The Postcard
A Comic Series postcard that was published by Bamforth & Co. Ltd. of Holmfirth, Yorkshire. The card was printed in England.
The card was posted in Margate using a 4d. stamp on Monday the 9th. June 1969. It was sent to:
Mrs. L. Bell,
17, Venour Road,
Burdett Road,
Bow,
London E3.
The message on the divided back of the card was as follows:
"Sommerville,
Gordon Road,
Cliftonville.
Dear Lottie,
Having a nice time.
The weather is wonderful
so far. I hope it keeps like
it for your sake as well as
ours.
A very nice crowd - we
had a sing-song until one
o'clock this morning, and
there is a dance tonight.
I am writing on the Front,
so excuse the scribble.
Love from Ray and Rosie."
Venour Road and a Murder
Venour Road and the houses in it no longer exist; it ran out of Maidmans Street which connected to Burdett Road. It was replaced by Mile End Park some time after 1974.
Three doors down from Mrs. Bell, a murder was committed at No. 23 Venour Road in 1900.
32 year old Samson Silas Salmon cut the throat of his cousin Lucy Smith, also aged 32, on Saturday 15th. December, 1900. Lucy was the wife of a local road-sweeper in the employ of the Borough of Stepney. A week before the tragedy, Salmon threatened to kill the deceased, her husband, and their little girl.
Salmon was executed by hanging at Newgate Prison by James Billington on Tuesday the 19th. February 1901.
Samson Salmon had been lodging at 23 Venour Road while working at a local chemical works. He had been there since the beginning of 1899, and had been paying 13/- a week in rent.
However, he later lost his job and began drinking. Although he was allowed to stay at 23 Venour Road even though he had no money, he became argumentative and violent, and was asked a couple of times to leave, and had once been thrown out.
On the 10th. December 1900, Samson Salmon hit several people, including Lucy Smith and a neighbour, and even though he had a knife they managed to throw him out.
However, he later returned to the house and climbed over the wall. He was allowed to stay, but the next day he announced that he was going to leave and look for work away from London.
He returned on the 15th. December and climbed over the wall again, and when Lucy Smith came out to throw some ashes away, he followed her back into the house. They had an argument, he hit her and then cut her throat from ear to ear down to the depth of the spinal column, almost completely severing her head from her body.
All the blood vessels of her neck were severed, as well as her windpipe. She was left lying fully dressed in a large pool of her own blood. There were two knives beside her head, and both were covered with blood. One was a white-handled table knife, and the other was a black-handled clasp knife.
The police did not have to look far to find the murderer as Salmon was sitting alongside the body. Salmon stated:
"I did it and I will swing for it."
At Salmon's trial the defence was one of insanity, with two doctors stating that the prisoner’s father and cousin both died in an asylum.
However, Dr. Bastian, an expert on diseases of the brain, and lately an official at the Broadmoor Criminal Lunatic Asylum, who was called for the prosecution, said that he could find no traces whatever of insanity in the prisoner.
During and after the execution judgement Salmon appeared quite indifferent to his fate, and, at an interview with some friends on Saturday, in the prison he chatted freely.
On the morning of the execution, Salmon partook of a light breakfast, and he offered no resistance to the pinioning process by Billington, the executioner.
He walked with a firm step to the scaffold, and, when the bolt was drawn, death appeared to instantaneous.
The Gibraltar Border
So what else happened on the day that Ray and Rosie posted the card?
Well, on the 9th. June 1969, shortly after midnight, the government of Spain closed its border with the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar, located on the south of the Iberian peninsula.
While Gibraltarians had been barred from Spain since May 1968, about 4,800 Spanish citizens had been allowed to work in Gibraltar (which had a resident population of about 24,500 at the time), but would no longer be allowed to work there.
On the 28th. June 1969, Spain halted the ferry service that brought tourists to Gibraltar from its Mediterranean Sea port of Algeciras in the Province of Cádiz.
After more than 13 years, the border closing was partially lifted on the 15th. December 1982, and the "Big Green Gate" at the Spanish town of La Línea de la Concepción was opened, with thousands of Spanish citizens and Gibraltarians
being allowed to walk through.
The frontier gate across the road crossing remained closed for more than 15 years until 30 seconds past midnight on the 5th. February 1985.
The U.S. Prime Rate
Also on that day, for the first time in American history, the Federal Reserve Board of Governors approved an increase of a full percentage point in the U.S. prime rate — the minimum interest rate for an American bank to loan money.
Although previous increases had been for one-half or one-quarter of a point, the rate was increased from 7.5% to 8.5%, the highest up to that time. The rate was lowered to 8% on the 25th. March 1970, and continued to drop during the Nixon administration, reaching a low of 4.5% on the 16th. February 1972.
The prime rate is that which is reserved for borrowers with the highest credit, with higher interest rates than prime beng permitted for borrowers considered to be at risk of default.
