[From Manx Quarterly, #21, 1920]

Some Recollections from 1856 onward.

[By " Comeover."]

The view of Douglas Bay as seen from the deck of the steamer, is always admired by those who have an eye for the picturesque, with the mountains in the back-ground, and the town sloping downward to the shore. Castle Mona, surrounded by beautifully wooded grounds, situated in the centre, was the most prominent feature of this scene. There was an imitation fort and a moat in front, which added to the picturesque appearance of the old castle. Alas! it fell into the hands of the speculator, who cared only for £ s. d., and the most beautiful spot on the shore of Douglas Bay was destroyed. 'The trees have been cut down and tall, ugly, cement-fronted boarding-houses are built on the front of the ground, and shops are built on the site of the fort and moat; such vandalism should be condemned by all men.

What a pity that some public-spirited men did not come to the rescue, as in the case of Bidston Hill, in Cheshire; it was about to fall into the hands of the builders when a gentleman took the matter up and organised public meetings, and subscriptions were collected and half of the £30,000 required for the purchase of the Hill was subscribed; the Birkenhead Town Council gave the other half, and the Hill was saved, for the use of the public.

There have been other changes of a more beneficial character. Some fine wide streets have been made, and some of the narrow slums have been done away with. The construction of the Victoria Pier has facilitated the landing and embarking of passengers, which, when the tide is low, had to be done by small boats in the old days.

There were a good number of visitors coming to the Island in those days, but nothing like the crowds that have been coming during the last twenty years. At that time Douglas did not depend so much on visitors as it does to-day. There were a large number of independent gentlemen: residing in Douglas and vicinity, most of whom were retired Army officers. Nearly every other house in the suburbs was occupied by a gentleman with some military rank, from Captain up to General. (Somehow there were very few lieutenants!) I think most of them came to the Island to reside because the cost of living was light and there were no taxes. One of the most prominent figures amongst these retired Army men was Major Pollock, who resided at Derby Castle. He was well-known and highly respected in the town. He came to town nearly every day on a little Shetland pony. He was a tall man, and his feet were only a few inches above the ground as he rode along. He wore a long coat and a tall :hat. The people of Douglas did not notice anything odd about him, as they were used to him.

There was plenty of amusement in the. summertime. There was the Theatre Royal in Wellington-street, and the Wellington Hall with variety entertainments. At the Theatre Royal, well-known star actors appeared, such as G. V. Brooke, Walter Montgomery and others. Out of doors there were negro and other minstrels and some clever acrobats. There was also dancing on the Old Red Pier. In the winter-time the inhabitants of Douglas were not altogether without amusements. There were lectures and concerts and other entertainments; there were plenty of public houses, spirits were cheap, and there was a good deal of drinking, and the gyrations of the inebriates contributed to, the gaiety of the town. Some of the rum-drinkers were quarrelsome and disorderly, and the police had plenty of work taking them to the lock-up; those who required the greatest number of policemen to run them in were the greatest heroes in the eyes of the mob-beg. It usually required the united efforts of the whole police force of the town (six men and the chief constable) to get one of the notorious votaries of the "flowing bowl" to the lock-up.

There were same peculiar characters in town, whose sayings and doings were sometimes amusing. Gelling, the principal ironmonger in Douglas, employed smiths, plumbers, and other workmen. A man was out of work, and he asked Gelling for a job, but Gelling did not see his way to employ him. The man was annoyed, because he thought that Gelling might have found him work if he thought fit to do so. About a week after, Gelling was in his gig, driving along the North Quay and the workman was standing at Quine's Corner; just as Gelling reached the corner, he dropped his whip. Gelling, who was a very stout man, and very dignified in his manner, looked at the man and said, " Just reach me that whip, will you!" The individual thus addressed squared his shoulders against the wall and looked grimly at Gelling, and said " I don't want a job now, sir!"

There were two boarding schools for boys on the Crescent — Forester's and Steele's. There was a fire at Steele's, and it was burnt down; fortunately. the inmates were all saved, but a fireman lost his life. The school was afterwards continued on the top of Summer Hill.

Every fifth of November the boys of these schools had a fine show of fireworks, which was highly appreciated by the people of the town. One time, as the fifth of November was getting near, the High-Bailiff received a letter from Father Carr, the Catholic priest, asking him to try and atop, or at least minimise, the display of fireworks. He said there had been formed a Catholic Young men's society, and they were terrible fellows; and he was afraid he would not be able to restrain them, and the consequences might be serious. The High-Bailiff published this letter in the newspapers, and it caused a good deal of excitement, especially among young men and boys, as the fireworks display on the 5th of November was looked forward to as one of the great events of the year. So one evening a crowd gathered in the Market Place, and paraded the streets singing a new version of the " Protestant Boys." When they arrived opposite the old Catholic Church at the corner of Prospect Hill and Athol-street (the new Church was then in course of construction), there was a pause. A lot of macadam stones had been spread on Prospect Hill; someone throw a stone at the window, then there was a volley, and every pane in the windows on the Prospect Hill side of the church was riddled. Then as if by magic, a gentleman wearing a tall silk hat appeared on the steps of the grocer's shop at the bottom of Prospect Hill and commenced reading a paper (which I afterwards learned was the Riot Act). It was Mr Senhouse Wilson, the High-Bailiff. Then the police, under the command of Chief Constable Sayle, came running down Prospect Hill. They knocked their sticks on the ground and shouted, " Go home!" The crowd dispersed like smoke, and there was no one arrested. I don't know who paid for the windows. The High-Bailiff fell in for a good deal of ridicule for his unnecessary reading of the Riot Act.

" COMEOVER."