The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-04-17 00:00:00

THE LUNDHILL COLLIERY EXPLOSION.

The removal of the chair at the bottom of the shaft being
essentially necessary, not only to the using of both buckets
and the speedy emptying of the pit, as well as the libera-
tion of any of the bodies which might be kept down by it,
it was de-ermined on Sunday night that an attempt,
should be made the next morning to hoist it out. At'
eight o'clock on Monday morning five picked men
descended to the surface of the water. Their
first object was to endeavour to get it into the
centre, so that it might be drawn up, but this they
found a work not only of great difficulty but of considerable
danger, as all of them had to work on the surface of the
water, which was about seven feet up the shaft. After
great efforts for upwards of eight hours, the men all the
time being drenched to the skin, the heavy cumbersome
chair gave way, and was moved into the centre, and was
then raised by the power of the two engines. Along with
the chair two corves were also brought up, as well as a
considerable quantity of wood and other materials. On
Monday evening a tlrdy order NA, the interment of the body
found on Friday having been received from the coroner,
it was buried. The interment was proceeded with
with the greatest secresy, under the direction of Mr.
Superintendent Green, of Barnsley. The bodywas taken
to Barfield church yard about seven o'clock. A large
number of spectators. chiefly women, was present. The
funeral service was read by the Rev. B. Charleswerth,
vicar. The coffin was deposited in one of the compart-
ments of the graves constricted for tin reception of
the 160 bodies, to prevent any noxious effluvia from
being emitted. From the time of the chair being
got out, up to Tuesday afternoon (twenty four hours),
he operations of drawing off the water had been
susdentieJ, and the workmen were employed in getting out
the debris and lengthening and repairing the conductors at
the bottom of the shaft.

On Tuesday it was very currently rumoured that the
bo3ies of another man and two boys had been found, but
whether correct or otherwise could not be ascertained.

TUB NATIONAL DEBT.—By a recently issued return it
appears that last year the national debt amounted to
£897,981,788, of which £779,931,083 was funded, and
£28,050 unfunded.
The ilfeniteur contains a decree authorising the tem-
porary import, free of duty, into France of the seeds of
the arachide, either by land or rea, by French vessels,
or by vessels belonging to countries where the seeds are
grown.

On Good Friday, about 7,000 persons assembled at the
Halfway House, midway between the Devil's Dyke and
Brighton. There is usually such an assemblage on holi-
days. In the course of the evening there was a fight, and
the police interfered, but the mob attacked them. Some
of the constables were severely injured, large flint stones
having been thrown at them.
A PROFITABLE CROP.—Mr. George D. Black ley, of
Spottsylvania, has just sold the product of two acres of
ground on which he raised tobacco the last season, which
netted him in Richmond three hundred and two dollars
and fifty eight cents! The farm on which Mr. B. lives
cost him a few years ago less than 3 dollars an acre; and
now he reaps over 150 dollars per acre for tobacco seeded
on two acres.—Lynchburg Virginian.
Mits. JORDAN. Old Tate was once questioned as to her
ever having been married, and as to her patronymic of
Jordan. " Why, God bless you, my boy," said he, "I
gave her that name. I was her sponsor. When she
de:ermined upon going to London, she thought Misa
sounded insignificant, so she asked me to advise her a
name. ` Why,' said I, my dear, you have crossed the
water, so I'll call you Jordan ;' and by the memory of
Sam ! if she didn't take my joke in earnest, and call
herself Mrs. Jordan ever after.";—Bentley's Miscellany for
April.
ROCKETE LETTER.—Mr. Cornelius Burke, a respectable
farmer residing at Clonahilty, near Clo4hjordan, county
Tipperary, a few days ago received a letter through the
Post-office, informing him that if he placed a man named
Walsh as a herd over some lands which he had recently
taken " a horrible murder would be committed." The
writer of this production intimated that "he was a
friend," and that "it had been agreed upon to shoot
Walsh and his son without any farther notice." • Walsh
was attacked some few months ago, and had one of his
eyes knocked out by his assailants.
THE WALLACE MONUBIENT.-0a Wednesday informa.
tion was received at Stirling from Toronto, that the
committee there had raised £144 as a commencement
towards the funds of the Wallace Monument. The sum
of 430 calleeted at Rouka, in India, is to be forwarded by
next mail. The Messrs Hay, of Simla, India, have
requested from the central committee a supply of sub-
scription papers, which they mean to circulate in
Hiudostan. A large quantity of the documents have
been accordingly forwarded. The Marquis of Dalhousie,
late Governor General of India, has subscribed £lO to the
fund.

MELANCHOLY SUICIDE OF A GENTLEMAN.—On Monday
night Mr. Payne, jun„ held an inquest on the body of
Mr. Henry Price, aged 37, residing in Fore street, Lon-
don. Mrs. Elizabeth Sarah Price, wife of the deceased,
deposed that he had been suffering from physical disease
for some time, but was always watched. On Saturday
night last the deceased suddenly jumped off the bed,
threw up the window sash, and precipitated himself from
the second floor window, falling on the edge of 'a barrow
in the road, then bounding on the stones. He lingered
till Sunday afternoon, when death put an end to his
sufferings. Verdict of insanity.
No MORE TEA —1 he result, jest at this moment,
generally felt, of the British attempts to force an exten-
sion of trade and intercourse with China is a great rise in
the price of tea, which threatens if things go on, to reach
a price quite too high for persons of moderate means. In
this emergency The .Herald, which is a great advoeate of
the Chinese war, resorts to the sour grape philosophy. It
has suddenly found out that tea is a miserable thing, and
that coffee, chocolate, and beer are much better. That
being the case, why not let the Chinese keep their tea to
themselves ? Why force a trade in an article which is not
fit to drink ?—New York Tribune.
GREAT EQUESTRIAN MATCH. IN THE UNITED STATES.—
Two sporting men of the City of Albany, State of New
York, Taylor and Dalton, started on horses from the
Exchange on thd morning of March 30, at five o'clock, for
a hundred mile race, without rest or feed. The bets were
2,500 dole, a side. Whitestown, Oneida county, was the
termination of the race. The horses past Fonda, forty
three miles of the distance, at 9.15 a.m.; time 4 hours
15 minutes—Dalton's horse slightly ahead. They arrived
at Little Falls at 17 minutes past 12, the Dalton horse a
little ahead, but in bad condition. Taylor's horse arrived
at Whitestown at 5.30 p.m., making the hundred miles in
twelve hours and a half, and winning the race. Dalton's
horse was a quarter of a mile behind.
DREADFI7t ACCIDENT ON THE RAILWAY AT STAFFORD.--
On Monday evening, shortly after the 5 60 express train
from the north arrived at Stafford,a melancholy accident
happened to William M'Cabe, a person of considerable
engineering skill, and who, in consequence of his ability,
and the loss, through an accident on the line sixteen years
ago, of one of his legs, had for many years been entrusted
with the management of the engine house at Stafford. After
the traitehad passed the bridge where the Shropshire Union
Railway runs into the main line, an engine, drawing a
number of empty ballast waggons, arrived at the spot, and
stopped to put down a navvy who had bad hie hand smash-
, ed, and was on his way to the Staffird Infirmary. Just at
this moment M'Cabe, was standing on the up line noticing
a train shunting into a siding, and about ten yards in front
of the ballast train, when the engine of the latter was
again put in motion. M'Cabe observed this just before it
reached him, but in attergoing to escape, he was struck by
the outside of the buffer, and thrown back into the "four
feet," when he fell with his head across the rail. The
wheel of the engine pushed him before it a short distance,
and then passing over his neck, decapitated his head from
the body. His son, a very steady young man, witnessed
the sickening spectacle, and pulling off his coat, threw it
over the lifeless head of his parent, which had been carried
forward a distance, of six yards. The mangled remains
were carried to an adjoining public house to await the
coroner's inquest. M'Cabe was well known and respected
by all the authorities and officials on the railway. He
leaves a widow and six children. •
A " FISHERY" OF DEAD DOG9.—Of late years—l believe
just previous to the Russian war, but I may be wrong in
the date of it—the French Government imposed a tax on
dogs. Up to that time, there was scarce a Frenchman in
Paris, rich or poor, who had not his little Bijou-.dogs that
were slsaved behind, dogs that were shaved before, and
dogs that sat up or tumbled over in every variety of canine
contortion. A tax thus imposed produced a company of
go-a-head speculative men, to my mind more like the
inhabitants of America than of France, who, guessing the
effect of this "dog tax," instantly formed themselves into
an association, and, with the full sanction of the Govern•
ment, took what may be called a canine fishery. That is,
they erected boiling houses and premises at a certain
distance below Paris, on the banks of the Seine, and had
leased to them the exclusive right of setting a net across
the river to catch dead dogs. I am not sure how long they
continued their lively sports and lease, but their boiling
houses were always at work, their hauls multifariously
mysterious, and their ultimate gain so large, that when the
run of dogs was done they broke up the affair, and realised,
lam told, little short of sixty thousand pounds. The
skins of the dogs were very, valuable for gloves, and their
fat, or its essence, equally valuable. What else the corn
pany netted, or what other things they boiled, of course I
know nothing of; the fact as to the association, its purposes,
and the success it met with, is undoubted.—Mr. G. Berkeley
in ,Fled,

NARROW ESCAPE OF A SHIP WITH FIVE
HUNDRED EMIGRANTS.

The Martin Luther, which sailed from Liverpool on
Sunday, was fallen in with on Tuesday morning by the
steamer Tagus, and was found in a helpless condition,
having lost all her spars but the foremast. She was
drifting leeward before a heavy sea, and would, in all
probability, have gone ashore on the French coast, only
eighteen miles distant. The Tagus, after considerable
damage to herself and damage to the life boat, succeeded
about noon in rescuing her. On Monday morning, it
appears that the fore and main topmasts of the Martin
Luther were carried away close to the caps, taking with
them John Westwood, of Dunfermline, Peter Branaghan.
and three other seamen, who were on the weather yard
arm endeavouring to secure the foresail which had broke❑
adrift. They were all, unfortunately, drowned. It is
stated that the loss of her spars is due, in some measure,
to the slackness of her rigging.
Since the above was in type we have learned the fol-
lowing particulars :—The Tagus arrived at Plymouth on
Wednesday, and had in tow the Liverpool passenger ship
Martin Luther. This unfortunate shin is the property of
Duncan Gibb, Esq., of Liverpool, which port she left on
Thursday last for Quebec, hiving on board 498 second
cabin and steerage passengers, and a crew of about
thirty-three hands, making in all 530 souls. She is
burthened 1,291 tons, had recently undergone a complete
refit, and is commanded by Captain Gordon, whose first
voyage it is in this ship. When she left Liverpool there
was a smart breeze, which arose to a gale, increasing
in strength through Friday and Saturday, the ship roll-
ing fearfully in a heavy sea. On Sunday she was under
double reefed topsails and reefed foresail, and at
eight o'clock p.m., through the rolling of the ship, her
main topgallantmast was carried away. Sail was reduced
during the night, and on Monday morning she was under
a single close reefed topsail, when the weather yardarm of
the foresail getting adrift the boatswain and seven seamen
proceeded aloft to secure the sail. While the poor fellows
were so engaged, the continual and increased rolling of the
ship caused(her to carry away the main and foretopmast and
foreyard, the boatswain and four of the seamen being carried
overboard with the wreck, and drowned ; the other three
seamen fortunately fell on board. One of the men drowned
was a seaman, taking passage in the vessel,who volunteered
t) go aloft in the time of danger. The vessel continued
to drift rapidly to leeward, through Monday and Monday
night. Fortunately at daylight the following (Tuesday)
morning, the Tagus hove in sight, and having observed
the Martin Luther's signals of distress bore up upon her,
and after great difficulty and risk, succeeded in taking
her in tow, and bringing her to this port. The name of
the boatswain drowned is John Westwood, of Dunferm-
line, Scotland, and that of one of the seamen, Peter Bran-
nagen, of Liverpool. The names of the other three men
we were unable to ascertain

SUDDEN ATTACK OF INSANITY..-011 Holy Thursday
during service in the chapel attached to the presentation
convent of our city, a young man named Butler, a slater,
being a most excellent character for steadiness and industry,
was suddenly seized with a paroxysm of madness, and
rushing to the alter tore and scattered the decorations, to
the horror and astonishment of the congregation. He
then ran to his house in the neighbourhood, and locking
himself into his [room. commenced smashing all the fur-
niture and flinging it out of the windows. The police
were called in, and having overpowered him, with great
difficulty, removed him to the city gaol, where he has
since remained in a state of violent insanity.—Kilkenny
Moderator.

TABLEAUX VIVANTES.—We read in a letter from Con-
stantinople :—" It is said that some of the English residents
here were rather scandalised by the tableaux vivantes which
they saw represented at a party given by the Russian
ambassador last Wednesday. The performers consisted of
the Russian and French attaches. The lady actresses for the
occasion were selected from the chief Russian, French, and
Greek families residing here, and no doubt by the discrimi-
nating tact of M. Boutinieff himself. The first tableau
symbolised the greatness and the grandeur of Russia in the
nenon of Peter the Great ; and the last tableau, which
de )ie`ed the interior of a harem, was well calculated to
give a Greek maiden a conception not of Turkish, but of
Rus,,i_in progress in civilisation.

ROMANISM IN FRANCE.—The worship of Our Lady of
Salette " produces 200,000 f to 300,000 f a year ; it is a
Californian mine. Pilgrims and others regoire 50,000
masses, at 2f a piece—a net revenue of 100,000 t. Farther,
waggons take away every week from 500 f to 3,000 f worth
of bottles of Salette water, yielding 100,000 f. Resides,
chaplets, medals, little statues, books, are all sold et an
exorbitant price, and the priests reserve the monopoly of
boarding and lodging the pilgrims, deriving from this
source another 100,000 f." The Romanist clergy are also
very skilful in lotteries—a lottery to build the church of
St. Roch ; a lottery to repair a chapel ; t ) furnish a
monastery, and fifty more such subjects. Take tickets—
for the small sum of a franc you may rain prizes of 30,000 f,
50,000 f, and 100,000 E—Christian Witness.
LOLA MoNTE3 ACIAIN.—A New Yerk ',Ater, in the
Charlestown Evening Hews, says:—" Among the myriads
of tarn outs' on the two forty, Bloominglale road, this
forenoon,' was the renowned Lola Montes, with a spanking
pair of bays, and the ribbons in her own hands. The
cutter she was in was a jitinty little affair, with a liveried
servant perched in the back seat. LAS. lives in the most
luxuriant manner at 13, Stuyvesant place, radiating round
and about the haut ton. She %sill shortly make her re-
entree upon the mimic stage here, after which her resless
spirit will impel her to visit Europe. It is said that she
has become a convert to spiritualism, and is an anxious
inquirer after truth. From her antecedents, I always
imagined she was liberally imbued with spirit, if not
spirits.' Lola has a very pretty sister of sweet sixteen'
living with her. She is preparing for the stage, under the
tutelage of one of our most celebrated elocutionists and
actresses."

OBSCENE BILLS.—At the Central Police Court yester-
day, Dr. Levenston, London street, was accused of having,
on Saturday, permitted John Ewing, thee in his employ-
ment, to distribute a number of obscene bills, in
contravention of the Police Act. A person who appeared
for Dr. Levenston, and who persisted in addressing the
presiding magistrate—Bailie Hannan—as his "Worship,"
denied the charge, and urged that the bill contained
nothing obscene ; that it was quite a new affair, and had
only been "modelled" last week. An inspector of police
having proved the distribution of the bills, Bailie Hannan
said that whatever he (Dr. Levenston's representative)
might think, he considered that the bill was a most obscene
production, and in accordance with his opinion he would
impose the highest penalty it was in his power to inflict—
£2, with the alternative of 30 days' imprisonment:
Ewing, the distributor of the bills, was fined. 53.—Olasyow
Mail. [The Liverpool authorities would do well to
follow the example of those of Glasgow.]
NEW SCHEME FOR A SHIP CANAL.—ABIOng the various
plans of this kind, we notice one got up by the Chatham
people for connecting Lake Huron with Lake Erie,
without subjecting vessels to the long navigation which
they are now obliged to follow round the south western
point of the peninsular of Canada West. The scheme is
to make a cut from the River Thames to the Rond Eau,
on Lake Erie, a distance of some twenty seven miles, by
which it is said a saving of 129 miles would be effected,
and the flats of St.. Clair would be avoided. It is
calculated, moreover, that a saving of 1,790 dols. would
be effected annually on each vessel employed in the
trade, which, it is supposed, would pay a fair return for
the outlay. Meetings have been held not only in Canada,
but in B dale, at which Mr R. S. Woods, of Chatham,
submitted plans for carrying out the works, which met
with unanimous approval.—Canaiian News.
MR. THACKERAY'S LOYALTY ; —Mr. Thackeray, who was
entertained last week at a public dinner at Edinburgh,
took advantage of the opportunity to reply to the charge
that be enjoyed, with malicious pleasure, expoundiug the
vices of deceased monarchs. Mr. Thackeray grounded his
defence principally upon the fact that he had ievariably
lauded her Majesty the Quen. Reigning sovereigns
have seldom wanted similar tributes of admiration.
Mr. Thackeray must be well aware that Queen Anne was
endowed with all
The royal virtues as with crown and ball ;
and that George the First was the " Ciar" of cotemporary
writers. We doubt whether it would be quite safe for any
lecturer of the present day to speak otherwise than respect-
fully of her Majesty the Queen, and Mr. Thackeray can
hardly, therefore, expect that his laudation will be received
as conclusive evidence of either generous feeling or devoted
loyalty,—Press.
MELANCHOLY CATASTROPHE —FIVE LIVES LOST.—
Between one and two o'clock on Thursday morning, an
accident of a truly melancholy nature occurred at Green-
-1 iivalls new colliery, near Duddo, about ten miles west of
this town. So far as we have been able to ascerta'n the
Bets of the case, it appears that the working of this
colliery had approached too near that of the old one,
which has been out of working order for a considerable
time, and had consequently filled with water. The
nivision bete een the two pits pot being strong enough to
resist the weight of the water, gave way and burst into
the other, where there wete five men working, and
melancholy to relate all have perished. The unfortunate
men who have been thus suddenly launched into eternity
had not been exceeding half an hour in the pit before
the accident occurred, having about one o'clock exchanged
with others, at which time no danger was apprehended.
of one, are
married, aneleorne of them have left families. At the
The names of the men are—Thomas Patterson, John
Robson, Andrew Oliver, and two young Ten of the name
of Hogarth, and all, with the exception
time we received our information none of the bodies had
been recovered.—Kelso

SLAVERY-WHAT IS SLAVERY?