A MAN was recovering in hospital today after being stabbed in a North Yorkshire street.

William Brace, 30, slumped to the pavement in front of horrified shoppers, in Selby.

One onlooker said there was a scuffle between two men outside the Booze Busters shop in Gowthorpe before the victim fell to the floor, clutching his stomach.

A knife was later recovered by detectives near the scene of the incident.

Police said today that Mr Brace, from Selby, was being treated for stab wounds in York District Hospital. His injuries were not thought to be life-threatening.

They said the other man involved in the scuffle - who is also from Selby - had been arrested and taken to York police station. A police spokesman said the man had been interviewed and released on bail until Saturday when he was due back at York police station.

The drama unfolded at about 11.45am yesterday. It was market day in Selby and the High Street was packed with shoppers.

They looked on in horror as several passers-by, including a nurse, went to Mr Brace's aid, trying to stem the flow of blood.

He remained conscious as he was carried on a stretcher into an ambulance and taken to hospital.

One woman who was passing at the time said: "The man was lying on the pavement, shouting 'I've been stabbed'. He then shouted to a young woman 'I love you'. I has seen the same man about five minutes earlier in another part of town. He was on his own and seemed fine."

The manageress of a nearby shop said: "There was a bit of an argument outside and then someone came in and said a man had been stabbed."

Updated: 11:35 Tuesday, March 12, 2002