SHERLOCK HOLMES, DYNAMITERS, FOREIGN AGENTS AND ROGUES


                                   The genuine detectives' office at Manchester Town Hall

SHERLOCK HOLMES, DYNAMITERS, FOREIGN AGENTS AND ROGUES

The perils of old Manchester & London

 Report by Don Hale


The period shortly before and after the turn of the 19th century coincided with the fictional publications of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who depicted his hero as the super sleuth Sherlock Holmes, and his able assistant Dr Watson. 



Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - the creator of the Sherlock Holmes character


His work was extremely topical, and although at times it was criticised by senior Manchester Detective Jerome Caminada, he often included important references to the ‘Dynamiters’ and ‘Foreign Agents,’ and Holmes regularly pitted his wits against the admirable Inspector Lustrade at the new Scotland Yard.



                                  Famous Manchester detective Jerome Caminada


By this time, London could also boast of a unique police riverboat force, incorporated within the main city police to counter river crime. These units developed at a rapid pace and by then had their own experienced and specialised patrol units. In London, together with many major British ports, a special breed of dangerous and despicable thieves began to attract certain unsavoury nicknames - with many examples highlighted in Conan Doyle’s novels.

They included: - TIER RANGERSThey were said to have ranged along numerous tiers of shipping to spot an enterprising opportunity to steal in the dead of night. They quietly sneaked aboard ships and entered the cabins of crew and especially passengers, usually whilst they were asleep to steal personal effects. Slim young children under the direction of gang masters readily undertook much of this work.

LUMPERS or ABSTRACTERS:  – These were considered larcenist dockworkers who produced large canvass pockets within their coats and deliberately stole smaller items to order as they unloaded the varied cargoes. These particular dock thieves were well organised and had access to shipping documents and bills of lading, and could practically steal to order from a shopping list of imported goods. They were able to confirm the precise cargo, expected time of arrival, berth and time of discharge of most vessels.

Any larger items considered valuable, but too bulky to steal were forwarded to other equally dubious colleagues known as TRACKERS. They appeared alongside ships in various forms of disguise, such as ship’s painters, maintenance men etc, and received the items directly overboard. 

Some very valuable and heavier items were carefully wrapped in waterproof coatings and carried out to the estuary, or a quieter part of the channel and dumped overboard with markers and buoys. They were later recovered by parties called DREDGERMEN.

WATERMEN: - Their job was to ferry passengers and light goods across rivers and estuaries. On occasions these people found the odd corpse, ‘stiff-un’ or ‘floater’ in the river at sunrise or sunset, and would deliberately rob the bodies of clothing and personal possessions, and sell them on to criminal colleagues. It is quite likely some bodies were never found after being carefully weighted down to ensure they remained on the seabed.

Holmes and Watson became a legendary duo from the late Victorian age. Their tales, lifestyle and dress were promoted to a worldwide audience and Conan Doyle’s stories must also have enhanced the hat and tailoring trade too, with Holmes occasionally wearing his Deerstalker, Inverness cape or Billycock hat, with Watson often pictured by illustrations, in his curly topper to match his moustache.




                                              Pictured (Above) two Manchester Police stations

Their adventurous stories, particularly in and around the London suburbs, painted a fairly accurate, yet grim picture of the London crime scene, and often, the stories incorporated some major technological developments or ingenious invention. In particular, communications and transport presented an ever-changing picture. Telegrams remained the most common and established method of communication and were generally used because of their speed, accuracy, and cost. 



The standard price for a telegram was just six pence for twelve words. This amounted to a penny-per-word, with all telegrams personally delivered anywhere in the country, mainly by young lads on bicycles, at any time of the day or night. 

They also offered an immediate right of reply service, which continued until about 1879, when Eddison introduced the first telephone exchange in central London. It was another four years however, before his invention and devices became readily available nationwide.

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