The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1876-07-29 00:00:00

THE " THIMIDERER" DISASTER.

On Saturday the Lord Mayor of London, on taking
his seat in the justice room of the Mansion House
kaiti—adiressit g Mr. Gresham, the chief clerk of the
court—be had received a letter from the Mayor of
Portsmouth, in which he announced that he had
opened a subscription list with a view to aid by its
means the sufferers by the calamity which had recently
i,ccurred on board the Thunderer. In that letter the
Mayor had appealed to him as chief magistrate of the
City to entieavour to induce the charitably disposed—
and in the City of London there were many such—to
assist the subscription. Her Majesty the Queen and
the Prinee of Wales had promptly subscribed, as bad
also the First and other Lords of the Admiralty. It
was not his (the Lcra Msyor's) intention to form a
committee for the purpose contemplated, but he
snould be exceedingly glad to receive subscriptions,
which would be acknowledged through the public
press, and duly sent to Portsmouth for distribution.
He was sure it only needed such an appeal to be
made to the citizens for it to meet with a ready,
warm, and liberal response. That was always the
result of such solicitation from the Mansion House,
The sufferers, as might well be believed, had suddenly
been placed in positions of great pain and want,
throtwh no fault of theirs, but owing to the unfortunate
explosion of a boiler, the results of which had been
very sad, lie did not suppose it would have entered
into the mind of man that the explosion of a boiler,
would have been productive of such deplorable circum-
stances as had attended the catastrophe in connection
with the Thunderer. The deaths had been very many,
and the wounded were large in number. Perhaps
those who had been killed by their injuries were in
the happier position. He added that the public
could either forward their subscriptions to him at the
Mansion House, or pay them to Messrs. Bosanquet,
Salt, and Company, bankers, Lombard-street. The
Lord Mayor, on Saturday evening, addressed the
following letter to the Mayor of Portsmouth :

"Mansion House, July 22.

"My dear Sir,—l have the honour to acknowledge
the receipt of your letter of yesterday, informing me
that, in your official capacity as Mayor, you have
opened a fund for the relief of the widows, orphans,
and dependent relatives of the men who met their
death by the recent fearful disaster on board H.M.S.
Thunderer, and for the aid also of those disabled by
the accident. In common with every one who learnt
the details of that appalling calamity, I feel the
very warmest sympathy with the distressed and
bereaved sufferers, and in that spirit it has afforded me
much pleasure to make a public announcement—to be
followed by an advertisement—of my willingness to
receive here any sums that the benevolent public may
remit me for the relief of those who will require aid
and support. Such sums as I may nceive shall he
forwarded to you from time to time for addition to the
Portsmouth and the naval funds in aid of the sufferers.
—I am, my dear Sir, yours very faithfully, W. J. R.
COTTON, Lord Mayor."
At the pariah church of Portsmouth on Sunday
morning the Vicar (the Rev. E. P. Grant) said he had
not teought it necessary to preach a epecial sermon or
to malz e an impassioned appeal to the congregation on
behalf of the fund for the families of the sufferers. If
the nature and details of the sad disaster with which
they were all familiar were not sufficient to touch their
heert,, nothing ne or any or e else could say would be
sufficient. A liberal collee,tien was then made. There
were also appeals to the congregations in several other
churches and chapels.

PeRTS33OI7TH, Sunday Afternoon.

The deaths of William 13tmett and Edward Phillips,
yesterday, bring the liat up to 42. Several of the
snrvivots remain in a very precarious condition. The
statement that an examination of the kJ tokehole of the
Thunderer by experts from the Admiralty and the
contractors had led to the discovery of the cause of
the explosion is devoid of foundation.

PonTsmoinn, Tuesday Evening.

No more deatEs had occurred up to last night, but
there are three cases which the surgeons describe as
dangerous or very dangerous, and four others are
stated to be serious or very serious. In the condition
of the other patients, a slight improvement is reported,
and two have been dischaeged. The number of deaths
Is 43, one having by mistake been omitted from the list.
At a meeting at the Royal Naval College yesterday of
subscribers to the relief fund, a standing committee,
consisting of Admiral Elliot, Sir Leopold McClintock,
and most of the captains and principal naval officers of
the port, was appointed to administer tLe fund.
Admiral Elliot stated that up to the present time the
fund had reached £2,800.