The Tragic Death of Tom Moore

 

Picture:  View of the village of Standburn, early 20th century, Source U/K

I know very little about the family of my Grandfather, George SCOTT (1906-1971).  Known to me as ‘Pop’ he was the Father of my Mother, Jean Duncan McGAVIN (later PALMER, subsequently TRENDALL (1924-1982).  I know that he was her Father because she told me and it was common knowledge in the family.  This fact is also confirmed by DNA.  The paper record shows a different story.  According to her Birth Certificate she was the daughter of John Simpson McGAVIN.  He was the husband of my Grandmother;  Helen Kirk McBeth DUNCAN (1896-1971).   I will write another time about the stigma and pain created by being born out of wedlock in times past.  For the purposes of this note the foregoing explanation is intended only to set the story into context and to act as a reminder of the dangers of leaning too heavily on the written record.

I am trying (slowly) to unpick the story of ‘Pop’ SCOTT.  Like all of my Scottish relatives very little is straightforward.  Good record keeping was not one of their strong points and often names seem to have been a fairly loose description.  I have got as far as looking at Pop’s Father (my Great Grandfather).  He was born in Ireland in 1879 and was another George SCOTT.  He married Agnes NICOL in 1900 and they went on to have 5 children, including George (Pop) and the lady who I knew as Great Aunt Jenny (who appears in the records at different times as Jenny, Janet and Jane).  One child died in infancy.  George SCOTT (B1879) was a coal miner, a job also undertaken by his son for a few years.  A tough job even for a fit young man, and one that saw him move around the Scottish coal belt.

The main subject of this post though is a single tragic incident that must have haunted George SCOTT (B1879) for the rest of his life.

When not at work George had a group of friends who were also miners of a similar age.  They would meet on their days off and would travel to locations around Standburn (a small village near Falkirk) where some of them lived.  His best friend was Thomas MOORE (19). They were close, described at the time as being on terms of friendship, even on terms of affection’.(i)  They were like brothers. They had both acquired handguns and used to go target shooting in the countryside.  On Sunday 15^th October 1899 they met a group of friends and they all took turns in firing at targets.  George loaded four cartridges and fired twice.  He handed the gun to another person in the group who also fired (or so he thought) twice.  George and Thomas made their way home and continued to play with the revolvers.  George pointed the gun at Thomas, believing it to be empty, and pulled the trigger.  In fact the companion to whom he had lent his revolver, had in fact, only fired once, leaving one bullet in the gun.  Thomas was struck in the chest and died after a couple of minutes, despite the very prompt attendance of a local doctor.  George was grief stricken and inconsolable.  His was arrested the next morning and charged with Culpable Homicide (a Scottish offence similar to Manslaughter in English law). 

Things moved very quickly.  George appeared before the Sheriff (Judge) on the day of his arrest and made a declaration of the circumstances and indicated that he would plead guilty. He was remanded until his trial.  The local police sergeant gave evidence that “Scott bears a very good character in the place, and that the utmost sympathy is being expressed for him and his friends in the unfortunate position in which he is placed” (ii)

Tom MOORE’s Father (also a miner) registered his death on 18^th October, reporting that his son had died after being ‘shot accidentally through the heart’ (iii). This entry in the Register of Deaths was amended, slightly, a few weeks later by order of the Procurator Fiscal to read “shock from bullet wound” (iv)

The speed with which trials took place in Victorian Britain can come as a surprise.  Justice was swift, but this often left little time for defendants to prepare their defence and to gather their evidence.  In this case George’s solicitor moved quickly.  It was, after all, a very straightforward case.

On Monday 23^rd October, 8 days after the incident, George appeared before Sheriff BELL at the Falkirk Sheriff and Jury Court.  He pleaded guilty to Culpable Homicide.  The Fiscal opened for the Crown by briefly stating the facts of the case:

              “It appeared that both lads had their pistols and were flourishing them and jesting with each other.  Scott pulled the trigger of his pistol and the cartridge it contained was discharged and entered into Moore’s left breast, causing him to die a few minutes afterwards.  He (the fiscal) believed that the affair was purely accidental, and he believed that the boys were on the very best terms of friendship” (v)

George’s solicitor, Mr Andrew HUNTER, then made a detailed and comprehensive plea in mitigation.  He pointed out that there was no hint of a criminal intention and that this was nothing other than accident.  He referred to George’s age, his remorse and the friendship between the MOORES’ and the SCOTT’s and between the defendant and the deceased in particular.  He cited various similar cases from around Scotland to show that there was room for mercy in such cases.  The largest part of his speech was devoted to evidence of George’s character.  He produced numerous testimonials to his good character and pointed to the absence of any previous appearances before the courts.  His referees included his former employer, the doctor who treated Tom and the local minister.  He had also received that morning a petition supporting George, signed by 115 residents of Standburn (vi).  But, perhaps most persuasive of all, was a letter from Tom’s Father asking the judge not to punish George as it was an accident.

The Sheriff addressed the accused directly, reminding him that the person he had killed:

              “…was not a stranger, but an intimate friend…and the fact that he had put an end to his life in such a manner would no doubt be a matter of reflection to him as long as he lived” (vii)

The Sheriff reminded the court that this was a reckless act.  Blame lay with George, he was guilty of a serious offence, Culpable Homicide.  He decided that imprisonment would serve no purpose and he put him under caution in the sum of £25 for a period of 12 months or, as an alternative 30 days in prison.  This is similar to the concept of being bound over to be of good behaviour in an English court, except that the money had to be found up front.  The Sheriff finished with a reminder of the dangers of playing with weapons and he hoped that the tragedy would be a lesson to all parents.

There is much still to find out about George SCOTT (B1879) and I will continue to research his life, I am intrigued by his link to Ireland amongst other things.  I know that at the time of the death of his wife Agnes in 1951 she was a widow but I have not pinned down the date of George’s death.  Whenever it was I am sure that the judge was right – the death of Tom MOORE would have stayed with him for the rest of his life.