The Express.
London, England, 1847-12-31 00:00:00

PROVINCIAL.
YORKSHIRE.

Ibi•NEILAUOITIER IT RaILWAY DIRECrORS.—On
Wednesday the coroner's jury resumed their inquiry luta
the cause of the fatal accident on the York end North Mid-
land Railway on the 14th. The evidence concluded, the
jury retired, and, after two hours' deliberation, the following
scene occurred. The Foreman "We -find that the York
and North Midland Railway Company are guilty of negli-
gence for adopting a Newcastle break-van. The driver of
the engine of the mail 'train guilty of passing Milford Junc-
tion et a greater speed then four miles an hour. The driver
of the engine of the mail train guilty of passing Milford
Junction at a greater speed than tan miles an boor.
Tns guard of the mail train not guilty, for the
reason that be could not comply with the rules
of the York and North Midland Railway Company."
—The Coroner : Do you mean guilty of manslaughter ?
The foreman : Yes. The Coroner : WWI all the di-
rectors of the York and North Midland Railway Com-
pany ?—The foreman : Yes. (Laughter.)—The Coroner :
Then I cannot receive your verdict.—The Foreman Well,
we do—we de indeed. (Reamed laughter.)—The Coroner:
Do you really consider, gentleman—and I address myself to
all of you—do you really consider that this company, of
whose names we know nothing, that all ere guilty of man-
slaughter I—A juror: No; hut we think there has been
negligence.—The Coroner : I tell you again, so I told you
before, that I can receive no verdict of guilty, unless it be
guilty of murder or manslaughter. If you say gailly you must
say guilty of manslaughter. Yon have noel her jurisdiction.—
The Foreman That is our verdict, sir. —The Coroner You
my guilty of manslaughter, do7ou ? How many parties do
you find guilty of manslaughter ?—The Foreman : Oh, we
can't tell the names ; we don't knew them. I suppose the
directors of the Yoe and North Midland Railway Com-
va—ooTdhizioConarth leird: TrmaißaiiboHoeypsctonstall, do
o yoult of
the
maaYork
?—Mr. Heptonatall : No, sir.—The Coi:oner put
the same question to three more jurors and they severally,
end amidst renewed laughter, answered in the negative.—
The Coroner (addressing the foreman) : Why, air, must I
really call—The Foreman: This is what I wrotedown in their
presence.—The Coroner proceeded to repeat the question to
the remaining jurors, and they all answered the same as the
first. Geo. Douglas was the last name called, and that gentle-
man said : No, I do not comprehend the framing of the ver-
dict. I told you before that lem a decided dissentient.—
The Coroner, to the foreman : Now, sir, do you find them
guilty of manslaughter ?—The Foreman: I do—The
Coroner : Then you stand alone.—The Foreman next read
the second clause of what he called the verdict, whereupon
—The Coroner said I told yen before that it must be
guilty of manslaughter, or murder. Do you mean man-
slaughter ?—The Foreman : Yes, of course, I mean that.—
The jury then went through the same ordeal as before. and
the whole thirteen differed from the foreman. The
Foreman This is the verdict we hare came to.
—The Censer But they all deny it. (Laughter.)—
The Foreman : Every one of them agree to what I have
written down here.—The Coroner: You say that all the di-
rectors are guilty of manslaughter, and I find that that is not
the verdict —The Foreman: That is the verdict.—The
Coroner You may so, but I can't record it.—The Coroner,
after • short pause, observed that he was extremely glad that
there were more than twelve jurymen, for, had that not been
the case, he should have been under the necessity of adjourn.
ing the inquest nine die. Unless the jury could return a
verdict of murder or manslaughter, they could find no other,
under the circumstances, than that the deceased came to
their deaths accidentally.—A That is the opinion of
all of us.—The Coroner Then, Mr. Smith, the inquisitions
will be filled up " accidental death," and t ask you to sign
them.—The Foreman :—No ; I can't in my conscience do
so—The Coroner ; Very well, six.—The inquisitions were
then filled up, sad signed by the whole of the jury, except
the foreman.—The verdict was, in effect, that the two de-
ceased had been accidentally killed.—The coroner then die.
mimed the jury.

- -
THE REST METHOD OE MAINTAINING PARISH
ItoAns.—At a meeting of the York Farmers' Club, Major
Walker said :—" The too generally bed ante of parish roads
has induced me to introduce the subject to your notice. It
has been ascertained that a load which takes a draft on a
hard turnpike-road of 30111w.' takes on a hard turnpike-road
in • dirty state, 39ths. • on a hard compact loam, 331bs. ; on
an ordinary by-road, 1061 to. By this we see what *disad-
vantage fanners labour under in this respcct. A large pro-
portion of their carting work has to be performed on the
ordinary by-roads, where the draft, in comparison of hard
turnpike-roads, is in the proportion of 106 to 30 or requiring
the power of 31 horses to take the load that one hone
would be equal to on • turnpike-road. When we con-
sider this, end in addition the loss of time that must
user, it is evidently the interest of the farmer to maintain
the roads he so constantly uses in the best possible state of
napir ; nor would this entail so ruinous an expenditure se
rem suppose. The present mode of managing parish roads
bads in the end to a much greeter outlay, with very amide-
liketery resalts, for the reads are, from the endeavours MEM
le time off a necessary expenditure allowed to fall fats se
bade state, that the mum required so put them even We
penehle repair is greater than would have sufficed to keep
dises in good order, had it been equalised over the years of
; or, I should rather say, of short-sighted penny-wiseZitund-foolishness. From the opportunities I have has
of amturing information, I should consider that the worst
raids of the district might be brought into • good state of
repair by an expenditure of Is. 3d. in the pound on the
rental ter the first year; Is. for the second year ,•
and after that, leas than 6d. in the pound, regularly and
judiciously laid out, would maintain them in such a manner,
that the decrease in the wear and tear of horses, carts, and
reline, would amply compensate for the two years' in-
creased rate of outlay. I will now mention what appear to
me to be some of the greatest defects in parish roads. The
most glaring is the shape of the road, which, instead of
being slightly convex, is for the moat part very concave;
this shape I have been told by an old parish road muter
was indispensable fer the purpose of keeping the road oge-
thee. He seemed to forget that it, at the same time, kept
the water together, and consequently converted the road into
a pond. The next point is the insufficient breaking of the
metal, which is put on so large that it is a long while in ce-
menting and forming • compact surface, end when it does
unite, the surface is so irregular, that the wheels jolting off
the higher parts add to the uneveness, and immediately
form holes, which continuing full of water increase and per-
petuate the evil. Again, the ruts are not properly filled up.
Instead of being hacked through, so as to let off the water
they contain, they are generally allowed to wear very deep
before anything is done, and then a quantity of very badly
broken stone is filled in en the water. The bottom of the
rut this left wet and soft, the rone soon sinks out of sight,
and the roads become as bad as ever. Whereas, if earlier
attention were paid to prevent ruts being worn, the amount
of labour,
.required would not be increased, end the ex-
penditure of material would be saved. An advantage
also would be obtained by breaking the metal fee
the road as loon as possible after it is quarried ; it would
then, in the instance of many descriptions of stone, be more
easily broken, and would also become drier and more fitted
for use by a more minute exposure to the air. I will jut
mention what appears to me another great evil, via, the
annual change of overseers
of the roads. To explain this, I
will suppose a road m • very bad state (this would require
no great stretch of imagination): the overseer for the year
does his duty judiciously, and there is necessarily a larger
expenditure than the parish has been accustomed le,
and still the good work of regeneration is only com-
menced. The following year • lees prudent overseer is
appointed, and he says, ' The outlay was very great lea
year—it shan't be high this year;" he acts as he says. and
although the rates are undoubtedly lower, yet thy Pariah
will have suffered a great loss ; the large expenditure of the
previous year is totally wasted, and the road, have again
reverted to their former bad state. A bill was brought
forward by Sir Robert Peel, with the view of placing the
management of perish roads in the hands of paid district
overseers, over whom the parishioners would have ne con-
trol, authorising, at the same time, the expenditure
of 2s. 6d. in the pound. This was called • boon to the
agricultural interest. The good roads was eseleinly be •
boon, but I think it can be obtained at a Leaseitehaa 2a. 6d.
in the pound ; and I trust the day is sot he &teat when
the parish roads may, through the exertions of the mem-
bers of farmers' clubs, be in so good a state es amt its sequin
Sir it, Peel's plaister. I beg to submit le the asakig the I
consideration or he following reeolutkm t--m Thet male
roads night be maintained in a much better sale than they
now gemerally are, without musing a greet inessees of the
g-
rase, by paying attention to the follow via, the
shape of the road, which should be esever ; the
' braiding the stone small enough te pees a ring of
two Leh. diameter ; filling up ihe Me they are eat
deep, sad doing that by haddeg the, through, and laying
the stow generally on the road lemma of only in the ruts
breaking . the atone as soma a possible after it
ancrted is , and having at all times a nada*
en y ready broken - and lead ,pa Meld attention le
e."—The Chairman: hes Isagia as
that it policy to expend more a sad lass inaelerlei
la the nieintenanos of roads. I have bees be Ilia fa seas
yaws, sad in my own parish a saving of iseadithe in the
expeaditere has been the meek of the ethiplies of this
wane. With regard to their. of the road sad dr bask.
lag lithe atones snail I quite epee whittles memebe verb
by Major Walker. It the shoo are pet ea
never sanest together. Mr. IheeLheesi girt=
been a wormer tar the Semehlit el Klitilelheep
' fer thirty Teem and his repedesee miteeed Illsiee
Walker in recommending that tbe elnee sheraiil be traken
small. Invariably when he saw a kegs NMI en the sad he
ordered it to be taken up and bream Wkw do pas was
diet commenced upon their reed, it was by some
that the township wield be Mud by it; btr.,.... was
that now end foe PM thaeall Ma had her ese of
the best in Yorkshire. The mimed as *llion
that the plan of Other
Is lath thEthituadsabe thithletheithy
of paid agents was a sae, end he rearred
to the great north road, elm mid* they ale* ea dye
times more gravel than Nate we say eseeisa lass.--Gar-
desert' Chronicle.
MOM
RYE HARBOUR AID THE NATIONAL DIEFENCT.B.
A correspondent of the &cues Adeerfirer says : " It was the
'-.'s of government authorities in 1803,
-that the coast
. ... ... .
_.

oiiiiisas
_____
tram lime sadi Illiisolialra to IrairtiAt h. 1.14%.... *ha mra.