The Sun.
London, England, 1862-09-06 00:00:00

THE .DISTRESS IN LANCASHIRE.

Mr. George Dixon and Mr. J. Skirrow Wright, the gen-
tlemen forming the deputation sent from Birmingham to
inquire into the distress prevailing in the cotton manufac-
turing districts, have sent in their report. After pointing
out the fearful amount of suffering which exists, the report
proceeds :—" On the difficult questions—Are the wealthy
people of Lancashire giving as liberally as they ought to do ?
and how far is it necessary to supplement their contribu-
tions ? your deputations have to report that they suggested
to the central committee that publicity should be given to
the subscriptions of those gentlemen who were known to
have made large fortunes in the distressed districts, in order
that people at a distance might be able to judge therefrom
as to the amount they ought themselves to give. Liverpool
has already raised over £30,000, and should the distress
continue there seems but little doubt that this sum will be
more than doubled. In Manchester, in addition to the sub-
scriptions to the general fund, amounting to £25,000, £lO,OOO
has already been given to the Provident Society, in sums
that your deputation believe have not been published, and
probably an equal amount has been distributed by benevo-
lent societies connected with places of worship. The Mayor
of Manchester wished it to be distinctly understood that
the city would contribute a far larger sum to the general
relief fund than would be granted by the executive commit-
tee to the local relief board. Several cases were mentioned
to your deputation of millowners who were nobly fulfilling
the duties imposed on them by the present crisis, and no
complaint against the manufacturers was made by the
various parties whom your deputation interrogated in
Stockport. How far this wealthy body is doing all that it
is called upon to do, your deputation could not of course cor-
rectly judge during a visit of only two days' duration; but
it must be remembered that their contributions will fre-
quently be made in a manner which no subscription list can
publish, and that they themselves will suffer greatly by the
stoppage of their trade, the lying idle and deterioration of
their capital, and the constantly increasing poor rates. Hard-
hearted selfish men exist no doubt in Lancashire as in other
places, but three cases are cited to show how carefully con-
demnation should be passed on wealthy men because they
appear to be giving less than their supposed riches would
warrant. The Mayor of Blackburn told your deputation
that one person, worth nominally £20,000 in house property,
was receiving scarcely any income at all from his rents. A
large millowner has lent to his workmen about £3,000, to
enable them to tide over the evil hour, and out of this more
than £l,OOO will certainly never be returned. The lord of
the manor has put his name down on the public subscrip-
tion list for £lOO, but has actually spent more than £l,OOO
in unproductive labour, for the sole purpose of giving relief
without the usual evils of almsgiving. Such cases as these
are not recorded in the public papers. The necessity for
the largest possible amount of extraneous assistance being
rendered is evident from the two following facts. It can-
not be estimated that the total diminution of wages in the
distressed districts will be less than £150,000 per week dur-
ing the winter months, and although it may not be neces.
nary to supply the whole of this deficiency, still it must be
admitted that an average of 2s. per head per week is the
smallest amount of relief that ought to be given to operatives
who have been accustomed to, and whose physical constitu-
titutions require, a high class of food. Estimating the
number of unemployed at from 300,000 to 500,000, the
sum required weekly will before Christmas exceed the
ordinary poor rates by over £30,000. One Manchester
gentleman, who has had considerable means of inquiry esti-
mates that when the distress reaches its height it will
cost £lOO,OOO per week to keep the unemployed from
starvation. Can the rest of England require that the
whole of this burthen should be borne by the distressed
,districts themselves, whose resources are affected by the
very calamity they are called upon to relieve ? And even
supposing that, when the full extent of the calamity has
overshadowed the land, there shall be found some amongst
those who have grown rich by the labour of the cotton ope-
ratives who neglect their duty—shall such uncharitable
conduct on their part be the model by which more remote
members of the same community are to mould their actions,
when 400,000 uncomplaining fellow-countrymen are suffer-
ing the last extremities of cold, hunger, and sickness, the
misery of hearts that cannot help those they love, and the
growth of evils which idleness and pauperism inevitably
bring—and all this in order that England may pursue what
she considers the path of duty. The second fact is one well
deserving of great attention. The operation of Mr. Villiers's
Relief Act will do but little to mitigate the severity of the
pressure of the rates upon the class immediately above that
of the operatives, inasmuch as no one parish can claim
assistance from the other parishes of the union until 3s. in
the pound has been spent on the poor ; nor can the borrow-
ing power be exercised until an amount equivalent to 3s. in
the pound on the assessment of the whole amount has been
collected in addition to the borough and other rates : and
lastly, the country cannot be called 111361:1 to contribute tx,
the relief of any particular union until ss. in the pound has
been actually spent upon the poor of that union. A very
high authority estimates that in many cases it will be neces-
sary to levy 6s. in the pound before 3s. can be collected ;
and the same authority admits that these clauses so far
neutralise the action of Mr. Villiers's bill that most proba-
bly the borrowing power will rarely, and the county rate
in aid clause never be put in force. It may appear to some
that 3s. or even Gs. in the pound is not a large sum to be
spent on the poor, but the real question is the proportion
that the future rates will bear to those of former years.
The Mayor of Stockport gave your deputation to under-
stand that hitherto there has not been more than about 6d.
in the pound spent on the poor, consequently, they will,
in that township, have to spend an average of four or five
times as much as usual, before being able to obtain assist-
ance from the remaining parishes of the union ;
and this average increase of four or five times means an
increase of eight to ten times in the case of those ratepayers
who continue solvent through the whole of the crisis.
There is no reason to suppose otherwise than that the ma•
jority of the other districts are in the same position. The
justice of throwing the burden of the heavy rates on such
a restricted area may well be doubted ; but, apart from this
question it cannot be difficult to see that the guardians will
find it impossible to provide more than the barest neces-
saries required by the law ; and there is evidence to show
that the operatives physically as well as morally deteriorate
under the poor law regime. Can the remotest districts of
England refrain from giving largely when these patient,
ntina:oule:sanlretinbfitieeehlthildioimeswt.aceinceeepeunoerdattrymen are pining away on paupers fare.
Hitherto their sufferings have been silently borne ; but
e
thene is a point at which patience ceases to be possible, and
s
fw
which
thate I la s
recommends
ptoh point
htbtewneevr
eo l
allowede benevolence o
tfh the
eehvee
contribu-
tions country
b
whole The
c coletro3f,
ought
is specially referred
t iSP approached:
thee.
Man-
cheater Central Relief Committee, pass through. the Mau-
up with an ex•
pressicn of hope that the inhabitants winds
of
Birmingham
it7t willei 11
not act as if they doubted the charity of the north,
consider only their own unquestionable duty, and give with
wm. A public
the
g too Great for
that generosity which is called for by a calamity of unpa-
ralleled
f local
magnitude,
eso
which
adequately iichsiastgro
to in
eetmeeting to raise a Birmingham fund is to be held on
Tues-
day
o
r and u
usual weekly meeting yesterday, when the Lord ?layer
presided for the first time since his return to his offi-
cial duties. The other members of the committee present
were Mr. S. Dilberoghee and Mr. Howe, and Mr. Gibbs,
the secretary. It is to be regretted that from the communi-
cations received from all parts of the manufacturing dis-
tricts there appears to be no doubt the distress among the
cotton operatives is augmenting daily, and indeed almost
hourly ; and there were a number of applications for grants
from the funds at the disposal of this committee. A great
many suggestions are made as to the mode of increasing
the funds, and among them there has been one within the
last day or two from a respectable tradesman, proposing to
have a box at his place of business for the reception of
small sums, and suggesting that if this proceeding were to
be carried out generally in the metropolis, a very consider-
able sum might be obtained. The committee have not felt
themselves justified in authorising the carrying out of this
plan, but in this particular case they have notified that
they see [no objection to the proceeding, and that they
may be ready to accept any money that may be so obtained.
The he total amount of money received by the Mansion-
housewminittee up to last night was £45,142 17s. 5d., and
e amount that had been distributed to differeni districts
is £23,753 35., so that a balance of £21,000 still remain in
their hands.

boy named
pe c t 1 Andrew
fw o rkin
gD
peered 'milder the people, hilas recently disap-
peared
deeply ptlhye
the son of resyears of age,
chorllowing circumstances :—The boy
etienne in the rue des Recollects,
attended the Eoole
lchagrined at not getting a prize at the dis-
tribution
all his parents could say to
wtiaosndistress about
it He returned home, apparently
iarnv i nwga was
'vtaabinle:, vi.
teitvieelsy treated andit
in
greatb u
hasneseen by any one who knows
.......iionoommitted suicide.
e refused to eat any dinner,
been
out of doors without his
rnechOesinttamnednts.u—ppTohLoagt
esteeddistressing complaints
console
andchai n 8.
:o Ins
nelilhdee
it hasis neverbelieved since
h e
°fVithaeYs' 8
by rubbing this oint-
ment twice a day upon the neck and
mayAffEeAcbDtit:Eonr
esits.-71tanEthildeTev.fflaerei
means diphtheria, ulcerated and relaudntt.h EY
this simple
the strength by suitable nourish
enlargements
irritation of
the windpipe, quinsy, and all glandular
have their progress arrested, and the destruction argements will
caused repaired. Holloway's ointment isth they have
e most trust-
worthy remedy for all internal and external throat ailments,
and may be safely and effectually employed
without regarding season, sex, age, or eone.l3l,_ every case
highly' extolled for its ready cures of span'tahutiOn. It is
chronic hoarseness, and all disagreeable dis odic coughs,
charges from
the throat and nose.

COMPARATIVE MILITARY STRENGTH
OF THE UNION AND THE R.HEELLION.

(From the New York Evening Pose.)

That state of things cannot be called very unfortunate in
which the circumstances which appear adverse are such as
to give ground of hope. There are certain criticisms on the
conduct of the present war which, severe as they are, we
should hope are true. Let them only be just, let them only
be fair, and we should welcome them, because they show
that we have in our hands great advantages over the in-
surgents which, the moment we use them, will grind the
rebellion into dust.

Our arms have not made the progress we expected. Why
is it so ? By the recent reverses before Richmond, following
the whole luckless campaign of the army of the Potomac,
and some unfavourable and disappointing incidents of the
war on the southern coastand on the Mississippi, the public
mind has been brought down from a state cf almost exul-
tation to a state, we will not say of despondency, but of
great depression. Where is the fault? Has this happened
because our armies were not largo enough, because our navy
was not powerful enough to make any impression, or be-
cause our soldiers and sailors have not fought bravely ? If
it were so, if either of these alternatives were true, there
would be reason indeed for despondency. If we confess that
the rebels have excelled us in the vastness and completeness
of their preparations—in the perfection of their means of
offence—in the order, discipline, and numbers of their army
—and in the spirit, bravery, and endurance of their mea,we
must then admit that the future shows by no means an en-
couraging prospect. In that case the deficiency to which
our want of success is ill/ ited would be somewhat difficult
to repair. .1.
But if the fault lie with :se who have had the direction
of our armies, the prospect--J.,6atens at once. If the rebels
have escaped subjugation thus far by favour of the superior
dexterity, activity, audacity, and presence of mind possessed
by those who directed their campaigns, and the ill-luck of
our own commanders, the remedy is easy. The same energy
and the same readiness in resources employed on our side,
with the superior means at our command, would instantly
turn the scale in our favour. The unlucky commander
should be laid aside. No matter what plausible excuses
may be made for his failures, the general who is always in
bad luek should be made to yield to him who is always suc-
cessful, and the tide of fortune will turn.
We propose to show, by computations arithmetically
exact, that the rebels now in arms are inferior to us in num-
bers, and to place before our readers a statement which
will demonstrate that we ought by this time to have put
them down effectually ; and we do this by way of making
it clear that, if we take the proper course, there is no ground
of despondency for the future,
The total population of the slave States is .... 12,260,298
Deduct slaves 3,950,584
free coloured .......... 267,971

4,218,315

Making free whites 8,041,983
Of these 12,260,298 there are in Delaware, Maryland,
Kentucky, Missouri, and Tennessee, of loyal or neutral free
white inhabitants—say, 3,526,629. Deduct these, and we
have left, of disloyal persons, or persons in disloyal States,
4,512,354

Here we have the entire population on which the rebels
must rely to recruit the army—an aggregate of but little
over four millions and a half of white inhabitants. The
voters, or males of 21 years and over, in this population, are
one in six, or . . 752,559
To which add youths likely to enlist or subject to
draft

Making the total number of white males 902,559
This, our readers will perceive, is two or three hundred
thousand less than the number of men called for by our
Government at different times, including the recent requi-
sitions. Of these 902,559, certainly not more than one-half,
and probably not more than one-third, have been forced
under arms.
But say one-half ............
Add Volunteers from Kentucky and other States
not out of the Union, probably

Total .............•
From these deduct killed, wounded, prisoners,
absent, unfit for duty, 1 in 4 (the number in an
army is nearly 1 in 2), say 122,819

368,460
Deduct absentees fit for duty .......... 30,300

direct from Chatham to Portsmouth for embarca-
tion. The company has been augmented to its full
strength of 120 non-commissioned officers and men
from the companies at head-quarters, Bronapton.
According to present arrangements, Capt. W. A.
Frankland will take the command of : the 22d
company on its leaving for China.

TREMENDOUS SIOIVIL

(From the Wiltshire Gazette.)
Never, within the memory of man, has such a
storm been known in this neighbourhood as visited
Market and West Lavington and Eastertou on Tues-
day morning—a storm at once so overwhelming in
its consequences as to find a parallel only in the
disastrous Shrewton flood which took place about 23
years ago. The Shrewton flood, however, was a
flood of water, occasioned by the sudden thaw of an
accumulation of snow on the adjacent hills; whereas
the storm of Tuesday last was not alone a flood of
water or rain, but a fall of hail the like of which,
we will venture to say, has never before been seen
in this country. Indeed, had we not been eye-wit-
nesses of the fact, we could hardly have believed
that in less than half an hour hailstones would have
stood upon the ground seven feet deep ! Yet, so it
was at Lavington on Tuesday morning, and the
scene which the country presented will never be for-
gotten by those who witnessed it. There had been
distant rumblings of thunder and occasional flashes
of lightning soon after the day began to dawn, and
the sky for miles around wore a heavy, leaden hue ;
but men, nevertheless, ventured upon their oat-door
work, little dreaming of what was about to burst
upon them. About half-half 5 a roar, as of a roll
of musketry, was heard, the lightning and thunder
increased, and, as if the bolts of heaven had sud-
denly been withdrawn, there fell such a deluge of
hail and rain as fairly frightened all who beheld it.
In less than half an hour the whole line of
country, from Easterton on the one side to
West Lavington on the other, was completely
covered. Not a blade of grass, or corn, or crop of
any kind was visible ; the whole surface of the
earth was one mass of hailstones, the houses were
from two to three feet deep in water, the cellars
full up to the very gratings, while the streets and
roads throughout the whole length from Easterton
to West Lavington were converted into a deep,
roaring, rushing torrent, which carried every-
thing before it. As to the damage done to the
crops by the hail, thousands of pounds will not re-
pay it, acres upon acres of barley being left with-
out a single grain on the stalk. But disastrous as
the visitation was, it was extremely partial in its
course and in its extent. Its violence seems to
have been limited to about half a mile in breadth
and two miles in length, extending diagonally
from Gore-cross, along a portion of the hill and the
valley of the two Lavingtons, as far as Eastcott.
Beyond either of these two points we do not hear
that any serious damage was sustained ; and within
half a mile of it—at Candown, for instance, and on
Fiddington-hill—so trifling had been the fall that
wheat was being carried within a few hours after-
wards. At Eastcott the first scene of disaster pre-
sented itself, and a scene, indeed, it was—every
house with its lower rooms under water, and people
looking out from the upper windows of the cottages
in momentary expectation of being swept away in
the torrent. The water in Mr. Jacob New-
man's farmyard was 6 feet deep, and the barrels
in his cellar floated about as though they had
been in a pond. By Mr. Benjamin Hayward's,
at Easterton, the water rushed along like a
mill stream, carrying with it his wall, Mr. Wil-
liams's garden, wall, the boundary fence at Fidding-
ton-hou,e, and, in fact, everything that cam, in
its way—bricks, timber, and even the road itself,
which is gorged up in many places as though it had
been lifted from its foundation by some subterra-
nean force. The treatest wonder is that the cot-
tages were not swept away also. Their condition
may be imagined, with water in them 3 feet high,
and with no chance of help from anybody, for not a
soul could venture from the upper stories without
running the risk of being swept away. One man,
who had been milking, in his endeavour to drive
through the village after the storm had in some
degree subsided, had his milk kettle carried
out of his cart and floated rapidly away along the
current, and a piece of timber 10ft. long was carried
40 yards down the middle of the road; and we
heard of one cottage, situated in the lower part of
Easterton, where the water rose to the ceiling in
the lower room and drowned a cat ; and of another,
where a little girl who was left in the room on the
ground floor got upon the table to save herself, and
was floated about the room upon it, saving herself
eventually by clinging to the sill of the window.
In Fiddington Hollow, near Dr. Hitchcock's, the
water made a clean breach over the hedge, and in
its rush down to the adjoining fields resembled a
boiling cataract ',which nothing !Gould :withstand,
But at Market Lavington matters were worse even
than at Easterton. The only wonder is that the
houses in the lower part of the town near the church
were left standing. The escape of some of them
from destruction is to be attributed to the prompt
action of their occupants, who, observing that
the foundations were about to give way
knocked holes though the walls, and so lessened
the weight of water that was rushing against them.
The street from end to end was like a mighty river,
and the roaring of the hail, accompanied with vivid
lightning and loud peals of thunder, made the scene
truly awful and filled all hearts with fear. As to
the hail, never was such a sight seen before in this
or any other part of the country. In one place,
called " Broadwell," near to Mr. Fowle's house, it
covered the entire space seven feet deep, and the
rush of water from the hill at this point was tre•
mendous. Everything that was in the way well
with it, and, as an instance of the velocity
flint
which it ran, we may state that eight loads
°m
iPrm weret
oo
by the side of the road near Mr. Fowle's b
ya
entirely carried away. Mr. Fowle was yard
giving directions to his men when the but he
anddo cut off
rose be-
o first
burst, and ran for shelter under a skill'a
gt;
had not been there long before the
tween three and four feet in the Yfthe house, and
all communication between him
use the
Ih°auvil egblei evne
but for the greatest promptiisteasce
u
stock that were upon the proui
frowie house was en-
lost. The lower part of Mr.
tirely inundated, and sup astery had
Fowle was unable to get
obtained inside that I\Zl,Fi'uothe water that ranthe storm
through
to her mother's room
ta flir
e scene at Broadwell beat
the passage.
33ga that the cottages there stood
everything else;
'wja perfectly marvellous. In one
through theserol than two feet of mud and sand
nothel°B:nm
and floor, and the water
Inmates durst not was up so
of them
covered the gr° .
thath© peril of their lives,venture down-
high
stairs at Hundreds of
loads of hail lay (lbw t this
he
a is spot during
and in the evethe say; ning, notwithstanding
the e
lareme heat of the weather, it was four feet
deep in places. The loss to the crops can hardly
at present be estimated. Mr. Fowle has acres and
acres of corn in which
hardly a grain is left in the
husk. This is the case with about 26 acres of bar-
ley and oats on the hill
and
near his house ; and so
with the crops of Mr. House (of the Green Dragon)
and Mr. Farmer. Ten acres of barley belonging to
Mr. House, estimated to contain at least four quar-
ters to the acre, are so skinned that there is not one
whole ear left oat of 10,000, and the entire piece
will now hardly yield three quarters. A piece of
oats (of two or throe acres) also belonging to Mr.
House is reduced to mere husks; and a crop of
wheat on the same farm has at least a sack and a
half an acre knocked out of it. The effect of the
storm upon the allotments is absolutely ruinous.
We saw one or two pieces of barley on the land
occupied by these small holders, containing half an
acre each, in which it would be difficult to find a
quarter of grain left, while an Wolin, potatoes,

S PAPER.
and other roots were in many cases
••-
pletely out of the ground, and swept aw• ay .443 Aire:
torrent, or cut into shreds by the hail. -17,1,„(4)/4s
s -s
To recount all the disasters that occurro rife;
Market Lavington would fill a column Or- our"e o'
space. Mr. Neate's cellars were full of water to. the
very gratings, and for hours after the rain bad ceas
aed
the barrels which they contained might be secn
floating about up to the level of the road. A strong'
brick wall, which formed the boundary of the farm.
yard, near the church, came down en masse, and
at " Northbrook" the flooring of the house oe
copied by Axford, the dog-breaker, was thrust
up by the water, and the dogs in the kennels
were obliged to swim to save their lives. £2O,
it is said, will not pay the datnae,se done to Ax
ford's premises. In another part of the parish, a
carpenter named Rimer had nearly _everything
washed out of his house, and narrowly st, ved the
life of his pig by taking it bodily out of the stye.
The disasters among the feathered tribe were ieou-
m srahle. Ducks were drowned in their favourite
element; fowls shared the same fate; and sparroNv.,,
thrushes, and blackbirds were picked up by hun-
dreds after the storm was over, knocked down by
the hail, and buried beneath it. Not less than 78
sparrows were picked up dead in the church (which
is at present unroofed) ; and as a proof of the de-
struction which was carried on among these birds,
a baker in the place informed us that although hun-
dreds of them had been in the habit of congregat-
ing in his yard daily when his chickens were being
fed, not one was to be seen during the whole of
Tuesday, and hardly a small bird was seen in Mar-
ket Lavington up
to Wednesday morvinge
Leaving Market Lavington we now coLne to West
Lavington, and along the whole line of ro.ud from
one village to the other nothing was to be seen but
hail, heaped here and there in enormous masses six
and seven feet deep. At Cornbury mill the water
rose to a great height, and an acre of barley be-
longing to the miller (Mr. Burbage) was so corn
pletely riddled as to be absolutely worthless. At
Russell-mill (occupied by Mr. Peerless) the water
rose in less Unto an hour oiz.r. feet at the tail of the
mill; and a meadow close by, of Mr. Fowlle, was
at least six feet under water; while in the house
attached to the mill were two feet of water in all
the lower rooms.
But the amount of destruction at other places
was small in comparison to what took place on
Mr. Thomas Neate's farm at West Lavington.
Mr. Neste had on the side of the hill 127 acres
of barley—one of the finest crops that he has
ever grown upon his farm, containing at least five
quarters to the acre, as was proved by some which_
he had cut and threshed out. The crop was just fit
to harvest ; in fact, 30 acres of it were already
lying in swath ; and we speak within bounds when
we say that the damage which the hail did to this
crop will not be covered for less than £BOO. Seventy
acres of it are as cleanly threshed and washed away
as if the crop had passed through a threshing
machine, the ears being stripped compLetely off,
leaving the bare straw denuded of its head. It is
estimated that at least 500 quarters are lost font of
the 127 acres; and the only satisfaction which li.!tr.
Neate has is, that he is fully insured in the Farmers'--
office—a precaution which he was very nearly fore-
going at the commencement of the season, having
(as he thought) paid a deal of money uselessly in
previous years to secure himself against losses
which did not seem likely to occur.
At Mrs. Lush's house, situated at the foot of the
hill leaving West Lavington village for Tilshead,
the stream made a clean breach from the back to
the front door—inundating all the lower rooms,
and setting the tables, chairs, and the furniture of
the drawing and dining rooms two feet deep in
water ; while the house itself had the appearatsce
of standing in the midst of a lake, the whole of OW
open space around presenting one vast sheet of
water, from Mr. W. Sainsbury's to the opposite
rising ground. When we paid a visit to the scene
on Tuesday hatches were being fitted to the front
and back doors, so as to prevent the passage through
the house from being converted into a water course
in future, this being the second time within the last
few years' that Mrs. Lush has suffered from an
inundation (although the first visitation bore no co-
parison with that which swept through her house
on Tuesday morning).
From this point towards Tilshead the storm pur-
sued its course, but on reaching Gore Cross it seems
to have expended its fury, its effect upon the Cops
there being confined to levelling the barley with t2ie
ground,but without threshing it out, and to drench-
ing the crops, without cutting them to shivers.
For hours, however, afterwards the country
around presented a most extraordinary appearance.
Not a sign of vegetation was to be seen in the
fields. Instead of standing barley, which had given
so rich and golden an appearance to the hill-side
the evening before, nought met the eye but hail,
hail, hail ! burying everything beneath it ; while
the allotments and gardens, the roads, and even the
houses looked as if they had just emerged from a
deluge. As to the poor cottagers, their eases is
indeed pitiable. Many of them who held allot-
ments have lost their entire crop, and the mischief
which has been occasioned in their dwellings is sad
indeed. Throughout the whole day afterwards
they were engaged in wheeling the mud and filth
from their rooms, and the dampness and the smell
which the inundation left behind it made them in,
many cases almost uninhabitable.
Mr. Fowle and Mr. Neate were, we believe,
and
the
only persons insured against damage by hail ;with
be liberally dealt
they will, we have no doubt,
the whole of their crop, ens
greatly suffered—in
by the office with which their Policies are effected,
For the poor, who boo SO
many instances losieg
which their entire dependence was staked—we
a subscription
have no doubt will be set on foot.

7HE VIAL PONDS ON 11,4111:8STEAD
HEATH.

coorrPritchard, yoterday Dr. Lankester, the Central Middlesex
, held an inquest at the Elephant and Castle,
1-*jog 5-road, Camden-town, touching the death of
George aged 52, residing in Harmood-
street, Kentish Town. The deceased was a piano-
forte maker, in the service of Messrs. Collard and
Collard, whose death may be added to the long list
of casualties from the above ponds.
The evidence went to show that deceased Was a
sober, well-conducted man in the habit of walk-
ing alone of an evening about Hanipatcad
Heath and the chain of ponds, extending at short
intervals
day evening, at 7 o'clock, he left the factory near
from Hampstead to Highgate. On Tues-
the Round House, Kentish Town, and was not again
seen alive. On Wednesday morning,
o'cloock, Wm atherton, of Parrot-co. about nine
Hurt, White-
cross-street, arrived at the ponds to " fish," when
his attention was directed to some boys throwing
clumps of clay at a substance in the water of the
pond known as
the Middle llighgate Pond, which
he was startled to find, on close examination, to be
the back of
the head of a man's body, just at the
surface of the water. A boy gave him the drags,
and the body was got out. The depth of water at
that spot was only two feet. The body was firmly
fixed in the clay by the knees and elbows. Hather-
ton was of opinion that if deceased got into the
water voluntarily ho must have gone in from the
opposite side from there, where in some parts the
pond was 12 feet deep away from the land, acces-
sible by means of planks. He could easily have
walked in and dragged the body out on the shallow
side, only that the clay was deep and dangerous
there. He was in the habit of fishing at the ponds,
and had very often seen deceased wandering about
there, and had talked with him about fishing.
The testimony of other witnesses showed that
deceased was Afflicted with a wife bed-ridden,
speechless, and idiotic, but he seemed to be fond of
her and to bear this severe family affliction with
great fortitude.
Upon his person a county court summons was
found, but it seemed to have nothing to do with the
case, and there was no evidence to show where he
was from 7 o'clock on Tuesday evening, when he
left his work, until the dead body was discovered.
The resident medical officer, Mr. Saul, of St. Pan-
cras Workhouse, deposed that the body was brought
there, and that death was caused from drowning,
He added also, that circumstances led him to b.e•
no evidence to su.
lieve that the drowning must have taken place in
deep water. didfro from
not a
n think any
Cloigrohntewr,oiunldsubmemoibntgaiunped,
furTthheer
adjourn-
ment, and he thought there so?,
1
port a verdict of suicide or acciaed.
there-
fore he recommended an open ver let..
The jury returned nta death ;
onopen verdict of found
drowned.