The Sun.
London, England, 1862-12-10 00:00:00

T ETE SUN, LONDON, WED N E 3DA y EVEN IN 61,
-DECEMBER 10, 1.86 i.

THE CIVIL WAR IN AMERICA.

(From the Times' Special Correspcndcnt•)
NEW YORK, Nov. 25.

The Government has tither been shamed or
frightened into the tardy commission of an act of
justice towards the prisoners illegally detained in
Forts Warren, Lafayette, and NI-Henry. By an
order of Mr. Secretary Stanton, dated on Saturday
last, two classes of prisoners are to be liberated,—
first, those who have been taken into custody for
discouraging enlistment, opposing the draught, or
otherwise giving aid and encouragement to the
enemy in States where the draught has been made
or the quota of Volunteers has been furnished ; and,
second, those persons who, by authority of the mili-
tary commanders or Governors in " rebel" States,
have been arrested in, and sent out of such States, for
disloyalty or hostility to the Federal Government.
The order states—whether intentionally or acci-
dentally Mr. Stanton alone knows—that persons of
the first class shall be discharged, but that persons
of the second class may be discharged on parole ; a
distinction that may hereafter become of impor-
tance. A third class of persons are not to be belle.
fitted, namely, "those who have been in arms against
the Government, and who by force and arms have
resisted, or attempted to resist, the draught." Fur-
thermore, the order does not relieve any person
from his liability to trial and punishment by civil
tribunals, or by courts martial, or, as Mr. Stanton
calls them, court martials, or military commissions,
who may be amenable to such tribunals for offences
committed. A very slight examination suffices to
show that the document is not so comprehensive as
it appears at the first glance, and that it makes no
provision for the liberation of the numerous un-
happy persons who have been arrested in " loyal"
States, such as Pennsylvania, New York, and Mas-
sachusetts, by order of the Secretaries of State, for
real or supposed offences before there was any
draught to resist. The case of Mr. Winder, who
was arrested in Baltimore on a forged, or an un-
authorised order of Mr. Cameron, and wrongfully
retained in custody by Mr. Seward, who knew that
Mr. Cameron's order was disavowed by the person
whose signature it purported to bear, is unaffected
by it, though possibly Mr. Stanton may make a
special exemption in his favour. Another circum-
stance which Mr. Seward and Mr. Stanton, the
two Secretaries, and Mr. Cameron, the ex-Secre-
tary, will do well to bear in mind is, that although
Mr. Stanton expressly guards himself in the con.
eluding paragraph of his order from relieving any
of the persons who shall or may be liberated by its
action from their liability to trial and punish men
by the civil or other tribunals, every released pri-
soner will take equal care to guard himself against
exonerating these gentlemen from their liability to
civil actions for false imprisonment. The Tribune
of this morning, in an article disparaging the free
institutions of the English Monarchy, sneers at the
" habeas corpus, whatever that may be;" but those
three eminent attorneys are not so ignorant, and
will discover to their cost that the habeas corpus,
with impartial judges to enforce it, is as much the
safeguard of American as it is of British liberty—
that the broad shield of the President's authority
will not rescue them from punishment for violating
it; and that the President himself will either be
impeached during the term of office, or brought to
trial as soon as his term is concluded, for infrac-
tions of that and other articles of the Constitution
which he swore to uphold.
It is evident enough to any one whose duty or
pleasure it is to watch the policy of the intriguing
lawyers whom it is Mr. Lincoln's necessity or ill
fortune to employ as his Ministers, that it is not
shame but fear that has urged the Government to
make this show of legality. Had it not been for the
triumph of the Democratic party in the great
State of New York, the Republicans would have
continued to jest at the habeas corpus, like their
organ the Tribune, and to urge not only the im-
prisonment, but the hanging of every prominent
politician on the other side who so far thwarted
their design of Southern extermination as to put in
a plea of mercy, whisper a word of peace, or ask
the pregnant question, whether the conquest of
the unwilling South—supposing it could be accom-
plished—was worth its price in Northern liberty,
to say nothing of blood and treasure. But the
victory achieved in the recent elections in New York
has alarmed the President and his advisers far more
than they deem it prudent to confess; and they have
had the sagacity to make a movement ex proprio
motu,:which would otherwise have been forced upon
them as soon as Mr. Horatio Seymour assumed office
as Governor of this State and took the command of
its militia. They have not tacked—or backed—a
moment too soon. The Democratic reaction has
gathered strength every day during the last three
months. The new. Democratic Governors—stand-
ing on a higher platform than the old Republican
Governors who met at Altona to goad the President
to overstep the limits of the Constitution—have
been silently organising an opposition to illegality
and un•Constitutionality within the limits of their
respective States, which would assuredly have ex-
pedited a collision between the local and the Federal
Power, and might, if Mr. Lincoln had been unwise
enough to provoke it, have produced a bloody arbi-
trament of the question—whether it be possible for
any people to deprive another of their liberty with-
out losing or abridging their own.

The greatest loss of the Democratic party in the
new Congress has been that of Mr. Vallandigham,
who failed to be re-elected for his district in Ohio
in consequence of a process which in this country is
called "gerrymandering." As representation is based
t
upon population, it becomes necessary from time to
to add to, subtract from, or otherwise change
the limits of the electoral districts; and to " gerry-
mander," is to incorporate with a district outlying
towns or:eities that have a population of voters
whose political opinions are opposed to those of the
sitting member, in order that his previous majority
may be "swamped" by their votes. It was thus that
Mr. Vallandigham lost his seat. But this gentle-
man is not to retire from public life. He has been
accepted by the leaders and " wire-pullers" of the
Democratic party in Ohio as their candidate for
Governor, and the chances are that he will be elected
by the largest majority ever polled in the State.
Mr. Morgan, the present Governor of New York,
having ordered a day to be set apart throughout the
State as one of public thanksgiving and praise, Mr.
G. Opdyke, the mayor of the city, has appointed
Thursday, 27th inst., for that purpose. The mayor
in his proclamation dwells in befitting terms on the
miseries which the war has inflicted on the country;
but from the most fearful of which the city of New
York has been providentially exempted. He lays
himself open, however, to the charge of being as
great an optimist as the immortal Candide himself,
and destitution
ample in describing the blessings which, in spite of the
war, the inhabitants of New York have enjoyed.
" Our commerce," he says, "has prospered. Indus-
trylw f arh dehsa,ws
foundre d
n tso thoroughly e andtn
employment oe yri andmmeenhtave
endowed i
d niwiliberalniitshh diminished."
e,-,
happy faculty of seeing things en couleur de rose,
Mr. Opdyke might have reflected that the most
prosperous trades of New York during
been those engaged in the manufacture and sale of
implements of destruction; that the dealers who
have made most money have been dishonest
"shoddy" the dishonest
contractors and other plunderers of the
army and the Government.; that the labourers and
mechanics of the city are not
of opinion that they
are amply rewarded by payment of •
their wages in
dollars depreciated to the extent of 31 per cent.; and
that they are all endeavouring, under the threat of
their strikes, to extort higher terms from th •
r reluctant
employers. Furthermore, he might have convinced
himself that if crime has been reduced, it - has only
been because the " rowdies," blackguards, and other
elements of the criminal population have gone to
the battlefield to try their fortune, and that to re.

lieve the certain destitution of the poor during the
ensuing winter is the hardest problem that he and
his civic colleagues have to resolve during the re-
mainder of their term of office. But Mc. Opdyke 's
optimism is inveterate. War itself, to the thrice
fortunate mind, has its bright and happy side.
"It subdues," he says, " the vices engendered
by peace, purifies the heart, and ennobles
the sentiments, as may be seen in the exalted
patriotism, the heroic courage, the fortitude,
and the humanity manifested by the noble volunteer
army now battling in defence of the Union." Other
philosophers, less epicurean, have reserved the praise
of war, for war in defence of home and liberty
against foreign aggression. Mr. Opdyke places civil
war on the same pedestal, for men's reverence, and
never once reflects, while breathing the luxurious
atmosphere of his comforting and comfortable doc-
trine, that his "noble volunteers" are to a large ex-
tent Irish and German mercenaries, attracted by
high bounty money, ignorant of the merits of the
cause for which they sell themselves, and to whom
the word patriotism is in every sense inapplicable.
Mr. Wendell Phillips has at last broken silence.
He, at all events, is not a Candide, like the Mayor
of New York. To him the whole course of the war
is wrong, because it is not rapid and bloody enough
to exterminate the Southern slaveowners. He de-
clared in a recent lecture at Boston that the business
of the North is "to march down with Northern insti-
tutions, and wipe out South Carolina." "My
method, he says, " is to replant the South. I demand
of the President three things—a Cabinet, a General,
and a Confiscation Act, that shall open the Southern
States to Yankee civilisation." In other words, he
desires to devide the lands and plantations of the
Southern proprietors among Northern soldiers, and
either to put the present possessors to the sword or
reduce them to the social rank now held by their
negro slaves. This eloquent American Robespierre
adheres to his merciless theory with the courage
and pertinacity of all zealots and bigots ; and will
adhere to it until the South shall have established
its independence, when he will rejoice at the sepa-
ration, and perhaps repeat with exultant voice the
boast made of England by the poet Cowper, that
the glorious flag of the Federal North floats over a
land on which a slave cannot breathe. It is a pity,
however, that in the meantime he will not confess
that he has no more right to dictate the social policy
of the South than he has to prescribe that of Borneo
or Madagascar.

The forthcoming annual Message of the President
begins to excite curiosity if not alarm. Some pas-
sages, it appears, have been read to friends, who
report that it will be ultra-abolitionist, or black ;
and it is stated that on Friday last he declared to
a deputation of Kentuckians " that he would rather
die than take back a word of his emancipacion pro-
clamation." If this be so the sooner he prepares to
call out another half a million of men the sooner he
will be enabled to discover the very important fact
whether the country will support him. Should he
make the call, and find it answered, he will per-
haps have to debate within his own mind another
important question, which was never before asked
in the United States from the time of Washingten
to his own, and decide whether he will not take the
advice of the Philadelphian rhymer, whose verses
are now making the round of the Democratic jour-
nals, and resign :

"Between States once fraternal,
You've drawn your party line,
You've brought us war infernal,
Oh, Abraham, resign I"

The only news of any interest or authenticity
from the seat of war comes from the unfortunate
city of Fredericksburg. The women, children, and
non-combatants having been allowed, on the urgent
remonstrance of the mayor, an additional term of
12 hours to take their departure, Gen. Burnside has
prepared to attack, Gen. Lee to defend the city.
The only object of the defence appears to be to
delay the advance of Burnside; and as the Rappa-
hannock flows between the combatants, the object is
compelvery likely
Burnside
to bet
accomplished
go
nta w
winter
er successfullyquarters,
and
a sto
postpone his march to Richmond until the spring.
The telegraphic wires from Cape Race announce
this morning the news brought by the Arabia,
that the British Government has declined the over-
tures made by France for a joint mediation in the
affairs of this country. The intelligence creates a
feeling which is painful for an Englishman to wit-
ness. No thanks are expressed, no opinion is put
forward that Great Britain has done a right or a
friendly act. Not a word is said of the patient for-
bearance and statesmanlike reticence of the British
Government; but, on the contrary, there is a howl
from the rabid press and the rabid war party of
exultation over " the miserable old country that
has not courage to strike the blow that it meditates."
It is held that England is afraid of America; that
England is poor, effete, corrupt, and without influ-
ence in the affairs of the world ; and that it will be
the duty of the Federal Government, as sown as it
has settled matters with the South, to declare war
against her for fitting out the Alabama, and for
otherwise sympathising with the rebellion—a war
that will reduce her to the rank of a third-rate
Power, and establish the independence of Ireland,
under King Smith O'Brien or some other hero of the
Cabbage-garden. Among more sensible people,
who are disgusted with Mr. Lincoln and the war,
andwilslitnagttsto let the "wayward sisters" of the
Cotton
" go in peace," the news has been re-
ceived with despondency. They see that if extra-
neous agencies are not brought into operation to
produce an armistice,teoarbse,
unlessfollow the Southedbyapeacshe,outhlde
war must last for 20 years,
be laid under water and the people exterminated
at an earlier period; or unless, which is far more
likely, a violent revolution in the North should
hurl Mr. Lincoln from power, before the expiration
of his term of office, and place a man at the head of
the army and the Government with sufficient brains,
honesty, and patriotism to recognise the indepen-
dence of the South, as the best arrangement for
both parties, and stop the horrible effusion of blood
and the fiendish overflow of passions that the war
has excited.

SPEECH OF THE KING OF PRUSSIA.
BERLIN, DEC. 9.

The Neue Preussische (Kreuz) Zeitung of to-day
says :—" His Majesty the King, in reply to an ad-
dress from some inhabitants of Marienwerder ex-
pressing their loyal sentiments, said—

" ' The present movement is not so much directed
against the new organisation of the army as against
the army itself. Attempts are being made to relax
the military discipline, as has been especially proved
by the late events at Grudenz. The subscriptions
in money which are now being made on behalf of
those who are styled victims of their constitutional
sympathies prove that a perfect consciousness of
these tendencies prevails among the leaders of the
movement, and that they try to extend them to
many other questions. The necessity under which
the Government was placed of acting against some
functionaries caused these national subscriptions on
their behalf. The act of the Government against
these public officers are made the pretext for pur-
suing aims of quite another character. The aim
which is principally pursued by every means is the
inauguration of a constitutional Government. The
Constitutionwih hasthe
o not e
this, but only legis-
lation, of the Parliament. I
m fully determinedt
part with the constitu-
tionaleCrewen from those views which
tsir.ce I assumed the Regency, be-
cause form its power.
Nothingth e
y va
the
divert
acop not promisedrat
to e
the welfare and the power of the
powerful Crown and a
powerful army. The leaders of the present move-
ment, who desire neither of these things, are quite
lohave
unrty right,
up shallrwhichssue re of
requires m a
conscious of the ultimate object they have in view.
Although there aro not many of them, they have
nevertheless succeeded in creating great confusion
in the public mind."

711 E Nn V]'.

Ecahll
from
nhs olGenstcs;
Pr in eh
yApe ras t
tr hek
ru,
dr
ay
ynaccompaniedinspecteddown
to
oy Hisw.ll loaojßiowro
the departments of the dockyard.
Private letters received at Plymouth
report the
murder of a naval officer and 14 seamen on the
coast of Arabia. The screw steam gunvessel Pen-
guin, 5, Lieut. J. G. G. M. Hardy, tender to the
flagship Narcissus, on the Cape station, was on duty
in the Mozambique Channel in September, and de
tached four boats for the purpose of watching
slave vessels. The Penguin, on arriving at the
rendezvous, Fort Durnford, midway between For-
mosa Bay and the line, could not find them, and
therefore went to Brava, in Mukdeesha country,
and there heard they were gone further north.
On the 25th of October the Penguin had
reached Bunder Feluk, where it appears 15 of
the crew were murdered. They were short of pro-
visions, and being invited by the natives the crews
of two of the boats landed, and were immediately
destroyed. Nothing is known of the fate of the
remainder. The names of those killed are Acting-
Lieut. John B, Fountaine, on the books of the screw
steam corvette Orestes, Capt. Alan. H. Gardner ;
Wm. Mitchell, quartermaster ; John Carpenter,
gunner's mate ; John Kemp, A.B. ; Henry Stoto,
A. 8.; Chas. Kennedy, John Childs, James Watson,
Martin Jolley, Richard Heath, Henry Williams,
Arthur Matthews, John Pratt, and two marines—
Chas, Foley and Geo. Hotton. The four boats had
gone a distance of over 1,000 miles. On ascertaining
the facts Lieut. Hardy, after considerable delay,
and having threatened to destroy the village of Bun-
der Feluk, obtained possession of 20 of those prin-
cipally concerned in the murders, who were to be
hung. None of the bodies of the Englishmen have
been discovered.

' Considerabledissatisfaction has been caused among
the officials connected with the Admiralty in conse-
quence of the great delay experienced by ships ar-
riving at Portsmouth and Plymouth from the Nore,
which, although reported ready for sea before leav-
ing Sheerness, have nevertheless presented a long
list of defects on their arrival either at Spithead or
the Sound. The last instance of that kind is that of
the Lily, 4, 200-horse power, Commander Harvey,
which left the Nore last week for the coast of Cuba,
calling at Plymouth for final orders. Before leaving
the Nore the usual official report was made by the
dockyard authorities of her fitness to proceed to sea,
but on arriving in the Sound a list of defects was
discovered and reported on to the Admiralty. Orders
have according been received at Chatham and sent
down to Plymouth directing the Lily to return to
the Nore, and on arriving at Sheerness an officer
from the Department of the Controller of the Navy
will be in attendance to thoroughly survey her and
to make a special report of her defects, the delay in
the sailing of the ship being a very serious matter,
though upon whom the responsibility will be placed
will depend upon the nature of the report sub-
mitted to the Admiralty.
Messrs. John Brown and Co., of the Atlas Works,
Sheffield, have contracted with the Admiralty for
the manufacture of the armour plating for the En-
terprise, iron-clad corvette, building from designs
furnished by Mr. Reed. The same firm have manu-
factured armour plates of 51, 61, and 71 inches re-
spectively, which they have proposed to the Admi-
ralty, on exceedingly favourable terms to the board,
shall be pitted against the Whitworth gun which
lately made such a sensation in ita trial against the
plated target at Shoeburyness with its flat-headed
projectiles. If tested by the Whitworth gun, the
51-inch plate will have a backing of 18 inches of
teak, and the two remaining plates of 9 inches.
All those of our readers who are interested in
screw propulsion will no doubt remember the series
of experimental trials carried out with the Shannon
frigate at Portsmouth, extending from the begin-
ning of May to the end of August of the present
year, detailed reports being given in The Sun as
they took place. Soon after the conclusion of the
seventh trial—the closing trial as far as the Shan-
non was concerned—a summary of the whole was
given. These trials comprised, on the 16th of May,
the common or Admiralty screw, with its leading
corners cut; on the 17th of May, the Mangin
(French) screw, four blades set in parallel pairs; on
the 19th of May, the common or Admiralty screw,
with both corners cut ; on the 31st of May, four
Mangin blades, set on a Griffiths boss ; on the 10th
of June the trial of the 19th of May was repeated ;
on the 16th of June six Mangin blades were tried
on a Griffiths boss ; and on the 3d of July three
Mangin blades were tried on the same boss. To
render the whole designs as complete as possible,
however, it was intended to close the series with
trials of the Griffiths propeller with varying num-
bers of blades, and the necessary castings were made
in the new foundry of Portsmouth dockyard. Be-
fore these concluding trials could be made the Shan-
non was ordered to the Mediterranean station owing
to an unexpected spirit of insubordination having
manifested itself on board, the real cause and extent
of which have not yet been made fully public. The
result of this has been to render valueless the whole
of the Shannon's trials, which were carried out in
a mat careful and elaborate manner, owing to the
Griffiths trials not having been included with the
others, and the data sought for only being attain-
able by comparative results of the whole carried out
by one ship. The Admiralty have therefore now
directed that the whole of the Shannon's experi-
ments are to be repeated by the Emerald screw fri-
gate, Capt. A. Cumming, and to conclude, as was
originally intended, with the Griffiths propeller.

The selection of marine cadets to fill vacancies on
board her Majesty's ship Excellent will, of course,
depend upon the Admiralty and the number of va-
cancies existing after the half-yearly examinations.
The Industry screw storeship, Master- Commander
Geo. J. Hodges, arrived at Portsmouth yesterday
morning from Rio de Janeiro, from which port she
sailed on Oct. 24, experiencing moderate weather
during the voyage. She has brought home Capt.
Saumarez, of her Majesty's ship Forte (returned to
England owing to ill health), wife, and two ser-
vants, and six seamen and five marines, invalided.
After taking in coals at Portsmouth the Industry
will proceed on to Woolwich.

The Algiers, screw line-of-battle ship, Captain
Hornby, will pay out of commission at Portsmouth
on Friday next.

The following appointments and promotions were
made yesterday at the Admiralty :—Lieut. the Hon.
Henry IL A'Conrt, to the Excellent ; Wm. L.
Southey, master, to the Indus, for the Buzzard ; H.
Harkan, surg., to the Pylades ; Alfred S. Pratt,
assist.-surg., to the Victory, for Haslar Hospital;
John Buckley, acting assist.- surg., to the Meander;
C. Bridgeman and G. C. Higgins, midshipmen, to
the Meanee; R. Widdecombe, in the Aboukir; W.
P. Ward, in the Liffey ; J. R. Hancock, in the Fox ;
H. J. Wilson and Thos. Cross, in the Asia ; and A.
Smart, in the Pembroke, to be first class assist.-en-
gineers ; J. Miller (a), in the Mars ; J. Manhinniek,
in the Ariel ; A. J. Barter, in the Wanderer; and J.
Philips, in the Clio, to be acting first-class assist.-
engineers.

PR I C _.Ad.
STAMPED ....sd.

YHE FATAL COLLIERY EXPLOSION
_NEAR BARIVSLEY.

WORSBOROUGH, TUESDAY.

The following is a detailed account of the dread-
ful explosion at Edmund's Main Colliery, brief
particulars of which appeared in,7 he Sun of yes-
terday :
The colliery is the property of Messrs. Mitchell,
Bartholomew, and Tyas, is 180 feet deep, and is one
of the most extensive collieries that are worked in
the Barnsley seam. The bed of coal is the nine-feet
Barnsley seam. The workings extend for more
than a mile from north to south, and there are three
shafts, two downcast, and one over the cupola fur-
nace, by which the ventilation is obtained.
The primary cause of the accident was the igni-
tion of a " blower" of gas by the blasting of the
coal at the extreme "dip point" at the southern-
most extremity of the workings. It seems that the
mine was being connected with a new shaft which
had been sunk to the southward, and a straight
heading was being driven through the coal in the
direction of this shaft. About 7 o'clock yesterday
morning the men engaged in the operation found it
necessary to blast the coal, and a charge of pow-
der (" a shot") was accordingly fired. The coal in
the new workings gave out a great quantity of gas,
andthe men were obliged to use Davy lamps to ward
off danger. The shot ignited a "blower" of gas,
which exploded, set fire to the coal, and blew down
a portion of the air course. At this time there were
about 260 men and boys in the mine, and when so
alarming an occurrence in one part of the workings
had taken place, the reasonable inference seems to
be that the persons in charge of the mine should
have sent word to all the men warning them that
there was danger of an explosion. Some of the men,
however, say that this was not done. George
Laughton, the bottom steward, endeavoured to put
out the fire without allowing the miners to become
cognizant of its existence and the danger it entailed.
He went with a party of the men and commenced
building a solid brick "stopping" to restore the ven-
tilation. The work was carded on vigorously, and
an attempt made concurrently to put out the fire.
But neither seems to have been successful. The
foul air accumulated in the mine, until at about half-
past 11 o'clock, a fearful explosion took place, the
gas having fired where the coal was burning. The
effect of the explosion was most disastrous, many of
the air-courses being blown down, and the miners
began to flock to the bottom of the main shaft.
Many of them received their first warning of danger
by the presence of the deadly after-damp in their
workings, One young man, named James M'Quillan,
states that he was employed in No. 2 board, in the
south workings, a considerable distance from any
other working place. He " felt" the gas and became
alarmed, and left his place to seek some of the other
miners. He saw one of them, named Peter Blacker,
and told him there was something the matter in the
mine, and suggested an immediate retreat, but
Blacker told him he was too soon frightened, and
that if he wanted to go he might, but he (Blacker)
should stao where he was. Fortunately for him-
self, M'Quillan went on towards the shaft, and on
the way the gas became so powerful that he was in
extreme danger, and had to make a circuit round
the workings half a mile out of the direct path, in
order to get into a purer air. On the way he met
a man named Edward Hunt, who asked him to go
with him and:seek for his biother. They went to
the bottom of the board where young Hunt had
been working, but the place was so full of gas that
they found it impossible to go up. M'Quillan
struggled on until he came to the shaft, where a
great number of men and boys were waiting to take
their turns to ascend. By this time the alarm had
become general, but notwithstanding the excitement
the shaft was worked with quickness and order, and
a great number of the men were rescued. Hopes were
entertained that the whole would be brought out be-
fore any si riot's calamity took place, an event which
was dreaded every moment, in consequence of the
rapid accumulation of gas. The communication be-
tween some parts of the mine and the shaft had been
destroyed by the second explosion, and a number of
men and boys, variously estimated at from 50 to
70, were still in the mine. The hope of rescue ap-
peared every moment growing fainter. A number
of noble fellows volunteered to go down into the
mine and search for these who had been cut off from
succour by the progress of the suffocating vapour.
Five men, named George Laugh ton, the bottom
steward ; Henry Laughton, his eldest son ; Charles
Frobisher, John Parkin, and Benjamin Hoyland,
were the volunteers, and it is one of the most
melancholy facts connected with the calamity, that
these noble men became involved in the fate of those
whom they were endeavouring to rescue. They had
been for some time in the mine, and a number of
the injured men—some of them in such a condition
that death would have been welcomed as a release
from intolerable agony—had been sent to the pit
bank, when suddenly a third explosion took place,
about 1 o'clock, and sealed the fate of all who were
then in the mine. The effect of the repeated ex-
plosions had been, of course, almost wholly to destroy
the means of ventilating the mine. The doors and
stoppings in nearly every part of the mine had been
demolished, and the current of air, no longer com- 1
pelled to pass through the whole of the mine, on
its way to the upcast shaft, was felt only in the
direct level from one shaft to the other. The head-
ings and board-gates were totally without ventila-
tion, and became magazines of explosive gas. An
" overthrow," or bricked archway, which was built
on the incline, about 160 yards from the cupola, to
carry the air over the workings, was blown down,
and the ventilation was necessarily destroyed in
that part of the mine. In other parts of the work-
ings the force of the blast produced the same
effects. When the third explosion took place, a
consultation was held at the pit-bank, and as the
shaft-gear was not injured, several persons volun-
teered to go down and rescue the poor fellows
who remained in the mine. The attempt to pene-
trate the workings was, however, entirely fruitless.
The men found they could pass with comparative
ease along the main road between the upcast and
downcast shafts, for a short time after the third
blast, in consequence of the current of air which
was travelling over the level; but in a short time
this path became impassable by the advance of the
fire and after•damp, and at about 4 o'clock orders
were issued to allow no more men to descend the
shaft. When the last party returned they reported
that the place was so full of foul vapour that
they found it impossible to proceed more than 10 or
12 yards from the bottom of the shaft. Most of the
men got after the explosions were uninjured • others
were
nearly suffocated with the after-damp, but a
few minutes in the fresh air revived them; others,
again, were burnt or bruised more or less seriously.
One poor fellow, William Davy, of Worsborough-
common, was so burnt that he only survived a few
minutes, and was removed by the police to the
nearest publichouse. As far as we were able to
ascertain in the confusion that prevailed at the pit
last night, and in the face of an order from one of
the proprietors " not to give any information to
any reporters," the injured were as follow :—Geo.
Pickering (fireman), Hollingsworth, Samuel Tyas,
Joseph Walton, John Bellerby, Samuel Soresby,
Hewitt, Swift, Morrison, William Davy, and Ed.
Hunt. In addition to these, there were several
other wounded men who had been removed to
Barnsley.

George Pickering, the fireman, is most seriously
injured. He had gone down the pit in the forenoon,
after hearing of the accident and the flrifig of the
coal, and when the last explosion took place was in
one of the headings. The blast passed over him,
licking up with its tongue of flame his clothes and
hair and leaving him almost dead. By some
means he managed to crawl to the pit bottom, and
was brought out and removed to his house in Wors-
boro', about half a mile distant from the colliery.
There he lay on a temporary bed in the house-place