The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser. — Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1844-01-02 00:00:00

ALARMING AND DESTRUCTIVE FIRES.- n" AT DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY AND MELANCHOLY LOSS OF LIFE. After a cessation for seve, ui months of those calamities by fire with which the town was so lamentably and alarmingly visited during the last winter, we had, in com mon with others, begun to felicitate ourselves, that, from greater caution, together with the atsence of accident, and the abhorrence expressed of incendiarism, (if such .7,n reality existed,) we should pass the present season with out having the painful duty to record new losses and disasters is our—in this respect—unen, iable, locality. But in this expectation we have unhappily been disappointed —having now to notice the occurrence of no fewer than four conflagrations since our last publication—one of them extensive, and attended with deplorable loss of life to an amount not yet, perhaps, fully determinable; ano ther of a great part of a valuable cargo ; another of a house and shop ; and a fourth of minor amount, but leaving ap pearances tending to excite some suspicions of the most culpable negligence, if not, indeed, of foul play. What is still more remarkable, all these fires broke out within 21 consecutive hours, and consequently Nl' the fire-police to continuous and fatiguing exertions, and excited much alarm in the public mind. We take them in the order of their occurrence, although the third was by much the most calamitous : FIRE ON BOARD SHfP AT THE WATERLOO DOCK. On Wednesday, about two o'clock, a fire was discovered on board the Meg of Meldon, then lying in the Waterloo Dock. She arrived on Saturday week, from Calcutta, with a valuable cargo of saltpetre, hemp, rice, &c. Her owner is Mr. Sinclair. who, it is said, is not insured ; her cargo, which was fully covered, was consigned to the house of Messrs. Sands, Turner, and Co. The fire seems to have originated, from some cause or other not ascer tained, but most probably from spontaneous combustion, in the fore hold, and in contiguity to the foremast. She lay at the time in the centre of the dock, surrounded by vessels on every side, and, in order to prevent additional damage, was immediately towed into the lock, where ex ertions were used to extinguish the flames, which did not, at any period, burst forth in the ordinary manner, but smouldered amongst the cargo immediately under the deck—and sent forth dense volumes of smoke. Eight engines continued to play into the hold until about five o'clock, and the superintendent of the fire department had hopes, to the last, of overcoming it, and saving the ship little injured and a considerable portion, at least, of the cargo ; but as the smoke still continued, and apprehen sions were entertained that the saltpetre would ignite, it was resolved to scuttle the vessel—which was done by some carpenters in a boat, who cut holes near her bows. She had previously settled down nearly two feet, from the quantity of water poured into her hold by the engines. In about an hour after being scuttled the fire was got under. The damage to the vessel and cargo has been roughly estimated at from £lO,OOO to £15,000. FIRE IN IRONMONGER-LANE. On Wednesday evening, about half-past six o'clock, a fire was discovered in a large warehouse in Ironmonger lane, and, but for the timely discovery of the flames, there is little doubt that the premises, which were filled with colonial produce, oil, &c., would, but for the prompt at tendance of the fire-engines, have been consumed, as well as, in all probability, many of the adjacent high commer cial buildings. As it was, comparatively little damage was done. A number of men had been working all day in the cellars, in which from 150 to 200 casks of olive oil were stored. A quantity of bungs, and pieces of canvas used with them, were heaped together, and it appeared that a naked candle, fixed in a stick, had been used, arid, improperly, or intentionally, left without being quite ex tinguished, had set fire to these combustibles. A ware houseman, named Pierpoint, belonging to a neighbouring concern, first observed the smuke issuing from the loop holes of the staircase, and other parts of the building above —the spiral stair having formed a flue by which it was draughted upwards. Six engines, with water-carts, were brought from the fire at the Waterloo Dock. Mr. Hewitt had to break open all the room doors before he ascertained, from the thickness of the smoke, the spot where the fire was, and soon succeeded in subduing it. Some of the casks were partially burnt, and had a few minutes more elapsed, the whole would have been in a blaze. TOTAL DESTRUCTION OF BRANCKER'S SUGAR-REFINING WAREHOUSE. On Thursday morning, about a quarter past eight o'clock, several of the workmen employed in this exten sive establishment were alarmed by a slight smoke, which appeared throughout the rooms fronting to Harrington street. The temperature within was always necessarily high, and so maintained, at a medium of about 120 de grees, as far as possible, by means of a thermometer ; but, contrary to a rumour that has gone abroad, no particular change was felt by any of the inmates half an hour before the fire. The men had to work almost in a state of nudity, in the atmosphere required in the works. The extraor dinary rapidity of the flames, after they once bur&t forth (which was almost immediately after the smoke was per ceived), was such, that it is wonderful, in the short time available, and the obstacles that presented themselves, that the subsequent accidents and sufferings, fearful as they were, were not much more numerous and lament able. The following sketch, though rough, will convey an idea •of the extent and position of the premises, within which there is a large open yard : N. Mathew-street. 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'.< I - g. g :.*. r il 11111 l'' 2. Harri ngton -street, 128 t frontal LORD-STREET. From the above it will be seen, that the premises oc cupied an area, of an oblong square form, and of about 2,548 square yards, extending lengthways between Ala thew-street and liarrington-street. There were several buildings, of various heights, from, generally, five to eight stories; and the frontage to both streets presented gable ends of the pediment form above, forming, though lineale with the street, what might he called wings. It may be here stated, in justice to the proprietor of the works, that a large cistern stood at the top of the higher warehouse, above the stove ; that pipes communicated with it into every room; and there was also a powerful forcing pump, which could be worked by tile steam engine on the, premises, so that on an ordinary occasion any or several of the rooms could he flooded ; but such wa s the instantaneous nature of the conflagration, and the confusion and alarm that it occasioned, that these resources became unavailable. The fire, it appears, corn inence4 In what is called the old stove house, where the sugar is, in the final process, d r ied ; an d its immediate development probably arose f rom an explosion of the accumulated gasses. The pan-room is in the second story of the building in which the fire arose, facing ilar rineton-street, and the apparatus of the stove runs up four stories in the same building, south of the chimney. Some of the men were wont to go every morning into the stove-rooms to remove the sugar that was baked. In do ing this, about 20 minutes past eight on Wednesday, they found on going from one stove room to the other that the old one was on fire. Volumes of smoke were issuing from it. It being the breakfast hour, the greater part of the bands were rest i ng on the floors, and were roused by the -cry " Men, save your lives; the place is on fire." As might naturally be expected, the men were thrown into a state of great excitement, and their fears were increased, when on looking out from the top, they saw the flames and smoke bursting forth with intense fury. Those in the lower parts of the buildings managed to escape with out much difficulty, but those who were situated at the top of the premises were not so fortunate. They ran to the staircase, but th oug h some of them escaped in that direction, others were repulsed by the density of the smoke from below, and in their despair rushed to the win dows and called for aid. One poor fellow, Hugh Jones, in descending by the stairs, was severely burned. A man tamed James Henry went to Mr. Doyle, the custom house officer in charge of the building, which was bonded, for the keys of the stove door —first ordering the hose to be attached to the water-pipe to play into it if necessary : but unfortunately before this was done, be opened the door, and an explosion of gaseous matter instantly took place, and drove them back. The engineer, with great presence of mind, drew the plugs from the boilers, other wise the explosion would have been much greater. As it was, the rooms and floors of the warehouse next the pas sage (marked on the plan) gave way. The custom-house officer had a very narrow escape ; and at the instant be fore, he saw one of the men (Robert Woods) enter the building, apparently to get his clothes, He has never been seen since, and no doubt has unfortunately perished. lie was a quiet, orderly, and much respected poor man. Ott the opening of the old stove-door, the whole build ing seemed s i multaneously to become ignited. Vast bo dies of dense, dark smoke issued from almost every win dow and aperture; and amidst it in several places were seen the unfortunat e wor k men either running to and fro, calling' in agony for help, swarming down wads and weer 'Toutsc e was or dropping from' higher roofs to lo wer ones . Th e 'tens so sudd en an d so appalling, that the few people cllected w ere stru c k, as i t were, helpless, and did not therefore render all the assistance which, under the cir- Jan. 2, 1844. THE LIVERPOOL STANDARD. PLAN OF THE PROPOSED NORTH DOCKS, AND COMMUNICATION WITH TIIE LEEDS AND LIVERPOOL CANAL. In the present interesting stage of the question now Pending, with respect to the proposed application to pa, liament for power to construct new docks north and south of the present dock estate, every information, relative to the particular plans which are in agitation, must be in teresting to the public. We have therefore procured, at considerable pains and expense, and we have now the pleasure of presenting to our readers, a copy of this plan, as deposited in the office of the clerk of the peace at Pres ton, pursuant to the standing orders of the House of Commons. The scale upon the original, we may remark, was one of two hundred feet per inch. This we have had correctly reduced one-half, viz , to four hundred feet per inch; and our readers can therefore ascertain for them selves any particulars as to amount of quay room, &c., with which they may wish to he furnished. The most important feature in the scheme is, perhaps, the proposed construction of a chain of small docks, con necting the river with the canal, and, by means of locks, enabling vessels under 300 tons burthen to ascend to the latter, for the purposes of loading and discharging. By the crrrying out of this portion of the plan, the feasibility of which is very apparent, the streets of the town will be relieved of a great quantity of the cartage of merchan dise, produce, &c., proceeding to and from the manufac turing districts of Yorkshire, and the advantages of Li verpool, as the port of supply for these districts, be vastly increased. The water for the supply of these docks, and the working of the necessary locks, can be had in suffi cient abundance from the canal, whose waste is now con veyed to the Mersey by a tunnel crossing Great Howard street, which, it may be remembered, was opened tempo rarily, to procure a supply fur tie extinction of the great I fire in that n e i g hb ourhood in 1312. It is contemplated, - in addition, that private individuals—carriers and others —may be permitted to form small docks b , fond the ca nal for their own trades, extending, if necessary, as far as Vauxhall .road. Of course, it cannot be predicted that the whole plan will be executed precisely as here laid down. Some por tions of it —as the graving docks to the northward—are perhaps given more to show the capabilities of the scheme than the exact direction in which these are to be ulti mately developed It must be admitted that, by the ex tension of the river wall marked out, a vast quantity of increased dock space may be secured, and that the port need not in future to labour under any destitution of those most important adjuncts to its prosperity—graving docks—which may be made, to almost any extent, and at a cheap rate, communicating with the enclosed outer basin. The amount of water space, as we have roughly calcu lated it from the plan, is as follows, viz.— Sq. Yards. A. r.. P. Enclosed Outer Basin :36R84 .. 7 219 New Steam Dock 72888 15 0 9 River Craft and Coasters' Dock 16805 3 1 19 Proposed Chain of Small Docks, numbered 1 to 4, viz No. I, .. 6250 .. 1 1 6 „ 2, ..................... 6 9 5 0 1 1 6 3,........ 6250 1 I 6 ............ 4 , • .............. In all say :31 acres of water space, an addition to our ex isting docks which must materially advance the com merce of the town, by promoting the con; enieace of its shipping, • ...9 ... , ..... , ..• ~ , E 1 H o KIRKDALE CU.II3,thICC:3, ltkigilL 11. ave oeettexpected,—many nt them, no doubt, deterred by the apparent danger. The first individual who escaped was en old man of sixty, named Cornelius Young, who came down by the "dolly-rope," used for hoisting up sugar, &c. Two others afterwards de scended by the same means. Others escaped by equally perilous means. At one time it was feared the fatality would be very great, but we are glad to say this appre hension was not realised. One man, Thomas Jones, de scended from the warehouse in Matthew-street by means of a steam-pipe, the height of which was at least 50 feet. Jones, amidst the apprehensions and prayers of the crowd, slowly descended ; but on his arrival at the bot tom, it was found that the flesh on his palms and fingers had been dreadfully burnt. He gat them dressed, and shortly after made his appearance at the fire. Three other men seemed inclined to follow his example in de scending, but were afterwards got down by a ladder. The alarm, in the meantime, had reached the fire sta tion (in the neighbourhood), and an engine was soon brought up into Matthew-street. Mr. Hewitt, perceiving the imminent danger of the men on his arrival at the scene, returned to the station, and with the assistance of his brother and other men, brought ladders to the rescue of poor fellows who were hanging on the outside of the building in a state of nakedness, amidst dense masses of smoke, momentarily expecting to be consumed by the raging fire beneath and around them, which was every instant increasing. . At the Harrington-street end, Mr. Hewitt, assisted by a noble fellow named Brice, held a ladder on the roof of a low shed adjoining the western wing or warehouse, from a window of which, facing the west, some men were seen. Brice held the bottom of the ladder to prevent it from slipping over the roof, as it was too short to reach the ground, and Hewitt standing behind it, supported it with all his might in a sloping position, in the middle. By this means three men found their way down unhurt. One or two others also assisted, but (painful to relate) some stood by as idle spectators, though called to lend a hand! In Harrington street, ladders were also raised to the windows where men were seen imploring assistance. One of them was found to be too short to reach the higher window in Harrington street, at which some men had ap peared, Mr. Hewitt,—who had but few men at first, and was most gallantly assisted by the men employed by Mr. G. Crossfield, headed by their foreman, Mr. Beatley,— reared it on a lorry to the fifth story. The ladder was still three or four feet short of reaching the window, which was on the highest floor but one. One man. Patrick Mahon, thrust his body our, made good his footing, and descended in safety. Another, Jeffry Lloyd, followed his example with success ; but a third, George White, tried the experiment at another window of the same height, but missing the spoke of the ladder, he fell down into the lorry upon one of the men, Patrick Cassidy, the carter, who stood at the ladder. The poor man also struck, or rather partly fell across the lorry, and was dreadfully, and, as it is feared, mortally injured. He was conveyed to the Northern Hospital. It appeared that at the time of his dropping from the window he was nearly suffocated and rendered helpless, by the dense smoke and heat that issued from the window, so that he let go his hold. Cas sidy was much stunned by his falling upon him, and, it was first thought, killed ; but he soon afier so far re covered as to render active assistance to the fire police during the day. Other men were also rescued by the same parties who fearlessly exposed themselves to the utmost hazard. Patrick Mahon, in jumping to a ladder, caught hold of it, but in doing so severely injured his side. Two men, Bulworker and Hussey, in escaping by the gangway were dreadfully burnt. One of the gangs who were busy papering the goods in the top story first became aware of the fire, by seeing the smoke issuing from the yard. Four of them imme diately rushed forward to reach the staircase. James Corregan fell in his progress. He got upon the roof of the warehouse, in the hope of jumping upon the one ad joining, belonging to Messrs. Holmes and Sons, but find ing that much higher, he was thus baffled in his attempt to escape. He was about to throw himself into the street when lie was observed from below, and advised not to do so. He then retreated into the sugar-house again, and, as well as a man named Price, finally escaped by a ladder —other accounts state, by a spout. The spouts were of cast-iron. Twelve men found their way to the bottom of the building through the pulley-hole, and one poor fellow, Hugh Roberts. mistook it for the staircase, fell down, and was much hurt. Thomas Garland escaped by means of the pulley-hole, and rushed into the street naked and almost frantic. He was provided with a sheet and sent home. In addition to Mr. Crossfield's men, about twelve in number, Mr. Sharp's men zealously exerted themselves in every direction, as did several others, but such was the excitement and apprehension, that hardly any two state ments of those who were present agree as to the peculiar incidents of the scene. It has been stated that a ladder broke at the top in being reared to a window. This is a mistake. It was broken by being, in the blameless hurry of the men, too hastily drawn from the wall to be placed at another window, but was afterwards used by the fire men throughout the day in elevatin g th e h ose . The scene at this time in Harrington -street and Mat thew-street was of the most heart-rending and appalling nature. Men who had just themselves been rescued were running about naked, bewailing, in a half frantic manner, the pending fate of their fellow-labourers, and crying in the wildest manner for help. Women and children were searching for a husband or a parent, whom they could not recognise, even when found, in consequence of their dis figurement, and despair seemed to have taken possession of every countenance. Most of the men were cut by the glass in making their way through the windows, and, with scarcely an excep tion, they have lost all their clothing. This, with the loss of their employment, viill, we fear, make them great sufferers by this lamentable occurrence. Immediately after opening the stove door (as stated) th e fire extended over nearly the entire premises, from street, to street, favoured by the timber and other combustibles. For a short time only they were confined to the centre stories, from the windows and doors of a hich the volumes of flame roared with intense fury, and the whole was de stroyed in about thirty minutes. Before nine o'clock a dozen fire-engines were on the ground, including that of the West of England, which it is said was the first to play ; but as the sugar w are h ouses were b eyon d th e possibility of being saved, the firemen directed their attention to the adjoining buildings, so as to prevent an extension of the flames. A narrow passage, only three feet wide, marked in the plan, separated the burning mass from a splendid pile of warehouses, belonging to Messrs. Henry Holmes and Son, and the warehouse of Messrs. Farrar and Duckworth. At the west end, at some little distance from the sugar house, Harvey's warehouse was situated. On the south side, besides one or two small cottages,, there wereanum ber of warel:ouses, separated, only by the width. of. Liu- z-a ER. Ilf,ci i , •-•-•::_•g- rmgton-street, whilst, on the north side, a large number of small houses, many of them the residences of the workmen,were cut off from the flames by Matthew-street. Fortunately, there was little or no wind at the time, but what there was came from the west. Had there been any thing like the north-west breezes which generally prevail at this season of the year, no human exertions could have saved the warehouses on the south side of Harrington street, and with them, part of the north side of Lord street must also have been destroyed, as the flames would have rushed through Doran's-lane. The wood work of the cottages and the cat-head of one of the warehouses had caught fire from the intense heat, but it was soon extinguished. On the west, Harvey's valuable warehouse filled with cotton, &c., was in great danger • but the wall was successfully pl a yed u p on , an d t h e steam that arose showed the propriety of the precaution. The warehouse of Messrs. Holmes, and that of Messrs. Farrar, in the same line east of the " passage," were also in great danger. It has been stated that they presented a dead wall from top to bottom to the burning warehouse within a yard of them on the opposite side of the passage. This is also a mistake, for there are windows near the top, and where the wall of the latter bulged out above, so as nearly to touch men, three props were fixed from these windows to keep it from falling against them, and exposing them to the intense heat within without such a screen. The hose was carried to the top of these buildings, and they were kept cool and preserved. Three engines were also placed in Mathew-street, for the purpose of preserving the pro perty opposite, and when not occupied in playing upon the wood-work of the house, rendered efficient service on the other side of the street. The top stories of the build ing marked "charcoal-house" in the plan, was used as a warehouse, and in it Mr. James Brancker had deposited a large number of valuable paintings, which he had re moved on his leaving his late residence at Ambleside. The roof of this place having ignited, Mr. Samuel Holme rushed into the upper stories, and, by his personal and praiseworthy exertions, not only were the pictures re moved and placed in safety, but the budding itself, and the cottages and manager's hoase adjoining, preserved. Whilst the fire-police and those in authority were thus dividing their exertions to check the progress of the de vouring element, the occupiers of Harvey's warehouse employed men to remove their property, and their ex ample was followed by Messrs. Donnell and Appleby, cheese factors, who caused to be removed a sast number of cheese, and a large quantity of flour in sacks. Occu piers of warehouses in Rainford-eardens, North John street, and Mathew-street, partook in the general alarm, and removed their goods, thereby incurring conside ra bl e loss and trouble. Ca r t loads of furniture, as well as of goods, were to be seen through the day piled along North John-street, or remaining in carts stationed in various directions, to he returned to the houses and warehouses when they were pronounced out of danger, or to be sent elsewhere. The conflagration in the interior of the premises was fearful, yet sublime, while it lasted. The flames conti nued to extend and increase in magnitude until the whole of that part described in the plan as destroyed was one sheet of fire. Passing into the yard, the sight was one of the most - awful, yet magnificent, appalling yet sublime, we ever remember to have witnessed. From upwards of 100 windows the flames were bursting forth with fearful intensity. Each story seemed like a blazing avenue, ex tending from one end of the building to the other; the consuming timbers were cracking with a loud noise, and the ma-hinery was falling with tremendous crashes into the cellars beneath. About half-past nine, what are called the " blow pans" fell from the fourth story. On the instant a loud explosion was heard, and the roof of the centre warehouse in Harrington -street fell in. As soon as the materials reached the bottom of the building, the flames burst out with a noise resembling the roaring of a mighty hurricane, and immense volumes of fire asce nd e d nearly 100 feet above the warehouse. Shortly afterwards a similar effect was witnessed on the falling in of the roof nearest Mathew-street. Story after story gave way, until, at about half-past ten, it began to be apparent that the fire would not extend beyond its limits at that time. From the quantity of water thrown on the building, the streets, especially inside the yard, were completely deluged with a liquid resembling thin molasses, and in some places the sugar was seen in a crusted or toffee state. Soon after ten o'clock the sugar began to make its appearance in the yard and street in a fluid state, and Lieutenant Maxwell, inspector of insurance salvages, procured empty ca s k s , an d titled several hundred of lem with rich molasses, which otherwise would have been totally lest. Molten lead ran from the roofs down the sides of the buildings, and even iron itself was melted by the intense heat. It has been stated that a gable-end, facing Mathew street, gave way about one o'clock, and fell; but this is a mistake, as all the outer wails in that direction still stand, though in a perilous position. The only part of the outer walls that fell to the ground was a portion of the centre of the front range to II arrington-street. Most of the materials fell inside, and a huge gap is left facing Doran's lane, the two high wings on each side (formed by the warehouses presenting their gable-ends to that street) still remaining at their full height, but shattered by the fire and the falling floors. To Mr. Whitty and the officers and men under him, including Superintendents Leverett, Brown, and Mac donald, the greatest praise is clue for their fearless exer tions; and Mr. Hewitt was also, as usual, ever at the point of danger, urging and aiding all around him in the preservation of life and property. No less active was Mr. Hewitt's brother George, who has been long known by his effectual exertions on such occasions. The Mayor, Sir Thomas and Mr. James Brancker, Mr. James Law rence, Mr. Rushton, M r. Parker, and many other members of the Council, were also present at an ea] ly hour, and did good service by their suggestions. One of the firemen was severely injured by a kick from one of the fire engine horses. This was the only accident to the force, although they were frequently placed in situations of great peril, and had narrow escapes. The greatest order and good temper were preserved throughout. The crowds in every street and passage near the fire were immense, and the excitement great, particularly amongst those who had relatives connected with the works. The following are the liabilities of the several insurance companies Phoenix Alliance . Liverpool . Imperial . .... 3,000 North Britain. ..... 500 Sun London Corporation...... ......... 2,000 Scottish Union. . 3,000 West of Eng1and........ Yorkshire.... Total .• ••• ... The estimated loss of the buildings, machinery, &c., is £70,000. _ _ Mr. Samuel. Holme, in addition to the exertions before noticed, had the gutters and spouts attached to the ware houses of Messrs. Holmes and Harrel, on the east and west sides, filled with cotton wool, which, being saturated with water, kept the spars and rafters in a state of mois ture. By this means they resisted the attacks of the flames. A correspondent of a contemporary paper states, that the gas proceeding from the stoves of sugar-houses, and which has a strong smell, is liable to ignite, and when ex panded by atmospheric change, would probably, in the late density, aided by accu mulation, explode without contact with flame. That explosion did tak e p lace there appears to be no doubt; and we have not heard th e re motest suspicion expressed that the fire arose from mem diarlsin. The circumstances, indeed, render such a sup position extremely improbable ; but it would be well that the subject of the combustion of sugar gas should be in vestigated by scientific men, with a view to the prevention of such disasters in future. Subscriptions for the families of the sufferers, and for those who may survive in a maimed state, have been humanely commenced by Mr. James Thompson, publican, Deane-street, who has himself contributed £5. We shall be happy, in common with our contemporaries to receive any sums for this purpose, and to hand them over to the committee that may be appointed to receive and appro priate them, The following are authentic particulars of the loss of life and injury to individuals : Thomas Jones had his hands and feet burnt by coming down the pipe from top of the warehouse in Mathew street. Joseph Price had his hands burnt by descending the same pipe. James Hussey had his eyes severely burnt, in making his escape down the stairs and through the gateway into Aiathew-street. Hugh Jones came down the same stairs, and was so se verely burnt that be was taken to the hospital. Robert Roberts, a man in the employ of Mr. Brancker, says, a man of the name of Martin Gargan, (a Dutchman,) was dreadfully burnt and hurt by a fall down the stairs into the yard. Roberts carried him out of the yard, and he was sent home. George White fell from one of the top windows of the Sugar-house in Harrington-street; he was taken to the Northern Hospital. Patrick Mann and Richard Stephens were raising a ladder from the top of a lorry to rescue White and another man, when White fell upon Stephens and Mann. Mann was severely hurt, and taken to the Infirmary. Stephens went home; he has now recovered. A man of the name of Woods is supposed to be burnt to ashes. He was making his escape along with some others, but, unfortunately, turned back, for what is not known. Doyle, a Custom-house officer stationed there, says, he saw a quantity of the ruins fall upon him ; he was never seen afterwards. James Hooley, John Smith, Thomas Dixon, and Thos. Mantle, were severely hurt. John Bulwinkle had his eyes very severely burnt ; he was taken home, Harmony-place, Clayton-street. Patrick O'Hare had his eyes very severely burnt. Patrick Cassidy was so severely burnt that he was taken to the hospital. George White, Patrick Cassidy, and Hugh Jones are in the Northern Hospital; Patrick Mann is in the In firmary. During the whole of Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, the premises were visited by many hundreds. The ruins pre sented and still present, particularly from the interior yard, a melancholy but picturesque appearance. The three tall furnace chimneys still peer above them on the south side, also one on the north. The greater part of the exterior walls of the several buildings remain—most of them at their original height, but rent and shattered by the intensity of the fire, and the falling of the floors, iron pipes, and other heavy materials within, The upper parts of the walls, and round the sides and tops of the windows were whitened by the flame, which mu-4 have calcined the mortar, and probably vitrified some of the bricks. The lower stories of the gutted buildings are filled with ruins,. mingled with broken iron Oilers and Vl i nv i h u ole e , re s in ee a n ins fr o o r m b te k a y i a ' r d d c — h 7lc r ein b n e e a r m i:; l & a c E; outer walls being perforated with numerous windows — resembles a quadrangle of cotton factories destroyed by fire. The frame-work of the windows in which the glass was inserted in small panas, being of cast iron, and form ing fixtures in the walls, still remain, blackened by the smoke—those few alone being wanting, which the poor men tore out or broke in order to effect their escape. They had no doubt much difficulty in doing so, and we venture to suggest that in such buildings in which, with all precautions, fires may take place, and escape be other wise cut off, some of the windows at least in each story should be made to open. Ropes, or small chains might also be kept in readiness at each of these, by which the men after throwing them out might safely descend ; for it is dreadful to:contemplate astthe sole alternatives, their descending by spouts, or precipitating themselves into the street. Several fire-engines were at work from the time of the great blaze, up to yesterday, as the fire still con tinues to smoulder in some parts under the ruins, emit ting steam, but all flame is now entirely subdued. The tall eastern chimney though erect appears to be in a peri lous state, and there will be considerable danger in taking down this and the high tottering walls of other elevated parts of the ruins. On making inquiry at the tufirmary last night, we found that only one man had been sent there, with a slight scar on one foot, and now " all right." At the Northern Hospital the worst cases were those of White and Jones, but both are likely to recover. Cassidy, the carter, on whorqoWhite fell, is also convalescent, and can now walk about, and Hennesey, who was taken from his house to the hospital on Saturday is recovering, although he re ceived severe injuries. The result, therefore, is much more gratifying than was expected, for notwithstanding all the danger and suffering at the fire, it appears that Woods alone has lost his life. His remains have not yet been extracted from the ruins, and it is questionable whether any portion of them will be recovered, so intense was the fire at the spot where he was last seen. OUT ?, BASI u u* Ns' RIVE 0.0-1 -• 4 ce'''"o ! I 1;-- I L 7 l - 1 O -I • Q u.. 0 01- z (---- z 0 z 0 cn X Dui a. O cc a. `~ ~~ ~~ •'...---- -- . Z.' •--. S , ...... 1.; • ..„ •--.. ....... -,....., 0 -.--••• ....,... '" ....,, .....„ ......, -........, , ........„ ........„ ....., ....„ If its . I 1 I 21 ..) I l ` j CREAT HO WARD ST —Tr----------, .....—.. ..-- . 1 k . Ct 1 ‹i: I 6 Li .- --... CZ) ......, ...., `. ..... -......--........ s _ Eg: ~ ...... --...-"" ..... ....... ...... ii 1. ..... T 1 i ..... • V . r- , J• 1 1-, ' 1 , LIVERPOOL RECENT PROPOSED NEW STEAM DOCK • • dY A i ss, For the fourth fire (in Dale-street) see Bth page. STOPPAGE OF THE MERSEY AND IRWELL NAVIGA TION.—A temporary interruption of this line of water carriage between this town and Liverpool has taken place, in consequence of the upper lock gates at Barton having given way, caused by the unsoundness of the foundation : until this accident is repaired, the navigation of the river is necessarily susp en d e d, b u t t hi s w ill, i t 19 expected, be speedily remedied. i; Q V Z V H / II II I 1 11 TOWN COUNCIL PROCEEDINGS. On Friday a special meeting of the council was hell. for the purpose of taking into consideration the special proceedings of the Dock Committee on the subject of further dock accommodation north and south of the pre sent line of docks. Mr. f e ' a l l i ld be postponed by the Mayor, all which be had given notice :—" That winmotion, off the subject for winethe c onsideration o day c i I, j r a o n s u e . a l, andy, thist oproposedbnie il a n p u r n o t ceedings for parliament going on in the meantime, the tin meeting appointed is s same being subject to the special council in January." He said ‘hat a special committee of the Dock Committee were at present sitting, to consider Mr. Hartley's plans. and the wants of the trade as regarded the accommodation of the port; that the proceedings of that committee were incomplete, and were now in progress ; and that, in asking the council to adjourn the matter until a day in the next month, the question would be left in the position in which it stood at present, so far as respected the dock proceed ings. If any gentleman wished to ask him any questions, be should be happy to answer ; but as this was a pro forma matter, he hoped no discussion would take place. Mr. EVANS recommended that the day to which they should adjourn be fixed at the next council. Mr. BIZAMLEY-MOORE said, that inconvenience might be caused by the adoption of the course just suggested, for the fixing of the day depended very much upon the reception of the report from the special committee. The moment the report was received a day could be fixed to suit the convenience of all parties; but a day could not be fixed prior to its reception. Mr. SHEPPARD thought there could be no objection to the Mayor naming a day after the report should have reached his hands. Mr. ISAAC HOLMES said he had been given to under stand that the special committee were at present receiving evidence touching the expediency of making a communi cation by water from the proposed new north docks to the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. He was anxious it should be generally known that such evidence was being received, in order that the inhabitants might come for ward and give evidence on the subject, for the obtaining of coals at the cheapest possible rate, by means of that communication and canal, was fraught with interest to the town at large. About seven years ago, when Mr. J. S. Leigh projected the Victoria road, he (Mr. Holmes) advised that gentleman to preserve the right of going over the road by railway or canal, because he then thought that if a dock could be made above Beacon's-gutter, it would be some £lO,OOO or £15,000 a-year in Mr. Leigh's pocket. (A laugh.) He concluded by expressing a hope that the special committee would give the subject the fullest con sideration. Mr. Nicol, said the committee were taking the evidence in the presence of a short-hand writer, who noted down everything which transpired. The TOWN-CLERK stated, that if Mr. Nicol's motion should be carried, it would be the duty of the Mayor to call a meeting of the Council some time in January, whe ther the report of the special committee should or should not have been Rresented. Mr. BIRRETT seconded the motion. He, for one, thought the Council ought to show to the Dock Commit tee and to the town that they were determined that this question should be gravely considered, and no circum stances, either of' delay upon the one hand or of haste upon the other,should prevent them from expressing an opinion that the Dock Committee ought to have ample time to make up their minds on the subject. He was not for having any collision between the Council and the Dock Trustees, but it certainly appeared to him that there was some reason for the charge of endeavouring to obstruct the question by delay. The Towx-Cumx suggested that the meeting of the Council to consider the question should be called in Ja nuary, or early in February. Mr. nom. said that, as parliament would meet on the first of February, the bill would have to be pre pared in the interim, in order that no time might be lost in making the necessary applications should the Council resolve upon proceeding during the approach ing session. The TOWN-CLERK said the Mayor must take care that the meeting was called in time for going to parlia ment, whether the special committee agreed to their re port or not. Mr. HODGSON thought the Council was placed in a situation in which they would be obliged to come to a division v.ithout adequate time for consideration. if they postponed their meeting until February, they would be so hampered for time that their proceedings must necessarily be pro forma, for then they would be called upon to give assent to a measure without time for investigating the premises on which they were going. He was in favour of limiting the time, in order to show those from whom the report was to come that they must exert themselves. lie would not allow it to go forth that the Council were to be put off from January to February. He expected to have had the full details before him that day ; but this not hav ing been the case, he was decidedly opposed to any ad journment beyond January. Mr. TURNER asked when it would be necessary to have the bill brought into the house ? The TOWN-CLERK replied that it should be presented to parliament about the 14th or 15th of February. He dissented. o l mf their e e apprehended the solicitor was now a t . work preparing the bill; and if the Council were to adjourn to January or February, it ought to be with the understanding that they were to meet, not only for going to parliament, but to take into consideration the draft of the bill. that he was going on the resolutions Mr. AIKIN asked by Whose orders the solicitor was preparing the bill? . :Cifcruoeermpther, and that the solicitor was not to intention Whe n theto bring DocD oc forward rwa rd a Committee b e. ill, it was understood that it was a pro forma step, without Mr. AticiN r. e incur any further expense without instructions from the had b of in l‘t d il vgDNe them cc e n k :o Dock Committee. As hints had been thrown out about delay, he begged to state that the individuals of the special committee had been at work five days out of the seven since the time of their a p po i n t ment; b ut if t h ey were to be hurrie d, the ir crude and ill-digested plans would do more injury than the council were aware of. He should deem it his duty carefully to concoct the plans, wheth er h e i succ eeded n getting them in time for the present session or not, because he should rather forego going to parlia ment this session than go there with ill-digested plans. Mr. PARKEtt.—If the Dock Trust had said they were unanimously in favour of going to parliament, or if a large majority of them had done so, the case might have been different ; but the question had been brought before the Council by a minority of the Trustees. (No, no.) The MaYon.—l beg to assure you that that is not correct, Mr. PARKER.—I am much obliged to you, sir, for the correction. (A laugh.) Well, we'll call it a small majority, then ; and my opinion is that the subject should be fully considered. Mr. nom, said that nothing had been done since the last Council meeting, and that nothing was intended to be done, to alter the position of the Council with reference to the dock proceedings. Mr. AIKIN wished it to be distinctly understood that the first steps were only pro forma, and that neither Town. Clerk, nor Mayor, nor anybody else, had a right to take any further steps without the sanction of the Dock Com. mittee. Mr. Moose presumed that no one would take upon himself the responsibility of doing that which he was not authorised to do, but then it should be remembered that all that had been done was done by the express authority of the Dock Committee. The Dock Solicitor had given the notice, and a resolution was passed authorising hit; so to do. The Dock Solicitor was bound to do what he had done, the more particularly as he had not committed the Council in any way to future proceedings.' All the necessary steps for going to parliament had been and must have been gone on with, otherwise the year would have been lost. The explanation which the Dock Solicitor had given with reference to his conduct•in the matter was clear and convincing, and ought by this time have come under the notice of every member of the Council. Mr. BIRKETT understood that the Dock Solicitor was to present his petition, and have the bill read a first time provided the Council did not instruct him to the contrary. Ile wished for a clear understanding upon this point, be• cause if the Solicitor was to be stopped from taking any further steps, it would he impossible to get through dur ing the present session. He was not for hurrying the Dock Committee, but a t th e s a me time he was not deg.. roue of placing them in a position whereby all their time and trouble would be thrown away. The TOWN-CLERK adverted to the proceedings of the Dock Committee, in reference to this subject, and said that that Committee had passed a resolution that it was expedient to go to parliament, and they had submitted all their proceedings to the determination of the Council. He contended that, under the circumstances of the pre sent case, the Dock Solicitor would have bee.) guilty of a dereliction of duty, if he were not to take care and go on with all measures, in order to carry into effect the busi. ness of the trustees. _ _ . . •_ Mr. AIKIN thought be might save time by stating that no limits nor positive instructions from others would be, orought to be, attended to by the Doc:. Solioi.or, because the latter was acting under the express tlirections of the Dock Committee ; and when he ceased so to act, he might per baps cease to be their solicitor. Mr. MnottE.—But he has not done so.. (Hear, hear.) Mr. LACE thought that as the question of going to par liament depended on the resolution of the Council here after, it was the duty of the dock solicitor to make the necessary preparations, because if he did not p, epare the bill, the Council would never be ready in time fur the ses sion. The TOWN-CLERK did not say that the Dock Solicitor was acting by the directions of the council. He was act ing under the resolutions of the Dock Committee, ac cording to the view which he would take, in the strongest way to promote their power—resolutions which were binding on the Dock Committee, for they had not been annulled by the council. If they were binding on the Dock Committee, they should be carried out; but if not, then the Dock Solicitor should take care that he was pre pared to proceed , if t he co u ncil should decide on going to parliament. In either case the Dock Solicitor might be right. He (the Town-clerk) trusted the lime would never arrive when either the council or the Dock Com mittee would seek to go to parliament without the co operation of the other ; but if that time should arrive, the council should not find him unprepared to gva an opinica on that question. (Hear hear, from Mr. B rkett.) ' Mr. North said, he agreed with what had fallen from Mr. Birkett and Mr. Lace, but that, for reasons already stated—his connexion with the Harrington Company—he should not vote upon the motion. Ile rose to bear his testimony in favour of the Dock Solicitor. lie had never read a report with greater pleasure than the report which that gentleman had made to the Dock Committee. It was manly, unanswerable, and triumphant ; and there could be no doubt but the duty of tLe Dock Solicitor would be well and faithfully discharged. (Hear, hear.) Mr. PARKER asked whether any member of the special committee had an interest in the Harrington Docks? I Mr. Moons: believed not. Mr. r•licoz. said, that so far as he was concerned, if the question referred to him he had no interest whatever in them at present. The motion was unanimously adopted, without going to a division ; and the council adjourned at ten minutes to twelve o'clock. At the Police-court, on Friday, seven publicans and twelve beer-sellers were summoned. The highest fine was L 5, and the lowest, 20s. Two were acquitted. Mr. W. Reid, superintendent in the Liverpool Work house, and his wife, have been appointed Master and Matron of the Union Workhouse, at Knutsford, in the place of Mr. and Mrs. Ward, the late master and matron. EXTRAORDINARY RABBIT.—A rabbit, weighing l9llbs. and said to have been taken in Prince Albert's warren, was exhibited during the past week, at the shop of Mr. Fordham, poulterer, game dealer, &c. Castle-street. On Tuesday morning last, an explosion of what is called the " fire damp" (carburetted hydrogen), attended by loss of life to two persons, and serious injury to several others, took place at a coal-pit, belonging to the trustees of the late Dnke of Bridgewater, situate at %Yardley Lane End, near Little Hulton. CHESHIRE YEOMANRY C kvALRY.--The Cheshire Yeomanry will assemble next spring, for their usual pro bation of duty, at Chester, instead of Liverpool, The Rhodee is to be made sufficiently available as a toining ground, by the temporary removal of the race-course rails, and by the filling up of the various drains and of the water-pit near the bridge. Ne L w o l s: or o k r an T d nE th A is m pl E a ß ee te , A w N as S , on n th iPi e ship Birmingham, for m e r ly a regular packer between 1 1 a 6 N t r h t N o G f EIAt. The November, while on a voyage from New York to Mobile, lost, on Ellison's reef, near Harbour Island, Bahamas. The vessel went to pieces six hours after she struck, but the crew, with the exception of three, saved themselves by swimming to shore. SALE OF GREYHOUNDS.—A. lot of greyhounds, pup pies, retrievers,' &c, thirty-two in number, the property of Sir William Massey Stanley, Bart., were, last week, sold by auction at the repository of Measrs. Lucas and Co., Great Charlotte -street, in this town. The sale was very well attended, and the animals fetched fair average prices. The best greyhound of the lot was knocked down for £7 10s., and the worst for 255. The trial of the Postoffice clerk at Liverpool, for steal ing a letter in which were two £lO notes belonging to Mrs. Gittins, of the Theatre-buildings, in this town, has gone off, from some unexplained cause, and the poor widow has lost her £2O, besides being out of pocket a great part of the expense of taking herself and family to Liverpool to give evidence. The case is a very hard one. —Shrewsbury News. The following gentlemen, residing in Liverpool, have been elected, according to seniority of membership, by the council. " Fellows of the Royal College of Surgeons of England" :—James Dawson, Esq., Robt. Biekersteth, Esq., Charles Boutflower, Esq., John Cooper, Esq., John Prince Halton, Esq., John Maurice Banner, Esq., Wm. Henry Bainbrigge, Esq., Henry Stubbs, Esq., William Gill, Esq., James Long, Esq. MANSLAUGHTER.—A man of the name of William Roughley has been committed to take his trial at the present assizes, charged under the coroner's warrant with the manslaughter of a begzar named Peter Baines, aged 50, at a public-house in Warrington, on the 2d instant. The deceased and the prisoner had a scuffle on the occa sion, when the former received a blow on the jaw which fractured it, and from which he expired on Thursday week. g E BIGAMY.—John Bacon, one of the Liverpool consta bulary force, was brought before Mr. Rushton last Tuesday, on a charge of having married Sarah Edwards, in February, 1841, his first wife being then alive. Both the marriages were distinctly proved, and the first wife made her appearance in court. The prisoner, who was committed for trial, alleged that he should never have contracted the second marriage had he not received a letter stating that his first wife was dead. RAPID CANAL TRAVELLING.—The packet-boats on the Duke of Bridgewater's Canal, between Runcorn and Manchester, a distance of about thirty.six miles, now perform the journey daily in from three to three hours and a-half, including stoppages, being at the rate of twelve miles per hour. The boats are of iron, very light, and drawn by only two horses ; but they are changed several times during the route. When some further arrangements on this canal are completed, it is expected that the jour ney from Manchester to Liverpool by it will be made in four hours. REGISTRATION OF BANK NOTES BY THE CUSTOMS.-- A register has been ordered to be kept of all the bank notes received for customs, dated with the name of the payer. This will prove a good regulation. A short time since, a £5 note was posted in Liverpool, but never got to its destination. It was found, on inquiry, that it had been paid into the bank by the dock treasurer, but he could give no account of how it came into his possession. The party who lost it has obtained no redress. Had a pawnbroker been found in possession of a stolen coat, and unable to show from whom he received it, we presume the owner would have been entitled to its restoration. NANT-Y-GLO IRON WORKS.—Mr. Clay's patent pro cess of obtaining malleable iron directly from the ore in the puddling-furnace has just been adopted here, with success. The iron-stone operated upon is the Blackband, lately discovered in such vast quantities in the neighbour hood of Beaufort. This iron-stone is in the carboniferous class—very rich in carbon, and consequently very pecu liarly adapted for the above purpose.—Monmouth Beacon. —[This process has been for some time in successful operation at the works of Messrs. Rushton and Eckersley, of Bolton, in this county, who have been pro ducing excellent iron from the rich hematite ores of Ulveraton, on Mr. Clay's patent plan ; and we are in formed that, to carry out the process more extensively, Messrs. Rushton and Co. have considerably enlarged their works. Mr. Clay is a native of this town, and has been engaged by the Ottoman government to carry out his process on a large scale in Turkey. Iron ore is found as an alluvial deposit in the vallies of Romelia in great abun dance, but its peculiar state bas hitherto rendered its re duction into iron a matter of great difficulty ; but through Mr. Clay's process cast-iron of great strength and peculiar ductility has been produced, and hence that gentleman's appointment by the Turkish government. Coals from the borders of the Black Sea have been recently submitted to o r be trial equal t to th to compeetenbtesptersdoenscsriipntitohn of Englishiscountr fuelyandfo forUnd general purposi:siu this country.] MIN I