Mexborough & Swinton Times – Friday 16 January 1880

Notes by Mexburgius

Caviare! An argus critic’s here.

The paragraph in last week’s “Times” relative to the narrow escape from drowning of a Denaby labourer on his proceeding to the ferry boat which conveys passengers across the river Don to Mexboro’, brought to my mind the accident which terminated fatally to one of a party of three persons who, on a foggy night some time ago, fell headlong, one after the other, from the bridge which crosses the canal, whilst they were walking in the direction of the boat in question. The cause of this sad calamity was that the bridge was merely a number of planks fastened together, with nothing at the two sides to prevent anyone from tumbling over.

There was soon heard “a hue and cry,” and what ought to have been done long before was then effected—the edges were railed off, so as to avoid a similar catastrophe. It appears that our Highway Authority generally require something startling to happen before they can open their eyes to the glaring requirements of the neighbourhood. And this is no fancy, but a reality to a great extent. Many of the unfortunate accidents which have occurred no doubt would have been averted had there been a requisite amount of artificial light at night, and the practical supervision of all places where danger exists. And I am afraid that unless our Surveyor has instructions to view the approaches to this ferry boat, and to do what is deemed necessary, we shall one of these days have the intelligence brought to us that some unfortunate creature has fallen into the river and found a watery grave.

The approach to the boat-house from the Ferry Boat Inn is not only a lonely but a dangerous one on a dark night, and considering the great number of persons who go down this lane to the boat—it being by far the shortest and quickest route to Denaby—it should have a lamp or two in it, so that one can see where he is going, and not be startled by running his head into a wall—or perhaps, more dangerous, taking a “header” into the water. There should also be a lamp at each side of the Don, where the passengers are conveyed across, and the landing-place should, I think, be railed off, or in some way made so as to avoid a mishap. It would be a very simple thing for any of our miners, when a bit top-heavy, to step too far, or lose their equilibrium, and be precipitated below, and if such a thing were to occur on a Friday night, when there is such a rush of water, such an one would be carried over the weir, and his spirit would unquestionably depart into another world ere he could be placed on dry land again.

Well, I mention these conjectures for what they are worth, and unless heeded they may prove as true as the prophecy of the Scotchman who, when the Tay Bridge was proposed to be constructed, foretold that a train passing over that network of iron, on a day with such a gale as that which has recently been experienced, would be swept, along with its occupants, into the foaming depths beneath.