Famous Old Peterites—VI

CHARLES PALEY SCOTT, K.C.

Mr. Paley Scott was born on the 17th of June, 1881, and attended the School in the latter half of the '90s under , the headmastership of the Rev. G. T. Handford. At School he seems to have been quite an athlete, as he played for the 1st XV at rugger as both a forward and a three-quarter, and to judge from the team characters he was a very dashing player. He played for the 2nd XI at cricket, and from available statistics excelled at athletics and gymnasium, representing the VIth Form in the latter pastime. As regards his studies I am unable to find any reference to any examination or prize winning successes that he might have had. In " The Peterite " of 1900 I find that 112 was Secretary of the Programme, a club which, I presume, corresponds to " The Curtain " of to-day. In the same year he took the part of a priest in " Twelfth Night."

On leaving School, Mr. Scott went to King's College, Cambridge. He passed his Little-go in 1900. The next information that I can refer to is that in 1906 he was called to the Bar in the Inner Temple, and immediately joined the North Eastern Circuit, of which he has remained a member ever since.

In 1917 he joined the army. He was commissioned in February, 1918, and in April of the same year he went to France, where he remained until February, 1919.

In the years following the War he became one of the busiest Junior Counsel on the circuit, and in 1923 he was appointed Recorder of Doncaster, a position which he occupied until 1933, when he was made a K.C. and Recorder of Kingston-upon-Hull, in which capacity he remains to this day. He is a bencher of the Inner Temple, and in 1936 he was appointed Chancellor of the County Palatine of Durham.

Mr. Scott's most outstanding case so far has been the renowned " Girl Pat " case, which caused such a stir at the time; in this case he was Counsel for the Prosecution.

I understand that among his legal colleagues, Mr. Paley Scott has a reputation as a clever caricaturist, and from what I have seen of him in court he has an exceptional sense of humour. To conclude, I must add that we are very grateful for Mr. Scott's noble, but vain effort to close Love Lane, which runs right through the School grounds. G. D. Jefferson.

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