The Express.
London, England, 1864-10-29 00:00:00

THE IBITH EXPLOSION.

Yesterday Earl de GAZY and Ravi; received at
the War-office a deputation from the iababitaatsof Erith
and Belvedere to present a memorial relative to the late
catastr3pba, and spedally calling for inquiry lobo the
management of Pnr. and other government magazines.
The deputation was headed by the Verna* Archdeacon
Smith, Vicar of Eria, and included the following gentle.
men :—Dr. Broom, J. Pariah, Rev. J. Benham, W. Cayes,
A. T. Jay C. Hortridge, W. Everett, A. Wells, A. Hall,
F. L Daldy, J. L. Bidmemd, C. Beadle, jun. Captain
IVlCillop, and J. Reeves, secretary to the men-
. _

The following is • copy of the memorial :—" To the Eight
Hoo. Earl de Grey and Ripon, her Majesty's Secretary of
State for War. The memorial of the undersigned inhabit-
aots of the parish of Erich, in the county of
Keith, sbeweth,—That by the meet fearf al expkeioe of
gunpowder in the Fetish, which has resulted in much lois
of We and destruction of property, their attention has
been drawn to the legislative enactenects regulating the
manufacture. packing, conveyance, and 'Acreage of gun-
powder. That upon care! al consideration of the same they
are compelled to regard them se inadequate to the doe pro
tection of life and property. Your memorialists, therefore,
pray that it may please you to take the matter into your
serious and immediate ooesiderstioo, and to adopt such
means as may seem to you beet calculated to secure •
searching investiptioa into the operative effect of the pre-
sent enactments and orders which regulate the nsanufactare,
pecking, stereage, and conveyance of government powder,
as well as to the manner in which each enactments and orders
are complied with and carried out. dad that, pending the
investigetioe prayed for, you will if passible cause the
establishment at Purfiset to be closed, in order that the
testing operations, the loading, unloading, and shipment of
powder (fraught as your memorialist' believe with appalling
danger) may be suspended. Your memorialists urge the
prayer of their memorial upon your attention under the con-
viction that, in common with • large number of her
Ithjesty's subjects, they see in great jeopardy and peril, sod
that it is possible to frame such enactments and regulations
as shall prevent • re:armies of the late fatal disaster.
'• Signed on behalf of the memorialists, in accordance with
a resolution passed to that effect this 14th day of October,
1864. "Claw.® SMITH 'glair of Enth.

"1111"" BR°C4I Chtlith Wardens."
" Jolts PARISH

Purl Ds GRIT and &TON mid in reply that be consi-
dered the subject was ore of very grave importance, and
vary properly brought under the notice of government by
the deputation ; at the same time he wiebed it to be under-
Mood that the government were frilly alive to the matter,
and he kid already been in frequent and earnest COMIIIII4I-
- with hirGeorge Grey upon the whole question. Every
attention should he gives to the subjects brought under
oonsideratioa, and especially thaw practical suggestioes
which did not involve the closing of Purfleet, which if ac-
ceded to would be followed by similar requests from all
parts of the kingdom where magazines were placed. The
deputation might rely however, upon the whole matter
having the mom careful oonindenition of the government.
After some further oonvenation the deputation thanked
his lordship for the courtesy with which they had been re-
esived, and then withdrew.

SUSPECTED MURDER IN SCOTLAND.
At an early hour on Thursday morning the dead
body of a man was found lying at the foot of an outside
stair at • place called the Wes Barracks," is
street, Wallaostows. It was ideatified as dyad Hr. John
Fraser, late precentor in the New Church, Ayr. His face
was oovered with blood and dirt, and a small pool of blood
surrounded his head. The county police were soon on the
rot ; and the Sheriff-Subetitute, Procurator-Fiscal, and
Drs. Mootsomerie and Debbie, also arrived early in the
morning. Death is supposed to have keen eared by • were
couture' immediately above the right eye, which might have
been oared either by • fall or a blow. It is marked by •
large swelling over the eye. The bores known as the
" Wes Barracks" are across the bead of a back yard in
Georgerreet. They are approached through an entry in a
poor oswetory tenement, and ibetwer the " Barracks"
and the front houses the yard is lined oa either side with
pig-houses and dungsters—a wide open apses being left is
the centre. The " Barracks," which are two miserable
looking buildings, are known to be • nest of printers,
and • retrain IS kept in one of the hours. The seoood
story of the houses is reached by two outside stairs
with wooden railings, and there are inside stairs to garrets
in the roofs. This morning about two o'clock,
when two women named Brown and Brogan were eater-
ies the " Barracks," they found Fraser's body lying on
the ground, outside the top Ladies-place of one of the
stirs, sod information was immediately conveyed to the
police. It is considered possible that while under the is.
flumes of liquor he may have fallen over the woodenrail-
ing at the stairhead, which is about 3 feet in height ; but
the position of the body does sot favour that supposition.
A s ' circumstance also is, that the watch of de-
ns
had been broken from the chain, sad was ford as if
it had been thrust into his coat pocket. 14 is conjectured
that the watch may have been taken from hint, and re.
stored to his person after be was seen to be insensible or
dead. At daylight, also, the pocketbook of demand, con-
taining Dome lettere and tithing-books, was found on a pig-
house, on the opposite aide of the yard. The whole of the
inmates of the ground door (reputed shebeen), 'rood storey
end garrets--numbering in all ten men and six women—
were taken into custody for examination. They all dried
any knowledge of the circumstance. Thor on the second
storey state that about 12 o'clock on Wednesday night they
heard a woman named Ares Ferrara, alias "Carly,"
who lives in the garret, enticing a man up the stairs, sad
that some time afterwards they beard her swearing and
ordering somebody to be off. When the police west
to apprehend her, she was drunk and swearing, and
they had to break open her door. This woman, who is
about thirty years of age, and not very strong, does not,
we believe, bear the character of being • violent
The body of the ill-fated man has been r oveyed to the
House of Refuge is Crosastrest, where it lies till a post-
mortem examination is made. Mr. Fraser, we understand,
left his hour about six o'clock on Wednesday night, and
did not return. He has been in the habit of late of going
out occasionally with fishers, and being away all night, so
that no alarm was felt at hie absence. He resigned the
precentorehip of the New Church about two months ago,
after holding that office for about thirty youth —Ayr Ad-
mrtiar.