Thomas Hood 1745-1820s (Part.3 - 1770-73)

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1745-63 | 1765-69 | 1770-73 | 1773-1820s

Thomas Hood 1770-73

In the spring of 1770, James Lockhart, who was at that time a General in the Austrian Army briefly returned to Scotland. He had succeeded to the Dryden estate in 1764 on the death of his father. On his return, he was advised by his chamberlain James Stoddart to call a meeting of his bound colliers. They were to come to Dryden on the 10th April.

At least eight colliers including Thomas Hoods turned up and met with General Lockhart, who gave them a guinea for drink and allowed them to go. Mr Stoddart was conducting an auction of some wood next to Dryden House and when General Lockhart told him he had been with his colliers, Stoddart said that he had wished to see them to take a note of their names and the places where they were working'. The colliers were still only a short way off, so were called back and Mr Stoddart took their names. According to Stoddart, 16 colliers were present and they provided '12 names of others they also considered to be bound colliers of General Lockhart'. However, Peter Hunter who leased Niddry Coalworks where a number of these colliers including Thomas were employed, was also at Dryden for the sale of wood and present when the names of the colliers were taken. Hunter later claimed only 8 colliers were actually present but they provided the names of another 20 who may have been bound.

On 31 January 1771 a new lease of part of the Dryden Coal was granted to Sir James Clerk of Penicuik and his brother John Clerk of Eldin. Most of the workable coal on the Dryden estate had already been worked out, so the Clerks main reason for taking the lease was to gain the right to use Lockhart's bound colliers at their own coalworks at Pendriech. The lease specified that the Clerks would have the right to all the coalliers and their bearers belonging to the coal of Dryden and empowered them to recall the bound colliers from all other coalworks at which they might happen to be employed, and oblige them to work at Dryden Coal 'or any other coal work belonging to the representers during the currency of the lease'.

Almost immediately, John Clerk sent William Watson his overseer at Pendriech Colliery to collect the bound colliers working at Niddry; Watson already knew most of them personally, as he had lived at Bilston as a child.

Watson's visit to Niddry seems to have been the first the colliers knew of this lease and they immediately went to see General Lockhart to ask "how had he given them up with the tack (lease) of his coal?". They refused to go with Mr Watson, so a meeting was held at the house of William Falconer in Niddry. Most of the alleged bound colliers working at Niddry were present including Thomas Hoods; there were also several others including Captain Vint and Mr Handyside a farmer who had gone along because he was owed money by many of them.

Captain Vint asked each one in turn if they belonged to General Lockhart, but with the exception of one old man named George Ross, they all denied they were bound colliers of General Lockhart as Dryden had not been working since they became colliers. Watson then asked the colliers to go and see Mr Clerk at Eldin on the following Monday and promised them money for their days wages.

A group of colliers did go to see Clerk that Monday and at the meeting, most of them agreed to go to Pendriech Colliery, but only on condition they were allowed the same terms offered to others who had already returned; these were payment of their debts owing at Niddry and a reduction of £5 on their new debt due to Clerk. After the meeting they were seen by Mr Moffat the coalgrieve at Pendriech on the green outside Eldin House and Thomas Hoods and another collier William Reid insisted that carts be sent for their furniture next day.

Thomas and the other collier, did go to Pendriech but both of them left within a few weeks and returned to Niddry as soon as they realised that Clerk considered them to be bound colliers. Almost immediately, John Clerk brought a court action against both of them at Edinburgh Sheriff Court to make them fulfill their agreement to work at Pendriech during the term of the lease. Neither of them appeared at the first court hearing and the expenses of the case include 10 shillings costs "To apprehending the Defenders & bringing them to Town". Evidence was taken from Thomas and four other witnesses, unfortunately, no copy of the statement given by Thomas and the others survives. The Sheriff gave his judgement on 27 February 1771 finding that Hoods and Reid had agreed to work for Mr Clerk during his lease of the Dryden Coal, and ordered them to fulfill their agreement and enter work at the Pendriech Coal. In addition, a warrant was granted allowing:
"Officers of Court and the Executors of the Law To Apprehend and Incarcerate the Defenders in the Tolbooth [prison] of Edinburgh Until they find Caution To Return to the Petitioner's Coalworks of Pendriech and to Continue thereat during his Tack of Dryden Coall".

The family were living with Thomas's father-in-law at Cleikimin by April when their son James was born, however Thomas was at Pendriech in 1772.

As a result of their failure to get the bound colliers to come to Pendreich, Sir James Clerk and his brother John Clerk of Eldin began a court action [Clerk v Ross and Others] before the Court of Session in Edinburgh, against 30 colliers including Thomas and his cousin James, to have them declared as bound colliers of Dryden, and to prove that it was lawful to use them at Pendriech during the lease.

Of those 30, five did acknowledge they were Lockarts bound colliers; another seven had never even worked at Dryden, and in the case of three of them, even their father had never worked there; needless to say the case against these seven was soon dropped.

Thomas Hood fell into the largest group consisting of eighteen colliers who were children of bound colliers. In their reply to the summons they stated:

"That at the time the coal was not wrought at Dryden and the old coaliers allowed to work at other coalworks the following persons, Defenders viz
John Ross now oversman at Melvillmuir
James Ross now at Woolmet
James Hardie there
Robert White there
Thomas Hoods there
George Ross now at Niddry
George Ross son of George Ross there

The case centered around the law and customs relating to bound colliers, and establishing where individual colliers were bound to if not Dryden, or even if they were 'free' colliers and not bound to any coalworks. Various evidence was presented to establish if by their own actions and admissions in the past, Thomas and a number of other colliers should be considered as bound colliers of Dryden by their regular attendance at "birthdays" and their first beginning to work as colliers at Dryden.

Finally the judge decided that it had not been proved that these colliers had bound themselves to Dryden and in his judgement dated 2nd March 1773, he decided in their favour.

"...and in respect that the pursuers have failed to prove that the defenders afternamed did at the years of consent take up the pick at the coaliery of Dryden according to the usual ceremony or did consent to be enrolled there as bound coaliers, assoilzies the defenders following Vizt. George Ross son to David Ross deceased, at present oversman to Peter Hunter tacksman of Niddry Coal, William Ross, George Ross & James Ross all sons to George Ross elder, William Pentland, George Ross, commonly called red George, Thomas Hoods, John Ross and William Reed and decerns..."

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