An Alternative Axholme History - Part 11 Enter The Beefeaters
EPWORTH Market Place was the usual Saturday morning hive of activity, but the predominant scent, as always, was the reek of horse manure freshly dropped by a variety of visiting nags. The cattle sales were doing a brisk trade and the young folk were making merry on the swings and roundabouts and enjoying their pot shots at the shooting gallery. In front of the Red Lion a small crowd had gathered by the notice board and were interested to read:
'A Challenge to all the beefeaters in England. Notice is hereby given that Ten Men of Epworth will undertake to eat beef with any ten men in England for 50 a side. (Play or Pay) on Thursday next 25th day of September at Belton Fair.
The local fellows were a bit galled at the event being set up at Belton but they decided to get up a team. There were some champion beef chompers that were well known at the Red Lion and it was rumoured that the Royal Oak's mighty Jack Singleton could well nigh eat a side of beef on his own.
A team was quickly mustered but it was decided not to have any training or practice sessions as it was thought this would kill their appetites. The Epworth beef-eaters agreed to eat very lightly for a few days and fast for 24 hours before the contest.
When the big day came round there was an enormous crowd gathered round the contest eating tables on their raised platform on Belton's fair field down by the engine drain. Everyone was looking forward to a real close contest. Epworth's All England opposition certainly looked the part but as it turned out they were just no match at all for the Epworth eaters. The Axholme appetites swamped their feeble efforts and they were sated and done for before the Islemen had even worked up a good liking for the rich meat. An hour's gulping and downing saw the enemy slumped, tired and exhausted in utter defeat. In fact the Epworth lads were a bit disappointed but were glad to pick up the 50 purse. This was soon spent on another sort of refreshment, and they looked forward to the next match.
At the November hirings George Staniforth was looking for a likely boy as his main lad had got wed and moved to Lincoln. Young Jacob Gadsby was standing by and George knew he was supposed to be employed at Low Melton Farm so he says to Jacob, 'How come you left Mester Lindley, young fellow. I'm sure he was a good boss.' Jacob replied, 'Oh aye, he was, Mester Staniforth. He was alright but it was the meat that did for me. Six months ago the old horse died, so we ate him. Cedric, the tough old bull pegged out, so we ate him. Next to go was Daisy, the cow and we ate her. The Billy Goat died and we ate him. The old sow died and we ate her, and just yesterday Mester Lindley's Missis died, so I left!'
George chuckled and set Jacob on. It was a bitterly cold day and the numbers of lasses waiting for hire were well down. All the lads found living in places that day even though some of the less generous farmers were setting on for a pound less that the going rate of 9 a year.
Folk were getting heartily tired of stumbling around on the rough paving which had been laid more than 200 years back in 1745 by York Paviors. A bit of patching up had been done using stones from the old church at Wroot. New flags were put down, not just in the Market Place but a good bit beyond along the main thoroughfare.
Things looked up even more with the coming of a horse driven road sweeping machine and Thorne Workhouse sent some of its able bodied inmates to repair the main approaches to Epworth. Better still it was not long before Epworth was sharing a steam roller with its neighbouring villages.
Next week in Part 12 - 'Let There Be Light'.
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Weather for Epworth
Wednesday 08 February 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: -3 C to 1 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: -1 C to 1 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: South
