Mexborough and Swinton Times April 1, 1938

Could Not Do Father’s Job
Six Months for Embezzlement
£106 Not Accounted For
“No Criminal Intent”

“This man was Incapable of carrying out his job,” was a solicitor’s plea when the treasurer of the Denaby Main Checkweigh Fund was charged at Doncaster West Riding Court on Tuesday with fraudulently embezzling £106 19s. 11d. He was George Chadfield, a 33 years old Denaby miner, of whom it was said, “He succeeded to his father’s shoes and has no explanation of where the money has gone to.” Chadfield was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment.’

£16 Salary.

Mr. Donald Dunn, Rotherham; prosecuting, said the defendant was appointed treasurer of the Checkweigh Fund in 1935 by election of the men at an annual salary of £16. It was his duty to receive from the Colliery Company week by week money which had been stopped from the men’s wages for the purposes of the Checkweigh fund; for this money he had to give receipts. The stoppage had been, he  believed, for some considerable time 4 ½ d. for every ton of coal drawn from the pit

In addition to receiving this the defendant also received, not in cash but in checks, the value of any mismottied coal not credited to any individual or any stall. It seemed only right to say that there was a complete check of all the money he received. The secretary and the members of the committee at all times knew what amount Chadfield had received from the Colliery Company and they also knew roughly what amount he would have in hand.

Everything appeared to have gone on all right until August last year, when the annual meeting was held. Defendant appeared with his books and cash, which seemed to be quite correct, but in producing the bank book he also produced a sum of over £70 in cash, and some astute Member of the Committee said he did not think it was right the treasurer should be carrying so much loose money about with him when the proper place for it was in the bank. Chadfield promised he would see the money was banked as and when he received it apat from what was needed for wages and small incidental payments.

Two Credit Payments.

To the consternation of the secretary of the fund, the bank manager, in January, just before the half-yearly meeting, forwarded to him the cheque passbook, and the secretary found that at the time only two payments had been made to the credit of the account with the National Provincial Bank, and strangely enough these two payments were made on July 1st and October 22nd, and represented payment into the bank- of mismottied cheques.

On January 29th a further payment was made” of £32 2s. 9d. which represented a cheque received from the Colliery which could not be negotiated in any other way than through the Bank. Chadfield was seen and it was arranged that there should be an audit. He said, “I thought I should be defeated at the election and I should lose my job, and it was better I should hand over to the new treasurer in cash than hand the cash book in.”

The audit was made and it was immediately clear that there was a deficiency of about £100. Chadfield asked for an adjournment in order that he could consider the position. He was allowed an adjournment and to assist him was granted the whole of the books. From these he prepared a statement himself, quite fairly, showing what he thought was the true position and the statement corresponded with a statement prepared by the auditors and the secretary.

General Meeting Called.

A general meeting was called and the men attended. Chadfield was asked if he had any money and said “No.” He said “I can’t for the life of me understand what I have done with it.” The deficiency worked out at roughly £4 a week.

A further meeting was called and the position was put to the men. They thought it was so serious it had better be investigated before the Justices. “It must be said to the credit of this man,” said Mr. Dunn, “that he returned the books.”

Mr. G. S. Ward, for the defendant, said Chadfield handled something in excess of £900 per half-year, and therefore his was a position of considerable responsibility and gave considerable worry and anxiety. He was going to venture to suggest that Chadfield’s position that morning was due more, to mismanagement and inability to carry the job than to any criminal intention.

Chadfield could not say where the deficiency had gone since last July, but he had given every assistance he could to the prosecution. There had been no attempt to fake anything.

Got Father’s Job.

Before this he had borne an unimpeachable record. His father held the position before him and this man was not capable of carrying out this job. He got it probably because he succeeded in his father’s shoes. He had not gambled or wasted the money in any way. He was prepared to offer 7/6 a week by way of restitution.

Mr. Mark L. Nokes, chairman of the Bench said they had listened to the solicitors’ remarks and they had done very well on behalf of the defendant. But they had to remember men had gone to prison from that Court for taking motties. If there were four checkweighmen defendant had taken all their wages for five weeks, yet he was a single man and had received his wages.