In 1916 the local papers were full of war-time exploits, but this sorry tale hits a little closer to home.
Salford itself may be a city tainted by the shadow of deprivation, but sometimes it takes a look to the no-so-distant past to tell us how far we’ve come as a society.
One case in particular highlights the horrific condition that some children were living in 100 years ago in Salford.
Mother of four, 47-year-old Florence Cox was hauled before Salford Magistrates Court charged with neglecting her children “in a way as to cause them unnecessary suffering”.
Mrs Cox lived with her children in two rooms in the abode at Bury Street in Salford.
The court heard that as her husband was fighting abroad for his country she received 25 shillings a week from the army, while her eldest son brought in six shillings a week.
The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children was a remarkably forward-thinking organisation, having been founded in 1884.
One of their Inspectors, Mr Rivers, visited the Cox household on 1 February 1916 and was shocked at what he found in their squalid dwelling.
He found three young child shivering in “filthy and disgraceful” bedding as there was no fire in the room to keep out the winter cold.
On turning down the bedclothes he found that the three children were found to be swarming with lice and vermin.
The bed was saturated with urine which was running onto the floor and was giving off a terrible smell.
The children’s only clothes were the rags that they were wearing; they were also in bare feet as it turned out that they had pawned their clogs for money to buy food.
They were poorly nourished, one being very weak and the youngest “almost a skeleton with bones protruding through the skin”.
He attempted to feed the youngest children with warm milk from a spoon but they had difficulty in swallowing it, the other two drank the milk ravenously.
A doctor was summoned immeidiately and said that the youngest child was “almost at death’s door” and was suffering from bronchitis.
He ordered that the two youngest were rushed to Hope Hospital on Eccles Old Road for emergency treatment. The older boy and girl were put in care of the workhouse, where they would no doubt be much better treated despite its harsh regime.
Florence Cox had gone out of the house at 8am and did not return until 5pm, when she was arrested for being drunk and disorderly.
When charged she said, “The ——– cruelty man is after me, but I will give him a good run for his money.”
Inspector Rivers then gave the court more harrowing details of the living conditions and the shocking health of the young children who had the misfortune to live there.
He said that the children were poorly nourished and riddled with vermin, whilst the youngest child was described as being like a skeleton with his arms “more like a monkeys than anything else”.
Dr W Carson gave evidence and told the court that they children were barely alive and he would be surprised if the youngest managed to survive, such was his state of ill health.
The two rooms in which they were living were described as being filthy with rags on the floor, the only furniture was a table and a mattress that was so rotten that it burst when sat upon.
Police Constable Latham also gave evidence and said that he had been called to the house on several occasions and that it was “one of the most sickening sights that he had ever seen”.
A neighbour, Ms Emily Powell, also gave evidence against Florence Cox saying that she had known her for nine months and the only time she had seen her sober was when she had no money.
She was also in the habit of leaving the children in the house for days on end despite knowing that they were ill and needed medical attention.
The Stpendary Magistrate said that sadly he was limited to giving her six months imprisonmemt with hard labour and this is what she received.
Her two eldest children were taken into the care of the Salford Workhouse whilst the other two remained in Hope Hospital in an effort to save their young lives.
It does beggar belief that a mother could neglect her young children in such a dreadful way and almost let them starve to death whilst she went out drinking, sadly this was happening in many houses in Salford, such was the poverty and deprivation at the time, but Florence Cox surely deserved a harsher sentence than she received from the Magistrate.
