Way we were

100 years ago: A sermon to the young people at Lendal Congregational was based on the hypothetical and "somewhat novel" text of "if Christ came to York". He would find that more than a quarter of the total population of the city were living in poverty, largely owing to intemperance, betting, and gambling, according to the preacher. He would find that no less the 553 families were living in an overcrowded condition.

Further, Christ would see people gazing at "sensuous pictures", as in the "Police Budget" displayed in a particular shop window. The "predominating sorrow" of the Son of God would be to see the Church and Free Church practically not on speaking terms. Christ would also want to know why such papers as the Sporting Chronicle were allowed to "defile" the city, and He would visit the proprietors of the Yorkshire Herald and the Press and want to know why they encouraged betting by publishing sporting news. Further, He would want to know why the citizens did not turn a united front against the audacious attempt to limit the discretionary power of magistrates in the granting of licences. The sermon was listened to with rapt attention by the congregation.

50 years ago: A medal was sent to Mr Nobody by a reader, which had been issued by the German authorities to commemorate the "success" of the sinking of the Lusitania by a German submarine off the southern coast of Ireland during the First World War, with the loss of 1,198 lives. One side of the coin had a representation of the Cunard company's ticket office in New York, with Death, portrayed by a skeleton, issuing the tickets. Above was the motto in German: "Business Above All".

On the reverse was the Lusitania shown sinking with guns and aeroplanes on board, with an inscription "No Contraband Goods". The date on the medal was May 5, 1915, although the sinking actually occurred on May 7 of that year. It had been created by Karl Goetz, as "censure of the Cunard Line for gross neglect", rather than a triumphant proclamation, although that was how it was seen in Britain at the time of issue, and a copy of it was sold in this country with an anti-German propaganda leaflet accompanying it.

10 years ago: "Worldbeating" workers at Riccall mine celebrated producing three million tonnes of coal in less than a year. The 570 men at the Selby pit had been told by British Coal that their achievement was on a par with the most efficient deep mines in the world, a feat they took just 51 weeks to achieve.

Riccall was the first deep mine in Europe to produce an average 60,000 tonnes of coal every week since the previous April, the first to do so in such a short time span. Riccall also held the European record for producing the fastest million tonnes, achieved in just 14 weeks.

Updated: 16:34 Wednesday, March 24, 2004