Mexborough & Swinton Times – Friday 13 October 1882
Conisborough Burial Board.
The Consecration Question.
Cost of Managing the Cemetery.
A meeting of the Conisborough Burial Board was held on Tuesday evening, when there were present, Messrs. C. Kilner (in the chair), W. H. Chambers, G. Walker, J. Blyth, Booth, C. Holmes, and G. T. Nicholson, along with the clerk (Mr. J. Maxfield).
The Clerk read the minutes of the previous meeting, which included a reference to a letter from the Archbishop of York on the question of consecration, and stating that if local circumstances were taken into consideration, it would be found there was good reason for another chapel. His Grace declined to consecrate the ground until an appeal had been made to the Local Government Board, or a question asked in Parliament. That being so, it was moved by Mr. Nicholson, and seconded by Mr. Walker, and agreed to, that the Archbishop be further communicated with by the clerk as to whether the Local Government Board had been appealed to by His Grace, or whether he had caused a question to be asked in Parliament.
Mr. Walker thought the best way out of the difficulty would be to have half the present chapel consecrated, but owing to the absence of several members, that question was adjourned.
The Clerk having read these minutes, Mr. Walker remarked: “Is it a question of the ground being consecrated and the chapel being licensed?”
The Chairman: “It has always been a question of consecration up to now.”
Mr. Walker: “I thought it was a question of licence.”
Mr. Chambers: “You cannot do that, I think.”
Mr. Walker: “But you cannot consecrate the chapel, can you?”
Mr. Chambers: “Yes, and the ground it is on.”
Mr. Walker: “Oh!”
The Chairman: “Will anyone move these are a correct record of the proceedings of the last meeting?”
Mr. Walker: “I will.”
Mr. Holmes seconded; carried.
The Chairman: “Mr. Nicholson, I don’t think you voted.”
Mr. Nicholson (after a little delay): “Alright, yes,” (then raising his hand in favour of the confirmation of the minutes).
The Chairman then read the following letter from the Archbishop’s secretary:
“Dear Sir,—The Archbishop of York desires me to inform you that immediately after the date of his former letter, His Grace referred to the Local Government Board the question respecting the cemetery at Conisborough. He has only within the last few days been informed that the matter rests with the Home Office, and this communication to them His Grace will inform you as soon as he hears from the Home Secretary.”
The Chairman: “Well, there has been no further communication from His Grace the Archbishop, and I do not see that we can take any further steps in the matter.”
Mr. Chambers: “Not until you get a reply.”
Mr. Walker: “It may be some time before you get one now.”
Mr. Chambers: “It is not hurting us.” (Laughter.)
Mr. Walker: “Mr. Asquith will be away from home on his holidays, so it will be some time.”
Mr. Nicholson: “Yes, he is in Scotland.”
The Chairman: “We are going on alright in the meantime.”
Mr. Chambers: “It does not matter to us. We have only to comply with the law, and we have done that.”
Mr. Walker: “It matters to the public, though, when they have to go to church.”
Mr. Chambers: “It is the Archbishop’s doing, not ours.”
The Chairman: “The matter has been entirely in his hands. Shall we pass on to the next business? I do not see that we can do anything in that.”
Mr. Blyth: “Not at all.”
Mr. Walker: “The Archbishop of York does not appear to be clear as to what is law.”
Mr. Chambers: “I am sure he knows nothing at all about it.”
The Chairman: “Is that to be reported?”
Mr. Chambers: “Please yourself.”
The matter was then further adjourned.
The Clerk handed to Mr. Chambers the keys of the safe, he having been appointed the treasurer to the Board. He (the clerk) had presented the accounts to the Board up to date. If Mr. Chambers accepted the position, Mr. Hodgson would go to him for his wages.
Mr. Chambers: “Are you going to give me some money in hand to go on with?”
The Chairman: “You will find an empty box.” (Laughter.)
Proceeding, the Chairman said the next matter was to the cost of parish graves.
The Clerk said Mr. Colbeck, of Doncaster, had written for one of the cheapest graves that he could have for one of the inmates of the workhouse, and he (the clerk) was not sure as to what price the Board would wish to pay for one. He had mentioned the matter to Mr. Kilner, and he thought the best way would be to charge half the usual fees in that case, and then to have a price fixed permanently. He had therefore charged half the usual price, viz., 6s. 6d. for the grave and digging. There was nothing in the regulations on the matter, excepting that “bodies brought from the Union Workhouse will be exempt from the foregoing rules and charges.” It did not say what the charges were to be, so he had nothing to go by.
Mr. Chambers: “What is the ordinary charge?”
The Clerk: “13s.”
Mr. Holmes: “Were they people belonging to Conisborough?”
The Clerk: “I cannot say.”
Mr. Chambers said he should think the person had died in the hospital. He would ascertain.
The Clerk: “Would Mr. Colbeck have anything to do with it under the circumstances?”
Mr. Chambers: “Yes.”
The Clerk: “I thought he would not.”
Mr. Chambers: “I will ascertain what proportion is paid with regard to other cemeteries—Mexborough for instance.”
The Chairman said the next matter was the consideration of the accounts, and some were rather formidable.
An account of £5 5s. 6d. from Mr. Geo. White, of Mexborough, for tracing on cloth, of plans of cemetery, &c., was passed.
A lengthy discussion ensued as to the account of £23 10s. for wages from August 14th till October 7th.
Mr. Chambers: “Is that for the caretaker?”
The Chairman: “It is for the caretaker and his assistant for ten weeks.”
Mr. Chambers: “Are we still keeping two on?”
The Chairman: “Yes, Taylor is at the rate of a guinea per week and Hodgson at the rate of £1.”
Mr. Chambers: “Is that necessary?”
The Chairman: “That is the question for consideration. What does Mr. Nicholson, the manager, think about it?”
Mr. Nicholson: “This question was raised at the last meeting, and I said I would have the man here to appear before the Board. I think that was as to whether he would not work for less than a guinea.”
Mr. Nicholson: “Yes, it was thought it should be 18s.”
Mr. Walker: “Has Hodgson any perquisites besides the house?”
The Chairman: “I know of nothing else.”
Mr. Nicholson: “And Hodgson is finding coal for us here to-night. He has never charged or been paid anything for it.”
The Clerk: “That is his own look out.”
Mr. Holmes: “It has been decided to remunerate him for fire. It has been his own fault if he has not had it.”
Mr. Walker: “It is not likely he should find it for here. I don’t wish him to do it. We don’t want to be indebted to him for that.”
The Chairman: “The question is whether it is necessary to have a man putting in the whole of his time in addition to the caretaker.”
Mr. Nicholson: “One man could not possibly do the work. I think two men are necessary.”
The Chairman: “It is going to be a great tax on the ratepayers.”
Mr. Nicholson said there were sometimes two or three funerals together.
Mr. Chambers: “Could he not get help on those occasions?”
Mr. Walker: “What does the extra man do?”
Mr. Nicholson said the grass needed cutting.
Mr. Walker said the frost would be upon us soon, and nothing could be done in the cemetery then beyond the ordinary work of the grave digger.
Mr. Nicholson: “There is a great heap of stones to get out.”
Mr. Walker: “They are not in the way. We might safely leave them to the next generation.” (Laughter.)
Mr. Nicholson said no one man could keep the cemetery in the order that the Board expected it to be in. If there was only one man in a pit, grave he might get buried many a time. (Laughter.)
The ground fell in and had to be propped up.
Mr. Chambers said there was no need to get buried. If the caretaker needed a lesson of that sort there were plenty of people able to teach him how to secure the ground.
Mr. Holmes: “There is no necessity for that. But there are times when it is necessary regularly.”
Mr. Chambers: “But not regularly.”
Mr. Booth: “I do not see what two will find to do.”
Mr. Holmes: “Things are in a good condition now.”
Mr. Nicholson: “Yes, the new ground is nicely laid out.”
Mr. Chambers: “Winter is coming on, and there will be precious little to do in keeping the place in order. The grass won’t grow, and there will be no flowers.”
Mr. Walker: “No, there can be no gardening in winter time.”
Mr. Chambers: “Of course not.”
Mr. Holmes said it would be a good arrangement if a man could be engaged who lived near by, but the caretaker complained that it was not always a possibility.
Mr. Nicholson: “It is a difficulty to be up here.”
Mr. Chambers (to Mr. Nicholson): “Lend him your gardener when hard pushed.”
Mr. Nicholson: “My man is engaged taking barrels of beer two or three miles. I would not have him engaged there. I would not undertake that on any consideration.”
Mr. Chambers: “Indeed!”
Mr. Walker: “Well, if there is not work for two men it would be folly to employ them.”
Mr. Nicholson: “Up to the present they have been well employed, and Mr. Clarkson told you the same.”
Mr. Walker: “There was a lot of work in the laying out of the ground.”
Mr. Nicholson: “The place is a credit to the Board.”
The Chairman suggested that the caretaker should be called in and asked a few questions.
Mr. Walker thought a man at 14s. per week would do as a second man—an elderly man who could not do exactly a day’s work.
Mr. Holmes: “He would need to be able to do some work in a grave eight or nine feet deep.”
Mr. Chambers: “We keep Hodgson for that.”
Mr. Holmes: “Sometimes there are two graves at once.”
The caretaker was then called in. In answer to questions he said there were not many more funerals at Conisborough than they had at Mexborough, and there were four men engaged there—the man himself and his two sons and another man.
Mr. Walker: “Then it would cost £4 per week.”
The Caretaker: “Well, I dare say it is so.”
Mr. Holmes: “And at Mexborough there are about 2,000 more inhabitants.”
The Clerk: “Here we have 4,000 inhabitants.”
The Caretaker: “We have a lot of work now on hand.”
Mr. Nicholson: “Is it possible for you to do the work alone?”
The Caretaker: “No, it is impossible.”
The Chairman: “Could you not get assistance when required?”
The Caretaker: “I have tried that before and it is very inconvenient. And if we get an extra man we have to pay him for it—one man had to be paid 5s. a day.”
Mr. Walker: “But you went to the dearest market.”
The Caretaker: “I is much better to have a man on the place.”
Mr. Walker: “Can you find him work?”
The Caretaker: “Yes, plenty, even in frosty weather, in getting the weeds out.”
Mr. Walker was surprised to hear about weeding in frosty weather.
The Caretaker said there was also a quantity of rock to be removed; that was needed to form the walks.
The Chairman: “But we have paid for the walks.”
The Caretaker: “But the work is not finished at the top end of the cemetery.”
It was suggested that there was “a churchman” living near who might be a help to the caretaker; but that they were not “very good cousins,” and the result might be that they would be “burying one another.” (Laughter.)
The Caretaker: “We want a practical grave digger, and I don’t know where we could get one.”
The Chairman said the cemetery was going to cost £100 per annum in wages.
The Caretaker: “At Doncaster the man is paid 24s. per week. To keep the cemetery as it should be we cannot possibly do without a man.”
Mr. Walker: “No difficulty in keeping it nice with two men.”
The Caretaker: “It rests with myself that.”
He added that there had been as many as six or seven interments during some weeks since the closing of the churchyard.
The Caretaker subsequently withdrew.
Mr. Walker said there were many men working for 18s. per week.
Mr. Holmes: “Yes, but we should not take advantage of them.”
The Chairman said the assistant was getting more than the generality of labourers.
Mr. Walker: “Yes, and more than the colliers according to the statements of the men in the press.”
Mr. Holmes: “That occurs sometimes—look at the pay notes at the Nunnery, for example.”
Mr. Chambers said if the Board was to advertise for a man there would be as many as 200 applications for the post at 18s. per week.
Mr. Holmes: “That would be so now.”
Mr. Chambers: “Yes, and at any time for good strong men. At Cadeby we turn a dozen a day away.”
Mr. Walker: “Yes, we could get any number at 18s., and we have a duty to perform to the ratepayers.”
Mr. Holmes: “The ratepayers do not complain.”
Mr. Chambers: “I say they do. I complain for one.”
Mr. Holmes: “I move we continue to pay him a guinea a week.”
There was no seconder, and Mr. Holmes expressed his surprise.
The assistant was called in to be questioned by the Board. He said he could not pay the rent of the house in Conisborough and maintain his family on 18s. per week. It he could he would.
The Chairman: “Lots of people work for 18s.”
The Assistant: “I don’t know how they do it. They have a different way to me.”
The Chairman: “What can you work for?”
The Assistant: “I think if you raise me to £1 and then raise me to a guinea again in the summer.”
He subsequently withdrew.
It was seconded for the sum of 19s. per week be paid, pending further inquiries from other cemeteries.
Arrangements were requested to be made for the election of two members of the Board. The retiring members are Messrs. Kilner and Chambers.