A suspicious death with a
hint of murder at Furness Vale in 1879.
The
circumstances of the untimely death of James Sparham,Gnat Hole, Bugsworth
employed by Matthew Hall licensee of the Navigation Inn at Bugsworth was never
satisfactorily explained. Sparham had worked for a number of years as the
captain of Hall's narrowboat plying gritstone from Crist Quarry, Bugworth and
limestone from Dove Holes over the Pennines to Huddersfield. The saga was
reported in the High Peak News of the 8th August and 16th
August 1879.
Keith Holford August 2017
Report in the High Peak News, August 19th
1879
A
canal boat laden with stone, left Bugsworth Basin on Wednesday afternoon for
Huddersfield, there were three men engaged for the trip, viz. James Sparham the
captain, James Bennett, and a young man whose name we have not been able to
ascertain. Sparham is a middle-aged man who has been in the employ of Matthew
Hall, licensee of the Navigation Inn, Bugsworth for some 30 years.
The
boat arrived at Furness Vale on Wednesday afternoon, when the three men appear
to have gone to a publichouse where they remained until late in the evening.
The first to leave were Sparham and the young man, Bennett following on later, found the boat swinging in the middle
of the canal, so he was unable to get aboard. He made his way to another boat
where he slept all night.
On
getting up early next morning, Bennett went, about half past seven, to his own
boat and going into the cabin, he found old man Sparham dead. The young man who
left with Sparham the previous night was seen on the Thursday morning, at about
half past five making his way from Sparham's narrowboat. The night before it
appears that this young man bought 6d worth of laudanum (a derivative of
opium). This circumstance, coupled with his disappearance has caused suspicion
against the young man.
 |
| The canal bridge in Furness Vale before it was rebuilt in 1925. The adjacent building was the Traveller's Call beerhouse (often known as the Jolly Sailor) which closed in 1908 |
Report of the Inquest, High Peak News, August
16th 1879.
On
Friday evening last an inquest was held before Mr. Lake, deputy -coroner, at
the house of Samuel Hall, Station Hotel, Furness Vale, on the body of James
Sparham, who came to his death in
mysterious circumstances, as
mentioned last week.
The
first witness called was Ann Sparham of Stalybridge, who said: “ I am a single
woman, I work as a weaver at Mr. John Leach's. The deceased is my father,his
name is Sparham. He is a widower of 56 years of age, he has worked most of his
life as a boatman. He lived at Gnat Hole, Bugsworth when he was at home. He
worked for Matthew Hall, who keeps the Navigation Inn, Bugsworth. I last saw my
father alive about eight or nine weeks ago. I saw him at Stalybridge. He was in
his usual state of health, he was not a healthy man; he suffered from a very
bad cough, indeed he was ill plagued with asthma. The only thing he used to a
take for it was “cough mixture” not laudanum when I was with him. He was in the
habit of getting cough mixture from a
druggist's shop in Bugsworth. I have seen him fetch it.. He used to take
half a spoonful in a glass of water. He had liked to be chocked (choked ?) with
it a time or two. known as “Old Hod”his
real name is John Clayton who worked with him at one time. The last time I saw
my father was here dead at the Station Inn, Furness Vale.
Matthew
Hall, Bugsworth said I am a carrier of lime and coal, the deceased worked for
me as a boatman. I last saw him alive
on Wednesday at Bugsworth. He left Bugsworth between twelve and one o'clock in
charge of a boat, which was full of lime. He was the captain and he had two other men with him, who I knew by sight
but not by name. I employed them to go to Huddersfield with a load of lime. I
have known the deceased for some 20 years. He was in the usual health when he
left last Wednesday; he suffered from asthma very badly at times. He was
not a man who drank regularly; he used to take rum sometimes for his ailment. He
was a steady man as a rule; I have seen him drunk but not for 2 months at
least. I saw the deceased again on Thursday. He was dead.
The
foreman. Before he set away from Bugsworth on Wednesday did he say anything
about being indisposed. Witness. He did not. He had 4s 9d in his pocket when he
left Bugsworth;it was to pay for stabling and wages. The Coroner : What money
was found on him? P.C. Bainbridge.* 11 pence and a half.
James
Bennett,of Fairfield, Manchester, said: I am a boatman, and a I live in the
boat. I started for Matthew Hall on Monday.. I have no settled address. I left
Bugsworth on Wednesday last between 12
and 1 o'clock with the deceased and a young man I cannot tell you, he was a
stranger to me. I do not know him. The first stopping place was Furness Vale
and we got to Furness Vale about two o'clock.
The
Coroner: You stopped then. Bennett: The
deceased did not complain about anything. We all three got out of the boat and
went to the Traveller's Call,* where we each had a glass of beer. The three of us stopped drinking all
afternoon at the public-house until half past seven o'clock. At that time I took the deceased to the boat
and on board, because I did not think that he could get there safely by
himself. He was drunk so I took him into the cabin and left him with the other
man and him in the cabin. The deceased
was leaning with his hands on the table, when I left him. I went to the
beer-house again, and when came back again to the boat about 10 0'clock at
night, I could not get on board due to
the boat swinging in the middle of the canal. I was drunk, but I could manage
to walk. The boat was quite loose,not fastened at all. The wind was carrying
the boat towards Bugsworth again. Somebody must have loosed the boat. I slept on another boat which was
close by. I went on board my own boat about nine o'clock on Thursday morning. I went into the cabin and I found
the deceased on the cabin floor, kneeling in the place where I had left him.
His head was resting on the place where he was sitting when I had left him the
previous evening. He was dead (cold) and alone. I did not notice any medicine
bottles about. The man did not seem to have a cold, but he had “bad bouts”ever
now and then. He did not ask me to fetch anything. I don't know why the other
man went away. I have known Sparham for 2 years, but not to work with him. He
used to have a bad cough which sometimes troubled him. He had nothing to drink,
only beer, perhaps half a dozen glasses or more. I put him in the cabin about
half past seven.
Foreman:
What age is the young man ?
Witness:
I am not sure. I cannot tell . He looked about 18.
The
Coroner: Were they on good terms /
Witness:
Yes.
The
Coroner: Who paid for the drinks ?
Witness:
The young man and myself.
The
Coroner : Did the deceased pay ?
Witness
: One glass for me another for the
youth.
The
Coroner: Had he any money, did he show any ?
Witness:
No he did not. He did not spend any money before we got there. He did not give
me any money on account. I had money which I got in Manchester. I was not that
drunk that I did not know what I was doing.
The
Coroner: Do you mean to say that you paid for all the drink ?
Witness:
Yes, the deceased only paid once. I never saw any money that the deceased had.
The
Coroner:Then he was having his share at small cost. Did he ask for it ?
Witness:
No, he kept having another glass when we paid for one. I only saw him pay three
halfpence
the whole time.
The
Foreman: Were you the first that found him dead ?
Witness:
Yes. Directly I saw him I shouted to a man ( R. Ratcliffe ) in another boat
which was passing. He promised to send a policeman and P. C. Bainbridge came soon afterwards. I never heard any
threats in he public-house. There was no quarrelling amongst us.
After
some evidence given by P.C. Bainbridge, which the Coroner instructed the
reporters not to publish, the jurors conferred together and on the
recommendation of the latter the inquest was adjourned for the purpose of
having post-mortem, and for the appearance of the young man who was left on
board with the deceased and who has not been seen since half-past five o'clock
on last Thursday morning by a man coming away from the canal where the boat was
placed. It was decided that Dr. Allen should make the post-mortem examination
and P. C. Bainbridge was instructed to bring forward what witnesses were
necessary to elucidate the matter.
The Adjourned
Inquest.
The
adjourned inquest was held at the Station Hotel, Furness Vale, on Thursday
evening. A chemist named Cheetham, residing in Furness Vale, gave evidence that
on August 6th , between 4 and 5 o'clock, he sold half-an-ounce of
laudanum to a young man who was connected with a boat. The young man's name is Wood, and he belongs to
Staffordshire. That quantity would not kill a
strong healthy man.
Dr.
Allan said he made a post-mortem examination of the body of the deceased. There
were no marks of violence on the body, nor nothing to indicate that the man had
come to his death except by natural causes, or by excessive drinking. The pupils of his eyes were neither dilated or contracted. He placed the stomach
and its contents in a sealed jar and
sent them to Dr. Raynor at Stockport.
Dr. Raynor said there was no laudanum, or traces of laudanum or other poison in
the stomach to cause death.
The jury on
hearing this evidence, came to the conclusion that there was no
necessity after hearing the evidence tom pursue the inquiry further and at once brought in a verdict” that the death was
caused by natural causes.”
The
Coroner : said that in case the young man, who has disappeared was apprehended
by the police, they could bring the man before the magistrates and get a
dismissal.
Traveller
Call. A publichouse along the Peak Forest Canal
**
There appears to be no explanation or further questioning as to where or
how the 4s 9d was according depleted to
11 and halfpence according to the evidence given of P. C. Bainbridge.
