The Sun.
London, England, 1837-07-25 00:00:00

ANOTHER ACCOUNT.

Vauxhall Gardens were crowded during the whole of yes-
terday afternoon by an immense assemblage of persons, drawn
together to witness the hazardous, and, wo regret to add, fatal
experiment of Mr. Cocking to descend from an altitude of
upwards of a mile in a parachute of his own invention. No
attempt of a similar description hits been made in London, we
believe, since the experiment of Monsieur Garnerin, upwards
of thirty years ago ; and the greatest curiosity was naturally
excited as to the result. The tiine fixed for the ascent of the
aeronaut was five o'clock, but on our entering tke Gardens at
that hour we found that the prooess of inflation of Mr. Green's
Nassau balloon was not yet completed. This afforded us an
opportunity of inspecting the parachute in which Mr. Cocking
contemplated his awful descent, and we had some conversation
with the unfortunate gentleman, .on the principle of his con-
trivance, and the altitude at wtioh he proposed to sever his
connection with the balloon of Mr. Green. Mr. Cocking,
who was a gentlemanly man, short in stature, and somewhat
stout, and apparently of the eggs of fifty-two or fifty-three,
gave the most obliging answers to our queries, and explained
that his parachute was construct ed on a totally different plan
from that of M. Garnerin. TI to latter he described as of the
form of an umbrella, closed at tl le very moment of the descent,
but expanded by the atmosphere as it approsched the earth,
and forming a sort of canopy c iver the aeronaut. His para-
chute, on the contrary, was in the form of an umbrella re-
versed, the cavity containing the: air being turned uppermost,
with the view, he said, of pre renting the oscillation which
proved so disastrous to M. Gars term.
Mr. Cocking expressed by en s the utmost confidence in
the result of his experiment, but at appeared to us that it was
a confidence which he did no't fee 1. His restless looks and
nervousness of manner seemed to belie the bravery of his
speech, and we thought more th are once that his mind was ill
at ease, and that he would willingly have postponed the at-
tempt until a less hazardous trial had assured him of its safety.
When questioned as to the dang eis, he remarked that none ex-
isted for him, and that the greatest peril, if any, would at-
tend the balloon of the Messrs. G re en, when suddenly relieved
from the weight of himself and . parachute, about 500 cwt.
Notwithstanding the confidence of this assertion, an uneasy
twinkle in his eye convinced us th tat be was not so sure of this
as he appeared to be.
Towards six o'clock the Messr s. Green entered their bal-
loon, which was allowed to asce ad to an altitude of about 40
feet, that the parachute might I to brought directly under it,
and securely fixed. Another b alf hour passed away, during
which time Mr. Cocking was t =gaged in earnest conversa-
tion with several of his friends. All the preparations having
been completed, Mr. Cocking (leaving previously stripped off
his coat as too cumbersome, encl.:put on a light jacket) stepped
into the Car amid the acclamation rof the company. Some of
his friends offered him a glass of wine, which he drank, and
having shaken them all cordiallsy by the hand, little knowing
that it would be for the last time , the cords were loosened,
and the balloon and its attendant; parachute mounted into the
heavens amid the renewed cheer's ig of the crowd.
We have since been favoured by an eye-witness with the
following particulars of the fatail result:—Mr. Underwood,
of Regent-street, followed on hot •seback in the direction taken
by the balloon, to witness, if p ossible, the descent of the
parachute, and from that gentlk'man we have learned the
melancholy details which folloer. Mr. Underwood was in
the neighbourhood of Blackhea th when he saw the Messrs.
Green sever the cord which att ac bed the parachute to their
car. The parachute, thus left to itself, descended with the
utmost rapidity, and swayed front ride to side in the most fear-
ful manner. Mr. Underwood is nmediately anticipated the
worst. In a few seconds, the der 'adful oscillations still con-
tinuing, the basket which costa fined the unfortunate aero-
naut broke away from the paracita te, and Mr. Cocking was
precipitated to the earth from at height of several hundred
feet. Mr. Underwood immediate ly spurred his horse, and
arrived in a field near Lee, tax re several labourers had
picked up the parachute. They we add not believe that a matt
had fallen with it, but on Mr. Underwood's explanations, and
an offer of five guineas to whoeve ' should find the body of
Mr. Cocking, they commenced a. d iligent search. After tra-
versing four fields they heard gr, 'an s proceeding from a field
called Burnt Ash, near Lee, an I on going in that direction
they found the unfortunate Mr. Cocking- literally dashed to
pieces 1 and just as they were lo osening-bis cravat he breathed
his last in their arms. He was speedily conveyed to the
Tiger's Head Inn, where four r medical men attended. Their
services were, however, needles s. The unfortunate man was
quite dead, and his body now lies to await the Coroner's inquest.

GARDENING OPERATIONS FOR
THE WEEK.

( From the Garu in .er's Gazette.)
CELERY.—Attend to earthing up on dry days, breaking the
soil small, and ridging it neatly.
TURNIPS may still be sown, an 3-the present weather is highly
favourable. Hoe those which Pse forward enough.
LE yr UM—The rains arc fav otsi able to planting all that were
sown last month, or whatever raay remain unplanted. Sowing
may also be continued.
PRICKLET SPINACH may be flown by the end of the week.
GARLICK and SHALLOTS r• say be taken up if the leaves are
dying off; which we find now • generally the case in all dry si-
tuations.
CUCUMBERS under bell gra -ises are now in full bearing.
Give plenty of water, but do- not remove the glasses ; but
raise them on flower pots or re rks of wood or bricks, to give
plenty of air. Look also t© those for pickling: In both
cases train all the runners out at equal distances.
PEAS AND BEANS may Stir I be sown and planted, all of
the smaller sort. Groom's Dl' .varf is a fine sort of pea for this
season, and hardly ever fails.
WALL TICEES.—Prune an trim ; they must be no longer
neglected.
CARNATIONS and Picco• can a require watching daily and
hourly almost ; and you m ay ',begin already to lay all good
long shoots.
PIPE PINES.—A little be ittom heat, in a shady place, will
hasten the striking greatly, tt, ough thousands may be struck
without it.
AuatcuLas.—Clean from yellow leaves and weeds : pro-
tect them from heavy rains.

At the (Treat annual >t Seep lair at Overton, Hants,
on Tuesday last, upwards I of SOOOO sheep and lambs wcre
penned, the demand for which -was exceedingly brisk, and the
prices realized were prow)! tioaably high.
Count Sebastiani :t London yesterday morning,
with the intention of passin g -through Paris on his way to one
of the well-known baths of France. Monsieur de Bourqueney,
who lately returned to thi 4 country, will act as Charge
d'Affaires of the King of the::.French during the absence of the
Count.

//• /(7 •
,Xts•
ii
GENERAL ELECIId "
.4,7))
RECEIVED THIS DAY.' ‘, _ cy,sl
-**
TAMWORTII. )f. A
-• I:l,l.lAhy
TAIIVIORTII, MONDAY, JULY 24.—This morning the nom.-
4
cation for the candidates for the representation of this borough
took place in the market-place. The candidates are Sir R.
Peel, who will he the almost unanimous choice of the elec-
tors; Captain A'Court, a Conservative, and brother of Lord
Ileytesbury ; and Captain John Townsliend, who comes for-
ward as a supporter of the Melbourne Administration. It is
between the two last-named gentlemen that the contest lies ;
and though the constituency of Tamworth is not great, the
struggle is being carried on in a very keen manner. The
number of electors is about 470, but it is thought that not
more than 450 will record their votes. Of these a majority
have already promised in favour of Captain A'Court.
At 11 o'clock, a considerable body of people having col-
lected in the market-place, the different candidates, accompa-
nied by their friends, reached the hustings. The attendance
of the fair sex was very great. Sir Robert Peel showed no
marks of recent indisposition, saving a slight impediment in
his walk. With that exception, he seemed to be in the enjoy-
ment of excellent health, and moved and spoke with vigour.
The usual formal preliminaries having been disposed of,
Mr. TYLECOTT felt the greatest pleasure in nominating his
Right Hon. Friend Sir R. Peel.
Mr. ROBINSON Mt proud to second the nomination of one
of the greatest Statesmen England perhaps could boast of for
the last fifty years.
Mr. PARSONS nominated Captain Townsend.
Mr. KNIoIIT seconded the nomination.
Mr. STOKES nominated Captain A'Court.
Major BAaNFORD seconded the nomination.
Mr. W. PEEL rose to express the deep regret he felt at the
severance of that connexion which had so long existed be-
tween him and the electors of Tamworth. He had represented
the borough for fifteen years, but he declined coming forward
on the present occasion, because he felt his health was not suf-
ficiently good to allow him to discharge his duties properly in
Parliament.

Sir R. PEEL then came forward, and was greeted with
cheering. He stood before them for the purpose of giving an
account of the trust which had been committed to his charge.
He stood there with confidence because he knew he bad been
a faithful steward. He knew that he had not been guilty of
any intentional omission in the performance of his duty, or
committed any act which would justly entitle him to lose their
confidence.—( Applause.) He conceived that his duty was
twofold—first, as regarded the particular constituency of which
he was the Member ; next, as regarded those duties of a
more general and comprehensive nature, which he had to
perform to the great community, of which that district was
but a small part.—( Loud cheering.) The first he had
performed to the utmost of his ability. He had pro-
moted the interests of the borough, so long as they did
not conflict with the general interests of the Kingdom,
and he had paid to every communication from his constituents,
let them belong to any party, the greatest attention.—( Hear.)
When the Reform Bill was first introduced, it was proposed
to deprive Tamworth of one of its Representatives. It stood
gibbetted in schedule B. He did what he could to protect
the ancient privileges of the town ; and it still returned two
Members, and the electors still enjoyed the privilege which
they had exercised since the time of Queen Elizabeth.—
(Cheers.) When he came to consider the peculiar interests
of that district, he bore in mind that it was an agricultural one,
stud that the wealth of that great parish mainly depended on the
pysperity,of agriculture. All his own interests were identified
with the prosperity of agriculture. Still he considered the
we 11-being of that interest identified with the progress of com-
ma rce and manufactures, and the prosperity of Tamworth par_
titularly connected with the prosperity of Birmingham. United
to that great centre of civilization, it was impossible for Bir-
mingham to increase in wealth without the influence of its
prosperity being extended to Tamworth.—( Applause.) Let
him remind them that the interest of the national debt must be
provided for, and that the only way to lighten the burden of
that debt was to increase the number of shoulders which might
bear it. Now, as the people did not like to have any fixed
tax for the purpose of paying the interest of the debt, they
must look to some other mode of meeting the obligation. The
only other means that could be found was by increasing the
manufacturing and commercial property, and by opening new
sources of industry. The consumption of wool and the price
of malt mainly depended on the manufacturing prosperity of
the country ; and let them not be deceived by the false friends
of agriculture into the belief that by the exclusion of foreign
productions, or by an increased bounty on their own produce,
they would have any permanent prosperity for agriculture. It
was this conviction that had induced him to lend a willing
ear to proposals fur improving the communications in this
country by means of rail-roads.—( Hear.) He had been told
that for the course he had taken on that subject, he had ex-
posed himself to the eternal hostility of some persons in that
neighbourhood, and he was threatened with the loss of some
votes because he had done his best to place Tnmworth on
the great line of communication between the different parts
of the Empire. If it were true that the general interests of
the country would be benefitted by the increase and rapi-
dity of the communications, why should he be blamed for en-
deavouring to place Tamworth where nature intended it should
be placed, in the great line of communication between the
metropolis and the north ?—( Hear, hear.) The people of
Tamworth might depend on it that in proportion as they were
brought nearer to the metropolis, in point of time, their pros-
perity would increase, and they need not be afraid that the
price of oats would be reduced, or the market for horses
closed. They could not, if they would, stop the progress of
improvement, and God forbid that England should be the
country to set her face against mechanical improvement, per-
mitting other countries to outstrip her and be substituted in
her place. —( Cheers.) Having alluded to the performance of
the peculiar duties he owed to the constituency of that town,
he now came to speak of the duties connected with the na-
tional interest which he had had to discharge as a Member of
the Imperial Parliament. He never had concealed the opi-
nions he held. He told them at the last election that his
principles were Conservative ; they were Conservative still.
—(Cheers.) He would tell them what he thought Conser-
vative principles implied. They meant the support of the
national Church—the support of the Protestant reformed faith
as established by law within all her Majesty's dominions
constituting the United Kingdom ; and it was his firm deter._
mivation to resist every proposal, however specious it might
be, which tended to sever the existing connection between
the Church and State, in favour of what was called the vo-
luntary principle.—(Choers.) He denied the accusation that
he had exerted his influence in favour of Captain A'Court, and
against Capt. Townshend. He ( Sir R. Peel) meant to sup-
port the privileges of the House of Lords and House of Com-
mons against the attempts of all those who desired to subvert
the ancient Constitution of the country, and establish demo-
cracy in its place.—( Cheers.) He considered Conservative
principles perfectly in accordance with the maintenance of the
Reform 13th not only in letter but in spirit. The Conserva-
tives had been accused of a desire to encroach upon that law ;
but the truth was, that he and the great body of Conserva-
tives in the House of Commons had been engaged all last
Session in protecting that Reform Bill from the assaults of its
professed friends. Lord Althorp, who introduced the mea-
sure, proposed it as a final settlement of a much disputed
question, and the Conservatives accepted it as such—( Hear,
hear)—but those who had clamoured the loudest for the Bill,
the whole Bill, and nothing but the Bill, now seemed to desire
anything but the Bill, and brought forward all kinds of pro-
positions for Household Suffrage, the Ballott, and Triennial
Parliaments. The fact was that many of the friends of the
Reform Bill were disappointed in their expectations. They
prophecied that it would send into the House of Commons
representatives who would perfectly astonish the empire by
their eloquence and habits of business. " Many a flower,"
they said, "blushed unseen, and wasted its sweetness on the
desert air."—( Laughter.) Well, now that the "flowers"
and the " sweetness" were transferred to the House of Com-
mons, he could not say that the perfume of that place was
much improved.—( Cheers, and laughter.) So far from any
great show of business habits being discernible among the new
Members, all that they seemed anxious to do was to bring in
Bills, and make to their names descend to posterity by being
tacked to them.—(Laughter.) He meant to persevere
in his endeavours to defend the Reform Act from its
friends, whose ceaseless attempts to alter the Constitu-
tion tended to degrade England in the eyes of the
world, and to impede the progress of constitutional
Reform .in other countries.—(Cheering.) He assured
the electors of Tamworth that one of the first acts of
these Constitution-mongers would be to deprive Tamworth
of its representation, and indeed such a suggestion appeared
in a newspaper which was a strong supporter, if hot an organ
of the Government. He therefore called upon them and all
constituencies like them to send Conservatives to Parliament,
if they wished to continue in the enjoyment of their ancient
privileges.—( Hear, hear.) The Conservatives were no ene-
mies to improvement, but they ought to have the acuteness
and the courage to distinguish between cautious and progres-
sive Reform and those absurd projects which were night after
night laid on the table of the House of Commons. What
did that assembly think of 1:0 propositions for altering the
British Constitution ? If ever there was a period when the con-
stituency of this great empire had important duties to perform,
it was the present. It was a vital crisis. At all times a general
election must be most important, as by it the character of a new
Parliament was to be determined ; but the future Parliament
would be called together under peculiar circumstances. There
was now on the throne a young Sovereign, just arrived at the
age which permitted her. to assume the functions of royalty.
IL did not believe that a youthful Sovereign ever ascended the
throne who had received a more excellent and virtuous educa-
tion ; and he thought it would not ill accord even with the
secular affairs in which they were engaged, if he offered up
a prayer to Almighty God to prosper her right intentions for
the improvement, the glory, and happiness of her people—
to vouchsafe to afford her that divine assistance to which
she with a devout and religious looked up. Still it
would be absurd flattery to s ly that so young a person could
have the advantages of tried experience in public affairs. She
must necessarily be governed by the advice of others. The ne-
cessary experience, he was happy to say, she would speedily ac-
quire ; and lie did hope that in the mean time the constituent
body -of this great empire would feel themselves to be her na-
tural protectors and guardians, and would take care that when
she possessed more experience in public affairs she would find
the prerogatives of the Crown preserved in all that. integrity.
It was for the constituency of the empire to return such mem-
bers as w,:uld support the institutions of the country, instead
of the friends of a set of Ministers, who, whatever their own
inclinations might be, appeared to allow too much predomi-
nance and influence to men oho would destroy the national
Church and substitute the voluntary principle, and who wished
to abolish the House of Lords.—( Hear, hear.) Had not the
Conservatives given most effectual aid fur the preservation of
the institutions el the country ? A proposition had been made
in the House of Commons for the esteblishment of the ballot.