Issue 293 - TAXI Newspaper

More readers than the rest put together! 14 MAY 2013 | TAXI 29
Cruel Capital
ROBERT LORDAN London cabbie and tour guide
A pioneering doctor, his stolen statue and the campaign to replace it
A CRUEL
THEFT
Until it was callously stolen by
scrap metal thieves one night in
November 2011, one of
London’s most poignant public
artworks was Doctor Salter’s
Daydream which occupied a peaceful
spot on Bermondsey Wall East.
The theft becomes all the more cruel
when you realise the emotive story
behind the man whom it represented.
The son of a gas-worker, Doctor
Alfred Salter was born in Greenwich in
June 1873. Alfred was a bright child,
winning a scholarship to study
medicine at Guy’s Hospital at the
tender age of 16.
During his training, Alfred visited
many working-class homes in
Bermondsey and the utter poverty
which he encountered promptly led
him to develop a deeply committed
social conscience.
Early days
Qualifying as a doctor in 1896, Alfred
spent time in the ‘Bermondsey
Settlement’; a pioneering community
scheme which sought to help the
area’s disadvantaged. It was here
Alfred met Ada Brown; a young
woman with an equally powerful
sense of principal.
The pair fell in love and married in
1900, by which point they’d already
vowed to devote their lives to the
people of Bermondsey.
To achieve this, the couple set up a
medical practice on Jamaica Road
where the good doctor offered free
treatment to those who were unable to
afford it- an absolute Godsend in
those pre-NHS days.
Believing a voice in government
would give him more clout in
alleviating poverty, Alfred also
became active in politics, becoming
elected to Bermondsey Council in
1903. Once in, he strove to improve
housing and education in the
area- you can still see the model
housing, pushed for by Dr Salter, on
Wilson Grove.
Alfred and Ada were also great
friends of the London taxi trade;
frequently speaking out in favour of
cabbies’ rights and supporting drivers
through a number of early 20th
century strikes.
With the Salter’s support, Ben
Smith- an ambitious cabbie from
Hayes - managed to become MP for
Rotherhithe. Ben later went on to
become Minister of Food under
Clement Attlee and eventually
received a knighthood for his work.
In 1902, the Salters were blessed
with a daughter whom they named
Joyce and, soon after, the family
moved to Storks Road.
In 1910, Joyce (now aged 8) became
seriously ill with scarlet fever and was
rushed to the former South Western
Hospital on Stockwell’s Landor Road.
By this point, the Salters were
dearly loved by the people of
Bermondsey; an affection reflected by
the fact that locals nicknamed Joyce
“our little ray of sunshine.” So acute was
the concern for their child that Alfred
and Ada posted regular bulletins on
their front door, informing wellwishers
of their little girl’s process.
Tragically though, Joyce died.
During their lives, Alfred and Ada
had successfully fought to save the
lives of many but when it came to
their own child, they were helpless.
The pair never truly overcame their
grief. For the rest of their lives a
picture of Joyce held pride of place on
Alfred and Ada’s mantelpiece; a
portrait which was adorned with
fresh flowers every single day.
Ada died in December 1942, a
further tragedy which led Alfred to
write, “the loneliness is almost
unbearable.”
Doctor Alfred Salter himself passed
away three years later at Guy’s
Hospital; the very same institution in
which he’d trained and gained the
knowledge to help those whom he and
his wife and dedicated their lives to.
Stolen
It was in 1991 that the artwork
entitled Doctor Salter’s Daydream
was unveiled next to The Angel pub.
Created by Diane Gorvin, the piece
consisted of three individual, lifesized
statues.
The first section- the part which was
stolen- was of Doctor Salter himself,
seated on a bench (which the public
were encouraged to share) and
waving at the two other figures- his
beloved daughter, Joyce who was
accompanied by her little pet cat.
On closer inspection, one could see
that Doctor Salter was portrayed as an
elderly man, gazing upon images
which were effectively ghosts; “shadows
of things that have been” to quote
Dickens’ Ghost of Christmas Past.
An accompanying plaque- still in
situ- describes the now absent work
as representing “the daydream of an old
man remembering happier times when his
‘sunshine’ was still alive.”
Following the theft, the statues of
Joyce and her cat were removed by
the council for safekeeping.
A group of Bermondsey residents
have since mounted a fundraising
campaign to have new statues of
Alfred and Ada sculpted which, if
successful, will be protected by ample
security to deter wannabe shysters.
To find out more about this
admirable project, please visit the
website: www.salterstatues.co.uk
The fee for this column has been
donated to the campaign to replace
the statue. n
Dr Salter and Joyce
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