The Sun.
London, England, 1847-03-15 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, MONDAY EVENING, MARCH l5, 1847.

paniment is easy and graceful. It will no doubt be a
favourite with young ladies in the drawing-room.

ALARMING CONFLAGRATION AT
BATTERSEA.
_ _

THE MUSIC BOOK. Part 5.

About one o'clock yesterday morning the inhabitants of
the other end of Nine Elms, about a quarter of a mile beyond
the terminus of the South-Western Railway, and its vici-
nity, were thrown into great alarm by a violent explosion,
which, upon inquiry, was found to have been caused by the
outburst of a fire in the kyanizing premises of Mr. Bettell,
on the banks of the Thames. At that hour all the inhabi-
tants were fast asleep; and therefore, upon being aroused by
the cause named, it is easy to conceive the state of consterna-
tion into which they were hurried. It is not very often that
anything else than praise can be bestowed on the Fire Bri-
gade; but in the present instance, according to the statement
of some of the nearest residents to the spot at which the fire
commenced, for upwards of an hour that body remained alto-
gether inactive, declaring, when urged to take steps in order
to bring their engines into play, that it was utterly impossible
for them to do so. Several engines were driven home, not-
withstanding the fire was raging in all its fury, and in spite
of the entreaties of Mr. Hutton, the proprietor of some large
corn-mills, and Mr. Came, an extensive timber-dealer, both
of whose premises were threatened with extreme danger.
The only replies Mr. Hutton has infori-ned our reporter he
could get, even after he had upon several occasions pointed
out to the brigade the way by which they could get their
engines down to the shore, and so arrest the progress if the
flames towards the timber-yard and hia own mills, were that
there was no water, that the tide was too low, and that they
did not choose to run the risk of breaking their engines in
getting them down to the water's edge. Mr. Hutton sug-
gested that the horses should be taken out, and that he had
an abundance of power, with the assistance of his own and
his neighbours' men, to draw the engines down the bank
by means of planks on to the beach. The entreaties
were of no avail, and therefore several of the engines
drove off. There was, however, oce engine which arrived
at the scene of desolation later than the others, and to the
men attached to it Mr. Hutton was enabled to bring home
conviction as to the feasibility of his sugges:ion. The
horses were taken out, all hands went to • work, and in a
few minutes the engine was, without the slightest injury,
drawn to the water's edge, and was at work. This ex-
ample induced two others of the four engines still remaining
to accede to Mr. Hutton's request, so that within half an
hour there were three engines playing with all their force
upon the threatening body. And a providential circumstance
it was that this step was taken : for at the moment the first
of these machines was brought into operation the flakes of
fire by the aid of the wind were being carried over to Carne's
timber-stacks, and soon towards Mr. Hutton's mills.
Had these places ignited, no act but the interposition of a
superior Power could have prevented the devouring element
from laying in ruins the whole of the factories and houses be-
tween Battersea-fields and the railway terminus. The latter,
doubtless, would have fallen a sacrifice. From Mr. Hutton's
mills to the terminus there is scarcely a yard's length of
ground along the bank of the river which is not occupied by
whiting-factories, lime-burners, timber merchants, ship -
breakers, malt-houses, anti old wooden-buildings. Indeed,
as is well known, the whiting-factories are wooden erections,
which, from their peculiarity of construction, are more than
usually favourable to the prejudicial reception of fire, whilst
the other purposes to which the intermediate spices are ap-
plied are, as will be observed, of an inflammable character.
The complaint of Mr. Hutton is, that there appeared to be
no one who was in command of the brigade, and that, had
it not been for the subsequent steps, and the wind had con-
tinued to blow as forcibly as it did at the period when the first
engine was taken down, so far as that corps was concerned,
the whole range of buildings and timber-stacks between
the spot where the fire originated and the railway terminus
must have been destroyed. That the accomplishment of the
proposition made by that gentleman was to be gained, and
that, if adopted, it was calculated to prove of benefit, were
established by the result of the operations when it was
ultimately carried out, and therefore there is the less excuse
for that portion of the brigade which abandoned the
place. There was an increased exertion made by the police
under the directions of Superintendent Bicknell. But for
their arrangements, the destruction of property, large as it
was, must have been much greater, for we never saw such a
collection of thieves as had congregated on the occasion, and
as the length of the fire, perhaps 100 yards, was so extensive,
numerous opportunities were offered for the exercise of their
peculating vocation. There is, however, reason to believe
that in the end the visitants were disappointed.
The fire, it appears, broke out at Mr. Bethell's. Upon
that gentleman's premises were numerous casks of tar,
pitch, and some Persons also said of naphtha, from a com-
bination of which be obtained a certain solution, which had
been found to be a preserver of wood by the process of
saturation. There were too, when we walked round the
place, between one and two o'clock, several large tanks filled
with this inflammable solution, and it was the explosion of
one of them that it is imagined gave warning to the
neighbourhood of what was going on. The banks and
yards of these premises were covered with railway
sleepers piled up to a considerable height, some of which
had undergone the process of saturation, whilst others,
which had been but recently landed from barges, had not
been submitted as yet to the treatment. Every stick
of these which had been stacked between the
boiling-house, or whatever it may be called, and
Mr. Hutton's mills, was at one and the same time,
and for hours, in one general blaze, the brilliancy-
of the picture been frequently enhanced by the ig-
nition of a stray barrel of pitch, of tar, or of the kyanizing
combination. Shortly after the outbreak the flames com-
municated themselves to the limeworks of Mr. Pass, and
from them to some barges which were aground off the wharf.
A density of fire was now arrived at, which time alone, and
the natural consumption of the materials, could put a stop
to. Had the engines been on the beach prior to this, the
probability is, from the peculiarity of the position of the
yard, that a very large quantity of the property might have
been saved. In a few minutes there were two extensive
lengths of wharfs and four or six barges in a blaze, and it
was against the two end barges, and the burning mass at the
eastern end of Mr. Pass's wharf, that the engines which Mr.
Hutton had got down upon the water's edge directed their at-
tacks. This proceeding, accompanied by a temporary lulling
of the wind, was attended with the happiest effects; for
when we left the spot, at five o'clock, all danger of a further
extension was at an end. The smoke, froat the nature of the
combustible materials, was so dense, that we were unable to
make out the names of any of the engines on the water's
edge but that of the County. One of them, however, be-
;onged to that company to which the younger Campbell and
Howell, both of Westminster-bridge stairs, are attached.
All the men connected with these engines displayed extra-
ordinary activity and diligence.
The extent of the loss will not be ascertained for some
days, but it must be very considerable. Great anxiety was
felt lest the flames should make their way to the dock at
the back of Mr. Pass's limeworks, wherein lay several steam-
boats, of which the locomotive Richmond and Hampton
boats were two. The measures taken by the police and by
the firemen referred to fortunately eventually set the minds of
those interested at ease.

This part fully maintains that high character which
The Music Book has already acquired. It contains a
ballad by Crouch, and a waltz and a song by Mrs.
Gilbert A Beckett. The words of the latter are from
the pen of Barry Cornwall.

The sky was illuminated over the whole of the western
part of the metropolis, whilst the opposite side of the river,
along ➢iilbank and Cheyne•walk, Chelsea, and Vauxhall
and Battersea-bridges, were crowded by spectators. The
river, too, was thronged with boats filled with spectators,
and such had been the arrival of company, that by 3 o'clock
there was a double row of cabs reaching for upwards of a
quarter of a mile along Battersea-flelds. A singular spec-
tacle was presented by the flocks of skylarks—for which
Battersea is celebrated—which hovered for hours over the
fire.—Tunes.

We regret to addd that Mr. Bethell is entirely uninsured.
The nature of his business was considered so hazardous that
no office would undertake his risk for less than a treble rate
of premium, and he, therefore preferred a close system of
watching. His loss must be enormous; independently of the
buildings and stock of naphtha, he has lost fourteen thou-
sand railway sleepers, 'the present contract price of which is
ss. 10d. each.
The following is a copy of the official report of the
damage :
•' Mr. J. Bethell, creosote and naphtha distiller and saw-
mills, Battersea-fields.—Engine-house, rectifying-house, saw-
mill, about 14,000 railway sleepers, and a large quantity of
pitch, tar, &c. destroyed. Still-house nearly destroyed.
" Mr. Robins, timber dealer, ditto.—Furniture-shed and
contents destroyed ; stock in open yard damaged by fire, and
furniture by removal.
" Widow Pass and Son, lime-burners.—?1 large shed, with
contents, and two lug-boats destroyed ; a sailing barge and
two other craft nearly destroyed.
" Two barges, respectively belonging to Mr. Hetherington,
of Lambeth, and Mr. Lee, of Rotherhithe."

THE PUBLIC FAST.
His Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury has issued a
form of prayer " to be used in all Churches and Chapels
throughout the United Kingdom of England and Ire-
land. on Wednesday, the 24th inst., being the day ap-
pointed by proclamation for a General Fast and Humi-
liation before Almighty God, in order to obtain pardon
of our sins, and that we may, in the most devout and
solemn manner, send up our prayers and supplications
to the Divine Majesty for the removal of those heavy
judgments which our manifold sins and provocations
have most justly deserved, and with which Almighty
God is pleased to visit the iniquities of this land, by a
grievous scarcity and dearth of divers articles of suste-
nance and necessaries of life."
The service appointed to be used commences with
certain sentences adapted to the occasion; then follow
the usual prayers for holy days; after which, instead of
the " Venite exultemus," a form peculiarly appropriate
to the occasion is substituted. The proper psalms are
the 32d, 39th, and 86th; the first lesson is the Bth
chapter of the Ist Book of Kings, verse 22 to 24. Then
follows the "Te Deum;" the second lesson is St. Ma-
thew vi. to verse 22, after which " The Benedictus;"
and, instead of the first collect, will be said the two
collects expressly set forth. Then will follow the collect
for Ash Wednesday, and the second and third collects
at morning prayer, .and the Litany. After the Litany
will be said one of the prayers appointed to be used in
the time of dearth and famine, which prayers may be
said continually at morning and evening prayer during
the time of the present visitation. Then will follow the
three collects next appointed; then the prayer for the
Parliament, and the general thanksgiving, &c., to the
end of the morning prayer, as usual.
In the communion service, after the prayer for the
Queen, instead of the collect for the day, shall be used
that which is set forth. The epistle is Joel ii., 12; the
Gospel of St. Luke xiii , 1; then will follow the Nicene
Creed, and after the sermon. In the offertory there
are special sentences; and after the prayer for the whole
Church of Christ there are six final prayers appointed
to bdsaid.
The order for evening prayer is then appointed, which
contains all the prayers adapted to the morning service.
The proper.psalm, are the lxxxviii., xc., cxxx.; the first
lesson Jonah iii.; the second 2 Cor. ix.

_ .
The above form of prayer, printed by her Majesty's
command, may be obtained at all booksellers and other
shop for three•halfpence.
A form of prayer will shortly be issued by the Kirk
of Scotland.

DESTRUCTIVE CONFLAGRATION.—LIMERICK,THURS•
DA Y.—This morning Askeaton corn-milli were accidentally
burned down ; the chapel next to the mills was also con-
sumed. One man killed. The mills were insured only for
4,0001. They were most extensive, and their worthy pro-
prietors, N. N. Russell and Sons, afforded by them vast em-
ployment to the neighbourhood.
EFFECT OF A MANDAMUS.—FauIkner, who was
committed at the Macclesfield County Police-office, on a
capital charge of cutting and maiming the gamekeepers at
Astle, he having been engaged with others iu night poach-
ing, and who was bailed out some weeks ago, on a mandamus
from the Court of Queen's Bench, has just set out for America.
His family intend to follow him in the course of a week.
Macclesfield Courier,
THE ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.--The Lords of the
Admiralty have at length directed the extension of the South •
Western Railway subterranean electric telegraph to the Ad-
miralty at Whitehall. It will branch off in the Strand near
the company's present offices.