Spattered With Blood : murder, theft and arson in old Argyll

Argyll in the late Victorian era was home to as many criminals as it always has been, despite an experienced and proactive police force.The historic little towns where both police and criminals worked stood then much as they do now, although some of the crime sites (a crofter’s cottage, a tenement or a village of huts) are ruined or hugely changed.The coming of the railways brought another crime wave from the hard-working, hard-drinking labourers who built it, while an emerging awareness of forensics resulted in many successes in crime-fighting. Here are 18 tales of bloody murder, arson, assault and theft from the Ross of Mull and Kintyre to the Bridge of Awe and Dunoon, including petty crimes from youthful criminals, a clumsy butler with a lit candle, a vengeful landowner or cottagers, a drunken train traveller with a rifle, farmers fighting in a railway carriage or quarriers at the foot of Ben Cruachan, a secluded farmhouse and a grumpy teenager too handy with a box of matches, and finally the tale of three men the worse for alcohol, a tragic scene one June night and a humble memorial at a murder site. Watch your backs – PC Mac has handcuffs now.