The Express.
London, England, 1859-09-19 00:00:00

(Stamped ld.

Additional)

Diisat 11141 v ?NA "ctt.citr you la any official capacity

w taVi • r •
By asiniteen—Mho do yon °wider was in charge
of the thews f—Undoubielly Arnett, end the other
*esteem oiler Um direction of Mr. Wlesteen. I wee on
'Weed ad NM time, the lege/aim I concur in the opinion
already expemeeil that the awe of the accident was the shut-
tiny of the upper cock. I think the shutting off of the
feel pipe wee miry proper and jodicions, always
asseunith that envy one thought the pipe wee open at
the top. In the abeam of the knowledge that the cock
was closed, the course pursued wee correct and judicions.
Boilers always "prise ^ th they leave the river, and this
mimiag is e seams of great danger and iICOLVOOi6IIOII
to the bOfti. The bast way to stop this "priming" le
to tend in cold water at the bottom of the boilers, It
was desirable, therefore, to shut off the hot water " feed,"
and throw in the cold feed, which was done. The water
caring for the funnel never came under my cogeteanoe. I
know nothicg of the couch bag on the syphon. I think it
lea who policy on an combss to have a atop cock or valve
upon a pipe cosneleil with warm water or steam. It was
not absolutely aeoearq that there should be a cook en the
syphon. It wth as a precaution against the 'oddest
of-breaking the standpipe. If the_ stand pipe were broken
and cock wire not there, the whole of the steam and
water would have nuked theis7=g cabins, for the
pipe was a ventilator for the 'lupin , as well se con-
nected with the water casing. 1 have not before bad any
experience of stand pipes. I constructed a water meting
about eight years ago fir a small vessel. No provision wee
made then for the teethe of steem, and the vessel has been
rennin! all the time Wilmot /widest, sad Ma cunning
still. With both outs open we might have tad from I
other mums an accident and en explosion. If the feed
was allowed to go low In the cuing, the water rtuthim
in • quickly on the heated metal would generate nch
an =nowt of steam se could not be carried off; and it
still remains a mystery whether the accident on board the
Great Eastern was not caused by the water being unduly
lowered and suddenly replenished. In that case the steam
would have flashed apes suddenly that the stand-pipe would
not have saved it. My own immure= is that /something
of this kind did happen. One way of acceunting for the
nuident wealth bath 0013 b being chard, and mother was
that of creating a larger quantity of
_swat then could be cu-
rled off by the stand-gip, or nested by it. Ido not know
how long the feed water had been shut ell before the es
don took pines. I directed my atteetken after the strident
solely to examining the extent of the accident. I Medway
deny all official responsibility, either on my own part or
that of Mr. Dixon, is connexion with the aWdtht. All that
we did was to asset the company, sal I should have acted
very wrongly if, bevies a roan in my employment of so
much experience, I had not had him on board to give every
substance in his power. I not only sent him, but mho every
tellable two I baton board, to glve ankle ace.
By Mr. Lawson—There had been two °outride between
him and the contway in reference to the engines. Tho
eeirbee ye pertly erected under the contract with the old
company, bat the casings were not put upon the funnels; on
the othlew, M mem intended to have the casings at als
and made themearoon funnel. The company leased a part
hie week, oil endeavoured to complete the ship. It was
during Meth the
_weeks were under their own chugs that
tha' the
apes the deck, sad when be wee celled
is le the vessel be fouled it thee; one of them had
Wpm fined. All the witness's contract with the new
thesd sow long been completed. There had sever
been say difference between them as to the completion of the
otenteed, swept u regarded estrus, which the arbitrators
would sat .sadly settle • unfortunately, however, ow of
the arbitrators • had been absent from tows, or this
would sot have arises. There were some poeticise of the
week sponerhich alters/lona hadbeen made, and bat fey that
other things which ought to have been done would have
be/endow. He did not cambia that a breach of contract.
The ditholon and he had been on excellent terms, end he
hoped they yet would be notwithstanding Mr. Levereon'e
...etteLheilsgs. (A laugh.) Witnue attended the board
en which the day wee fixed for the silk going to
•Terita object In going there was to obtain meney, but he
did notattoomd. It wee not withheld es doe pees& dr*
he bed ad completed his contract, but wises mom wore
alleged, mad he wee asked to take a masiderehle mount in
shares which he objected to.
Mr. Lemnos said that the money was refuel tends bis
advise.
Mr. Lowers bete informed the coroner that he should
tender Messy es a witness on that point.
By Mr. Lisa—l gave directions to Mr. Dixon when he
said he had dose with the amines, that the four engineers
would go at that into the company's service. Thoth were
the four engiseers the chairman had requested, and when
they wove handed thee the delivery of both engines and en •
*MS wee °engem. Of COMO as them' delivery of the
whim was ever made. I know of no poesible means by
which a formal delivery could be made.
By Mr. Newman—l strongly recommended to the directots
a pad whom I knew and wit had allege beenln the Whit
a piloting my ships down the river. He never took charge'
of the ship, however, but wee employed as an assistant pilot.
The crew were not in any way engagedor paid by me. If I
had felt myself responsible for the control of the sestet I
Ahead not have allowed her to be worked by any perethe not
by ma. That is the invariable practicel pursue.
tfrjere.l raked such a &mead I should have refused to
omits the trial trip.
By Mr. lemon—Where a ship builder end an engineer,
who are nothowlected with each other, deliver a thud, the
case may be different, but I was both, and wee entitled to
have the entire commend.
By the Coroner--None of my men were employed In the
engine room. Sixty or seventy of my men were on board,
doing additional work, but were not in the engine room.
The examination of Mr. Russell being completed,
Mr. Leverson said he proposed to recall Mr. Briscoe, in
reference to a statement made by Mr. Id 'Lennan, and dente,
by Mr. Dixon, to the effect that unless lamps were supplied,
be (Mr. Dixon) would not take charge of the vessel.
Mr. Briscoe, whose arm wee still in bandages, owing to
the iojuries he received at the explosion, was recalled by the
Coroner aadexamlned—He raidhe remembetel a=ver-
nation between Mr. Dixon and Mr. Mew= respecting the
lamps. He distinctly recollected Mr. Dixon saying that he
could not take charge of the vessel unless they were sup-
plied. The conversation then took a pirate turn, and
witnees retired. He wee engaged on the ship as junior en-
gineer, acting under the senior engineer. The day after the
conversation he received an order to bob through Mr.
Parry's stores for the lamps and ash buckets. He found emus
end delivered the rest in the evening.
Mr. James Petrick was next examined. He said he was
the of the engineers of the Great Restern. After the ex-
plosion he went down to Mr. Arnett and asked if there was
muffling to stop the communication between the cuing and
the pipe. He sew that the foremost funnel had come down,
end it occurred to him that some obstruction might have
eaueed the accident. Mr. Arndt told him that the stand
gpes were fitted with cocks, but added that they were open.
Upon that witness said he would go and see. He went to
W second funnel and found the cock shut. He opened it at
use with a spanner.
Captain Robertam—lt lea moat providential circumstance
that that funnel did not explode also.
Exateinatkm resonsed—'There seemed to be a rust pree-
mie* of *team. The feed had been shut off hem 11 o'clock,
but was put on again math time afterwards, when the for-
wed Ike had been withdrawn. Witness shut off the toed in
mike to keep down the priming.
By Oa, Woo Robertson—The coek in the eyphon vAa of no
we that he knew of. It never occurred to him to see If
seism wee escaping In order to sucertain whether or not there
wee as obstruction. He knew notbiog of the arrangements
= eittednd never expected to And a cock on the pipe. He
Mr. Arnett his immediate chief, and not Mr.
Disee. Witness reported to Mr. Dixon whet he had doze,
end not to Mr. M.Leanea. He only told Mr. Dixon because
be asked him
By Mr. Laween—lf Mr. Dixon had not asked him, be
should have wide no report to him. Witness knew that
abuttiog off the feed would brine down the priming, and wee
sot aware that It wee an experiment attended by danger.
Mr. WLesean, before they left the river, told him to obey the
orders of Mr. Arnott—not of Mr. Dixon.
By the Coroner—Witnees ceased to be in the employ of Mr.
Russell the sight before the venal &Ana, en signing the
ship's articles.
As it wee now raven o'clock,
The Coroner iroposed to adj sea the inquest until Moedaw
morning et 10 o clock. Though desirous of bringing the In-
quiry to a concladon as epeedl!y as possible, he tclt It to be
one of nth gravity and importance that every opportunity
should be afforded for a thorough investigation.
The Inquiry was accordinsily adj .nosed, having lasted from
9 o'clock in the nowniag until 7 o'clock at night.

A Wrymouth =respondent of the Obserrer
says The jury engaged in investigating the nue is an
admirable specimen of the unexcitable chi:seer of the R -
mouth mind, so evinced by the almost complete abreact of
the public daring the preceelinge. Several members of the
jury were occupied the greater part of the day in reading the
local fiewopipers and discussing their contents ; oce or two
were In the content habit of suggesting questions to the
solicitor of the company, and three of the jurymen were
reporters connected with the load journals, wh,, combining
their professional with their jAdicial functions, were engaged
4 taking notes and 'ending • elpy ' at short intervals to the
journals which they bad the honour to rereeent. In
our experinos we have Storer seen so little interest evinced
by 'jury upon a stthpet of grant msguitule, and of so much
Importance to the parties interested la the made

-- m•-^ • • u."._
lha yaws., an asniants
Mitt 11, lbw pr.oistor of the Skipping and Jterandiin
Ossetia, fa sammoed as a candidate to retreeeht the ward of
Ilrtdae la dm Court of Aldermen, in the room of Sir Chap-
man ManhaD, who has resigned. Mr. Mitchell baa beta
long a teeldent In the ward, and is a magistrate for the
meaty of Dens.