The Sun.
London, England, 1865-01-23 00:00:00

Fatal Railway Accident.

On Sataruny tnnann and
North-Western Railway, about two miles from Bolton.
There was a dense fog during the day, and the rails were
covered with hoar frost, which made them extremely slip-
pery, and rendered most of the trains somewhat late. At
Daubhill station, on the Bolton, Kenyon Junction, and
Liverpool line, a long luggage train was drawn up at a sid-
ing waiting for the 1 30 train from Liverpool to pass, and
also for the train from Tyldesley due about a quarter of an
hour later. As soon, however, as the Liverpool train had
passed the goods train, from some unexplained cause, was
permitted to proceed on its journey towards Liverpool.
When about halfway between Daubhill and Chequerbent,
and having passed under Pownhall-bridge, it met the Tyl-
desley passenger train, and a frightful collision was the re-
sult. The engines were locked together, the tenders were
thrown over them, all the carriages were thrown off the line,
some of them being upset and piled against the side of the
cutting. One of the passenger carriages and the guard's van
and several of the goods waggons were broken to pieces, and
three of the goods waggons were piled on the top of each
other. The passenger train consisted of one first, one second,
and one third class carriage. The latter contained eight
passengers, and there were about four in the other two.
Assistance soon arrived from the nearest stations, and also
from the Hulton collieries, the proprietor of which (Mr.
W. F. Hulton) was in the first-class carriage. He was much
shaken, and was taken home in a cab ; his fellow passenger,
Mr. Ralph Fletcher, escaped unhurt. A young man named
John Ramsdale, of Chequerbent, a coal-filler, received seri-
ous internal injuries, from which he died in about an hour.
He was at _the time riding upon the engine, and was taken
to a neighbouring farm-house. With the exception of
Mrs. Markland, of Westhouton, Mrs. Williams of Bolton,
and Mr. Nield, of Bolton, who were in the second-
class compartment, the other passengers, were not much
hurt. Mrs. Williams, by being thrown upon the opposite
seat, was much shaken, and one of her legs was bruised ;
Mr. Nield's injuries were of a similar kind, but Mrs. Mark-
land was more seriously shaken. Thomas Gordon, of Bolton,
the engine-driver ; George Shepherd, of Bolton, the stoker ;
and John Gerrard, the guard of the passenger train, almost
miraculously escaped death. Gordon, however, was severely
cut about the head and lip, and his foot was crushed. The
wounds were sewn up by the numerous medical men who
had hurried from Bolton to render assistance, and he was
taken to his. home. Gerrard was cut across the forehead and
bruised about the head and legs. He says that he knew
nothing until he felt the shock, which shattered his van
to pieces. Gordon states that he saw the goods train com-
ing, that he exclaimed to Shepherd, " Oh, George, let's
jump ;" that he did jump, but that he was uncertain whe-
ther his companion took his advice. A curve in the line
prevented him seeing the goods train before it was close
upon him. It took three hours to extricate the locked en-
gines, and then only by the employment of three engines.
It was then found that Richard Rigby, the driver, and
Herbert Royle, the Stoker of the goods train, both of Che-
querbent, were killed. Rigby's body was frightfully muti-
lated. His head was nearly severed from his body. Boyle
was not so much disfigured, but no doubt in both cases
death was instantaneous. The bodies were laid aside un-
der a sheet, and ultimately taken on a special engine to
their homes. Rigby's hand was found upon the handle by
which the engine is reversed. It is supposed the trains
were running at the rates of about twenty-five miles an
hour. During the whole of Saturday night the workmen,
by the aid of hugo fires kindled from the fragments of the
broken carriages, were engaged in clearing the line.
They had finished their work at midnight, and yesterday
the trains ran as usual. It was almost impossible to learn
on whom the blame rests of allowing the luggage train to
proceed from Daubhill before the second passenger train had
passed; but it is stated that the signalman and pointsman
at Daubhill, without whose concurrence it could not have
been done, has been suspended pending the coroner's
inquiry.

NEW YEAR'S DAY AT THE WHITE HOUSE.—The
White House was thrown open at 12 o'clock onMon-
day, and the Cabinet Ministers, the Diplomatic Corps, the
Judges of the Supreme Court and the Court of Claims,
and the army and navy officers paid, in the order of prece-
dence, the compliments of the season to the President and
his wife. At 1 o'clock the citizens at large were presented.
The Marine band during the hours of reception discdursed
excellent music, and the whole affair passed off with bril-
liancy, no less than 5,000 people having gained admittance
to the reception. The President was in the best of spirits,
and received the greetings of his friends in the most genial
manner. Mrs. Lincoln was the centre of attraction, charm-
ing all by the richness of her toilet and the ease and grace
with which she received the numerous congratulations of
her admirers. A heavy purple brockade silk, richly trimmed
with black velvet, an exquisitely fine black lace shawl,
gloves, and headdress, with jewels to correspond, completed
her superb toilet. Robert Lincoln, the eldest son of the
President, was also present, having left the Haryard Law
School to spend the holydays with his parents. Next
Monday evening Mrs. Lincoln will hold a drawing room,
the first of the season.—New York Times.

THE HOMEWARD AMERICAN AND CANADIAN MAIL
STEAMERS DUE THIS WEEK.—The following steamers
are due at Liverpool this week with the American and
Canadian mails—viz., the North American, Etna, and Asia.
The North American, with dates from Portland, Maine, to
January 14, may be expected to reach Greencastle to-mor-
row (Tuesday) night, or early on Wednesday morning ;
and the Etna, with corresponding advices from New
York, will no doubt arrive off Crookhaven or Queens-
town in the course of Wednesday night. On Saturday
next the Cunard steamer Asia, from Boston on the 18th,
and Halifax early on the morning of the 20th, maybe looked
for at Crookhaven or Queenstown. There is no mid-week
steamer due this week at Southampton.

A PATRIARCHAL PARTY.—On Tuesday, on the
occasion of his entering the 70th year of his age,
the Rev.ChancellorWilliams, incumbent of St. David's, in-
vited the elders of his flock who had attained the age of
80 and upwards to dine with him, and no less than 33
members of his congregation were found to be eligible, in
point of age, to partake of his hospitality. It will convey
some idea of the extraordinary longevity of the party to
know that the oldest ten persons of the party averaged 90
years. The gradations of ages maybe thus stated :—Nono-
genarians, 4—united ages, 374 ; of the age of 88, s—united
ages, 440 years ; from 84 to 87, 7—united ages, 592 years ;
from 85 to 83, 17—united ages, 1,391 years; total number
of years, 2,797. Average age of the party, 84 years and 10
months.— Welshman.
_ _ _

OUR CORRESPONDENCE.—Of 642,324,618 letters
delivered in 1863 in the United Kingdom, 161,000,000, or
very nearly one-fourth, were delivered in the metropolitan
district. The chief English provincial towns contributed
to the general total of, letters delivered as follows :—Bath,
4,031,014; Birkenhead, 2,059,473; Birmingham, 12,197,000;
Blackburn, 1,253,408 ; Bolton, 1,509,482 ; Bradford,
3,555,000; Brighton, 4,590,349 ; Bristol, 7,608,000 ; Bur-
ton-on-Trent, 1,024,153 ; Cambridge, 1,648,309; Canterbury,
1,260,649; Cardiff, 1,722,552; Carlisle, 2,159,027; Chatham,
(and Rochester), 2,159,027; Cheltenham, 2,443,779; Ches-
ter, 1,912,664; Colchester, 1,481,506; Coventry, 1,150,526;
Darlington, 1,920,802 ; Derby, 3,035,682 ; Devonport,
1,463,189 ; Dover, 1,137,125; Exeter, 4,479,254; Gateshead,
1,141.075; Glocester, 1,519,089 ; Halifax, 1,654,731; Here-
ford, 1,097,005; Huddersfield, 2,138,344; Hull, 3,992,000;
Ipswich, 1,783,743 ; Leamington, 1,245,712 ; Leeds,
7,300,000; Leicester, 2,894,593; Lincoln, 1,302,029 ; Liver-
pool, 16,566,500 ; Maidstone, 1,317,300 ; Manchester,
18,743,000; Newcastle-on-Tyne, 4,369,000; Northampton,
1,494,610 ; Norwich, 3,699,683 ; Nottingham, 3,395,340 ;
Oxford 1 9507 663 Plymouth, 2,484,664 ; Portsmouth,
2,492,022 ;4 Preston, 2,692,235 ; Reading, 2,164,227 ; Roch-
dale, 1,011,231; Salisbury, 1,614,223 ; Sheffield, 4,257,000 ;
Southampton, 4,154,500 ; Stafford, 1,230,307 ; Stockport,
1,171,066 ; Sunderland, 1,803,594 ; Swansea, 1,371,359 ;
Truro, 1,352,156; Wakefield, 1,385,852; Walsall, 1,040,767 ;
Warrington, 1,280,240 ; Windsor, 1,002,898 ; Wolverhamp-
ton, 2,494,808; Worcester, 1,957,618; and York, 3,500,666.
These figures refer, it should be added, not merely to each
town, but to the postal district of each town.