The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1869-05-29 00:00:00

SAD END OF A CENTENARIAN.

A painful feeling luta been induced in Bristol and its
neighbourhood by the death of a widow woman named
Rachel Jones, who, after living to an age considerably
exceeding 100, and it is believed 108 years, died on
Sunday in the Bristol Royal Infirmary front the effects
of an accident which befel her on the previous Tuesday.
The old woman had been blessed with so good a
share of health that up to the time of the iniehap
which resulted in her death she was enabled to
attend to her household and other duties. She was
in humble circumstances, and resided in a small cottage
on ttorfield-common, a country district sii mite aln.ut
two miles from the city. Attached to her c dtage
was a little garden, and her physical condition may be
conceived from the circumstance that she worked at it
herself, and kept it in a very tidy state. On 'Tuesday
the old lady cleaned up her cottage, and having pot
together the spent ashes she carried them isit on to the
! common. In removing them it is supposed that a spark
from the fire must have caught the skirt of her gown, '
for she had not been long out in the free air before she
perceived that she was on fire. 'lnc poor old woman
screamed and called for assistance, and happily she
was overheard by her great-grandson, a mau of sixty
years oif age, who ran to her assistance, and succeed,'
after a time in extinguishing the fire. Before he could
do so, however, the poor creature was badly burnt on
the legs and about the body. She was put to bed in
her cottage, and every attention paid to her, and it
was hoped at first that she was getting better. On
Thursday, 'however, she appeared worse, and her
friends were advised to send her to Bristol, to the
Royal Infirmary, which they did, and she received the
attention of the medical istoff and nursing of that esta-
blishment Her appetite kept up, and almost to the
lost her friends hoped to see her brought round again.
On Saturday, however, she got worse, and on Sunday
breathed her last. Her death was purely the result of
accident.

attendance of some friends whom they had expected, he
should take leave to move the next resolution himself,

..... _ _
and it was to this effect
That this meeting calls upon the Government to at once
appropriate twenty out of the thirty minions of acres of
waste and uncultivated land in the United Kingdom to the
use of the unemployed 01111111tUally advantageous terms, also
to issue sufficient national notes as a loan to enable them to
cultivate it.
- - - - -•

If the Government would not do this for the unem-
ployed poor of this country although he was not, under
ordinary circumstances, an advocate for physical force,
they must use that force to obtain it. Emigration was
of no use, for it took all the bone and the muscle and
the sinew of the working classes away, and left only the
useless. There was great talk about national educa-
tion, but the Government must first educate the
bellies of the poor before they gave them mental
education. The Government and the Parliament
were all of one kidney, no matter what their polities—
all rogues together. (Loud cries of "Hear, hear.")
Two or whole sessions had been wasted about a
rubbishing Irish Church Bill, whereas the real ques-
tion that Ireland required was a settlement of the land
question. That was the same question they must
have in England as welL After indulging in
extremely strong language, the speaker advised that
should a war break out with America, unless they had
immediate redress for their grievances, they should
not only aid tile Irish in an outbreak of Fenianism in
Ireland, and in a raid upon Canada, but assist the
Americans against the Government and Aristocracy of
this country by every means in their power.
Mr. Earwaker seconded the resolution in language of
still greater vehemence.
The resolution was carried, and the proceedings were
brought to a close.

three

settled