100 years ago

The indiscriminate use that was currently made of police whistles was condemned by the chief Constable of Sheffield.

For a considerable time, it appeared, a whistle of peculiar pattern and note had been issued to the various police forces of the country for the purpose of enabling constables to obtain assistance in cases of urgent necessity.

An article of precisely the same make could now be obtained very cheaply from any ironmongers, with the result that hotel porters used it to call cabs at all hours; Boy Scouts signalled to each other at night by its means; Tramway officials used it to regulate traffic; cyclists bought it instead of a bell; and many householders used it for a great number of purposes.

In consequence the public hesitated to take serious notice of the sounding of a police whistle, and the police frequently incurred serious risk of personal injury or of the escape of a violent prisoner because timely assistance could not be procured.


50 years ago

What was it about false teeth that made dogs want to chew them?

This question was puzzling members of York Health Executive Council. They were told of two recent incidents where people had applied to the Council for new dentures, on the grounds that their old ones had been chewed up by dogs.

One shift worker said that when he got home from work after a night shift he was tired, so instead of putting his denture in a glass in the bath¬room, he put it on the bedside table. While he was asleep, his wife’s dog went into the bedroom and chewed the denture beyond repair.

The Council approved a new denture on payment of £2. In another case, a housewife said she put her denture on a table beside the bed. Her hus¬band got up first and left the bedroom door open.

The dog found the denture and chewed it beyond repair. The Council agreed that there was an element of carelessness and approved a new denture, subject to the payment of £2 15s by the housewife.

Commented Mr John Saville (chairman): “I thought we knew all the reasons for people losing their dentures!”


25 years ago

A satellite TV revolution was sweeping North Yorkshire - or, at least, that was what the salesmen said.

Two months since the launch of Britain’s first satellite TV channel, shops claimed sales of equipment were starting to soar. But the distinctive receiver dishes were missing from local houses, fuelling speculation that reports of booming satellite sales were mere pie in the sky.

A part-time lecturer in education, Dr Jane French, thought a choice between eight channels, with the possibility of sixteen, was just going too far.