Human Tragedy

Miser who Starved

An Old Denaby Eccentric

End of a Strage Life
One of the most remarkable tragedies that have arisen in this district of late years is that of the death from starvation and exposure of George Wilfred Lee, aged 59, a vagrant, of no fixed abode, but generally resident in Old Denaby, where he and his family have lived for generations. Lee was found by his nephew lying in Denaby Wood, in a weak and famished condition on Thursday, August 5th, and taken to the nephews home, where he received every care and attention, but his constitution had been broken up by the years of hardship which he had voluntarily exposed himself, and he sank and died a week later.

A Remarkable Career.
The remarkable feature of the case was this strange old man was in comparatively comfortable circumstances. He had a nest egg somewhere, probably in a local bank, variously estimated at between £300 and £600. There is reason to believe that he was worth not less than £400. The last few years of his life he led an uncouth and unlovely existence. In earlier yearshe was known as a steady and industrious young man, albeit reserved and “near” as to money matters. He resembled his father in several respects. His father broughtup afairly large family upon an agricultural labourers wage, and saved in addition, a modest fortune of several hundred pounds.

Tradition says that George Wilfred was the favourite son, and that there was a disposition on the part of old Lee to leave his savings entirely to him. He died, however without making a will, when George Wilfred had to be content with a share.

This disappointment seems to have soured the man, and changed hiswhole character, or at any rate to develop the eccentricity that was latent in him. After a brief drinking bout, he settled into miserly habits.

He neglected his person and gradually lost touch with civilisation. He had the choice of one or two comfortable homes with his relatives, buthe behaved badly and quarrelled with them. He was originally in farm service, and later worked for some years as a plate layer on the railway. It was during this time that he amassed his “nest egg.”

Ultimately, this “kink” took complete possession of him, and eating nothing but roaming around the countryside, sleeping in hedge bottoms, barns, on railway embankments, in outhouses and more than often in the woods.

He must originally have possessed an iron constitution, forhe ledthis rough vagrant life for some 10 years. In timehe became indescribably dirty, but he seemed to be oblivious of that as well as of every other detail of his condition.

His natural reserve developed into profound taciturnity, and he was never known to initiate a conversation. He came and went as listed, and in time the village ceased to take any interest in his doings. He did not often beg, for he lacked the effrontery to do so.

Often, however, he sheltered in farm buildings, and helped himself to the boiling maize that the farmers of the village prepared for their pigs. Boiled maize is really quite a palatable food, and Lee showed a pronounced partiality for it. He seemed to know by instinct when the farmers were getting the pig food ready.

Wintered in the Workhouse
Up to some three years ago Lee lived out of doors all the year round, but about three winters back he got a fright. He went to sleep on a bitter January night under the signal box east of Mexborough station. He was discovered in an almost dying condition, and it was with difficulty that the police and railwaymen who went to his assistance could thaw him into life again. They took him to the workhouse infirmary at Doncaster, and its treatment. That seemed to have made an impression on him, for every winter after that he would repair voluntary early to the workouts and ride out the bad weather, returning to his old haunts in the spring.

He was a familiar figure in the streets of Mexborough, and often as he sat in his filth and rags he was regarded with distinct disfavour by the passers-by. It would be an exaggeration even of his freakish parsimony to say that he never paid anything during this long period of vagrancy for the means of existence, but he certainly never willingly paid anything, andhe could support life at an amazing minimum of cost.

His life was sad and tragic, calling for pity rather than condemnation, although he was sane in the broad and general sense, he was possessed by meanness and miserliness, and to that extent was not a free agent. He lived and died most miserably. In his last hours, however, he was surrounded by comfort and the personal ministrations of his own kith and kin, whose advances and whose proffered hospitality he had formally rejected.

The Inquest
The inquest was held by Mr Montague Nicholson, at the Reresby Arms, Denaby main, on Friday. Mr W Robinson, of old Denaby, was foreman of the jury.

George Henry Lee, of Old Denaby, identified the body as that of his uncle, whom he found lying in Denaby Wood, on 5 August. He raised the old man up, and took him to his (witnesses) home, where he washed him and gave him some tea and brandy. Deceased was a little better on Saturday, and was able to take some bread and butter, but on Sunday, he was worse, and on Monday, Dr J.Gardner, of Mexborough, saw him, and gave instructions about his treatment, which witness obeyed . Deceased had been living a vagrant life for some years, and had been sleeping out. He could have had a good home if he had wanted. He was very “funny”. He had the means to live more comfortably.

Dr Garner said he called to see deceased on Monday. He had previously been called to diseased, on one occasion in an out house, where he had fallen ill. On Monday he found him in a very weak condition, and he was also filthy. He was apparently suffering from lack of nourishment and exposure to the weather. He advised his nephew to give deceased plenty of food and to keep him thoroughly clean. He believes that that was done. He also believed that the deceased could have had a goodhome if he would have consented to be clean.

Mr W.H.Ayres (relieving officer) Was the man mentally balanced?
” I never saw him in a condition from which I was able to judge. On the two occasions upon which I saw him he was in too physically weak a condition to enable me to form an estimate of his mental soundness. He had, of course, a grave “kink” or he would not have been living that kind of life.”

“Was it sufficiently strong to justify you then certifying him insane? ”
“Oh no, certainly not.”

The foreman: “He was not insane; he was too mean to part with money. He has always lived the life of a miser.

A verdict of death from starvation and lack of nourishment was given.