Dangerous Trick – Youths Jump From Cadeby Pit Cage

June 1940

Mexborough & Swinton Times, June 15

Dangerous Trick

Youths Jump From Cadeby Pit Cage

The stupid behaviours of six pit lads at Cadeby Colliery, who jumped off the cage as it was starting to descend was described at Doncaster on Saturday, when they were summoned for a breach of the Mines Act by refusing to obey the instructions of a banksman. They were fined £3 each to be paid at 10s. a week. Defendants were George H. Nettleship, Conisborough: Jim Gillott, Mexborough: Charles Liversidge, High Melton: Fred Hutton, Stanley Whittaker and David Houghton, all of Denaby Main

Mr. A. S. Furniss, who prosecuted, said riding time on the afternoon shift finished at 2.15, and habitually those lads had been hanging about the pityard and waiting for the last draw before being ushered on the cage. For 20 minutes a watchman had been asking them to go on the cage. When they got to the cage they refused to obey the orders given by the banksman. At the last moment, when the banksman was on the point of rapping the cage off, they dived off the cage. But for extraordinary luck one or more might have been killed. They refused to ride, and they said they would not work that afternoon. They were taken to the under-manager´s office and given the opportunity of paying a fine. They adopted the attitude that the man was the assistant banksman and had no right to give orders. “The absenteeism of these lads”, said Mr. Furniss “is pretty appalling. Houghton and Nettleship had been absent four times out of nine since this occasion, with no excuse whatever”

Joseph Grainger, a watchman, said it was his duty to get the lads to the cage. He had been trying to get the defendants on the cage for 20 minutes when they rushed off it

Frederick Richard Pitt-Pladdy, assistant banksman said the lads put themselves in a dangerous position by jumping off the cage. They had to be driven from the pit hill to the cage

Mr Furness Is that a regular proceeding? – on the afternoon shift,

The Chairman (Mr. Mark Nokes) said all were pulling their weight, except the defendants, who had got to work like anybody else. They might have been cut to pieces and the Bench had to put a stop to such practices

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