100 years ago

At the Doncaster Borough Police Court Richard Machin and William Schofield were summoned for riding bicycles without rear red lights.

They pleaded ignorance of the regulation requiring red lights on bicycles.

The Mayor said that as these were the first cases of this kind brought before the magistrates in that court, the defendants would be called upon to pay the costs only.

After this public warning, however, offences of a similar character would be severely dealt with.

In consequence of the reduced lighting demanded by the military authorities it was absolutely necessary that every vehicle, including bicycles, should have a rear red light.

It was necessary for the safety of the cyclists themselves and everybody else.
 

50 years ago

Two legal documents signed by Guy Fawkes were sold at Sotheby's for £250 and £60 to a private buyer, Mrs Milton.

One document, which realised £250, was an indenture of 1591 by which Fawkes leased property to Christopher Lomley of York, a tailor.

The second document, dated 1592, was a Charter of Guy Fawkes, signed and sealed by his stepfather and his mother, concerning a cottage and land owned by Fawkes at Clifton, York.

An original letter telling of the Gunpowder Plot, signed "FR Pattricke" to Samuel Borne, at Coventry, and dated November 11, 1605, was bought by the London bookseller, Mr AG Thomas, for £260.

The marriage settlement of Robert Catesby, a conspirator in the Gunpowder Plot, dated 1591, went to Mr EM Lawson, of Sutton Coldfield for £75.
 

25 years ago

Fears over mad cow disease had led Humberside to ban some beef from school dinner tables. But council chiefs in North Yorkshire said today they had no plans to follow Humberside's example and called it illogical.

Humberside's move affected up to 80,000 schoolchildren and was taken after fears that the disease could affect children's long-term mental development.

Farmers warned that they could be forced out of business if other large catering organisations followed its example.

Humberside would only accept beef from British herds certified free of the disease and from countries without bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE).

North Yorkshire County Council and a National Farmers' Union spokesman said there was no risk to humans from BSE as offal from cows which could host the disease had been banned from sale.

There was no evidence that cuts like steak harboured the disease.

Humberside education committee chairman Councillor Maxwell Bird said: "We are concerned about the possibility of the long-term development of children being affected by eating meat from BSE affected cows. We serve meals to a large number of people - up to 80,000 children a day - and as a responsible authority we can't take any risks."