The Sun.
London, England, 1862-03-21 00:00:00

THE 7AEPLYGS AT SHAIVGILAL

The following extracts from a private letter from
Shanghai have been communicated to us for publi-
cation :

" At Hangkow, Nganking, liewkepg, and other
places above Nanking, the people are returning to
the cities. Houses are being built, and trade is
returning. The Taepings leave a place, and imme-
diately Mandarin rule springs up again and confi-
dence is restored; the Taepings take a place--the
people fly, houses are destroyed, and trade is at an
end. From Woohoo (60 miles above Nanking) to
Hangkow boats are seen along the river in numbers,
fishing and carrying produce. Along the banks are
people moving about and agriculturists at work.
From Woohoo to Chinkeang there are no boats on
the river, and the banks are deserted. So much for
Taepingism versus Tung-che (the title recently
given by the Regency to the present reign, which
has been well translated union, in the cause of law
and order'). A year's active and well-conducted
operations on the part of the Imperialists would put
down the rebellion and restore peace to the whole
country; whereas, for the Taepings to be success-
ful, tens of years must elapse before they can make
a step forward without abandoning places in their
rear. If this rebellion is to go on, I foresee nothing
but disorder for this country for 20 and more years
to come.

"Ningpo has been taken, and Hangchow fell after
suffering all the horrors of a siege. So hard-pressed
were the besieged that they had to eat the people
taken from the prisons. On the capture of the city
all the Mantchoos were put to the sword, and in
the city about 400,000 people in all perished. The
arms of the Taepings were bamboos, with iron
nails for spearheads. But the Taepings were very
numerous indeed. At Ningpo arms and munitions
of war are pouring into their hands as fast as foreign.
ships can carry them. Trade has been destroyed
in all other respects.

" The rebels also showed themselves at Shanghai
two months ago, retired for a while, but during the
last ten days they have returned, and they are
steadily surrounding the place. The people from
fhe country are rushing in here in thousands, and
the villages around are in flames in every direction.
Letters have come to the English and French Con-
suls, telling them the settlement will be safe if
foreigners offer no opposition, and bidding them
think twice before provoking the Heavenly wrath
by aiding the Imperialists. The French are de-
termined to hold the city. The British idea would
not of itself go beyond securing the safety of the
settlement. But both must act together, and to
Imperialist authorities the French will seem more
friendly ;than the British. In fact, there, as at
Pekin, appearances are deciding the Chinese in
favour of the French. We have 500 French, 500
Sikhs, 60 Artillerymen, about 800 men-of-war's
men, and 200 Volunteers to depend on. A dyke is
being d
(the
j esuugi t fromco hllegte,e tosisxmnie bridgeleefrem sthoanTgohnagi-)k,al-adrgooe
enough to admit a gunboat, and along it martello
towers are to be thrown up."

TEADFUL ACCIDENT ON TILE NORTH

lENT

ROCHESTER, THURSDAY.

A lamentable accident occurred on the North
Kent Railway this afterneon, between Strood and
Gravesend, attended, unfortunately, with the death
of one person and injury to several others. The
train to which the accident occurred was the 3.10
I
p.m., up train from Strood, which follows ilium.
diately after the express. The train was composed
o
of seven carriages, consisting of two of the large
saloon first
e
class-ng ine. carriages,l,he traintw two
leftse Stroodeondsarid three
n
statithirds, together with the guard's break van directly
attar
within a minute of its proper time, its first stop-
page being at Higham. After leaving that. station
it proceeded at a speed of between 20 and 30 miles
an hour, when from some cause, which
cannot be clearly ascertained, the at present
metals, dragging nearly the engine left the
whole of the es,rriages
after it. The engine driver, Richard Grant, imme-
diately used his endea
vours to stop the train, but
the engine, after running
left the line a great number of yards,
and, turned over on its left side, rolling
down the bank into a deep ditch, dragging the
guard's van and
it. The fireman, nearly all the carriages after
reman, Charles Grant, fortunately
jumped from the engine before it turned over, and
escaped 'with only some
trifling hurts, Richard
Grant, the driver, appeared to have remained on
the engine until it turned over, and is very seriously
injured. The head guard, an exceedingly steady
man, named George Waller, who occupied the break
next to the tender, was found beneath the wreck
of the carriages, frightfully injured, and expired
almost immediately afterwards. He had been in
the service of the company al,Yreat number of years,
and was a most valuable servant. The engine, a
very large and powerful one, was buried in the
ditch, and all the carriages which left the line were
shattered to pieces. Fortunately, there were only
a very few passengers in the train, or the loss of
life must have been very great.
Workmen had been engaged relaying the
plates,
and it is probable the cause of the accident was that
the workmen had omitted to properly secure the
"keys" and nuts of the screws, Which being
shaken
by the express train passing over them,
of their places on. the arrival of the dropped out
next train.