Five persons were killed, and three houses reduced to ruins,
by an explosion of gunpowder, which occurred on Wednesday week, on the premises of a fireworks-manufacturer, named Wood, at Holbeck, one mile from Leeds. Wood employed three girls to assist himself and his wife in making fireworks; and having many orders at this season of the year, the quantity of gunpowder in his house was about a hun- dredweight and a half. On the evening above-mentioned, he left borne; his wife and a girl being employed in the room below ; while two other girls, Susannah Dockeray and Mary Wildman, were at work all-stairs, where the gunpowder was kept, "twitching and touching"_ that is, fastening string to the bottom of the squibs, and putting pieces of paper saturated in saltpetre to the other end. Their time of working was from eight in the morning till midnight—of course many hours by candle-light. There was a pot of water in which they might deposit the snuff of the candle; but, instead of snuffers, they used their fingers and a pair of scissors. About seven o'clock, the girl Wildman left Dockeray up-stairs; and soon after, Mrs. Wood heard the noise of a pair of scissors jingling on the top of a barrel in which the gunpowder wanted for immediate use was kept; the rest being in a hag. She concluded that the girl had been snuffing the candle. In a few minutes, there was a cracking and hissing noise; and Dockeray ran down-stairs, her clothes all on fire, and rushed out of the house. The other girls followed her; but Mrs. Wood went up stairs to the gun- powder room to throw the squibs and crackers out of the window ! She just reached the door of the room, when the barrel of gunpowder exploded, with a tremendotls roaring noise, like the discharge of a
park of artillery. The barrel, as it was thrown into the air, looked
like a ball of fire. Wood's house and one adjoining were lifted up, as it were, and sunk to the earth, a mass of blazing ruins. The rout was blown off the house of a weaver who lived on the opposite side of the lane about twelve yards distant, and the front wall was broken in. Two men were at work in this house, both of whom escaped; but Mrs. Walker, the wife of one of them, was buried in the ruins. An old man who lived in Wood's house was dreadfully scorched and bruised, but not killed. Mrs. Wood, of course, was killed ; as were also a Mrs. Stephenson and her child, who lived in the house adjoining Wood's. We cannot discover from the accounts who was the fifth person whose life was lost.
The shock produced by this explosion was felt like that of an earth- quake, at two miles distance. The gas-lights in the factories of Messrs. Marshall, and Nussey and Co. were extinguished. Several hundred squares of glass were broken in the mill of the latter, and also at Messrs. Gott's, at a greater distance. An inquest was held on the bodies the next day. Wood was much shocked when he heard the news, but be behaved in an unfeeling man- ner before the Coroner's Jury. When asked if he was in the habit of sitting up himself till midnight at work with the girls, he replied- " ; I was not so fond of sitting up at nights. I generally went to bed at half-past nine, and left the girls to roll the cases." The Co- roner said-
" It appears to me that you have conducted the making of these fireworks is a very careless manner, in allowing scissors to be used for the purpose of snuff- ing the candle, and also in using your fingers. Indeed, it is an act if gros, impropriety in your having allowed working by candle-light at all. Thereon be no doubt that the careless manner in which you have conducted your lard- ness, has caused that frightful loss of life which has occasioned the present inquiry."
The July found a verdict of " Accidental Death," adding a strong censure of Wood for his carelessness.
A meeting of the inhabitants of Holbeck was held in the eveeitie. of Friday ; at which resolutions were passed deploring the accident, zaal to open a subscription for the relief of the survivieg sufferers. It e as also resolved, " That in order to prevent the recurrence of a similar accident, the constahle be requested to obtain a warrant to search the houses of persons carrying en the manufacture of fireworks in the neighbourhood, and to take proper steps to abate, as far as possible, the nuisance of so dangerous a manufacture."
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