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Before a large audience, in the schoolroom on Friday, December 8th 1916 the village children performed two plays from Stead’s ‘Books for Bairns.’ The first, Sleeping Beauty, was largely acted by the juniors, and the second, Cinderella, by the seniors. Worthy of an encore, in addition the hornpipe was prettily danced by the Infants and Standard I. The event raised £2 13s 6d, to be applied to the Red Cross Society, and the Bishop of Buckingham’s Recreation Hut Fund for Halton Camp.

Despite the rain, the celebrations for Peace Day, July 19th 1919, commenced at 11a.m. with a cricket match, in which the married men beat the single men by 3 runs. With Mr. Alfred Greaves having lent a large ‘tastefully decorated’ barn, a substantial meal of prime English joints was served as dinner, and after the King’s health the rector gave a brief speech, in which he said that he hoped everyone was enjoying the day. Expressing sympathy for the men who had been killed in the war, he said Haversham soldiers had won an M.C., two D.C.M.s, two French War Crosses, and an M.M. During the afternoon races for the children took place, for money prizes, and afterwards came an adjournment for tea. The evening was then devoted to sports, with the single men winning against the married men in the tug of war, and the married women in the ladies event. The prizes for the sports were distributed by Mrs. Wylie, who had lent a piano for a concert and dance, and a fireworks display concluded the ‘best holiday ever.’

At the parish church, on the evening of Sunday, October 24th 1920 Canon Harnett, the Rural Dean, dedicated a brass memorial tablet to the memory of the men from the village killed in the war. This had been subscribed for by the parishioners, and the Canon also dedicated a chair in the sanctuary. A muffled peal was rung on the church bells before and after the service.

THE EVICTION CASE OF MRS. TYSOE

On Wednesday, February 10th 1915, at the Newport Pagnell Divisional Petty Sessions possession of a cottage on Hill Farm, Haversham, was sought by Mr. J. Souster. The proceedings were taken against Frederick Tysoe, an agricultural labourer, who was now in the trenches in France, but Mr. Souster said that the defendant did not enter the army until he had left his employ. The rent was in arrears, and he now needed the cottage for an incoming labourer, with his cows needing to be milked. He had served notice to quit on the wife, Mrs. Emily Maud Tysoe, who, having three young children, and another on the way, asked “Where am I to go,” “My husband is now in the trenches.” Weeping bitterly she said she could not get another cottage, and in answer to the Magistrate’s Clerk said she received 20s a week separation allowance. Nevertheless, despite the circumstances the magistrates made an order for Mr. Souster to have possession in 28 days. However, such indignation was raised by the case that on Tuesday, February 23rd 1915 the matter was raised in the House of Commons by Mr. W. Anderson, who, raising the general question of the eviction of soldiers’ wives, specifically referred to the case of Mrs. Tysoe’s cottage at Haversham, about which he read extracts from a local newspaper. Apart from her husband she had six brothers serving in the Forces, and Mr. Anderson urged the Government to investigate not only this matter, but to also ensure a close investigation before any woman was evicted from her house. Replying for the Government, Sir Harry Verney, Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Agriculture, said “He was good enough to give me notice of the particular case of Mrs. Tysoe. It happens to be in my constituency, and I have had an opportunity of investigating the case rather carefully. The hon. member has told us that this was a case of a woman with three little girls, one only six. Her husband enlists, goes to France and fights, and while he is away his wife is turned out of a cottage, has nowhere to go, and is left stranded. I think the first impression everyone in this House will feel is that there is something horrible in that state of affairs, and one thinks that it ought not to be possible.” He then went on to explain the predicament of the farmer, but said that the farmer should try every possible means of getting labour and carrying on the work, before adopting the ‘horrible expedient’ of turning out the wife and children of a man who was at the front. This was met with cries of “hear, hear,” and Sir Harry then continued that it was the duty of the farmer to first consult the local Labour Exchange, to see if a single man could be found for the job. In fact “In an emergency of this kind why should it not be possible to find a single woman who would milk the cows and lodge in the cottage?” Yet the question remained as to where the woman was to go. However, she was better off financially with her separation allowance than when her husband was home, and the Secretary of the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Association, which had representatives in almost every parish, had assured him that since these cases were extremely rare they would be regarded as instances for sympathy and help, to lessen the hardship as soon as possible. Eventually Mrs. Tysoe and her children found accommodation in Chapel Yard, Great Linford, but then news arrived that on May 9th 1915 her husband, 41 year old Private Frederick Tysoe, of the 1st Northants. Regiment, had been killed in action near Ypres. Born at Haversham, before the war he had been employed by Mr. J. Souster, of the village, but as a Reservist he had been at the front since the beginning of the war, and had been in much hard fighting. Compounding the sorry saga, whilst resident at Great Linford, Mrs. Tysoe had been arrested on a warrant, and on Wednesday, June 21st 1916 appeared in the dock at a special police court at Newport Pagnell, charged with having on divers dates between May 24th and July 3rd 1916 unlawfully and wilfully neglected and abandoned her children, ‘in a manner likely to cause them unnecessary suffering and injury.’ The proceedings had been instituted by the N.S.P.C.C., and with the case having caused considerable interest the court was filled with people from Great Linford. In his opening speech, the Newport Pagnell solicitor for the N.S.P.C.C. said that upon her husband rejoining the Forces she had received £10, and at his death £9. Whilst he was on active service her income from the separation allowance was 25s a week, and since his death a pension of 21s 6d a week. As the first witness, Mrs. Keziah Rainbow, of Great Linford, said that Mrs. Tysoe had left her home on May 24th, saying she was going out for the day. However, contrary to her stated intention she did not return the same evening, and continuing her evidence Mrs. Rainbow said that the defendant had a soldier visitor who stopped at her house at week ends. As for her evidence, Annie Rainbow said that she looked after the food in the house whilst Mrs. Tysoe was away, but the supply had only lasted until the Saturday after deserting her children, one of whom, since none of them had any boots, was given a pair. Another witness, who had seen a soldier at Mrs. Tysoe’s house, said that on May 24th 1916 the defendant went to Great Linford station at 11a.m., saying she was going to Hitchin to get married. For the N.S.P.C.C., Inspector Marshall said he had kept the house under observation for 12 months, and on May 26th found the children, one of whom was a baby, to be in the charge of Mrs. Rainbow. They were fairly clean, but the second child was in bad health. The eldest was suffering from an abscess, and had been in hospital for three months. There was very little food in the house, and in his opinion the defendant was not a good mother. Blankets etc. had been bought by the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Families Association, and when he discovered that the children had been deserted he had them moved to Newport Pagnell Union Workhouse. In court Mrs. Tysoe, who was frequently in tears, pleaded guilty, and said that she had received a letter from a soldier saying that he would marry her at Hitchin. However, when she got there she found that he was already married, and by then the children had gone to the workhouse and she didn’t know what to do. Passing sentence the Bench imposed three months prison with hard labour. Then on the day of her release, Tuesday, September 5th 1916, at the Newport Pagnell Divisional Petty Sessions an officer of the N.S.P.C.C. asked for legal custody of the children, to be taken from Mrs. Tysoe and given to Elizabeth Ley of 57, Newport Road, Stantonbury. The Inspector said that the children had been well looked after by their guardian, and the payment sought for each of the 4 children, of 5s a week, was duly granted.