The Sun.
London, England, 1864-09-14 00:00:00

Destructive Fire at Toronto.

On Sunday morning, August 28, there occurred at
Toronto one of the most destructive fires with which that
city has been visited for a length of time. The fire originated
at the Grand Trunk Wharf and Elevator, which wore com-
pletely destroyed, with some 50,000 bushels of grain and
400 barrels of flour. The G/obesays—"
The Grand Trunk
Wharf extended out from the Esplanade between Peter
and Brock streets. It was without exception the finest
and most substantial wharf in Toronto harbour, and was
erected two years ago at a cost of about 25,000 dols. The
capacious flour shed, capable of containing several thousand
barrels of flour, was put up only a few months ago at a cost
of between 5,000 and 6,000 dole. These losses, are, however,
but trifling, compared with that of the Elevator. This fine
building—one of the best of the kind in the province—
was constructed at the same time as the wharf, the whole
having been built by Mr Sheddon, who subsequently dis-
posed of the wharf to the Grand Trunk Railway Company.
The Elevator, though known as the Grand Trunk Elevator,
was the property of Mr Sheddon. Its actual cost at the
time of its erection was 50,000 dols, but it has been recently
considerably altered and improved at an additional outlay
of several thousand dollars. Fortunately for_Mr Sheddon
the building will not be a total loss, as he had an insurance
of 35,000 dols on it in the following companies :-21,000 dols
in the Liverpool and London, 8,000 dols in the North
British, 'and 16,000 dols in the Liverpool and Lancashire.
The loss sustained by the Grand Trunk Company in the
wharf will be covered by the insurance fund of the com-
pany. In the Elevator wat the time of its destruction there
were about 45,000 or 50,000 bushels of grain, divided as
follows :-.-Oats about 35,000, corn about 15,000, wheat about
6,000. This, so far as we could learn, was owned by various
shipping firms in this city and elsewhere, and was partially
covered by insurance, though to what extent we are not
informed. The following are the names of the principal
sufferers :—Erwin and Sloan, and Cheney and Ames, Os-
wego ; and W. D. Matthews and S. A. Oliver, Toronto.
Mr Oliver lost about 6,800 bushels of oats, on which he had,
we believe, an insurance of 1,208 dole. In the flour shed
can at present
there was fortunately a small quantity of flour, less than 400
euttotal insurance, a
5,000 dole flour
barrels, whereas there are sometimes as many thousands.
Messrs Gooderham and Worsts lost 127 barrels, Mr W. P.
Howland 200, and Mr P, Payland 10. Most of the flour,.
we were informed, was insured, though at very much less
than its value. The total loss, as nearly as
be ascertained, will be as follows :—The Elevator, 50,000
dole, the wharf and flour sheds 30,000 dole, oats about 11500
t aboutcznoocioi
sltoo,tsoo,oldo
901,
4s ,00whe dole.at aTbho
far as could be learnt, does not. exceed 30,000 dole, so thats
the actual loss in all will be in round numbers 70,000 dole.
Fortunately this heavy loss does not come on one
person.
daboolet:
alone, but is borne by several, . though mr simmou
bears by far the greater portion of It. The calamity could
hardly have happened at a worse time of the
year, so far as
Mr Sheddon is concerned. 11e had but a few weeks ago
commenced making preparationst for the reception and
storage of this year's grain, so
trade
at by the loss of the Eleva-
tor he will lose the whole ..rade of the coming fall and
winter, it being hardly possible to erect a new Elevator
before nest spring.

inlandyeßare:2e6nue
Mr Phillips, the principal of the
possession of licensed brewers have
al
lese 20 were found to be illicit ; the
Department, reports
laboratory
14
samples, grains of paradise,
one of these samples containing, samples of beer and of
materials tbhe aeßnt
prohibitediA analysed,
Dn tah lßyef
found
fEdnctt
ah. finiund
ingredients,a
tonhfceit
in addition, tobacco ; in two
other cocculus indicus was present in large and dangerous
quantities; two samples contained capsicum ; and the re-
maining two proto-sulphate of iron. Generally the pro.
hibited materials employed in the adulteration of beer are not
injurious to health, the object of the fraudu'ent brewers or
retailers of beer being more to increase the bulk of their
by the addition
ho 6,13-s, there can be little
to render
doubt that the practice of adulterating beer with poisonous
of
foods noxious than
materials. Still,
s t boora stop© Eying
matters, such as tobacco and cocculus indicus, is more
prevalent than might be inferred from the smaller number
of detections made, al the fraud is difficult to discover
unless the offender be caught in the act of committing
it. C'nsidering, therefore, this circumstance, and the
abominable character of the offmce, Mr Phillips is of
opinion that it would be only just to tho community to
make public the names of those persona convicted of
adding cocculous incline or other deleterious substances
to beer brewed for sale; and ho feels no hesitation in stat-
ing that the two instances of the use of the dangerous
drug in question occurred in the neighbourhood of
Wirksworth, in Derbyshire, and that many of the detec-
tions of the use of grains of paradise were also made in
the same district. lie states also that the experience of
many years has led him to the conclusion that the adul-
teration of beer with drugs, as distinguished from the mere
dilution or increasing of tkie bulk of the article, is more
prevalent in the Midland Counties and the West Riding of
Yorkshire than in any other parts of the kingdom.

Between 5 and 6 o'clock this morning a dreadful tragedy
was perpetrated by a man named William Berry, miller, of
29, Ormakirk-road, ix this town. Since Whitsuntide the
man has been in a desponding state, partly through business
affairs, and to souse extent through certain family matters,
He seems to have been jealous of his wife, although, it is
believed, he had no reason whatever to be so. On Monday,
Berry and his wife took lodgings in Ormekirk-road, and
their children, two in number, were removed to some of
their relatives. Early this morning the woman was heard
screaming, and it was subsequently discovered that she had
been stubbed in several places about her breast, and that
her throat had been cut near the centre. Her windFipe was
cut completely through ; she bled very profusely, and died
about half an hour after she was found. It seems also that
Berry made an attempt upon his life. He was found sitting
on a bed in his lodgings, with his throat cut, and the latest
repor a are to the Effect that he is not likely to au, vive.

The following evidence has been prepare,' by the police,
preparatory to the official inquiry, which will be hold to•
morrow :

Edward Leach, of 29, Ormskirk7road,!ays,—About hal.

Past 5 o'clock this (Tuesday) morning I heard a scream in
the room where the deceased and her husband were sleep-
ing. I immediately got out of bed and went to their room
and saw the deceased at the window. Her husband was on
the side of the bed, and I seized hold of him. Directly I
took hold of him he made a stab at his own throat with a
pocket knife. He made several stabs at his throat. He
said, "Let me do it quietly, Ned,"
Henry Ashworth, a brewer, said,—l was in Bishopgate
this (Tuesday) morning, at half-past 5 o'clock, when I heard
a woman screaming. I immediately ran into Ormskirk-
road, where I saw the deceased, and got hold of her. She
was bleeding from the throat. I put one of my hands to
her throat, and placed the other round her waist, and then
called for assistance. Soon afterwards I got her into the
house. I asked her who had been doing this—cutting het
throat, She made an answer and said "My husband."
She never afterwards spoke.

Matthew EtheringtOn, provision dealer, of 22, Walker-
street, says—This (Tuesday) morning at half-past 5 I was
in Ormskirk-road, when I saw Henry Ashworth, the last
witness, holding the deceased. She was bleeding very pro-
fusely from the throat. I helped Ashworth to get her into
the house. We got two bandages, and placed them around
her throat. We afterwards went upstairs, and I got hold
of the deceased's husband.

George Goodier, of 23, Everton-gardens, says—While I
was in Tithe Burn-street at half-past 5 o'clock this morning
I heard cries of " Murder I " I ran up the street, and into
Ormskirk-road, and saw the deceased standing at the door
of the house No. 29 in that street. She said " Dear me, he
is killing more upstairs," I went upstairs with a policeman,
and saw her husband.
Police-constable Dilworth deposes—At 530 this morning
I was in Lancaster. road. I heard cries of " Police, police,
make haste." I immediately went into Ormskirk -road, and
found the deceased lying on her side at the door of the house
No. 29. I asked where the man was, and some person said
upstairs. I went into the room and found him in a stoop-
ing position, Edward Leach had hold him. I seized the
man's arm, and took a pocket knife out of his hand. .The
knife was covered with blood. _

Inspector Hornby said—l arrived at the scene of the
murder about half-past 5 o'clock, along with Inspecter
Wray. I found the deceased lying on the sofa. I imme-
diately went upstairs. I saw her husband sitting on the
bed. His throat was cut. Inspector Wray gave me a
handkerchief, and I tied it around the man's throat. Wray
and I then sent for doctors, and at 6 o'clock Mr W. H.
Spencer, surgeon, arrived, While I was in the room the
deceased's husband said to me, "That's you, Ifernby ; I
know you," I said, " What made you do this, Will?"
lie answered, "It was through some men being in the.
house last night." I mentioned the name of a men named
Wilkinson, a miller, as being one of thorn, and ho said
"No." While we were at the house Mr Superintendent
Dunn arrived, and made all necessary inquiries.
This morning Berry was visited by Father de Pietro. lie
expressed his sorrow to the rev, gentleman for what ho had
done, and said that he know he had committed a murder.
The deceased, as we have already intimated, was the
mother of two children, and she was expected to be shortly
confined of a third.

How SPIDERS FLY.—Although spiders are not
provided wings, and consequently are incapable of
flying, in the strict sense of the word, yet, by the aid of
their eitken filaments, numerous species, belonging to va-
rious genera, are enabled to accomplish distant journeys
through the atmosphere. These aerial excursions, which
appear to result from an instinctive desire to migrate, are
undertaken when the weather is bright and serene, parti-
cularly in autumn, both by adult and immature individuals,
and are effected in the following manner. After climbing
to the summits of different objects, they raise themselves
still higher by straightening the limbs; then elevating the
abdomen by bringing it from the usual horizontal position
into ono almost perpendicular, they emit from the spin-
ners a small quantity of viscid fluid, which is drawn cut
into fine lines by the ascending current, occasioned by
the rarefaction of the air contiguous to the heated
ground. .Against these lines the current of rarefied
sir impinrys, till the animals, feeling themselves
acted upon with sufficient force, quit their hold of the ob•
jects on which they stand, and mount aloft. . . . The
manner in which the lines are carried out from a current of
air appears to be this. As a preparatory measure the spin-
ning mammuloc are brought into close contact, and viscid
matter is emitted from the papilla) ; they are then separated
by a lateral motion, which extends the viecid matter into
fine filaments connecting the papilla) ; on these filaments the
current impinges, drawing thom out to a length which ie
reaulated by the will of the animal, and en the maim:nuke
being again brought together, the filaments coalesce and
form a compound ilMcl44?('s gisbry
Spiders,

No news of importance has been received from
ho South Pucific.
From Peru we learn that in consequence of the

inactivity of the Court of Madrid in reference to the
seizure of the Chinche Islands, several members of

the Ministry at Lima had resigned, and on the 11th
of August a new Cab:net was formed, by which it
is hoped that more energy will be displayed in the
matter, and that a better feeling will he felt between
Congress and the Government. The icon-plated
monitor Victoria was launched on the 30th of July.
VALFARAISO.—A bid had been passed for form-
ing a new department in the Custom-house for col-

'eating and embodying the statistics of trade, and
a privilege has been accorded to the Corrizal Rail-
way Company for an extension of their track. Ex-
change on London, 411 to 45 per cent., 60 to 90
days; on Paris, 4 65 and 4 75.
The railway in Venezuela from Zucacos to tho
Aroa mines was proceeding rapidly, and the con-
tractor (Mr S. Pittar) has returned to England to
make further arrangements for its immediate com-
pletion. Political affairs were assuming a more
tranquil aspect in this district.