ON March 1 you published a very interesting article on the GWR Works hooter. Since then I have been searching for the following information, extracted from the February 1935 edition of the Great Western Railway magazine, which might be of further interest to your readers.

In the first place the company summoned its workers by a large bell, fixed to the roof of C shed, which was laboriously tolled at morning, noon and night.

While there was no motor traffic and very little else to disturb the peace, the bell was quite adequate, but by 1867 more noise was needed and a steam hooter was installed.

The hooter was the chief reason why Swindon men or anyone in the neighbourhood rarely overslept. It was blown for 10 minutes at 5.20am for three more minutes at 5.50am and then another minute at 6am (which was the works starting time).

The present hooter has been heard at Bourton on the Water a distance of about 25 miles across country. The original one was said to be louder still. It is hardly surprising then, that a local landowner (Lord Bolingbroke, presumably) made complaints and in deference to his request, the periods of blowing were restricted.

As a result a number of objections were received from various villages such as "every person, both Master and Man for miles around the country, say that the hooter is of great service to them, and I have heard a great many workmen in the country say that it prevents their employers tampering with the clocks to defraud the men of their time ... and they all wish the whistle to blow at 10 minutes to six in the morning as usual."

Before the matter was settled, several alternative methods were tried, a number of meetings were held, the Local Government Board conducted an enquiry and five years passed by.

The Local Government Board decided that the hooter should not blow, and it was only through the ingenuity of the Hon F W Cadogan, who was at that time was the MP for Cricklade, which included Swindon, that a solution was found. Another hooter was fixed on the roof within a few yards of the disused one, and as the Hon F W Cadogan pointed out, although the original hooter might not be blown, no injunction had been granted against the second one, which, incidentally, was louder than the first.

The beauty of this process was that it could be repeated indefinitely, a fact apparently recognised by the authorities, for the matter was allowed to drop. The result of this was that enquiries were received from several Midland firms who were anxious to secure the formula by which the men of Swindon might still be summoned by hooter.

A H CLARK

Allestree, Derby