South Yorkshire Times, November 10th 1933

Benefit Of Doubt

Two men summoned at Doncaster on Saturday for having stolen 3s. worth of coal from Manvers Main Colliery successfully defended themselves, and the case was dismissed.

They were Harry Taylor, miner, Frederick Street, Mexborough, and Frank Walton. miner, Wath Road Swinton.

Ernest Millington, watchman at the colliery, of Adwick-on-Dearne, said that at 10 p.m. on September 29th, he was in a motor car on a road between Bolton and Adwick, and saw the two defendants coming from the colliery sidings, with a box on two wheels in which were three bars of coal.

Defendants denied that they had been to Manvers and said they had taken the coal from Wath Main, where coal picking was allowed.

The magistrates, expressing the opinion that there was a doubt where the coal Came from, dismissed the summonses.