The Sun.
London, England, 1838-01-26 00:00:00

A SHEEP ROASTED ON THE THAMES.

The intense frost of last week has returned in all its most
severe features, and although the annals of 1838 cannot as yet
record the roasting of an ox on the face of " old father
Thames," as during the frost of 1813-1814, yet they will be
able to tell of the roasting of a whole sheep on nearly the
centre of the river. The mild and genial state of the tem-
perature on Sunday evening, and during Monday, occasioned
a considerable breaking. up of the ice on the Thames, but the
frog which has since succeeded ha 3 again congealed the
various floating masses of ice together, and given the river,
above the bridges, quite a Polar appearance. Above Vauxhall
Bridge, along Chelsea-reach, and even to the cast side of
Hammersmith Bridge, from the extremely undulated state of
the ice, which is closely intersected with icebergs, many of
them from five to eight feet high, a spectator might fancy him-
self in the neighbourhood of Spitzbergen, or if the ground on
either side were covered with snow, on the banks of Rendezvous
Bay. On the west side of Hammersmith Bridge, from within
about twenty yards from the bank on either side, the ice pre-
sents a most smooth and even surface for the extent of full 500
yards, which was yesterday frequented by a large number of
skaters and sliders, and during the day hundreds evaded the
toll on the bridge by crossing over the ice. From the above
spot the ice presented the same undulating appearance unt•l
ic
e
is Chiswick, from whence all the way up to Windsor the
is most excellent. At Kew large numbers of persons were
skating on both sides of the bridge, among whom were nume-
rous female members of the respectable families resident in the
vicinity, who appeared highly delighted at enjoying the healthy
exercise of skating without being annoyed by the riff-raff of the
metropolis. Between the Richmond and 'Twickenham banks
similar pastimes were indulged in by hundreds of respectable
persons. At Hammersmith, on Wednesday, Mr. W. Bird, the
extensive builder of Brook-green presented a fine fat wether
sheep to the watermen and bargemen of the neighbourhood,
whom from the stoppage of the navigation are reduced to a
state of the greatest distress. Yesterday they roasted it whole
on the ice, near the centre of the River, on the cast side of
the suspension-bridge, opposite the City Arms Tavern. It
was accomplished by erecting a tent, by means of triangular
poles, covered by tarpauling, within which, on the bare ice,
fires were kindled in four large chamber stoves, each two
placed opposite each other, having between the sheep on a
large stake. It was put clown at nine o'clock A. M., and long
before that hour the banks on both the Middlesex and Surrey
shores were lines with thousands of spectators anxious to wit-
ness the novel sight of "the Thames on fire." Duriag the
morning persons were admitted within the tent on paying the
gratuity of one penny each, and after the process of roasting
was concluded, which was about two o'clock, the work of de-
molition commenced, and many were the respectable persons
who, on the payment of from one to five shillings respectively,
carried off " delicious morsels," of the " River mutton." 'A
strong body of the T divsion of police were present during the
day, to preserve order.