Top athletes go head to head at Common Riding games
Last updated 21:58, Wednesday, 06 August 2008
NOTHING of any importance has come to light regarding the rival schemes since our last.MESSRS A. Byers & Sons, boot and shoe makers, Langholm have purchased some elaborate and ingenious machinery for repair work. DURING the 11th century the progenitor of the Armstrong Clan – then known as Fairbairn – was an armour-bearer of a king of Scotland.THE 90-metre Sprint Championship at Langholm Common Riding Games saw the best turn-out of the season for such an event, with the seven entries on the programme all going to their starting blocks.
THE RAILWAY
Slight indications, however, have not been wanting of the coming struggle.
The chairman of the North British has been the first to break silence at a meeting in the “Station House” at Galashiels, of the numbers and importance of which we are left to guess: – silence omening scantity.
A great part of Mr Hodgson’s eloquent address appears to have been a personal tirade against a respectable individual who has the un-Hodgson like propensity of speaking unvarnished truths.
All the statements made at the conference by Mr Laing were strictly true, and therein lay their sting.
It was an ugly circumstance to get over, that the scheme supported by only (according to Mr Hodgson’s liberal estimate) “one-hundredth part of the population”, had 4 or 5 times the amount of subscriptions in Hawick, than the pet Liddesdale had with “99 out of every 100” supporting it, and, moreover, the most extensive and important of the Hawick manufacturers ranked among the decimal fractions.
These were ugly facts and must have rankled considerably: but then their truth.
However, something must be got up, and therefore a deliberate mis-representation was perpetrated, and Mr Laing was made to make statements which he never expressed, and upon which he was attacked in a most virulent manner.
But whatever either one party or the other states, this we are clear of – that the largest manufacturers, the most influential and independent people in and around Hawick, have been, and still are, in favour of the Langholm line.
BOOT REPAIRING MACHINERY
There are two machines – a Blake sewer and a finisher.
The sewer is in principle the ordinary sewing machine, but with an upright and hollow metal “last” on which the boot is rested, and which moves round under the control of the workman who can stop the machine in a single stitch by simply lifting his foot. It does the work rapidly and with remarkable accuracy.
The finisher which is an exceedingly ingenious machine, consists of a set of small rotary knives,and a series of wheels for smoothing and polishing the work.
The wheels comprise a “buffer” for polishing the soles; an emery wheel for filing the nails; others of sand-paper and emery which do at one operation all the work of finishing.
The machinery is driven by a gas engine, and the machines are capable of performing in an hour at least as much work as an operative could do by hand in a day.
THE FIRST ARMSTRONG
In the midst of a fierce battle the king had his horse killed under him.
Fairbairn rushed to his assistance and grasping the king by the thigh swung him on to his own horse and galloped him safely off the field.
After the battle, the king sent for Fairbairn, gave him the name Armstrong, and also granted him lands on the Borders.
The family crest has a bearing on this incident.
In my possession I have a very interesting chart showing the lineage of the Lords of Mangerton who were the Armstrong clan chiefs descended from Fair Beorn Siward of the Strong Arm – in 1030, Earl of Northumberland.
In those days Northumberland was a part of Scotland and was ruled over by the Scottish King.
The Armstrongs were a numerous and turbulent clan and held lands all along the Borders, but mainly in Liddesdale, where their power was supreme.
F. E. Salter
THOMPSON TAKES CHAMPIONSHIP
The crack of the starter’s pistol sent a buzz through the crowd and the country’s top professional sprinters streaked down the track with George McNeil of Tranent holding a slight lead.
1983 winner Jim Thompson of Edinburgh powered back in the last quarter and snatched victory by half a metre with McNeil second, Mike Daly (Glenrothes) third and Forbes Neish (Hawick) fourth.
The time of 9.62 seconds was exceptionally fast for a grass track.
