An unusual court case, the first of its kind in the district, was heard in September 1915 when a collier named William Taylor appeared charged with unlawfully concealing deserting soldiers.
The Manchester Police County Court heard that two officers, PC Charnley and PC Gibson, made a surprise visit to Taylor’s house on Dawson Street, Pendlebury, at 2.30am on 30 September.
Taylor denied the accusation when he opened the door to the police, but was undone by a soldier’s cap spotted on a chair in his kitchen.
Private Richard Davies was discovered – still in full uniform – hiding in a coal shelter underneath Taylor’s stairs.
While the officers continued their search they heard a noise coming from upstairs, then Private Simmons dropped into the back yard and ran off.
Army Orders stated that if a person harboured an army deserter they were liable to six months imprisonment with or without hard labour.
In court Mr Taylor explained that he did not know that there were any soldiers in his house.
He claimed that his front door had been forced open with a poker and if he had known he would have thrown the two men out.
It emerged in court that Taylor had two sons serving in the same regiment as the two absentee soldiers, who were based at Conway, North Wales.
A further investigation revealed boot marks on the outside wall of the house where Private Simmons had shinned down the wall and made good his escape.
Mr Taylor continued to protest his innocence stating that this was the first time he had ever appeared in a court of law in his life.
His wife confirmed that the house was locked and bolted when they went to bed that evening and furthermore the two soldiers were unknown to them and it was a complete mystery.
The Stipendary, Mr J.M. Yates, said that it was a very serious thing to harbour deserters and the Bench had no doubt that Mr Taylor had done this.
He then added that if it wasn’t for the Summary Jurisdiction Act – an legal act which enabled a Magistrate to judge contempt of court without the intervention of a jury – then he would have sent him to prison.
The Stipendary had obviously weighed up the pros and cons of this case and fined Mr Taylor the sum of 20 shillings.
Reading between the lines I think that Mr Taylor’s two sons could have given the two deserters their home address and advised them to lie low there.
Otherwise how would these two strangers to Pendlebury be able to find the house and enter unseen?
Throughout the First World War only 266 British Army soldiers were executed for desertion, but such were the numbers required to carry out operations in Europe it was far more likely they would be returned to fighting – and almost certain death.
The Shot At Dawn Memorial in Staffordshire memorialises the servicemen executed by firing squad.
In 2006 the Ministry of Defence announced it would give posthumous pardons to those who were shot for ‘cowardice’.
Today, it has been recognised that not even the most seasoned serviceman was prepared for the scale of carnage that unfolded before him.
Most facing the charge of desertion were underage and suffering from shell shock, or post-traumatic stress disorder as it is more commonly known.
It is not recorded what fate Davies and Simmons faced. No doubt they would have been harshly punished by the Army authorities and packed off to the Western Front to await their fate.
