Edmund Reid

Edmund Reid at Hampton-on-Sea
making an issue of it. Furthermore, the tenancy agreement Reid had signed placed him under obligation to keep
the house in a good state of repair. Reid countered this by asking why, if that was the case, Hall had paid for
previous repairs to the house. The judge said this was irrelevant and even ‘if the roof fell in about your ears it
would be no defence in law.’ Reid retorted that ‘It has been down twice and he has put it up again.’
By now Hall’s patience had run out. He told Reid that he had another potential tenant who would take the
house immediately, ‘but I won’t release you Mr Reid. Oh no!’ Reid replied ‘It is a hornet’s nest about my ears.’
Hall seemed to relent and said ‘If you will compensate me I could let it tomorrow.’ The judge’s ruling was that
Reid had to pay the outstanding £5 10s by the end of May, but not the 5s interest. Hall’s lawyer pointed out that by
then another quarterly payment would be due, to which Hall said ‘And I will have him for it.’ Playing to the court,
Reid glibly replied ‘You will have your pound of flesh.’ This raised a laugh, but Hall was unamused, responding
‘Yes, I will.’ 11
This episode shows Reid in a poor light. He had failed to pay his rent for a house which the landlord had
maintained, despite it being Reid’s responsibility. Hall’s anger towards Reid is understandable and it is to his
credit that he stood up to Reid, who he knew was a former Scotland Yard inspector as well as something of a
local celebrity. And why was Reid keeping two houses at once? In 1912 and 1913 when offering to help potential
Metropolitan Police recruits he again had an address in Whitstable while still living at ‘Reid’s Ranch.’ On that
occasion it was 84 High Street.
Reid owned the ‘Ranch’ at Hampton and when it was inspected for the 1910 Finance Act survey it was noted
that: ‘The house is in a very dilaptd [sic – dilapidated] Condition’, and that the sea was rapidly encroaching. 12 It is
not clear if this indicates that the interior of the house was dilapidated or if coastal erosion had started to attack
the foundations and exterior of the ‘Ranch’. A number of properties in Hampton were lost to coastal erosion
around 1910, although Reid did not leave the Ranch until 1916. An earlier visitor to the ‘Ranch’ said it was ‘a well
arranged cottage.’ 13
11 Whitstable Times, 13 April 1907.
12 TNA, PRO IR58/17510.
13 Herne Bay Press, 27 September 1902.
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