The Sun.
London, England, 1865-01-05 00:00:00

STAMPED 54.

" The hall at which the accident occurred is situ-
ated underneath the Bell-street United Presbyterian
Church. It is entered by a door in the south end
of the building, which is reached by a broad stair
consisting of 16 steps. In front of the door there is
a large porch, and-there is a space of about six feet
between the door of the porch and the bottom of the
stair. The performances were announced to begin
at a quarter to eight o'clock; but, as the entertain-
ment is a very popular one, there is always a very-
large:attendance. By about half7past five the people
had commenced to gather, and by half-past six a
large crowd had assembled. By about a quarter to
seven. the -*street in front was alniost completely
blocked up, and it was estimated that there were
more present than would have twice filled the hall.
Mrs. Springthorpe in consequence resolved to operi
the gate, and as the policemen who are on duty in
the hall had not arrived (this being three-quarters
of an hour before the usual time of opening), she
called in the hall-keeper and several of those in her
employment to assist in maintaining order. The
usual practice on similar occasions had been for the
gatekeeper partially to open one half of the gate, so
that only one or two people can gain admission at a
time. Between 40 and 50 people were admitted in
this way, but so great had become the excitement
among the mob outside that the men at the gate
were overpowered, the half of the gate held partly
open by them was dashed completely back, the
other half of the gate was burst up, and the dense
mass rushed headlong down the flight of steps before
mentioned. The young and the weak were soon
knocked down and trampled under foot, and the
strongest men were dashed with great force to the
bottom of the stair. Loud cries for help and groans
and yells of pain rent the air, but still the immense
mass surged onwards. Strong men were carried off
their feet and launched headlong above those who
had preceded them, but still there was no cessation
of force from behind. Those in charge of the hall,
seeing the awful scene which was enacting before
them, shouted to the multitude above by all that
they held sacred to stand back and prevent the
wholesale loss of life which they saw must inevitably
take place. Those who were mingled in the crowd,
and who retained their consciousness, joined
earnestly in the appeal ; but the excited mob disre-
garded their every entreaty and pressed onward.
Those at the extreme edge of the crowd, indeed, re-
garded these appeals as a mere ruse to keep them
back ; and each being apparently determined to force
his way, whether the hall would contain them or not,
the appeals passed unheeded. Thus, although
those in front, who saw the awful tragedy, had the
will to render assistance, they had not the power.
The stair was completely jammed, and a mass of
people, groaning,shreiking, and expiring, were piled
at the bottom to a height of nearly three feet. Nor
could anything be done to relieve the unfortunate
sufferers until Mr. Cooper, the keeper of the hall,
rushed upstairs by the back entrance, and with great
difficulty made his way through the crowd, and after
a very great effort succeeded in closing the gate.
The police-constables on duty in the hall had by
this time arrived, and the utmost despatch was used
in sending for doctors to take care of the wounded,
and conveyances to remove them from the scene. A
strong detachment of police also arrived soon, and
lined the streets in front of the hall. Meanwhile
the most piteous calls for help were being raised by
those lying helplessly at the bottom of the stair, and
jammed between the railings. Steps were accord-
ingly taken to render them assistance ; but there
was no one to direct and few to lend assistance.
Messrs. Butler and Willoughby and the constables
in the hall, as well as a few of the audience who had
assembled, did everything in their power, and even
those who had escaped comparatively unhurt ren-
dered aid, but the work proceeded but slowly, and
was greatly retarded by the extraordinary conduct
of some of those in the hall, who loudly demanded
back the money they had paid for admission. And
the task was a most melancholy one, for from a
large number of those who were underneath in the
writhing, struggling mass of humanity on the
ground, the vital spark had by this time fled, they
having died from suffocation, but there were others
who were still alive when extricated, but who ex-
pired in a few moments afterwards. One young
man stated to us that he will never forget the con-
vulsive grasp with which one young woman seized
him by the neck when he disentangled her, but ere
he had proceeded many steps her head fell back,
and she was a lifeless corpse. The wounded were
conveyed to the ante-rooms of the hall, but they
were soon all taken up, and to add to the disas-
trous consequences of the accident medical aid
could not be obtained for the sufferers. Dr.
Smith, Murreygate, was the first to arrive at
the scene, but seeing that there were so few to
render assistance in relieving those who were alive
and in danger of being suffocated at the bottom of
the stair, he considered his exertions could be of
more service in this way, and thus the wounded
were left uncared for for nearly half an hour, and
there can be no doubt that several lives were lost
from want of immediate attention. By about half-
past seven o'clock this melancholy task was ended,
and some 12 or 14 dead, wounded, and dying men,
women, and children were lying in the lobby of the
hall, while the whole of the ante-rooms were occu-
pied, and several dead bodies were lying in the hall.
A considerable number of those who were taken out
first were sent to the infirmary or to their houses in
cabs ; and about this time Drs. Gibson, Langlands,
and Cooper arrived, and rendered every assistance
in their power. The scene was one of the saddest
description ; many of the relatives of those who had
been in the crowd had obtained an entrance to the
hall, and the loud wailings and lamentations of the
women, with the deeper but more subdued grief of
the men, as they discovered their friends and rela-
tives were truly heartrending. Four boys, of whom
hopes were at first entertained, died shortly after
being conveyed to Mr. Cooper's house; and a boy
and a girl, who were taken to the ante-room in life,
died subsequently.
" The wounded having thus been cared for atten-

ti
on was turned to the dead, and the bodies were all
taken into the hall with the view to identification.
We understand that most of those who had formed
the first rank of the crowd, and who had thus been
precipitated to the bottom, were dead before they
'were extricated, having evidently died of suffoca-
tion, as they Niue not much bruised, and in few
cases were their bones broken. One boy, named
John Holland, was got lying insensible at the top of
the stair. He was put into a cab and conveyed to
the Infirmary, but he expired on the way. Three
children were found dead, jammed against the rail-
ing three or four steps from the top of the stair.
The dead number 20 in all—viz., 12 males and 8
females.
" The news of the disaster spread through
tfhrieentodswnhawd itinhteanmdaedzinvgisirtainpgiditthe h
and
into the hall. The first body identified was .that
c e thosert cr
crowded
es
de
of a boy named Patrick Swiney, and the
sorrow of his mother, a poor Irishwoman, was dis-
tressing to behold. But her cup of grief was not
yet full, for in another corner of the hall lay her

husband. There is something peculiarly touching
in the story of this poor woman's loss. Her son had
been pressing her all day to be allowed to go to the
concert in the evening, and made his last appeal
during their evening meal, the last which they
were destined to take together as an unbroken fa-
mily. The fond mother at length gave way, on the
condition that the husband would go along with and
take care of him. He agreed to go, and we have
to

veye

Le result. She has been left a widow with four
children to support. The next to be recognised was
a girl about 11 or 12 years of age, named Mary Ann
Findley, Dalfield-walk. She was identified by her
mother, whose grief at beholding her darling child'
—the' apple of her eye,' as she kept continually ex-
claiming—seemed perfectly uncontrollable. She was
removed, along with a girl of 12, years of age,
daughter of Mrs. Mitchelson, a widow, also residing
in Dalfield-walk. She 'has four sons, but this was
an only daughter. By about 11 o'clock the whole of
the bodies, with the exception of four, were identi-
fied and taken to their ftiends ; the others
were taken to the dead-house, where they lay
for the night. One.poor ' unfortunate' was among
the dead. She was recognised by several persons
in the hall ; but no one came to claim her remains,
and she was removed 'to-the dead-house. We sub-
join -the names of the dead identified :
"Ainfrew Smith, • 7 years, sou of John Smith, joiner,
Springhill ; Mary Ann Findlay, -mill worker, 17, Borries-
land, Dallfield-Walk, daughter of John 'Findlay, tailor, pre-
sently in Australia; Joseph Swiney, 44 years, weaver, Isle's-
pend, Hawkhill ; Peter Swiney, 13 years, son of the above
Joseph Swiney; Jane Smith, 14 years, millworker, daughter
of William Smith, grocer, Wellgate ; William MConnell,
14 years, son of ThomasMConnell, grocer, Lower-pleasance;
Mary Clark, Dundee ; Jane Mitchelson, 12 years steamloom
weaver, daughter of Janet Mitchelson, Widow, Dallfield-
walk ; Peter Mackie, 12 years, an orphan, Dyer's-pond,
Scourringburn ; Elizabeth Gowan, 13 years, daughter of
John Gowan,• weaver, Speitrs-laud, Perth-road ; James
Knight, 60 years, seaman, Doig's-entry, Overgate ; Robert
Bruce, 15, son of Peter Bruce, mill overseer, Smithfield ;
Lilies Urquhart, steam-loom weaver, daughter of James
Urquhart, hackle maker, Ireland's-lane, Hawkhill ; Agnes
Hamilton, mill-worker, daughter of Joseph Hamilton,
plasterer, Milne's' East Wynd, Scouringburn ; Alexander
Campbelllmill-worker, Gray-street, Lochee ; John Hol-
land, 13 yews.
" At 12 o'clock on Monday night five bodies remained
unclaimed, and were taken to the dead-house.
" With regard to the number of injured very little can as
yet be said. The most serious cases are those of a girl aged
five or six, residing in Session-street, a girl named Smith,
aged about 12 or 18, a girl named Jane Grey, Catherine
Settis, a girl aged 15 or 16, a boy named Peter Mackie, and
a girl named Baxter."
The following are extracts from the account published
in the Dundee Advertiser:—
" There are two accounts given of the manner in which
the accident was caused; one is, that the people forced in
by the sudden opening of the gate, were able to keep up-
right until near the bottom, when one or two lost their
footing, and, having fallen, those behind rolled over them ;
while the other is, that amass of persons were hurled from
the top of the stair to the bottom by the sudden impetus
which they had received, and thus the catastrophe was
occasioned. The whole affair, however, was so instanta-
neous that no reliable account can be given of the manner
in which the disaster occurred; but the fact is that within
a minute after the bursting of the gate some 60 or 70 human
beings were lying on the small space at the bottom of the
stair, huddled up in ono confused mass, while the pressure
from behind prevented any efforts being made for some time
to obtain their extrication. The scene presented at this
time is described as being most horrifying and terrible. In
the small dark square lay nearly 100 human beings, of all
ages and both sexes, piled above each other in every imagin-
able position, struggling so far as they possibly could to get
free, and screaming for assistance; above them, up to and
beyond the top of the stairs, were a large crowd, anxious
to reach the hall, and preSsing forward for that purpose,
and quite incredulous that such an awful drama WAS being
enacted beneath ; while inside the hall the excitement among
those who had already been admitted became, so intense
that they could not be restrained from rushing to the door,
and by their screams adding to the confusion. For sonic
15 or 20 minutes this fearful scene continued, until at hist
sonic conception was formed of the real nature of t lie catas-
trophe that had occurred, and then the crowd at the top of
the stair began to move back, and leave space fort hose who
were able to do so, to render assistance to the sufferers be-
low. This, however, was not an easy matter, for the
bodies of those lying on the pavement were mixed up, arms
and legs of different persons being interlaced and huddled
up in one vast mass, that, iu their eagerness to render as-
sistance, those who begin to labour for the extrication of
the sufferers were in danger of inflicting serious injuries by
dislocating the limbs of those who still remained in life.
In the space of about half an hour their labours had been
so far carried through that some idea of the full extent of
the accident was obtained. Body after body, stark, stiff,
yet warm, was drawn front out of the writhing mass, and
conveyed into the hall, which by this time had been cleared
and there laid out in such places as were most available for
the purpose. Medical aid was at once sent for, and Dr.
Smith was the first professional man who reached tho spot.
Ile states that when he arrived, about half-past 7 o'clock,
the stair was in a frightful condition, about 70 people, as
near as he could estimate, lying packed one above the other.
The first body to which his attention was called was that '
of a young man lying near the door, all discoloured, but
quite dead ; and near it were about a dozen, all dead, and
presenting the same appearance of having been suffocated.
Close to the entrance to the lobby were the bodies of two
girls, aged about 14 or 16 years, lying in each other's
arms, and both quite dead. In a room to the west side of
the lobby were four bodies, which had been deposited there
after being removed from the mass in which they had been
suffocated. To those who had been rescued with life every
attention was paid by Dr. Smith, as well as by the other
medical gentlemen who soon came to the place, and among
whom wore Drs. Gibson, Langlands, Cowper, and Begg.
By 11 o'clock most of the bodies had been identified and
removed by their friends, but four which had not been re-
cognized up to that time were taken to the dead-house.
Shortly after the bodies had been laid there the place was
locked up for the night—a most inconsiderate and repre-
hensible proceeding, considering the wide-spread nature of
this calamity and the anxiety which naturally prevailed in
many families as to the safety of missing members.
" We give below the gist of several statements obtained
frompersous who were eye-witnesses of this awful scene :
"Mr. John Beat, whose activity throughout the whole
affair was very commendable, said : I was at the top of
the stair leading to 8011-street Hall about 7 o'clock. There
was a large crowd gathered round the place. They opened
ono-half of the gate first and let a few in, so that they
could take the money easily ; but then the crowd became
so strong and so heavy that the man at the top of the stair
was not able to keep them back, and the gate was burst
open, the man in charge of it being shoved down first. I
was about the middle of the crowd, and was carried off by
it, till I was within three steps of the bottom, when I was
made fast, and could not move either one way or the other.
My arms were fixed close to my sides. A woman and her
husband, with a child in his arms, were standing next me.
I heard the woman say the child was dead ; I could not say
if that was true. I could hardly describe the scene, for the
people were lying some heads up and some feet up—some
one way and some another. There were none of those in
front of the who were on their feet. The whole were lying in
one mass just like a heap of straw, and then the rest on the
higher part of the stair were hanging over with their whole
weight on the top of them. The people at the top of the
stairs would not clear away at first. I kept calling to those
in front to go through the hall, and also to those at the back
;o clear away, but the screaming was so terrible that I sup-
pose no one could hear a word I was saying. The only
thing that could have been done was to clear away
ht, bu fin
the back and relieve those in front front the
weig
I should think I was at
they were very slow about that.
people began to clear away from the tAt.tpootfht),,
i and we set to
least 15 or 20 minutes standing in that positihotoi.s:rl,l
who were on their feet could seebtwh:u
I, to drag out those
etilltot
work as soon as we could.
1.,:a-icaa was indescribable.
hotel' hold of by the legs, or
end had to drag them
ho
tr.s
anSduclheftpoinrscobnasrgaes
wO
or appeared
t wolgtoot bl
(t'o ld injured.ob y t
onuntybpys main force, and othe:shVa:
• I got or:to:
Not one could stteak. Afterwar a cab came and took
of one or two there till I got others.ds All were insensible.
swthheictho;c7thne"srtaesi
away five persons—four females and one boy—to the In-
eathrrie IK)eddtYo
firmary. lam certain the boy was dead. When I and one
or two others had :been removing the persons from the
back of the crowd, others had been similarly engaged on
the other side. I saw bodies lying in rows, some dead and
others attended by friends, and so it went on till the doe-
Airs arrived. Dr. Smith was the first to come, and he pro-

accidel

flounced a number of them to be dead. After the place
was cleared I assisted to carry the bodies to the anterooms. '
The only thing I can say as to the cause of the accident
was the want of proper care for keeping back the crowd.
"John Jones, the carpenter employed at Mrs. Spring-
thorpe's, stated that he was stationed at the top of the stairs
to keep the gate, and see that the people did not come down
too fast. He kept ono half of the gate closell, and the other
half partially open, but the gate was driven up, and he was
swept down with the rush which followed. He had a-nar-
row escape for his own life, as he fell upon his knees, but
recovered himself before the crowd came down upon hisu.

n gL Last t
tnhi
eg h
et l
ea
ct
tors eight o'clock ctl oh cek b
oa Cdrroouwghe do publicf c,
Greenwich
nmme,
pth-
residing at Woolwich, Charlton, and Plumstead was
held at the Townhall, Woolwich, to hear an address
from Alderman Salomons, M.P., explanatory of his
views on various important public questions. The
chair was occupied by Mr. Bassett, who briefly
referred to the objects of
thet meeting.
Alde
observedrmat wasnSAl.o:iO
NS, i‘
a. wholesomep.z, z
whowellllg.waScusthi
l re-
ceived, for
members of the House of Commons to meet their
constituents, at least yearly, in order, not only
to give an account of their stewardship, but to
ascertain the
,L opinions and wishes of those
whom they represented. Referring to the last
session of Parliament, Alderman Salomons said
that the course of legislation, especially with re-
gard to the commerce and trade of the coun-
try, had proved highly beneficial to all classes of
the people, and he believed that the public
finances were now in such a condition that we
may reasonably expect a remission to the extent of
two or three millions during the next session. He
trusted that the taxes to be remitted or reduced
would be those which pressed more particularly
upon the industrial resources of the country. He
had heard it stated that one of the first things with
which the Chancellor of the Exchequer would inter-
fere during the next session was the duty upon fire
insurances, and that he considered was a very
proper object. (Cheers.) With reference to the
question of Parliamentary Reform, it has been said
that it was shelved at present ; but it would pro-
bably be revived during the next summer, when the
members of the House of Commons stood before
their constituents. They well knew him as an ad-
vocate of such a comprehensive measure of Reform
as would include within the pale of the Constitution
large masses of the intelligent and industrial classes
who were at present unjustly deprived of the
franchise. But it was perfectly evident that such
a measure could never be carried until it was
demanded by the people, and such a pressure brought
to bear out of doors that no Government would be
able to resist it. As to church rates, he was still of
opinion that they ought to be totally abolished, and
it was quite evident that in the present state of
public opinion they could not much longer be re-
tained. The movement for forming our North
American possessions into a confederation was one
of great importance, both as regarded those pro-
vinces and the mother country. The consolidation
of that country under one general form of Govern-
ment would prove a barrier of strength against the
possible attack of any foreign foe, and be attended
with the best results to all parties concerned. One
of the most important questions now before the
public was that relating to the sewage and its pro-
per disposal. It had been said that considerable
sickness had prevailed at Woolwich in consequence
of a portion of the sewage of the southern metro-
politan district being emptied at the outfall near
Erith. Ile did not share in that opinion, but he
trusted that some efficient plan would be adopted,
not only to provide a complete system of drainage,
and thus improve the health of the metropolis, but
to render the sewage a source of profit. With refer-
ence to the rating of Government establishments, he
thought the refusal of the authorities to pay lighting
and paving rates was most unjust. He was a great
advocate for free bridges in the metropolis, and in-
tended to introduce a bill during the next session to
effect that object. That bill would include the
opening of the Creek-bridge at Deptford, and other
obstructions to the free passage of the public would
be removed if his proposal was acted upon. From
the calculations he had made he believed that all
the bridges in the metropolis could be opened to the
public by the payment of a halfpenny rate extended
over the whole of the metropolitan district. He
had been applied to by several of his Deptford
friends to sanction an industrial exhibition for the
towns of Woolwich, Deptford, and Greenwich. He
believed, from observation, that these exhibitions
had been productive of much benefit, especially to
the industrial classes, and he should be happy to do
all in his power to render any assistance to the pro-
posal made. Alderman Salomons then referred to
various subjects of a local nature, and stated that
he should be happy to reply to any question from
electors present.
An ELECTOR—WiII the alderman tell us what
are his views on the American question?
Alderman ;SALomoNs—Well, my views are not
altered upon that question. lam glad we are out
of it. (Cheers.) I believe also that it would have
showed far more wisdom on the part of the North
if they had met the South in a kindly spirit, instead
of coercing them and deluging the country with
blood. His sympathy was with the South, for the
earnest manner in which its people were struggling
for independence. (Expressions of dissent.) fie
was bound to say, after a careful consideration of
the subject, that the South had a perfect right to
secede from the North. (Cries of " No, no.")
he
his opinion, and surely, as their. representative,
any man in
11 opinion as
Well, that was his opinion. He had been asked for
had as much right to have a _
that room. He was quite ready at some
future time
to meet any of them to discuss the subject, and he
believed he should be able to show that his views
were right.
Alderman
meaelti y col ue att° r )a—n
'Then
Sa time, and prove
that your views on the subject are entirely wrong,
and opposed to truth and justice.
Alderman SALODIONS--I did not start the ques-
tion.timr. IN'rO
i
Salomons ,CL
will
I was asked my opinion, and I have given it.
[f you do not like me as your representative, you
[lad better say so.
In reply to another question, Alderman SALO-,
NIONS said he did not approve of the constitution of
the Metropolitan Board of Works, and considered
that the members of that board ought to be elected
by the votes of the ratepayers, and not by the
elected vestries.
The Rev. T. TUFFIELD, in moving a vote of con,
idence iu Alderman Salomons, observed he could
lave wished, with regard to the American question,
the worthy alderman had stopped after he said
that he was glad we were out of it. He then re-
ferred to the past services of Alderman Salomons as
a representative of the borough.
The motion was seconded and adopted ; and after
the usual vote to the chairman, the meeting
separated.

Formerly Germany supplied France with children's
toys of every description ; at present France supplies
Germany. • St. Omer likewise supplies Germany with
tobacco pipes, as well as with toys, such as soldiers of every
arm, seamen, artillery, fortresses, tents, sentry boxes, trees,
shrubs, represented with extraordinary accuracy and painted
with fine ineffaceable paints. This new industry is a for-
tunate creation for the town of St. Omer, whore it gives
employment to a great number of hands.