The Sun.
London, England, 1837-08-24 00:00:00

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DREADFUL EXPLOSION OF A GUN-
POWDER-BOAT, AND DESTRUCTION OF A
FOREIGN SHIP.

Yesterday afternoon, about half-past four o'clock, a most
serious calamity occurred on the Thames, at a place called
B ,gsby's Hole, rear to Blackwall, where vessels lie pre-
vious to sailing to take in their powder, by the explosion of
a boat laden with gunpowder, and the destruction of a Mal-
tese brig called the Jose, near to which it was lying. The
explosion was heard in all parts of London, but more se-
verely at Limehouse, Blackwall, Deptford, and Greenwich,
where it was believed that the powder mills either at Pur-
fleet or at Dartmouth had blown up. Much alarm was
of course created, and various were the rumours afloat. On
our reporters proceeding to Blackwell they discovered that
an explosion of a most serious nature had occurred, and
that several persons were wounded, besides two persons, a
man and a boy, who were entirely lost, being most proba-
bly blown to pieces in the explosion. The following may
be relied on as an authentic narration of the particulars of
the occurrence. It. appears that Mr. Thomas Corsan,
powder-lighterman, No. 8, Red Lion-street, Wapping, was
engaged about four o'clock yesterday in his accustomed
i
occupation of receiving powder from ships lying n
Blackwall-reach, and carrying powder to outward-bound
ships from the magazine at Erith. Having a quantity of the
powder, of which he had ten barrels in his boat, to deliver
on board the Jose, he went alongside, and inquired for the
Captain, whom he was told was in London ; on being told
that he was in London, he refused to leave the powder, and
was about to leave the vessel, when the powder in his boat
alongside blew up with a most tremendous explosion, and
threw him backwards with great violence against the main-
mast, bruising his head and body in a most severe manner.
The brig was instantly thrown on her beam-ends, and in
five minutes sunk, not a vestige of the skiff, or of the only
person that was on board of her, a boy named James
Matthews, an apprentice of Mr. Corsan's, was ever after-
wards seen. Thomas Gray, a Surveyor of Thames-police,
was
.close to the spot when the accident occurred, and
of course instantly, with his men, rowed to the assistance
of the crew of the brig, who, by the time he came ups
were clinging to the rigging, in a situation of great dan-
ger. By the assistance of Mr. Sinipson, the principal Cus-
tom-house officer in command of the revenue cutter at
Blackwell, the mastet of the powder-boat, the mate of the
brig, and a Maltese boy, who were all severely injured, were
taken from the wreck into Gray's boat, who taking advantage
of the offer of the Captain of the Gem, Gravesend steamer,
to tow him up the River, almost instantly brought them on
board the Dreadnought Hospital ship, where they were
promptly attended to. Mr. Corsan, although seriously in-
jured, was well enough to leave the Dreadnought, and
proceed to his own home where he was attended by his
own medical friends. The injuries, however, sustained by
the mate and the boy are much more serious, and it is
feared may terminate fatally ; they remain on board the
Dreadnought. John Matthews, the apprentice of Mr.
Corsan, was a fine young man, 17 years of age, and much
respected. Being in the skiff with the powder when the
ignition took place, he must no doubt be blown to atoms.
The Thames-police officer in vain attempted to search for
a remnant of either the boat or the lad. Of the crew of the
Jose only one man, the boatswain, is missing ; he was in
the hold when the accident took place, and was probably
drowned by the sinking of the vessel ; the crew escaped in
the different boats which put off to their assistance, both
from the shore and from the vessels lying around, the
people from which showed much alacrity in affording relief
to the unfortunate sufferers. A young lady, a niece of
Captain Cashin, was on board the Jose when the explo-
sion took place, and though much alarmed, escaped with-
out any positive injury ; she was taken out of the rigging
by Mr. Simpson, and is now on board the revenue cutter
under his command. On Gray the officer repairing to
the vessel a second time, he found her sunk in nine fathom
water, her sides had been blown out, as appeared by the
splinters and pieces of plank floating about, some of which
were twenty feet long ; the vessel was in ballast trim, as she
was about to sail to the North to take in coals 'for Malta.
Some of the property picked up was taken on shore and
secured, and the police are ordered to watch the wreck of
the vessel during the night. The accident has occasioned
no little excitement in the neighbourhood on both sides of
the river, where the explosion was at first thought to be
occasioned by lightning, especially as it was raining heavily
at the time ; indeed it is probable that the ignition of the
gunpowder might have been caused by lightning, as Mr.
Corsan says he can assign no other cause for the explosion.
He has been employed for many years in removing powder
from vessels entering the port of London, and in supplying
those outward bound with that necessary but dangerous
combustible, but has never till the present awful catas-
trophe islet with the slightest accident. The boy he had
left in the boat was extremely steady, and he had only
quitted it a few moments himself when all was safe. The
powder was safely packed in copper barrels, and the boat
*vas covered securely.
The shock was severely felt on the side near East
Greenwich, where nearly the whole of the windows in
Mr. Petrick's mills were broken by the concussion of the
air produced by the explosion ; the passengers in some of
the steam-boats, the eltercury, Gcm, and others were
much alarmed, and to a late hour last evening the most
:Absurd and ridiculous reports were abroed as to the nature
of the accident. It is believed that the whole of the bar-
rels of gun-powder did.not explode, or the mischief must
have been much greater, there being about nine hundred
weight in all. The shock, which was felt severely at
Blackwell, caused a curious incident to occur. An old
lady, named Belton, thinking that it was the day of judg-
ment that had arrived, ran about the place in great dis-
traction of mind, and it was with much difficulty that sbe
is as persuaded by her friends and neighbours to remain
within her own house. This was not effected before she
lead excited much terror in others, and had worked herself
up into a fit of plirenzy.

THE PERIODICAL MORTALITY OF

THE HUMAN RACE.

Our limits arc insufficient to enable us to give the entire
table of mortality as furnished by the official authorities ;
we have yet thought it necessary to note the first seven pe-
riods separately, as illustrative of the great excess of morta-
lity among infant males compared with females. The aver-
age of the quinquennial periods (except in the cases an-
n general furnish the annual sum of mortality.
Act i
termination'li of the first 12 years about one-third of
those born Je
with the departed, the proportion being
against males in IL :;I(iie ) "il ii
c ratio of 855 to 732 limudes (yearly.)
After this term (12 y;ars) to the age of 44,—the middle
period of life, and by far thz more hazardous to women,—
the comparative mortality shows a different result, being
as 46 females to 41 males. At the termination of this pe-
riod, when procreation ceases, female hie is comparatively
the most secure, the average mortality front the ages of 4
to 63 being about as 63 males to 60 females. The com-
parative security of life subsequent to this is slightly in fa-
vour of females. The table shows a great excess of morta-
lity among females ; but it should be remarked that the
excess of female population after this period of life is nearly
12 per cent. over the males (see table of ages), and the
ratio of mortality is hence by so much greater, without indi-
cating any comparative insecurity of life. In collating this
table from the official documents befOre us, we cannot but
remark the extraordinary mortality it evinces at the termi-
nation of each decade of man's life from the age of 30
years. In every instance, front 30 years of age and up-
wards, the mortality in the year which terminates the de-
cade very greatly exceeds that in the preceding and suc-
ceeding years ; and, as a matter somewhat curious, we shall
show these instances :

Age. Mortality.' Age. Mortality.' Age. Mortality.
,
30
31 •
39
*4O
41
This strikes us as something extraordinary ; it seems to say
that at these periods a man is under the influence of some
physical change, when he either surrenders or renews his
life lease. The disciples of the profound Cuvier, can, per-
haps, explain this.—Browning's Domestic and Financial
Condition of Great Britain.

THE NEW NOVEL, Of " UNCLE HORACE."—
The popularity of. Mrs. Hall's " Sketches of Irish Charac-
ter," and, intleed, of every work she has written, makes it
a matter of regret that she should so seldom come before
the public. The novel so long announced, entitled
" Uncle Horace," which is to appear during the present
week, has been finished at press these two or three months,
and its publication, we presume, has been deferred (by
Mr. Colburn), with one or two others, in consequence of
the pre-occupied state of the public mind. It is, we are
told, a genuine English novel, of a more striking character
than any of Mrs. Hall's former productions, the main
point of the story being founded on an occurrence of a very
extraordinary nature, which occurred some years past.
LITERATURE.—Now that the minds of people
are no longer distracted by Parliament, politics, and par-
ties, we are glad to observe that tome of the very intcrinterest-
ingworks that have appeared during the summer are in a
.course of receiving their due meed of admiration from the
literary and more retitled classes. In the department of
travels alone no former season has exhibited so many
claims to public atrention. We have the Poet Campbell ilt
Algiers—Captain Alexander among the colonies of Western
Africa—Mi,s Pardoe in Turkey—Mr. Robinson for three
years in"the Holy Land—Captain Scott in Egypt and
years iiithe Holy Land—Captain Scott in Egypt and
Candia—Mr. Spencer in Circassia and Tartary—Mid,
lastly, Dr. Granville among the Spas of Germany. It
would be difficult to say whether utility or amusement
b most preminete i n this new production of Dr. Granville.