been twice thrown to the ground in his endeavour to pass a girl, whose dress was ridiculously hooped.
A Fractured Leg, and other injuries were the result of an accident which befell a workman on the 23rd of January, while excavating the earth near the new buildings in Warrior square.
A Sad Fatality in the hunting field occurred on the 24th of February, near St. Leonards, which caused a painful sensation. The meet was at Crowhurst, and among those who engaged in the sport was a middle-aged gentleman of the name of Arthur Edgecomb Tuke, a commissioned officer of the 21st Regiment, lately serving in India, but recently gazetted to the Lancashire Militia. Capt. Tuke was a friend of Mr. Claude Norris and Mr. Richards, of St. Leonards, and was on a visit at the residence of the latter. A fox having been found, Capt. Tuke, with others followed the hounds in pursuit, and in so doing had to cross and re-cross the Filsham stream, but on one of these occasions he unfortunately leaped the "leap of death." The accident having occurred in a valley between Grove farm and Filsham farm, and death ensuing in a few minutes after, the -
