The Sun.
London, England, 1863-05-30 00:00:00

Shocking Accident on the London, Brighton,
and South Coast Railway.

Yesterday evening, at a quarter-past six o'clock,
an accident, attended with loss of life in several in-
stances, and severe injuries to upwards of 20 pas-
sengers, occurred on the loop line of the London,
Brighton, and South Coast Railway, near the
Streatham-common station, Up to a late hour last
night the utmost excitement prevailed in reference
to the catastrophe, and crowds of persons were
making inquiries at the Victoria-station, Pimlico.
It appears that an express passenger train left
Brighton at 5 o'clock, conveying in addition to the
ordinary passengers, two companies of Grenadier
Guards, who were returning to headquarters from a
course of rifle practice at Eastbourne. The train
proceeded as usual as far as the Streatham-common
station, shortly after leaving which, from some
cause at present unexplained, the engine and 16
carriages ran off the metals for a considerable dis-
tance, and came to a stop in consequence of the
boiler of the engine exploding. The shock was
terrific, the middle carriages of the train being
doubled up, and several completely smashed. A
telegram was immediately forwarded to the Vic-
toria station, and Mr. Francis, superintendent,
Messrs. Heald and Brown, inspectors, with a party
of men, proceeded by speecial train to the scene of
the accident, when it was ascertained that two
soldiers and a lady named Silver, who was ac-
companied by her husband, had lost their lives,
and several of the passengers had broken arms
and legs, and were otherwise dreadfully in-
jured. The guard's van next the engine was
smashed to pieces, but the guard, Walker, and
underguard, Farley, escaped without injury. The
engine-driver and the head fireman were so injured
that their recovery is doubtful.
Drs. Chart and Brown were soon on the spot,
and attended to numerous sufferers, and several of
the military and others who had sustained severe
injuries were removed to London. The wounded
soldiers were conveyed to the Grenadier Guards
Hospital, Rocbestor-row, and were immediately
attended by the surgeon, major, and other officers,
and on inquiry at that establishment at midnight
we ascertained that another soldier was dying, and
that others of the sufferers were about to submit to
amputation.
The traffic on the line will not be impeded by the
accident, as the trains will run via Norwood
Junction. The carriage of the deceased Mrs. Silver
was waiting at the Victoria station to convey that
lady and her husband to their residence when the
telegram relative to the accident arrived.

ANOTHER ACCOUNT.
A most horrible accident occurred last evening to
the 5 o'clock express from Brighton. The
fiTftheeen train
was a very long one, numbering some
car-
riages, and at one time had two engines. At Hay-
ward's Heath carriages containing two companies
of the Grenadier Guards, returning from rifle prac-
tice at Eastbourne, were coupled on. As the train,
which was running to Victoria station, neared Lon-
don, the pace became terrific—the alarmed pas-
sengers remarked on the swaying of the carriages,
which were absolutely pitching from side to side.
The train had left the rails. Then came suddenly
a crashing shcck, accompanied by a loud explosion.
There was silence for a moment before there arose
the agonising shrieks and cries of women, children,
and men in fear and torture. The train was a vast
wreck, in which hundreds of wounded were impri-
soned, or beneath which they were crushed. The
engine had burst, throwing the stoker and driver
into an adjoining field, masses of scalds and wounds.
The force of the explosion was so great that the top
of the boiler was actually thrown two fields off.
Carriages were capsized—some a mere agglomera-
tion of splinters. Of others, the bottoms had fallen
out, letting the unhappy travellers through to be
torn and broken beneath the wheels. The least hurt
scrambled out to the rescue of the others, and help
soon arrived from Streatham. Surgeons, clergy-
men, and people came with assistance of every kind.
Tools, lint, brandy, all were forthcoming in a short
space of time. The scene was frightful. Here a
lady dead, there a woman with her jaw torn off;
here children dead or dying, there soldiers strewn
about in death or pain as if on a battle-field ; and all
this the work of a few moments on a pleasant sum-
mer's afternoon among the green fields of Streatham.
Those who were able to move were all covered with
blood—either their own or that of others. Few
escaped without wounds of some nature. Those
who could set to work to extricate those who lay
entangled in the daris. Some carriages had rto be
broken to pieces before the sufferers—many in pain
and screamingt—could be extricated. From others
doors were wrenched off to be converted into litters.
Any description of the ruin is almost impossible ;
rails, axles, wheel tires, and muekets were lying
about in every direction, twisted into the moat fan-
tastic shapes like so many pieces of wire. The dead
were conveyed to Streatham. The telegraph was
instantly set to work, and assistance soon arrived
from Victoria station. The accident happened about
half-past six, and at about eight the wounded were
conveyed to London. The lady who was killed
was a Mrs. Silver, a daughter of Sir James Clark.
She was travelling with her husband, and was far
advanced in the family way.
Besides the ordinary passengers there were two
companies of the Grenadier Guards, under the com-
mand of Colonel Burnaby, who, with Col. Keppel,
Capt. Norton, and Mr. Trotter, and another gentle-
man, were together in a first-class carriage. The
escape of these officers was most wonderful. On
starting from Eastbourne there was a proposition (so
usual) to get into the centre compartment of the car-
riage. One of the party, however, happened to have
already got into the end compartment, and so the rest
followed. Had they ridden in the centre not one would
have escaped, for that compartment was completely

doubled up, and driven together. Another singular

circumstance is that in the overturn the wheel of
the next carriage cut clean like a knife into the of&

core' compartment, but most fortunately it cut
through the sixth seat, the only one vacant. It has
fared, however, terribly with the men. The two

companies—Lieut.-Cul. Burnaby's and Col. Keppel's
—averaged about 50 men each. They came from
Eastbourne in the highest spirits, for they had
beaten the other companies of their regiment in
shooting. The men were much pleased, and were
singing nearly all the way till the accident hap-
pened, and then in a moment occurred as great a
loss as in a battle. Of Col. Burnaby's company two
were killed, 20 dangerously or severely wounded,
and 13 slightly wounded. Few of the rest escaped
without contusions or hurt. One man, without de-
finable injury, turned perfectly blue. The severe
wounds are of the usual bad character—legs badly
broken, ribs driven into lungs, and such like hor-
rors. Of Col. Keppel's company seven were severely
wounded and five slightly, so that altogether out of
100 of her Majesty's Guards actually 65 are placed
hors de combat. The loss of Colonel Burnaby's
company much exceeds that which it experienced
at Inkerman. The officers, escaping as we have
narrated above, were able to devote all their
energies to the help of their men ; and what
with the readiness of soldiers, and the habit of
discipline, much relief was experienced in a compa-
ratively short time. At the Victoria station the
regimental surgeons Were in attendance, with many
officers of the Guards who had heard of the tele-
gram.

Mr. and Mrs. Lewis Lloyd were among the pas-
sengers who escaped.
On the telegram being received at the Victoria
(Pimlico) station, Mr. Francis (superintendent),
Messrs. Heald and Brown (inspeCtors), with a party
of men, proceeded by special train to the scene of
the accident, when it was ascertained that two sol-
diers and a lady had lost their lives, and about 20
of the passengers had broken arms and legs, and
were otherwise dreadfully wounded. The guard's
van, next the engine, was smashed to pieces; but
the guard (Walker) and under-guard (Farley)
escaped without injury. Tne engine-driver and the
head fireman were se injured that their recovery is
doubtful. Drs. Chart and Brown were soon on the
spot, and attended to the numerous sufferers ; and
several of the military and others who had sustained
severe injuries were removed to London. The
wounded soldiers were conveyed to the Grenadier
Guards' Hospital, Rochester-row, Westminster, and
were immediately attended by the surgeon-major