LOCAL law and order, 1950s-style, comes vividly to life as Yelverton solicitor Paul Tilden reminisces. Eloquent and irreverent, outspoken and humourous, Paul will happily talk for England as he recalls cases which illustrate the passion and lunacy, intelligence and madness human beings bring to bear before judge and jury. As a young articled clerk, Paul remembers his frequent trips to Tavistock Magistrates Court. Paul said: ?It was such a lovely little court, a fascinating little piece of the 18th century. ?We used to turn up from Plymouth and as far as Tavistock was concerned, we were city slickers from Sodom and Gomorrah at the bottom of the Tamar. ?Tavistock had a whole series of retired colonel-types that would sit on the bench, and they were very much there to keep the peasants under control, so to speak ? they had no doubt of their social superiority!? Paul was articled to the renowned Methodist solicitor David Foot Nash of Plymouth, relative of Michael Foot MP. ?David Nash rose to become vice president of the Methodist Conference ? the highest position in the world of Methodism ? who regularly turned up every year at Tavistock Court to oppose the granting of the drinking extension in summer,? said Paul. ?The consequence of this was all the pubs in Tavistock Licensing district would be obliged to close at 10pm ? and all the punters would promptly leap into their cars to drive out of the jurisdiction at full speed to get in that extra pint!? Paul said by this time Tavistock was the only district in the UK which refused to grant the summer extention ? and the breweries got together in an attempt to remedy the situation, whatever the cost. They chose as their champion a senior Treasury Counsel, Gilbert Bayfus QC, and the scene was set for a legal showdown. Paul said: ?The day of battle drew nigh and David Nash asked me, as his articled clerk, to come with him up to Tavistock to uphold the righteous from the ungodly. ?I can recall coming down the hill to the court in David Nash?s Sunbeam Talbot ? which he always drove at frightening speed ? sheep leaping out of the way, as he progressed to Tavistock. ?The court was packed with bewigged barristers, solicitors by the handful instructed by the brewery, where our David was now taking on Goliath! ?I can vividly recall the massive form of Gilbert Bayfus QC advancing to shake hands with his humble solicitor opponent!? Paul said the large and eminent QC had probably regarded his call to deepest Devon as something of a legal doddle ? but he had reckoned without the religious zeal and enthusiasm of his adversary! Every man on the Tavistock bench had been called in for the occasion, a veritable three-line whip ? and all of them had been rung by David Nash in advance, issuing the order that ?the Lord hath need of you? to fight the ?demon drink?. ?Poor old Beyfus simply did not stand a cat in hell?s chance and the application was lost, despite his best efforts,? said Paul. Once qualified, Paul himself handled many cases in the town?s Victorian court. ?I remember one great case I had, with this soldier who had got some Tavistock girl in the family way. In those days they called it affiliation proceedings. ?It was all a bit of a performance, because of course, in those days, DNA testing didn?t exist, but working out the dates when this solider could have got the girl pregnant, this bloke just was not there. ?I was absolutely stupified, and I said ?This just is not possible, it would mean about an 11 month pregnancy.? ?I was told 11 month pregnancies were actually quite common in Tavistock by a woman doctor on the bench, who is long dead and gone now. I remember being facetious enough to ask if this phenomena was caused by the Tavistock water ? and was threatened that she would report me to the Law Society for insolence!? Paul said it was not until later that he realised, in those days of the Welfare State?s infancy, that the bench was doing all it could to prevent the town having unsupported illegitimate children on the local rates and a moral code was likely to be adhered to, even if a legal responsibility had not been established. Tavistock?s court was also the setting for yearly wrangles regarding animal ownership. Paul said: ?When they used to bring the ponies down from the moor every year there used to be the most God-awful fights about which ponies belonged to whom. ?I remember one bloke who must have been completely illiterate, but my God, these farmers would concoct such cases ? and I think half the time it was because they reckoned it was a good half day?s entertainment and get a few pints out in the pub!? Paul said a social ?squirearchy? may have been responsible for sitting in judgement over cases in Tavistock ? but they were ?absolutely scrupulous? about dealing fairly with the unfortunates before them and had a great reputation. Anyone who had a sensible defence was done the honour of a detailed consideration ? very different from his experiences in Plymouth. ?On that bench, if they got up to deliberate, there really was some doubt,? said Paul, who considers the closure of Tavistock Magistrates? Court as ?absolutely outrageous?. ?It?s awful that people have to trawl all the way into Plymouth ? and I can?t think it really saves any money,? he said.
