The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1869-02-06 00:00:00

THE RECENT GALES.

Tiurigg the whole of Saturday night and Sunday
a heavy gale swept over London, and con-
toblow in gun's, with rain, throughout the
dx, The storm drum was hoisted on Saturday at
iving notice that a gale was raging in the
ilisthani, g
0,20,1,1, and warning vessels not to proceed to sea.
- HYDE, Monday.
F.-1 the last four or five days a gale has been raging
..,00mpitaled by Very high tides, and great damage
jus,oeo d 055 to property. By far the greatest loss was
.cssioned yesterday, and especially during the night. The
at liner's Hotel was entirely destroyed, the waves i
wall
~ho windows, and carried large pieces of the wall
tough the house into Pier-street, on the other aide, com-
.oung aid havoc among the furniture. and spoiling the
The cellars were seven'? eh: ht feet deep in water,
the bottles were broken and their contents
The damage is estimated at over £5OO. The
,kwall in front of the Royal Victoi ta Yacht
gouge waa washed away, as were also large porticns of
•wallal...a the esplanade and round the coast in every
the
direClloll 80880 trifling injury has been done to the town
and the bat nmg stage at the Victoria Pier MAB deaf royed
; portion of the latter being pl,ked up in Portsmouth
bar xatr. Messrs. Curtiss, railway carriers, have experienced
the truth of the proverb, "Misfortunes sever come alone."
They portsmouth depot was a short time since burnt down,
sad on Sunday one of their boats, the Red.,. was dashed
ffer the basin walls on to ,the shipway, and greatly in-
ured. .
_ . .

CADOWITH, swan RELSToN, Saturday.
rie lifeboat, Western Commercial Trost-11er, of the Na-
tional Lifeboat Institution, was launched yesterday to the
of a disabled vessel keys the Rev. F. C. Jackson)
• p which was in the offing, seemed very unmanageable,
h.d flag flying in her main rigging, whichleas supposed
to he one of distress. and d the wind shifted farther to the
sonth she would '0 likely to go on the slimacles Rocks. on
,tividonicside it appeared that she was an alien-
-3,,,,
oned hng which had been boarded the previous day
on Rub, by three French fishermen, who after-
became separated from their own vessel in
th, ▪
nkht during the gale, and were drifting past this
oiee where they exhibited a signal of distress. The assist-
ance of the lifeboat's crow was requested, and three men
.00s nc,„r,tu,niy placed on board. Two steamers having
wired at the same tune the lifeboat on four occasions suc-
ceeded in getting warps from the vessel to one of the
garners, and she was toned into Falmouth, the three life-
boat men remaining on hoard the brig. The boat was taken
ix tow of a revenue cruiser, which ran her into lielford—a
creek about ten miles to the north- we.t, the heavy sea and
ograry tide preventing all prospect of her beating back to
'idgrAtlL
WESMOrTH.

M Weymorith from about II o'clock on Saturday night to I
lour or live on Sunday morning a heavy wind was blowing i
from the west-south-west, causing a tremendous sea At I
One the tile was at its height, and had the wind been from I
the southeast the comequences must have been very serious
to the town, as the houses facing the Esplanade could no . I
lave withstood the violence of the waves. As it was, from 1
8,,,,,wiek-heildings to Devonshire-buildings, the extreme :
length of the Esplanade. the sea beat violently, anti when
wave broke against the sea-wall the spray often rose
higher thin the house* facing the beach. Tons of water
were poured on this fashionable promenade, earning with
in imuteuse yeantities of shingle and sand. The Esplanade
is sadly disfigured, and It will cost a considerable sum
to put it into proper condition again. More than any.
thing else, it now resembles a pebbly beach. The quay
was inundated, there being about a foot of water
o,tve the harbour wall. All the stores and houses were
boded, mut the property in them was floating about.
In one coal store the water was nearly If I. deep. On the
Weymouth side of the harbour the overflow was even greater
than on the NI eleombe side At the Old Rooms Din . wave
dashed againtt the front door and burst it open, the sea
tasking a complete breach through the lower portions of the
house, much property being injured or destroyed in conse-
quence Elope-square, about 200 or 3.10 yards from the
tabour, and Ding rather low, was so flooded that a good-
sized 1,...tt might have sailed about in it. In the neighbour-
hood of Cove-row the water was so high that persons could
wlth difficulty leave their dwellings. At the ship building
yard of Mr. Robert Ay lea the timber was all afloat. and to
keep the planks over the slipway from drifting they had to
be made secure with ballast. A quantity of timber stored
on the quay near the ballast ground and used for the Govern-
ment works on the Nothe was floating about the harbour,
anti to secure this several boats' crews had to put off. In
Lower fiend-street there Is an opening leading to the Back-
water, gel here the water imide a considerable inroad,
men king as far as the "White Dart Inn," at least 300 yards
distant. In this street are also a chapel and Sun lay' school,
Shout nine o'clock the water was so high that all comment-
ghee was interrupted, and the scholars were compelled to
remain inside until the tide receded. Two large lighters
were lifted from their moorings, and when the water fell
they were left high and dry on the quay. An extensive land-
slip has happened on the Weymouth acid Portland Railway,
near Sandstoot Cagle Throughout the whole of Sunday
men were employed to watch it But on Monday morning
the lig was in such a weakened condition that traffic w, a
discontented. The sea washed over the line and turnpike
road as it had done on the previous day.

AtPortland, the effects of the gale were most severely
felt. A heavy sea raged in the West-hay and the roailstead,
and the water percolated through the Chesil beach to an
alai ming extent, inundating the houses in the vicinity, and
causing much destruction of property. The sea rushed from
under the foundations of souse of the houses like large
springs, and overflowed the road to such an extent Civic for
several hours it was rendered impassable. At the railway
station the water was above the wheels of the carriages, !
and, Mating its way to the gaahouse, put out the furnace
fires, so that for at least two or three days the island will he
without gas. Near Chesil the seas actually met, an event
which has never been known before. For about two miles
the turnpike road leading to Weymouth was under water.
It was more than knee deep to the Ferry-bridge.
On Saturday an English brigantine, name at present un-
known, went ashore near Bridport, but the crew are stated
to have been saved. In connexion with this wreck there
was a melancholy occurrence. A gentleman ventured out
too far oa the pier to watch the ship, and a huge wave daah-
nig over the pier swept him away.

At Exmouth a portion of the new docks was washed away.
The Esk Bight Fishery works suffered severely by the storm.
The oister beds are entirely covered with sand. Two
hundred yards of the South Devon lane, about a mile and a
half front St. Thomas station, are submerged. The valleys
at the Etc and the Creedy are flooded. Along the lines of
tie Ere extensive tracts of country are under water. The
storm was ace mpanted by thunder and lightning. Destruc-
tive wrecks off Torquay are also reported.

The Western Morning Neva contains accounts of
terrible disasters caused by the great gale of Sunday
morning. There was a fearful deluge of rain, accom-
panied by the most appalling lightning and thunder.
The tide in Plymouth and other ports of Devon and
Cornwall was the highest known for thirty years. A
considerable portion of Plymouth was completely
inundated, and one of the Royal Marines was,
unhappily, drowned. In other towns the streets were
converted into deep rivers by the unparalleled rain.
The inmates had to leave their houses in boats, and
thi.re were some most exciting scenes, owing to the
tarrow escapes from drowning. The shipping in
Plymouth Sound rode out the gale in safety, thanks to
the Breakwater, although at the latter end of last
week a portion of the wall of the Great Western Docks
'ens washed away. At Falmouth several collisions
took place among the large fleet of merchant vessels
arch crowded the harbour. The French brig Charice
Eouna sank ; the crew were, fortunately, saved- The
torque Aldiralloch, of Sunderland, also foundered, and
the crew in this instance, too, were saved.
At Penzance, noted for its tremendous seas, the
scene was terrific, the great rollers from the Channel
charging up over the sands of Mount's Bay in a
manner awfully grand. The schooner Podaran, of
Aberstlairsk, went down off the Start, and all hands
were lost. The railways and telegraphs have suffered
severely. Two hundred yards of the long wooden
viaduct of the West Cornwall Railway, which skirts
Mount's Bay between Marazion and Penzance, have
been washed away, and the trains are unable to enter
the town. This same viaduct was destroyed several

-
PLYMOUTH, Feb. 1.
A heavy southerly gale and a high tide prevailed along the
coasts of Devon and Cornwall yesterday morning. The tide
cached higher than has been known for the last thirty
years. Numerous minor accidents have taken place through
the water risMg over the low levels of aeaporttowne Floods
along the banks of the rivers have also occurred, through
their overflowing their usual channels. Property on the
banks at art.,. places has been washed away. One hundred
ymla of sea-wall has been washed away, and nine yards of
the ynuth Devon Railway.
At Dawlish, the railway and telegraphic communication
was impeded throughout Sunday. The Ponsandane viaduct,
it eat Cornwall Railway, near Penance, has been washed
away. The telegraphic arid railway communication between
Penance and Marazion has been stopped.

PENZANCIC, Sunday.
Nicholas 13. Downing, Esq., reports that the mischief done
by the sale on this part of the coa.st is tremendous. The
railway viaduct is carried away, and all telegraphic com-
munication stopped At one o'clock yesterday morning the
barque Choice, of Shields, went ashore on the Prae Sands;
eight of the crew were fortunately saved by the rocket
apparatus from Porthleven and PrU-Siti Cove, but the captain,
second mate, and one seaman were unhappily drowned.
The lifeboat belonging to the Notional Lifeboat Institution,
stationed at Penzance, ten miles from the scene of the
disaster, was got there in an hour and three quarters after
the intelligence of the wreck was received. The boat was
manned a second time at seven o'clock in the morning. She
has been out all night.

Monday.
In continuation of his report of yesterday Nicholas B.
I mwning Efiq , now states that the Penzance I feboat re-
immed to her station about five o'clock an Sunday morn-
ing from the Free Sands, where the brig Choi., of Shields,
wvs wrecked during the hurricane, eight of the crew being
saved by the rocket apparatus, the master and one man,
however, being unhappily washed away from the vessel and
drowned, and the second mate having jumped overboard
ami been drowned. About two hours afterwards a brig was
seen in great peril in the hay, the sea being perfectly awful at
the time. The life-boat was again manned, and proceeded an as
to be in readiness, but after a tremendous and doubtful
effort the ves-el, which was managed with consummate skill,
was got into harbour. In the afternoon another vessel was
I.e. inside the shoals, and quite close to the breakers between
the Grebe Rocks and the Marazion, and she fired a gun as a
signal of distress. In ten minutes the life-boat was on her
way to her, but on arriving we were thankful to find that,
favoured by a change of wind, which seemed to have happened
almost by miracle, the vessel had got round, and was head-
ing westward. She escaped the shoals sod rocks, and when
last seen was struggling bravely with the tempest. She wan
soon let sight of in the dense mist. The promptitude of the
life-boat crew argi helpers was most admirable.

LOOK 'CORNWALL', Feb. 1.
The life boat OVaraShise, belonging to the Life-boat So-
ciety, went off yesterday to a large ship which was in dan-
gerous proximity to the land 'writes Robert Thomas, Esq.,
It was blowing a gale from the south-west, and was very
thick at the time. Before, however, the boat could reach
her she stood off safely, and made for Plymouth. The
weather here has been fearful, and still continues so, with a
emendone sea. To-day we hat information that a brig
Wee close to the Polperro Sand, but after a time she also
stood off shore, and was lost sight of; no doubt both vessels
were homeward bound, and were trying to make out the
land. lhe life-boat ie held in readiness lf her services should
he required. On Friday last a small ateamdt was seen to go
doon, Stern foremost, about .elght miles from here, lust in
consequence of a schooner and a Plymouth pilot boat being
close to her at the time, the coxswain and crew of the life-
boat thought it would be useless for them to go off, as it
would have taken them three or four hours at least to have
Rot to the spot. It appears that they judged rightly, as the
crew of 13 men of the steamer were taken on board the
schooner, and safely landed at Plymouth.
-

NORTH WALE9.—(By Telegraph).
On Sunday the sea washed away half a mile of the Cambrian
Rallway near li,rth. When it occurred the mad had just
Paseed. The trafh• was interrupted There was an unusually
IMM tide all ahng the coast of Cardigan Bay, and great
damage was done to houses anti stock. The tide retunied
SO mEnight, and further mischief was apprehended at the
time our telk gram was despatched.

----
SeoRN AND FLoOne IN TRICLAND —DUALTN, Monde},
The tide yesterday rose considerably beyond the usual high-
water mark. Along the Kingston raillky it broke over the
embankment, and the line was flooded and the adjacent
lands A strong wind prevailed, and the water rolled along
the shore in large waves. At the north side the tide broke
over the wall, and the elontart and Dollymouth roads