Marple and the Chartists 12 and Epilogue

Prestwich, Lancashire

April, 1884

Joseph was so pleased to have me home again and eager to hear how it had all gone.

“I got the train as planned, and was met by Mr. Grainger, a young man who had not been there when I was, so of course we did not know each other. But he was very pleasant company and chatted to me during the forty-five minute drive to the Hall.

“The Hall itself looked much the same, a bit lacking in attention perhaps, but now that John is taking over, I expect that will be put right. Being an invited guest, I rang the front door bell, and a maid answered the door. (Front hallway pictured above.)

“I am Mrs. Eliza Taylor and I believe Mrs. Isherwood is expecting me.”

“Yes, she is, Mrs.Taylor. Please come this way.”

She led me into the front parlour, where this drama had started all those years ago. This was where I had cleaned and polished so often in years gone by. Mrs. Isherwood was looking her age, about 63, I thought, but, of course, I must look my age of 50 too. “Thank you, Mary,” she said to the parlour maid. We recognised each other, and although at first Mrs. Isherwood put her hand out to shake mine, she then thought better of it, and crushed me in an enormous hug.

“I trust you had a good trip.”

“Yes, thank you, Ma’am. Thank you for sending Mr. Grainger to meet me off the train in Stockport. It has been such a long time since I came to these parts, but it was ever so nice to arrive in style.”

“You must be wondering, Eliza, why I sent for you.”

“Yes, Mrs. Isherwood. I must admit I am very curious as to why my name should suddenly have come to you.”

“Well, it might surprise you to know that I have thought of you frequently over the years, as I have of this man, who you may or may not remember.”

I looked at the dark handsome man. There was something vaguely familiar about him, but I couldn’t for the life of me remember where I had met him before.

“This is Johnny Robinson.” 

Johnny stepped forward to shake my hand. “I believe we have had a few words in the past, Eliza, and a few notes have passed between us. In fact I think that I made a promise to you that we would meet again.”

I sat back and smiled. So this was Johnny Robinson, that we had worried so over. He certainly looked as if life had been kind to him - despite our best efforts. Mrs. Isherwood asked me to sit down. As soon as we were both seated, Johnny sat too.

“So tell us both Johnny, the story of what happened to you after being sent to Australia.”

“Well, as you might remember I was charged with 'sedition' and 'compassing or devising to levy war against the Queen' which as you know was making much more of it than it was. But it does make me sound important. I was sentenced to transportation for seven years and sailed for Australia on the Adelaide, arriving at Hobart on 29 November 1843. There were nine English Chartists transported at the same time as me and they also were on the Adelaide. When we got there we were immediately granted tickets of leave allowing us to seek paid work subject to certain police checks on our activities, and all of us were pardoned seven years later in December 1850.

“As you know it was not long after this that the gold rush started in Australia, and since I had been a miner in England, it was an easy shift of employment for me to take up my pick and hunt for gold instead of coal. Edward Hargraves, an Australian immigrant from England, had already (unsuccessfully) tried his luck in the California gold rush and spent his last dollars on a passage back to Sydney. He was familiar with the terrain west of the Blue Mountains not far from Sydney and became struck by the similarity of its quartz outcrops and gullies with those he had seen in the Californian goldfields.

“In February 1851 I joined Hargraves when he took his pan and rocking-cradle and with his guide, John Lister, and set out on horseback to Lewes Pond Creek, a tributary of the Macquarie River close to Bathurst. He said that once in the creek bed he somehow felt surrounded by gold. So we scratched in the gravel with our picks and shovels and filled and washed several pans, a number of which did indeed produce gold. We went our separate ways, each setting out our own claims, but it was very rich pickings for both of us.

“Word spread quickly and within a few days 100 diggers were frantically tunnelling for instant wealth. The road over the Blue Mountains from Sydney became choked with men from all walks of life, carrying tents, blankets, and rudimentary mining equipment hastily bought at inflated prices. By June there were over 2000 people digging at Bathurst, and thousands more were on their way.

“Edward Hargraves named the Bathurst goldfield Ophir and was paid £15,000 by the governments of New South Wales and Victoria, and later he was appointed Crown Land Commisioner for New South Wales.

 “And as well as that, I kept up my belief in my Chartist principals. I became a leader of the Australian group of Chartists and I am very proud to say that we have made an enormous impact on the governance of Australia. We now have voting for all men, and voting for women will follow not many years from now, I am sure. We have won the right for the ballot for voting to be private and secluded - so no one else has the right to know who you voted for. I am surprised that England is so far behind us in this regard.

“I’m happy to say that as well as doing well financially due to my success in the gold fields, and my success in the political arena, I am also happily married with children of my own. And I owe it all to you women. If you hadn’t given the constable my name, Mrs. Isherwood - and if you, Eliza hadn’t originally given Mrs. Isherwood my name, I would probably still be digging coal in Ludworth Moor. But you forced my fate on me - and as a result I owe you a debt of gratitude. Also, I know, Mrs. Isherwood that you did the best you could for me when I was in prison in Chester - paying for me to have special treatment. I didn’t say thank you for it at the time because I was so angry that it was because of you that I was there in the first place. And you, Eliza. I’m sure you got my note saying that 'I will get you.' I expect you had many sleepless nights before you found out that I had been found guilty and sent out of the country. But now that I am back, I wanted to say that I have something for you. I have brought you this necklace, made out of Australian gold - with a natural pearl from the South Pacific. I understand that it was because of wanting to wear your sister’s necklace which I gave her way back then, that you became embroiled in all of this. I can tell you that this necklace I am giving you now is worth a hundred of those I gave her.

“Mrs. Isherwood I know that you have more money than you need, and more jewellery too. I wanted to give you something that would help you remember me, and also keep as a thank you for your contribution, albeit it unwilling, to the Chartist cause. I would like you to have this book I have written, and as you will see, I have dedicated it to you.”

Johnny opened the front page of a large hard-covered book called “The History of Chartism” by J. Robinson, and showed her on the inside page where it said, “I dedicate this book to a wonderful woman, Mrs. Mary Ellen Isherwood, who helped our cause.”

Mrs. Isherwood was very touched. “Thank you Johnny and I am so pleased that you turned out so well. I must say that your advent into my life made for one of my exciting adventures that I have lived through. I am pleased that in some way I have helped you and your cause, which I always felt - and Eliza kept telling me - had very worthwhile motives, although your methods were sometimes somewhat suspect.”

“So now Eliza. Tell us about your family.”

“Well, my sister Elizabeth died about eight years ago. She was married, and she had one child who she called Annie. Annie was brought up by my parents. When my father died, Mamma moved onto the farm with my brother Joseph who has a house, Rhode House, and farms 19 acres in Hawk Green, but Mamma died in 1872. I will be going out to visit them after we finish here. Joseph is married and he and his wife have no children of their own, but are bringing up and supporting two nephews and a niece. Elizabeth’s daughter got married a few years ago so she doesn’t live with them anymore.”

“And you yourself - do you have family?”

“Me and my husband Joseph have five children, two working now.

“And so Mrs. Isherwood, you will be sorry to leave Marple, I should think.”

“Thomas and I will be going to Grantham in Lincolnshire, where there is a wonderful doctor who we hope will help him with his various problems.

“I have had many good friends here over the years and many happy memories. But I have also lived much of my life in Warwickshire where my brother Arthur lived, and now he lives here with us. My other brother, Charles, who you might remember visiting here when you worked here, Eliza, is now the Rector at Bolton Abbey, so I often visit them there. But I think John and Elizabeth will be pleased to settle here now. They have five children, and my grandson Perry lived with us when we were in Warwickshire. John’s son Francis hopes to follow in his footsteps and go into the army.”

“So that is all there is to tell really. Before we had our tea, Mrs. Isherwood opened a bottle of champagne, and we toasted each other, Chartism, and of course the Queen. Then we had our tea and bid each other farewell, but it was a fitting end to an exciting adventure.”

“Well done, love. I’m proud of you. And were your family keeping well?”

“Yes, Joseph, they were, but very pleased to see me, and in great awe of my new necklace. Are you jealous Joseph, that I have such a fine present from another man?” I said teasingly.

“No, love. I am just pleased that the bloke was far off in Australia when you were looking for a man, and that I was close by.”

 

Epilogue

This story is fiction but is based on fact, in as much as Mary Ellen Isherwood is reputed to have staved off an attack by Chartists at Marple Hall by appearing at a veranda and telling them they should be ashamed of themselves. Johnny Robinson is a completely made up character. Eliza Hyde did work as a maid for the Isherwoods, but not in the time frame as I have set it out. She was only 7 in 1842, and would not have been given work as a servant. The details of her family are accurate to an extent, although I am not sure who Elizabeth and Eliza married, so I am making educated guesses based on their family history.

I think the Chartist trial actually took place in Lancaster, not in Chester, but as my daughter and her husband live in Chester, I thought it would be more interesting for me to set the trial there. None of the Chartists at the Lancaster trial was transported to Australia. Mrs. Isherwood did not go to the trial.

 

It is true that at the Lancaster trial, all the defendants were listed as being from Manchester, although it was obvious from the list of witnesses, that these were Chartists who had been arrested from activities in Hyde, Ashton, and Stockport as well as Manchester.

The Lancaster trial took eight days, and the sentences were not in fact put into effect, due to some error in the proceedings.

The Chartists continued to plague the government for reform for many more years – with riots in 1848. But it probably was much more the pressure from other countries, especially Australia, accepting the chartist principals that finally convinced England to do so.

Christopher Isherwood, the famous author, was one of the sons of John Isherwood, but didn't have much to do with Marple Hall.

 

Acknowledgement:

¹Bradshaw’s Ghost, by Iain Mc Lean, 2001, Stockport Heritage Trust.

I copied much of this wonderful book in the play which Eliza wrote.