FinE.—The houses of Mr. Smith, oilman, and Mr.Callam, truss. manufacturer,
Great Queen Street, were burnt down yesterday morning. The fire was discovered by the policeman oa duty about three o'clock in the morning. It was got under about half-past five. No lives were lost.
On Sunday night, about ten o'clock, a destructive fire .broke out on the farming premises of Mr. Wickes, a short distance from the Aylsham Road, Norfblk, by Which the barn, nearly filled with wheat and barley, cart lodges, &c., were entirely consumed : two stacks of bark?, one of wheat, and one of hay, were also destroyed. Two persons have been taken up, on suspicion of having set fire to the premises.
MANCHESTER AND LIVERPOOL RAILWAY.—Several trifling acci- dents have lately taken place on the new railroad ; but on the 22d inst. one of a more important kind took place, inasmuch as it arose out of the inability of the engineers to control the engines when going with velocity. The circumstance is thus described in a local journal—" The blue train of carriages, which left Manchester at two o'clock, was proceeding at the usual rate, when it was overtaken near Rainhill by the ducal car and other carriages forming the 'Wellington train,' which proceed daily from Liverpool with passengers on a trip to the Sankey viaduct, and then return to Liverpool. The 'Wellington train was proceeding a/ the rate of nearly thirty miles an hour' and the engineer apparently had not the power to diminish its speed ; for, as it approached close to the rear of the blue train, he was seen to throw up his hands in the atti- tude of terror and despair. The alarm of the passengers in the blue train was of course extreme ;. but almost before they had power to give expression to their feelings, the Wellington engine came in contact with the last of the blue carriages, with so dreadful a shock, as to throw seve- ral of the passengers nearly out of the carriage. The seats of the car- riage were also completely broken by the violence of the crash ; and such of the passengers as retained their sitting posture of course came to the 'floor of the carriage. The engineer of the blue train, for the purpose of diminishing the speed of the now united trains immediately threw off his steam, and hastened to the assistance of the less skilful conductor of the Wellington carriages. By his aid, the speed of the Wellington engine was moderated ; and the train having falling back to a respectful distance, both sets of carriage sproceeded on to Liverpool without farther damage, the passengers of the disabled carriage being. accommodated with standing.room in the other carriages, the seats of which were all oc-
cupied." • ACCIDENTAL Poisostrsts.—On Saturday last, in the Village of Orpington in Kent, the wife of a labouring man, named Tucker, made some water- gruel for herself; she ate part of it; and her three children and a man who lodged in the house also partook of it. In a short time they be came alarmingly ill. A medical gentleman having been sent for, in- stantly resorted to the stomach-pump, and extracted a portion of gruel from the woman's stomach ; he then turned his attention to the children, and succeeded in restoring them, but in the mean time the poor tvOman died. On examining the contents of the stomach and the remainder of the gruel, it was found to be strongly impregnated with white arsenic. How the poison got into the house no one can state.
CRANBOURN CHASE.—The disfranchisement of Cranbourn Chase is now proceeding in good earnest, by the extermination of the numerous head of deer with which it has hitherto been stocked: and so numerous are the shooters engaged in this slalighter' that it has become dangerous to traverse even the neighbouring roads. Last week, a man was shot by a person in pursuit of venison.—[qu. of veal?] EXPLOSION.-011 the 19th of August last, about four days' sail from Madeira, from the carelessness of the carpenter' a barrel of gunpowder, weighing fifty-six pounds, blew up on the deck of the brig Coventry, Purdie master, from London to Jamaica. Captain Webb and his lady, passengers to St. Christopher, were dreadfully burnt in consequence, and an infant which the latter had in her arms at the time was so much injured that it died the next day ; the master was also very much burnt and two of the crew slightly. The brig made for Madeira, where the sufferers met with every attention from the acting British consul and the merchants. Captain Webb is nearly recovered, his hands only re- maining at present useless. Mrs. Webb is also recovering, but from the dreadful nature of her wounds, it will in all probability be a long time before she recovers entirely.—Dorset County Chronicle.
Previous page
