We came across an amusing story from the pages of the now (sadly) defunct Eccles and Patricroft Journal from May 1916 which shows that avoiding fares on public transport is no new thing.
The evening train from Liverpool to Manchester arrived at Eccles at 10.50pm on 10 May 1916.
As it rolled towards the platform the station guard, Mr J Humpries, opened the carriage doors on each compartment to let passengers know that they had arrived at Eccles.
The occupier of one compartment was none too pleased at being woken from his slumber.
Edward Cunnah was a colliery worker from Huyton. He was fast asleep and snoring loudly – later revealed, unsurprisingly enough, to be under the influence of alcohol.
When he was gently shaken awake and asked to present his ticket, Cunnah launched a blistering verbal attack on Mr Humpries, threatening to throw the poor guard under the train if he kept on with the questions.
True to his word the lively Liverpudlian leapt from the train and proceeded to try to escape, grabbing Mr Humpries around the throat and choking him until he was restrained by railway staff and at least two other passengers.
Cunnah was arrested and charged with assaulting a railway guard and using abusive and indecent language.
When searched the police found that his ticket was only valid from Liverpool to Huyton, the stop at which he should have got off.
He was bailed to appear at Eccles Magistrates Court, however Mr Cunnah was unable to attend but he did send a letter apologising for his behaviour, stating that he had been at a football match in Liverpool, and left Lime Street Station at 6pm, intending to alight at Huyton but had fallen asleep.
Mr Braithwaite appeared in court speaking for the London and North West Railway Company.
He stated that Mr Cunnah was a violent man, who had used the most vile and abusive language which had upset the train passengers, many of them women.
The Chairman of the Bench agreed with Mr Braithwaite and said that Mr Cunnah must have been in such a drunken condition that he didn’t know what had happened to him between the hours he said he got on the train and arriving at Eccles some four hours later.
Trains can be notoriously slow as we all know, but a train from Liverpool to Eccles takes less than a hour and even in 1916 was not a lot longer than that.
Perhaps Mr Cunnah had been drinking in Liverpool and had taken a later train than the 6pm one that he stated on his arrest?
Mr Cunnah was fined 10 shillings for using abusive language and 20 shillings for the asault, also he was ordred to pay costs for the witness and advocates.
So an expensive day out for Mr Cunnah, who hopefully didn’t drink as much the next time he used a train to take him home.
