The Sun.
London, England, 1830-05-04 00:00:00

DESTRUCTIVE FIRE IN THE CITY.

Yesterday, between twelve and one o'clock, the
inhabitants of Smithfield, Bartholomew Close, and
their vicinity, were thrown into a state of alarm, in
consequence of a fire breaking out, which threat-
ened destruction to the neighbourhood, and which
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The destructive t rluacmt ievse
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observed in a cellar, under a Calvinist's Chapel, in
a court in Little Bartholomew Close, belonging to
Messrs. Hooper and Peto, the builders. The Chapel
belongs to the Rev. Mr. Lakin, and would contain
about five hundred people. The cellar was used
for storing veneers and other light woods. Adjoin-
ing this Chapel was a well-filled timber yard, be-
longing to Messrs. Hooper and Peto. One side of
the building was situate close to the Church of St.
Bartholomew the Great, a very ancient structure.
which escaped the fire of London, and is supposed
to be nearly 900 years old. The approaches to the
chapel being very narrow, it was with difficulty that
engines could be brought so near the spot as to be
able to play with effect, and above an hour elapsed
before any water could be obtained except a small
quantity which was supplied by the inhabitants to
St. Sepulchre's engine with buckets. The flames,
therefore, increased with an amazing rapidity, and
in a short time the Chapel was in a general blaze.
Adjoining was the Protestant Dissenters' School,
This building erected over the south aisle of the
Church of Bartholomew the Great, next caught
,fire, and it was feared that the church must fall a
prey to the flames. The firemen of the Globe, the
Norwich Union, the Sun, the Atlas, and other en-
gines, as soon as they obtained water, directed their
exertions to save the church. They were assisted
by the inhabitants in bringing their engines close to
the church door which leads into Smithfield, and
they were able to carry the hose of these engines
through the church to the north and east sides, and
thereby save the edifice. The church, however, did not
escape serious injury, and at one moment, it was
expected the roof would have been destroyed. The
northern part of the building, which formed part of
the old Priory of St. Bartholomew, was occupied
by Hooper and Peto, and, although the great quan-
tities of very fine mahogany veneers were saved,
yet much valuable. property must have been de-

stroyed in the building, as well as in the yard ad-
joining. The flames rushed from the Dissenters'
chool, through the north windows of the church,
Ind set the curtains on fire. At this moment the
firemen played with great skill and promptitude
upon that part of the flames which had communi-
cated with the north side of the church, and luckily
the injury extended only to the destruction of the
vestry, the north windows and frame', and the cur-
tains of the North windows. While the firemen were
engaged as above described, other firemen had placed
their engines some in the narrow part, and others in
the wide part of Bartholomew-close, and had they ob-
tained a supply of water at first, they would have pre-
vented the fire extending beyond the Chapel and the
timber-yard. The City officers and a number of
Policemen came to the assistance of the inhabitants,
The consternation of the housekeepers whose
dwellings were contiguous to the Chapel was so
great, that all were busily employed in removing
their property to some place of security. The pre-
mises of Mr. Burgh, the silk-fringe and tassel-ma-
nufacturer, which were about eighty feet in length
and fifty in breadth, next caught fire. A vast
quantity of valuable stock was carried out of the
building before the flames reached it ; but notwith-
standing all the exertions that were used, a good
deal of machinery and silk was destroyed. The
houses in the neighbourhood were filled with house-
hold furniture and property of every description,
which had been saved from the flames. Before
three o'clock the whole of Mr. Burgh's manufactory
was blazing from south to north, and the roof fell
in with a dreadful crash. The premises occupied
by Messrs. E. and J; Davis, cabinet-maker, next
caught fire, and the whole of the upper part was
completely destroyed. The house adjoining Mr.
Burgh's, occupied by one of the Mr. Davis's, was
destroyed, and other premises at the other end of
Mr. Burgh's manufactory. The house of a person
named Johnson, situate close to the chapel,
was destroyed, and several other small buildings,
inhabited by poor persons, were wholly destroy-
ed. When the front of the chapel fell, three
firemen, belonging to the Hand-in-Hand Office, had
a very narrow escape with their lives. The fire at
one period covered neatly an acre of ground, and
had the accident occurred in the night-time, it is
impossible to conceive the extent of loss to hfe and
property that would inevitably have taken place.—
As it is, we fear the loss will be immense. One
man was carried on a shutter to St. Bartholomew's
Hospital, who had received some injury while as-
sisting at the fire, and that was the only casualty we
heard of.

The fire is supposed to have originated in the
cellar under the chapel, in consequence of one of Mr.
Peto's men, who had been sent for some veneers,
having left a candle burning while he went to dinner.
—None of the books or furniture belonging to the
chapel were saved, but the building and its fittings
up were insured in the Imperial Office. Mr. Burgh
and his family Aere at Orpington, in Kent, when the
fire occurred, and a message was instantly conveyed

to them, informing them of the dreadful calamity.
Mr. Burgh's property, we understand, is insured in
three Fire Offices. some stables, belonging to Mr.
Wheeler, at the back, were slightly injured. Great
complaint was made by the inhabitants of the houses
in the immediate vicinity of the great want of water.
The chapel was one entire body of flames before the
parish-engine, which was the first on the spot, could
obtain a supply, and then it was discovered that this
engine was so completely out of repair, that it could
not be brought into motion, and it was drawn off. At
eight o'clock last night the flames were subdued.

POLICU INTELLIGENCE.

MANSION-HOUSE.

A case of a very singular description came on
before the LORD MAYOR. Tire officers of the parish
of .Allhallows, London-wall, were summoned before
the Lord Mayor, by a young woman, aged about
twenty-one or twenty-two, for having turned her and
her illegitimate child out of the workhouse, although
she had, with the knowledge of the parish, esta-
blished a settlement there by servitude.
The circumstances were these. About eleven
months ago, the claimant, who resided with her
father, took it into her head to go to a fair, and told
him her intention. He, however, put a stern pro-
hibition upon her, unwilling that she should set a
bad example to the rest of the family. In fact he
said, " If you insist upon going, don't come back
to my house." She persisted in her object, and she
also attended to one part of her father's instructions,
she never entered his doors. By what means she
procured a livelihood between the period of that un-
fortunate visit to the fair and a few weeks ago, is
not known, but she applied, in great misery, to a
humane parish-officer of St. Stephen's, Coleman-
street, to whom her family were known, and he at
once passed her to her own parish, in the workhouse
of which she was delivered of a child. As soon as
she was able to answer the interrogatories usual
upon occasions of adding to the numbers dependent
upon parochial relief, she was questioned by the
proper authorities. She proved her claim, but she
declared herself wholly unable to point out the
father of her child. This failure in fixing the pa-
ternity was fatal in the eyes of the officers, and it
was determined that until she should enable them to
put the saddle upon the right horse," she and
her child should be minus as to the necessaries of
life. They accordingly made her a present of 35.,
and turned her out of the workhouse. She could
riot apply to her father, for even if his heart should
have softened towards her after her long absence,
and the sufferings she had undergone from her dis-
obedience, another calamity had occurred to him in
the change of the conduct of his wife, who had of
late taken most unmercifully to gin, and was now
supported by him in a workhouse.
The LORD MAYOR asked the officer of Allhalloe s,
London-wall, what grounds there were for refusing
the necessary relief.
The officer stated that she had peremptorily re-
fused to let the authorities know who the father
was; besides, her father was able to support her,
and she ought not therefore to be allowed to remain
a burden upon the parish.
Mr. Ellis, the officer of St. Stephen, Coleman-
street, who had passed the young woman to her
own parish, stated that she had solemnly declared
that she did not know who the father of the child
was; but her ignorance upon that point did not arise
from her promiscuous intercourse with men.
The LORD MAYOR asked whether it was meant
that on the night she left her father's house she met
some man to whom she allowed the last familiarity,
and that she knew nothing about him before or since.
The officer replied, that she had asserted some-
thing to that effect.
Mr. Nobler said that numerous cases had occurred
at that justice-room, in which mothers swore that
they could not point out the fathers of their chil-
dren, and he had no doubt of their having sworn
the truth. It seemed, however, to be an established
maxim with parish officers, that the women must
know in all cases.
The LORD MAYOR could not exactly subscribe to
thst doctrine, but he believed that they sometimes
knew a little more than the men upon the subject.
laugh.)
Mr. Ellis said the young woman most solemnly
declared that having despaired of being received by
her father, she wandered about without the means
of supporting existence, and at last purchased the
means by prostitution. She persisted in saying that
she had never since beheld the man who addressed
her, and that she never had known any man either
before or after that time. He (Mr. Ellis) knew
the young woman's father, and said he had not met
with many reverses of fortune, but was still very
respectable, and held a situation in a public office.
The LORD MAYOR said, that under all the cir-
cumstances the parish were bound to protect arid
support the young woman and her child. She might
one day meet the father, and Mould no doubt not
easily lose sight of him if it so happened.
Mr. Nobler said, that mothers, under such cir
cumstances, generally acted their parts with great
energy. It was not very long ago, since a girl was

accused in the justice-room of having refused to give
up the father of her child. She swore she did not
know who he was, but as she was walking ur
Cheapside one day she suddenly seized a gentleman
by the collar, and dragged him along, saying, " Here.
he is,—here's Billy's father."—(Loud laughter.),
It turned out that the girl was perfectly right, and
Billy's father was now supporting Billy, and very-
well able he was to do so too.
The LORD MAYOR said the case of the unfortu—
nate applicant for parish relief was a melancholy.
one, for she hal totally ruined her own prospects in
life, as well as aggravated the miseries of her father,.
NV ho, although far from being free from blame in the
course he had adopted, ought to have met with obe—
dience and affection from his child.

The parish then received directions to support the
young ►woman.
The officer said that the authoritie3were disposed
to render every assistance in their power. They
were only anxious to have his Lordship 4 smAtinn
under the peculiar circumstances of the case:.