Ding Dong Bell - Patie's in the Well! - Part 2

A real-life disaster in Kirkliston, 6^th September, 1823

The story so far . . .

Patie Stuart, a 78-year-old worker on Humbie Farm along with three of his colleagues had been clearing debris from a blocked water well. Unconvinced that the well walls were in a sound condition, Patie had descended into its depths for a closer inspection. However, as Patie was about to return to the surface there was a massive collapse of the well walls sending a cascade of masonry and earth tumbling down upon poor old Patie and burying him alive . . .

As the rumbling of falling masonry and earth gradually subsided, the three farm workers at the surface could only stare open-mouthed with shock at the calamity unfolding before their eyes. It was several seconds before wee Tam was the first to come to his senses.

“Ah think th' auld gowk mist be deid!”

“There’s na wey a'body cuid hae survived that!” said another.

“Patie!” screamed wee Tam. “Urr ye aye alive?”

It was several seconds more before a faint reply came from below.

“Na, I’m deid 'n' shimmyin' hauns wi' Saint Peter this gey minute ye idiots!”

With audible sighs of relief from the three men, they then tried to discover just how badly injured Patie was.

“Urr ye hurt?” shouted one.

“Na, I’m juist haein a pipe o' baccie afore ah settle doon fur a wee nap!”

This brought a smile to the lips of the others. Clearly, Patie was still feisty enough to be capable of a bit of craic and hopefully they could get him back to the surface fairly soon . . .

MIDDAY - and the three men had already been working an hour without any sign of Patie below.

“Howfur muckle mair o' this keech hae we git tae shift afore we kin see th' auldjin?” wondered one of the trio. “It's taking far tae lang!” a note of panic now rising in his voice.

“Listen.” explained wee Tam. “If we gang at it tae quickly we micht end up sending mair keech doon th' nook 'n' finish him aff fur guid this time!” 

“Bit we cop sae helpless 'ere as ainlie yin o' us kin reach doon intae th' nook at a time.”

“If ye pure wantae be o' some hulp, run alang tae th' doctor’s hoose 'n' fetch him. Patie’s bound tae hae mair than juist a few scrapes 'n' bruises whin we git him oot.”

ANOTHER HOUR HAD PASSED - still there was no sight of Patie, despite the growing pile of rubble recovered from the hole. Furthermore, there was no sign of the doctor and Jamie who had gone to fetch him. It was now over two hours since Patie’s interment and the men were becoming frantic with worry. Only the occasional faint caustic and ribald comments issuing from below kept their spirits up, sometimes difficult to make out over a persistent clanging of the Kirk bell in the distance – rather unusual for a Saturday afternoon. Surely, they must be getting close to the old man by now?

THREE O’CLOCK - and still no sign of Patie, or the doctor, or Jamie. By now wee Tam, who at 65 was no spring chicken himself was beginning to tire along with his workmate. This was a truly desperate situation. Would they be able to reach the old man in time?

    

[To be continued . . . ]

-ooo-

 

In Part One of this little saga, I questioned whether there were any pumps or wells still in existence here in Kirkliston.  The answer is yes! In fact, a good example stands against the wall next to the pool room in the Newliston Arms Hotel. (See opposite.) This particular pump is a ‘Lift & Force Pump’* designed to raise water to higher floors or draw water from greater depths than normal. The pump last drew water 20 or 30 years ago and it was found to be clear and potable after being tested. Although the pump is still connected to the water spring below, the rubber innards are somewhat perished and a major restoration would be needed to return it to working order. However, I don’t believe for a moment that this can be the only remaining relic within our historic village. This is where you, the residents of Kirkliston, can help to complete the picture. If you know of any other pumps or wells, functioning or redundant within the village, please drop me a line, with a photo if possible, to: apgeorge21@gmail.com Then I can update the rest of our readers with the news.

Watch out for Part 3 of ‘Ding Dong Bell – Patie’s in the Well’ to learn how the rescue operation is progressing and whether Patie will survive his ordeal. Also discover if your home in Kirkliston harbours the remains of a 19^th century pump or well!

A P George
Kirkliston Heritage Society

apgeorge21@gmail.com

*  Thanks to Richard Williams at http://www.villagepumps.org.uk for correctly indentifying this particular type of pump.

SOURCES AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

British Library

David Gray, Licensee, Newliston Arms

Google Earth

National Library of Scotland

Wikipedia