The National Register. — London, England, 1814-02-20 00:00:00

TT! N‘TIONAL ItEGISTERs. offices of bnsistess, adjoining a closet attached to the house-keeper's aspartinent%. his closet was on. du two pair of stairs. From the time of any Nserokbirat which it began, and. from the instant burst of flame froM the back pert of the building, there can be little doubt s•f the file having been slumbering iu a latent state throughout the prineiNl part of the previous evening The Porter of Ali Hinton was Ilse first person who discovered it. If. was going . up *taint fo-r st key to admit hisw, as usual, to a part of the house that communicated with the others, acrd when on the se• frond floor he heard a crackling of fire, and saw a flame breaking from the ; he iessonstly rwhed into the room, which was that in which Colonel Kelly slept, whom he found standing by use bed feet, the curtsies in is blaze, and the flame pouting from the absive :pensioned closet. Hy this time the o hole room was on tire, and a piiiikald had gil,en the alas in from the quay, towards which the Windows of this room looked. The Porter proceeded to call up the servants and the ta,,sily ; the Celrseel rats to a room adjoining his own, which was flouting the street : be was ruiSeel by a ladder With the greatest difficulty, and shockingly burnt in the face and hands. The account be gives is, that be was awakened by a smoke vs Inds filled his room, and almost in a state of sidlecation he arose and opened his closet. for the purpose of getting at his dressing gown that lie might hasten to alarm the family ; but immediately upon opeoing the closet, a volume of fl one burst flash-41w curtains of the bed and those of the windows caught flue and thus encom passed with the blaze he was found by the porter. It appears that in this closet there was formerly * * fire-place, which, for a long time. had beets boarded up, the hue of which was connected with another in an office below. The Miss NOVA most narrowly escaped, with only the covering of blankets; and Captain Hinton Kelly made his way through the fire with IPA sisters, in the Rinse unprovided state. Tic Captain had bat the day b. tore reheated from Brighton, where he had been fur the recovery of his health, which had suffered greatly in MISC. vinare of lung service in the West Indies. Two poor little of phans, whom Miss Kelly, with her wonted laud. ness, had taken miller her protection. perished in the disuses.-a. The 'shrieks of .dins Kelly, it appears, hail awakened them, and the cook of the establiAlinent, in making her eleapt to the top of the house, passer' b; the door of the room in which these children slept ; she threw it open, and called to them to " follow her instantly, 14 the house was on fire." They answered " we will just put on our gowns, and get away ;" but alas I the ninon, which was already filled with smoke, burst into a flame, and it is concluded that when they strove to make their way to l'ir staircase, they were overpowered by the rapid progress of the fire, and were instantly mingled in the general destruction. But He who is the father of - the fatherless, and the protector of the orphan, has recorded their death in the mereifid memorial of Hi. Ouiuiscience, as the wise, but isserutable, dispensa tion of His. Providence. • Most of the servants had previously-fled to the top of the house, from which they weer taken down by ladders. The Colonel, at the moment, was carried to Mr. Lanham's, in Itecr lane, and the injuries he has received make it dangerous to remove him tOr the prv-esit ; this aided to a severe asthmatic complaint which he eanglst in the retreat imcler Sir John Moore, and which was much Piereased by the Walelwiert lever, renders his recovery very doubtful. Miss Kelly and her tamily have lost every part of their property its the house. Nothing was invited. The fire. aecording to the report of the firemen, would have bees; got make very soon, hot the explosion of the ennpoweler having struck terror into thei men who worked the en; ices, they Ned and left the dames for some time to rage sincontrouled. This powder was fur the use of the %olunteer corps, and did not it is said alllollllt to a larger quantity than ten or twelve pound* ; but the assertion that there were as many barrels, threw an histaut panic on all around, and throughout the ' neigls'sourbood. Cert4in, however it is that had siet this explosion taken glare, the fi.e would nut have sprcail . As Were is groat consolation in knowing that maay 01 the important papers of this oftiee lease been recovered ; and several chests of valuables, with the principal vs conk, 11.IVti been saved. Nis delay will take place in the prove,s of business. Although the damage and inenevenience arising Irons Psis run fleu,,tation have been nicalcidable, sill iaa lit nut been r the esier lions of Messrs. Drinkalibe Santis, gedwick, and Linglam, the spread of the fire, and its con•equeut havoc, lutist L e e n far greater than what ha.; ocenred. 'lnc latter pruventeci the could sg ratiao fruits soreading np Kerr-laue, by his judicious applicatiou of wet blankets to his warrhosae, which was im m edi_ Atli)* 0111 , 0. , 11C tl.) the Cusums-house. He and his two sous were at FEB. 20, work the whnit day in endeavouring to prevent thin VI areltuitse from taking file, and it was with the utmost difficulky that they happily aecolopli.lied their pm pose: We hear that the insurance on the Cu•tom house amounts to 00,0 m. I. _ _ An old Clerk made ninny efforts in the coarse of Saturday, to force his way through the cuinik, to the place where he usually officiated. He was sore that sonic of hi• pipers, from the rare he had taken its their deposit, wonl.l he form(' safe, could be only eel to the spot. On Sunday, with 54)1114 - Wu: Linen. be .nc eeeded in getting thronels the ruins from the side vest the rivet. The pick-axe at list struck on an iron elle.t—the rubbish was cleared away, the key introduced and out came lour hundred kninms. which the clerk carried ott in his hat. The first Custom house built in Loilltion was in 1559, '225 years ago ; it was burnt down in 1718, and rebuilt the same 'ear ; anti it was on Saturday, 12th of February, again totally consume(' by fits The first Custom-louse, therefore 3tuod 159 years ; the seccutl y stood 9d years. The goods which have been destroyed, consisted almost enSirely of seized and contraband property ; so that, except tie the hiss to individuals will not be very great. In the store-rooms of the east wing we understand we , e depoited quantities of Ftencli silks, gloves, laces, beads, cambries, India handLerchiefs. do ; wkitee the west wine contained packages of porerlaine and ()tiler substan tial merehandize. The great opening tnr the budding of the New Cmtimi House may he considered to have eaiked the preservation of many of the houses west of Water lane. The actual loss to Government by the sudden destruction of the Custom-house cannot be calcidated ; books, bonds, debenture 4, pearl 4, cored, valuable property of every description, and securit ies ot all kinds have been consmned. Business i 4, and must remain quite at a stand-still for some tune ; numerous vessels ready to sail cannot clear on t, and, consequently the injury to the mercantile world will he most severe and distressing. The private property lost within the building is very considerable. We have heard of several Gentlemen who had left large sinus of money in their desks, ready to make payments on the following day. One Gentleman lass lost upwards of six thousand pounds in bald:4;oles, which will be irrecoverable, as the nremorandrun of the number+ was in the desk with the notes, and met this fate. A very tine collection of pictures, which the Commissioners had permitted a Gentleman to leave in deposit till it would be convenient for him to pay the duties, amounting to 1,5001, is destroyed. A very genteel yonne than, in appearance, was stop ped by some Police Officers, in Thames street, and on searching him Ids pockets and breeches were fund to be stuffed with coral beads, silk handkerchiefs, and other valuables of small . bulk. It appeared that his boldness in venturing nearer the gmmpowder than even the firemen dared to do, bad enabled blue is obtain this booty. ACCIDENTS AND OFFENCE'S', Our city flits been disgraced hy c.ne of those atrocious murders which are generally supposed to hr peculiar to savage life. Towards nitre o'clock on Tuesday evening, it load been hemd necessary to put Michael Hannon, butt her, out of the house of E. Phelan, publican, at Bally hrieken, where he had been clamorous, mid exceedingly troublesome. After his expulsisni he became lotion.. insi-ted on being re-admit., ci s and, by pelting stones, did such mischief to the door and wit.dows, flint Phelan, 'A Ito had been in bed, unwell. got Hp, opened the door, and en deavoured by expleattilation and threat to prevail upon Hannan to de• sist. All was vain ; Hannan be came the more intldmed, and almost immediately hurled a stone at Phelan's left temple, with such vtOlenteg as brought to the , ground, with a wound, which in a very short time pot ti peri..d to his esiAnce. Th, murderer has absconded.—(Water. fifril Mirror.) Tuesday morning, Inlween seven and eight u'ulock, a fire broke out in the worksliiip of Covent liarden "lientre, which, by timely assist alter, g.it under without doing Mlle.! au-chief. A private in the Bth regiment. named M•Coomhe, has been oppre.. betried in St. Johni.;, New brat:,.. irk, charged by the vetdict of a C f .. roner's inquest, pith the atrocionh murder of It tv 'lreton, a It-mide, whom he emir:e 1. It . !years Cain the wretch,, finding the girl not di,. po , erf to favour his ;iddre4ses, sought an opp rtunity whtun they were alone to ‘iolate her per-oh ; and then to avert the punislinsemt due to so heinous an otiencc, tot the thr.nit of the ontortunate A ewe sheep, the popert.; of Mr. Joshua Taylor, near Marshfield, Some:met, w it s (t it Saturday last taken out alive iium the wow, Laving! been buried tin sixteen days and tvglita.