Edward Ellice was MP for the St Andrews Burghs – The General election on 19th Dec was triggered by death of King William IV and incoming Queen Victoria , he served through to 1880 when Stephen Williamson was elected..
1837
CELLARDYKE. The Supper.—This understand, the first a series of feeds to given the supporters of Maitland Makgill in each of the Coast Burghs, for the purpose keeping up the spirits of the party, and securing their votes against another election. It was on the evening of Monday week, then, that the Tory denizens of this ancient burgh mustered in the Town-hall, to the number two-and-twenty, and were most sumptuously regaled at somebody’s expense—not their own. The scene of their festivities was most brilliantly lighted up for the great occasion with a dozen of twopenny candles, and the effect of the illumination was unanimously pronounced by the company to be the finest ever produced in the venerable place where they were assembled. The steward of the feast, well knowing, it is said, the men with whom he had to deal, took especial care to have galore of eatables provided; the table was made to groan under the weight of three huge roasts, an immense beefsteak pie, and a quantity of potatoe pudding so great that nobody thought, at first sight, that it could be consumed ; and grace being said, the independent electors of the broken burgh of Kilrenny seized quickly their knives and forks, and proceeded like men to the grand work of destruction. Every one being too anxious to discharge the important duty of “man mind thyself,” there was little or no time to spare for conversation during supper; and, accordingly, the substantial viands disappeared almost as speedily they could be carved and served ; and so complete was the gorge, that some of the company, finding they had quite as much ballast as sail, were obliged to discharge; the only non-elector present (a deputation, we presume, from some operative-conservative association) was candid enough announce that he was “full to the tongue”. It would be useless to notice the rabid expressions emitted by the patrons of the banquet after supper, which excited the rapturous yells of the rude assembly ; but we almost regret that we cannot furnish to the world the speech of a Bailie defunct, which cost him several days to study. It must have been a rich literary curiosity. The drinking went on with “vir;” nobody, except “the Captain,” complained of scrimp grog; but, as the business proceeded, he, too, cave in to the general voice that the gentlemen at the bowls did their duty well. Some good fun was afforded by the exhibition of one individual, who would not desist from making a drum of the table till the blood sprung from his knuckles, which did the part of drumsticks and then he danced. These symptoms set off the more prudent of the party ; but the rest were determined die game, and the termination of the scene was rendered sublime by the competition, according to Burns,
“Wha first beside his chair shall fa’.
He’ll be the King amang us three,’
when an old stager carried off the laurel. Such was this memorable galravitch! such the system of the benighted Tories! We hint nothing about the paymaster or paymasters of the feed; suffice it to say, the Dykers paid nothing for it, and they therefore did it justice. We cannot, however, forbear remarking that the respected Chief Magistrate of a neighbouring burgh, who graced the occasion, might as well have abstained from making his appearance there. Upon the whole, we may add, that a more disgraceful scene of gormandizing never was witnessed this burgh, even in the heyday of its corruption and its power, and we daresay “we shall ne’er see the like again
1844
We observe by the Edinburgh papers, that this winter throughout has been a very unprofitable one to the industrious fishermen on the east of Fife, there being no fish inside the Island of Mey. In former years a fair livelihood could made, there being cod and haddock throughout the whole of the Firth Forth. At present the boats must be 12 miles east of the Mey Island, in the German Ocean, before the fishermen can get anything like fair remuneration for their labour. The boats of St Monance are of a smaller size than either the Cellardyke or Pittenweem ones, making the sailing dangerous in those strong westerly gales so prevalent at this season the year. On Thursday week the boats got to the place where the finny tribe resort, and had a fair take.
1846
The Total Abstinence Society of and Cellardyke, presented Mr John Mc Dougal preacher of the gospel, with a Hebrew Bible and Lexicon, a small testimony of their esteem and regard, upon his this place. During the past two years, has zealously supported the abstinence cause by series valuable lectures.
1848
St. Monans Dec. 4.—The Friends, (owned by ) Clark, of Limekilns, from Perth for Clyde, ran on shore near Cellardyke, 1st inst., having previously lost bowsprit in a gale from S.W., and became un- manageable. Crew saved.
1854
James Dice, carter, Cellardyke, was charged with assault at Wester Anstruther, and was fined 15s. or fifteen days’ imprisonment. The fine was paid.
1855
Serious Accident. On Friday last, while the crew of a fishing-boat here was in the act of setting one of their masts, previous to going to sea, the rope slipped from the half suspended mast, which fell and struck the skipper, Robert Moncrieff, upon the head, by which he was seriously cut, and rendered for a long time insensible. Two medical gentlemen were soon in attendance, and had the wounds dressed, and, understand that he is in a fair way of recovery.
1857
The three prizes offered the Rev. A. L. Gordon, Kent, for the best three essays working men, on The British Workman, his Wife and Family; their Social, Intellectual, and Religious Elevation; the Obstacles thereto ; and the Means of Removing them,” have been awarded as follows First Prize, L.25, Benjamin Wood, letter carrier, Bromley, Kent. It is gratifying to find that the honours of the competition preponderate in favour of Scotland, as appears from the fact that the second prize, L.15, has been given to Thomas Brown, Cellardyke, Anstruther, Fife : and the third William Govan, pressman, University Printing Office Glasgow.
1859
CELLA.RDYKE. POLICE COMMISSIOIN. — A meeting of this body for the purpose of electing two members has been looked forward to by a number of the community for some past with considerable interest, from the fact that some parts of their procedure of doubtful legality have been the subject of public notoriety is our local newspaper The Record. The facts seem to be these, while the commission lays on an assessment of 7d per pound upon householders, it, at the same time, unauthorised (it is alleged) by the statute, exempts from this impost all parties who give up the mussel shells and other offal which they make in the way of their fishing business, to be carted away by the police cart to their manure depository, instead of the assessment they would otherwise be entitled to pay. There are a good many of the population who have no space on which to deposit these shells, and who, if the police statute were strictly enforced, have no alternative but throw them to the street for the police cart; these gladly avail themselves of the exemption, while those who keep their shells and offal and dispose of them for their own advantage, are subjected to the assessment. A considerable amount of murmuring has been the consequence, and it was expected that, on the occasion of a new election, an effort would be made by the adverse electors to overturn the whole commission; but when the day of decision came, only two voters, with the clerk, appeared – who settled the election unmolested, to their own satisfaction.
ACCIDENT- People extol the universal use of spectacles as a remedy for decayed vision; but it will not always do; sometimes it were better to look over them. On Saturday last, our harbour-master had gone down the pier with those useful appendages in complete adjustment on their seat of dignity, and unobscured by even the shred of a hat brim, or the sombre hues of an arm covering. Returning in some haste, whether from the misconception sometimes experienced in the use of those accessories to vision, or from any other less apparent cause, he had miscalculated the breadth of footing, stumbled over the pier headlong into the harbour. Fortunately, however, it was at a place where there was a depth of water sufficient to break his fall, and at the same time permit him to walk up to the beach without assistance, which he did as unconcernedly as if he had merely chosen that method of reaching his abode, in preference to the usual one.