The Express.
London, England, 1862-04-02 00:00:00

PRESTON ELECTION.

(PROM OUR OWN CORRKS:ONULNT.)

PRESTON, TeLIDAT

The interest evinced by all parties in Preston iu
the election is daily intensifying. More pasquinade+ are
posted, and every available attempt is being made to eu-
hence the claims of each party's man to the 111.1ffrages of the
electors. The liberals have been assiduously prosecntin;
their canvass, and express great confidence in the n.
turn of Mr. Melly ; whilst the assurance of the
conservatives on Tuesday appeared to be considerably
shaken, and their chiefs have acknowledged that it must be
by dint of Herculean labour if their candidate, Sir Thomas
George Heeketh, wins the day. The Homan catholic party,
who were generally against Mr. Melly, have become divides!,
and chiefly so on account of the conduct of the conserve.
tives in distributing handbills on Sunday at their places of
worship, which their priests have denounced from the
pulpit. The Wesleyan*, disgusted with Sir Thomas
keth'e antipathies to them, as evinced io his refusal to
allow • Methodist chapel to be built on his estate, are now
working for Mr. Melly, and the temperance portion of the
community are doing their best on his behalf.
Ou Tuesday night there was a monster demoostratiou of
conservatives in the Theatre Royal, over which Major
Births* of the Preston Artillery Volantears,presided. The
crowding was terrific, especially in the pit,aud the tories had
taken care by issuing tickets to obtain am audience, the
majority of whom were in the interest of the tories and
their supporters. Sir T. G. Heeketh re-delivered
the speech he gave at his electioneering dOmt, and at
the close of his address, during which he was loudly
cheered, a motion was carried approving of Sir Thomas us
a At and proper person to represent the borough of Preston
in the British House of Commons. There was a terrible
scene during some portion of the proceedings, the roughs
in the pit tearing up the seats and rails, and therewith bola-
bowing the heads of the few liberals who had effected
an entrance. Never was so exciting a scene wit-
neesed in the building, and it was feared that serious
results would follow. As it was, • few bones were
broken. and several heads cracked, arid the injured
00C4 were soon passed over the surging crowd and taken
home. Mr. Cross, the retiring member, was vociferously
received with acclamation, and gave an address stating his
reasons for taking leave of his constituents, and urging the
electors to return a conservative candidate to fill the seat
vacated by himself (a conservative). There is still the
natensest excitement, and, whilst this is being written, the
whole of Fishergate is in a state of uproar. It is feared
that on Thursday there will be riotous proceedings at the
nomination. Policemen are patrolling in couples, and, in
view of a riot, the 13th Light Dragoons and two companies
of infantry at Fulwood Barracks are under orders to be
ready to put down any such demonstration.

MORE DESTRUCTIVE FIRES AND LOSS OF
LIFE.-(THIS DAY.)

About 1 o'clock a.m., as a police constable was
passing near the George Tavern, in the Commercial-road
Bast, he observed a lurid glare of flame in a shop op•
poeite. The moment he reached the premises the windows
of the second floor were opened, and two young men who
lodged in the house mode an attempt to jump out. One
of the unfortunate men, in so doing, had to climb
over an iron grating, and his feet becoming entangled
it prevented his clearing the obstruction, and the
consequence was that when he could liberate himself
he fell on the pavement, his head striking the stone
flags with fearful violence. He was picked up dead.
The other lodger was a little more fortunate, u he
cleared the ironwork and dropped upon his feet, but he was
terribly shaken, and one of his arms broken. Such are the
serious nature of the injuries he has received, that he is not
expected to recover. Police-constable 372 K. then noticed
the proprietor of the house and his wife at the first floor
window, and fortunately succeeded in getting both out, the
night dress of the female being on fire. The whole of the
premises and their contents were destroyed. The origin
of the catastrophe is unknown.
A fire also happened during the night on the premises
belonging to Messrs. Harrison and Co., hatters, No. 49,
Penton-street, Pentonvilie•hilL The outbreak commenced
in the lower part of the shop window, and before sufficient
tune had elapsed to extinguish the flames in that part of
the building it was discovered that a second fire was raging
in the other portion of the shop. The contents were
insured in the Situ Fire-office, and the building was sup-
posed to be insured in the Norwich Union Fire.office.