I must tell one good story. Mr. Platt, the head of the great engineering firm at Oldham, was the High Sheriff, and was inspecting the jail, and saw on the "treadmill" one of his workmen; he exclaimed, "Thomas, I am sorry to see you here." Thomas replied, wiping the beads of perspiration off his brow, "Aye, Master Sam, if they had this 'ere machine in Holdham they would work it by steam, wouldn't they?"
One day, when visiting the firewood factory, in which we gave temporary employment to discharged prisoners, we directed that about a dozen men should be sent away to seek work, as they had been too long in the factory. The following week there was an outbreak of burglaries in Bootle, and the whole crowd were back again in jail.
The shrievalty of the County Palatine has always been esteemed the blue riband of shrievalties. Unlike his compeers elsewhere, the Lancashire sheriff is specially nominated by the King, whilst the office has always been maintained in circumstances of considerable splendour, and entails upon the sheriff the arduous duty of attending eleven assizes in the year, occupying on an average 130 days. The hospitalities attached to the office are also considerable, for the sheriff has to give a dinner to the grand jury and members of the bar at each assize.
Much deference has to be paid to the Judges of Assize, and many points of old-world courtesy and etiquette have to be observed, which add to the interest attaching to the office; and there can be little doubt that the sheriff's turn-out--a coach-and-four, with trumpeters and javelin men in their handsome liveries of dark blue and old gold--serves to impart dignity to the administration of the law, and to impress the multitude with its majesty and power.
The High Sheriff is the representative of the King, and takes precedence of everyone in the county, except the Judges of Assize and the Lord Lieutenant.
I was nominated to the office in 1893, and again in 1896, but, there being no one to take my place at Quarter Sessions, I asked to be excused. It was, however, a position which appealed to me--it seemed to me to be the coping-stone to my long devotion to judicial work--and when I was again nominated in 1908, I accepted, and was duly "pricked" by the King.