Miner and Apple theft- Home Secretary intervenes

From Dover Express and East Kent News, Friday 23 August, 1929

THE AYLESHAM MINER AND APPLE THEFT SENTENCE

Last week at the Dover County Petty Sessions, before the following magistrates, Lord FitzWalter (Chairman), Sir Robert McCall, K.C., Cavanaugh, Messrs C.J. Burgess, H.J. May, A.T. Goodfellow, E. Bradley, Troward Harvey, H. Mackeson, E. Hinds and Miss Bomford., a miner of Aylesham, named Arthur Kinley was sentenced to 14 days imprisonment for stealing a quantity of growing apples from an orchard at Ratling Court, Nonington; on August 11th. The evidence was that at 9pm the man and three others were stealing apples in the orchard of Ratling Court. Mr. A.T. Steed caught the man and the three others ran away. It was stated that nothing was known against the defendant, who had been in the district three weeks, but the farmers in the district had suffered considerable loss by theft and other willful damage. The sentence was at once the subject of considerable criticism in the London Press, and Lord FitzWalter was singled out as the magistrate who was responsible. It will be seen that the bench consisted of magistrates who are well known Liberals, and Mr. Good fellow, a Dover Labor leader. Whether the sentence was unanimous whether the sentence was unanimous, or as the result of a vote was not known, but it is obvious that the matter is one dealt with collectively and not by one individual. There is no question that a sentence of imprisonment is not passed in these days for the first conviction for such a theft unless there are some special circumstances. The statement of the police that the farmers in the district were suffering continuous loss by theft and willful damage disclosed the position of affairs that is occurring around the mining village of Aylesham. So serious have matters become that farmers armed with shot-guns have been protecting their crops in the neighbourhood, and one of these, whilst watching a potato field , was killed by the accidental discharge of his gun. That there has grown up a feeling of hostility between the miners and the surrounding agriculturalists is undoubted. The latter, from a financial point of view, are in a good deal worse position then the miners. Mr. Elks, the miners’ agent, in a statement to the press, said that if the farmers had to sit up all night to protect their crops it looks as if the miners were not getting enough to keep them. Miners are, however, paid much higher wages then the surrounding agriculturalists.

On Sunday, the Snowdon branch of the Kent Mineworkers Association. held a meeting at which Mr. .F. Turner presided and the following resolution was passed:” That this meeting of the K.M.W.A. emphatically protest against the savage sentence imposed on Arthur Kinley by the county magistrates at Dover on Thursday. We consider the sentence is out of proportion to the offence committed and further declare that in our opinion the magistrates were actuated by prejudice and spite against Kinley simply because he is a miner.” Mr. Lowther, the secretary of the branch, has stated that this sentence, following on that of two months against Owen for striking a deputy, convinced hem there is a magisterial prejudice against the miner.

In the case referred to, of Owen, he was stood off by a deputy of Snowdon Colliery, Mr. H. Allcock, as he refused to work in the stall allotted to him. As Mr. Allcock was going home, he was waylaid by Owen, who knocked Mr. Allcock down with a blow on the nose, which bled for many hours, and then struck him on the face and chest whilst on the ground. The case was nut brought by the police, but by the assaulted deputy, for whom the solicitor who represents the colliery mine company appeared.

The Kent Mine Workers’ Association approached Mr. Cook, the Secretary of the Miners’ Federation, on the matter and he was in communication with Mr. Clynes, the Home Secretary. On Monday, Kinley, who was at Maidston Prison, was released and sent back to Aylesham by the prison Authorities, In an interview Kinley said that he and a pal took the apples for a joke and that when he heard the sentence he was so astonished that he could not defend himself. It might be pointed out that in all police court proceedings the defence is heard before the sentence, and this was the case at the court of Dover last Thursday,

In connection with the raid on this particular farm there was a previous charge before the county Magistrates against three miners for a similar robbery. The men were given a severe caution and told if the offence again took place imprisonment of whoever was caught would follow.