The Sun.
London, England, 1841-12-28 00:00:00

EVENING SUN

REAT WESTERN RAIL-
WAY ACCIDENT.

(Continued from our Afternoon Edition of yesterday.)
Thomas Goodchild, in continuation, said—The
three last waggons Were on the rails, but all the
rest were thrown off them. The former waggons
cut a groove through the soil, and the mud was
up to the bed of the others. The waggons were
covered I,uagage-waggons.
John Keep—l saw a slip from the bridge
about a fortnight ago. I am in the habit of
going over the bridge every day, and returning
every night. I cannot fix the precise place.
The CORONER said it was clear that the witness
had nothing additional to add. It had been ad-
mitted that there had been some slips near the
spot, and it was unnecessary to multiply evidence
on that point unless the Jury required it.
Edwin Gosling—l have nothing to state but
that I saw two slips, one exactly opposite tke
other, and one precisely in the spot where the ac-
cident occurred. I had seen it before, within a
week or ten days, and the day before the acci-
dent occurred, I saw that the turf was cracked,
ax the earth bulged out below, about the middle
of the slope, There was none of the mould
upon the rails. I was on the wooden bridge on
horseback. I saw no one at work, but men might
have been at work without my knowledge. The
slips appeared to me in precisely the same state
as when I first saw them. It was about half-
past twelve o'clock en Thursday last when I
passed.
Mr. Brunel had no question to ask the witness.
A Juror asked whether he thought there was
any danger, but the witness said he could give
no opinion on that point. If he thought there
had been any immediate danger, he should have
gone and informed the servants of the Company.
Thomas Stoles Salmon, Esq., of Sonning, said
he had nothing to state further than what had
been deposed to by the previous witness. In
the last fortnight or thereabouts he had ob-
served the appearance of a slip in that part
of the bank where the accident took place.
The embankment appeared to him to bulge;
he observed it on several occasions, and lie
went one day nearer, in order that he might
see it more closely. He then saw that the ground
had an appearance of bulging, and the moment
he heard of the accident he said, "That must be
the spot where I saw the ground bulge." He saw
no men at work there.
John Plant—l saw the slip about a fortnight
ago. I don't know whether anything has been
done to it or not, as I did not see it again till
after the accident. I saw it two or three days
before the accident, and it was then in the same
state. lam assistant gamekeeper to Mr. Palmer.
I never observed any watchman near the place
where the slip occurred.
By a Juror—l saw the luggage train pass the
following morning after the accident. The pas-
sengers were then in the eighth and ninth wag-
gons from the engine.
Mr. Gosling said there were six or seven other
witnesses to speak to the same point, but he did
not-think it would be necessary to examine them.
The CORONER said, it was for the Jury to decide
whether they should examine any additional
witnesses.
The Foreman said there was one witness whom
he wished to have called.
Walter Bridges—l am employed upon the line
at the Sonning cutting, by Mr. W. Berkham.
saw a slip there about a tbrtnight or three weeks
ago, just where the accid,mt occurred. Four
men and myself were employed to repair it.
We cut a (ha n round it and put some tiles
down. It was made secure as we thought. I
was tour nights there, wi:h another man, Nvliile
it was under repair. 1 acted with him as a
watt h.nan through the cutting. I was not watch-
in ; the night of Cie accident. T.iere is a 'mi-
lk :man there during the day-time.
By the Foreman—l had left off watching a
week before the accident. We gave up ti.e
watch because we considered it quite safe. My
employer never said that he would have no
watch there when I called for my wages. We
never had a word on the subject.
In answer to the Coroner, Mr. Sadgrove, the
Superintendent of the Railway station, stated
that there was no nightly- watch. There was a
policeman on duty from six in the morning to
seven at night.
The Foreman said it would be desirable to as-
certain the width and depth of the cutting and
other particulars connected with it.
Mr. Brunel said lie would procure that infor-
mation for him, and in the meantime,
Joseph Collard, Superintendent of the Police
and watch from Paddington to Hay-lane and
Cirencester, was examined.—He said, I employ
policemen on the whole of the line by day, and
at the different stations, crossings, and gates by
night. The police -are put on at six in the morning.
There are two between Reading and Twyford.
Gregory would be the policeman on duty at that
part of the line where the accident took place.
Gregory would come on duty at seven o'clock, I
think. He leaves the Reading station at eight
o'clock. He remains on duty till ten at night.
The other man who starts from Twyford goes on
duty at six, acrd comes down the line to within
about a quarter of a mile of where the accident
took place. His beat extends from Twyford to
Mustard-lane Bridge. The Reading policeman
would not get to the place of the accident till
about nine o'clock.
By Mr. Saunders—l am now talking of the
regular police of the line. I am aware, also,
that the engineer, Mr. Berkham, employs a watch-
man to go through the cutting the first thing in
the morning.
Thomas Hardy Berkham re-examined.—l
employ a man named Higgs, to go over about a
mile and a half of the line through the Sonning
cutting. He does that the first thing in the
morning-. He has in almost every instance
walked over that portion of the line previously
to the passing of the luggage train which reaches
Reading about a quarter past seven. In this in-
stance the luggage train was earlier than usual.
Tl.e CORONER thought it would be better to
hear the statement of the man himself as to that
point.
By the Foreman—l am assistant engineer to
Mr. Brunel. I was examined on Friday last. I
think part of the land behind the railing of Orr
line has subsided.
The CORONER thought it would be better to
read over the evidence given by the witness on
Friday, which was accordingly done.
Mr. Palmer said as he passed on Friday, about
half-past twelve o'clock, along the embankment
he could state that there had been no subsidence
of the earth outside the railway on his property.
George Higg5.....4 am employed by Mr.
Berkham to watch the Sonning cutting, and to
repair the slips. AK
portion of the line in-
cludes where the accident occurred, and up to
Mustard-lane Bridge. I always go over the line
twice a day, and sometimes four or five times. I
inspected it on Thursday last, the Last time, about
half-past five in the afternoon. Everything was
safe. There was a then erfectly place close to
where the accident occurred in which a trifling
slip had taken place about a fortnight or
three weeks previously. The last slip
came
right from the top. The previous one had been
repaired, and tiles laid in to drain it. Three or
four tiles were lying during its repair on the side
of the bank for some days.
. When I pied
at
half-past five, it was too dark to see distinctly.
I passed that way at four' o'clock the same
afternoon. There was some water running
down, and I turned it into the man-hole.
There had been a good deal of rain during the
day. I generally go once along the line, and
again along the top of the embankinent.. At
four o'clock I was on the top, and when I came
near the cutting I went down. I went three
times up and three times down the line on Thurs-
day last. If we see any occasion for it, we have
the line watched at night. About three weeks
ago, during the wet weather, some trifling slips
came down, and a man was sent through the cut-
ting at night. He was on duty for three or four
By Mr. Saunders—l pass through the cutting
the first thing every morning as far as Mustard-
lane Bridge. I generally do that between six and
seven o'clock. Ido that before the six o'clock
Paddington train comes down, and it is generally
down before the luggage train. I was corning
along the line when the accident occurred, hut I
had not got so far. I was a little later than usual
that morning. The luggage train was earlier
than usual.
By the Foreman—l was never warned to be
on the line before seven. the luggage-train
sometimes comes into Reading between eight and
nine—it is very irregular. My time to put the
men to Work at this season is seven o'clock.
By the CORONER—If I see any thing amiss on
the line, I have no signal to make to the engine
driver. I must have run to meet them, and held
up my hat to them, and called out. The police-
man is generally in that part of the line, and I
would have gone to him. The way to stop a
train is to hold up both arms. I have stopped
trains in that way. I could see the train a mile
off, but the engineer could not see me till he
came close to me.
The Jury expressed a wish to hear the evi-
dence of Berkliani, as given by him on Friday last,
read over. The Coroner accordingly read over
his evidence.
Mary Sweetland—l am the wife of Charles
Sweetland, a stone mason of Gloucester. I have

, seen the dead Lseio. One of them is that of my
son, Charles Griffith Sweetland, a stone mason,
aged 21. He was employed in the repairs of the
Temple Church, and was coming to spend the
Christmas with his friends. I know also the
bodies of Jabez Clee and George Mabbott.
It was stated that two of the bodies had not been
identified, nor was there any witness in attendance
who could give any evidence with regard tnthem.
Mr. Saunders- said he now proposed to eiainine
Mr. Brunel, the engineer, as to the state of th 4
cutting and the slips.
Isambert Kingdom Brunel—l am chief en-
gineer on the Great Western Railway. With
respect to the system of watching along the line,
six different assistants have instructions to ap-
point night watchmen whenever there is any
appearance of danger. In case of slips in
the cuttings when they are superficial, it
is found better to drain them well, and
to remove the loose earth and leave the
velips open to dry. These are watched for
a time, and if it be found that no further move-
ment takes place within a short time, experience
has shown that this draining is sufficient. In this
particular case of the Sonning cutting I saw a
small slip about three weeks ago. I enquired of
Mr. Berkham what had beenidone, and I found
it had been drained, and as I observed that it
was only a superficial one, I did not consider
that there was any danger. I passed many times
since and have not observed any change. On Fri-
day morning I arrived on the spot, a few hours
• after the accident, and I examined the slip that
had then taken place. It was a totally distinct
slip, and I pointed out to Mr. Berkham the:drain
that had been cut round the former slip, and
which was quite distinct from the new one. The
disturbed ground of the new slip tsuched the old
slip, but the slips themselves had begun in dif-
ferent parts of the slope and in different strata.
There were some questions the Foreman wished
me to answer, which I shall now state. The width
of the cutting at bottom is 40 feet, the depth
is 57 feet, the width of the top of the
cutting is 268 feet. The width of the spoil
bank on the south side is about 100 feet,
from the north side about 67 ; but of course
it varies. From the bottom of the spoil
bank to the edge of the slope is about 15 feet.
It varies, however, because in some places it is
20 and 25 feet from the edge. The spoil bank is
not 20 feet high, and 30 feet from the edge of the
slope. That soil would not stand at such a
slope; it would not even stand at two to one.
From the railway to the edge of the slope is
about 12 or 13 feet. It would require 40 feet dis-
tance to have the spoil bank 20 feet high. I
heard something of the spoil bank having moved,
but I examined it carefully, and I find it has not
moved. There is plenty of room to walk between
the spoil bank and the top of the slope. lam
afraid of the weight of the spoil bank having any
effect on its slopes. There is no part of the spoil
bank so close to the top of the slope as 10 feet.
I examined the line inunediatOy after the acci-
dent, and can speak with certainty. Thirty feet
from the edge of the slope there is not more than
six or eight feet in height of spoil bank.
There have been discussions here and elsewhere
as to the best place for the passenger trucks,
and the reason for putting them next to the
engine has been, that the dangers to which a
luggage train is considered most liable, are its
being overtaken by another train in consequence
of its being unavoidably less punctual than the
other trains, and the danger arising from break-
ins- of axles in the luggage train, in either of
which cases the front of the train is the best.
The reason why the passenger trucks were put
in the middle of the train next day was by my
directions, merely as a concession to an opinion
which I knew was frequently expressed. On
the evening in question we discussed the ques-
tion with Mr. Saunders and Mr. Clarke, and we
had some doubts about the propriety of taking
any passengers, but it being Christmas-eve, we
knew there would be many applications, and
athough we retained our previous opinion as to
the front being the safest part, we made the alte-
ration in deference to public opinion.
By a Juror.—There have been instances of
luggage waggons laving been ovetaken by other
trains. Our feelings and interests are of course
involved in providing the best place for the pas-
sengers. The axes of luggage trains are much
more liable to break than the passenger-trains.
Placing the carriages for passengers behind
would be a very dangerous thing.
Mr. Saunders said, I can assure the jury that
many accidents have been avoided by placing
the passengers in the luggage-trains in front.
There are some trains which go at eighteen
miles an hour, and others which go at forty
miles, and there are cuttings and curves in the
line in which it is almost impossible, notwith-
standing every precaution that is taken, to pre-
vent a quick train running into a slow one. We
can have no motive but that of the public safety
and convenience, and it is not later than yester-
day- that the Government Railway Inspector dis-
tinctly told me that he fully concurred in our
views. The luggage-train should start at half=
past four o'clock in the morning, • but it seldom
gets away before five o'clock, and it puts aside
generally at Stough, to allow the six o'clock
quick train to pass it. Every precaution that
could possibly be thought of to ensure safety
and punctuality has been adopted by the Di-
rectors. If it was to be continued on my respon-
sibility, I would again have the passengers in the
luggage-train placed in front.
The CORONER then proceeded to read over the
evidence to the Jury, and pointed out the evi-
dence that had been given with regard to slips
having taken place in the immediate neighbour-
hood of where the accident occurred, and left it
to them to say whether the evidence on that
point did not refer to the slip that had been
noticed and repaired by the Company. Having
commented on the evidence, the Coroner con-
eluded by observing, that as in the present
melancholy case a great deal of excitement
existed, he would call upon them to clear their
minds of any prejudice that might exist, and to
address themselves solely to the evidence that
had been taken during the investigation. They
had heard the explanations of Mr. Brunel, and
the observations that had been made by Mr.
Saunders, and they would give them such weight
as they considered them entitled to.
The Jury then, at a quarter past three o'clock,
withdrew to another room.
The following is a copy of a letter which was
found in the pocket of one of the deceased,
whose name is supposed to be Pooke :
" To John Pooke, Mr. Higgs, No. 18, Panton-
street, Haymarket, London," and bears the Exe-
ter post-mark of October 26, 1841.
" Stoke Cannon, near Exeter,
"Oct. 26, 1841.
" Dear John—l am very sorry that illness
should have been the cause of your not writing
so soon as you would otherwise. It would always
give me great pleasure to hear from you, and to
to find that you are in good health, and doing
well. Mine, with great reason for thankfulness,
is as well, or rather better than can be expected
at my advanced time of life- William and Ann
Kent are in good health, and so, as far as I
know, are all your other relations in this neigh-
bourhood. Your not hearing from your mother
may be owing to your not writing to let her
know how to direct her letter, which I would
recorntnend you, as a dutiful son, to do. All
here desire to send you their kind love, and be-
lieve me to remain, dear John, your affectionate
grandmother, " MARY POOKE."
Upon his person was found a hair-comb and
brush, a gold pin, and a box key; in cash,
18s- 6d. in silver, and 3ial. in copper. There
ly.as also found a railway-ticket from London to
Bridgewater. •He was dressed in a drab great
coat, a black frock coat, four waistcoats, a pair
—opo
aidtrhhaaoieerrrkfooosttftrloooeweNrys moleskins
ar
ns
pt lay
ior
onfe
gc kl evr
ec sh. iefs , a shirt, a
is a description of the dress
17g erson who has not been identified :
trowsers over a pair of black
trowsers, a drab great coat, black frock coat,
waistcoat, and stock,
glovfeosi;nd,in move stockings,
Guernsey frock, two shirts
two pair of braces,
ayn,d3sohso.
gold,in
In his pockets werees.
os. in silver, and. aid •
.in copper. Besides
these were found an old-fashioned silver watch,
maker's name John Roe, Coventry, No. 107,
steel chain and seal and two keys,
and two tickets
from London to Cirencester. On the seal was—
" Hear, see, and be silent."
After the Jury had retired soiree tune the Su-
perintendent of Police came into the room, and
- stated that john James, the brother-in-law of one
whose body had not been id •
of the persons identi-
fied, had seen and recognised it. He said the
name was William Thomas, aged 32, stone-
mason,fr Malcot, of Newgate_
and worked for
street, at the Temple Church. He was a native
Stroud, Gloucester_
shire,
Leonard's Stanley, near
shire, and a widower, with one child.
The witness was then examined, and made a
statement to that effect.
Mr. C. Russell, M.P., the Chairman of the
Board of Directors, and some other gentlemen
connected with the Company, applied to the
Coroner for instructions as to the disposal of the
dead bodies. The friends of three or four of tine
persons who had been killed had applied for_ the
bodies, in order to take them to the country for

interment. Mr. Bully, the surgeon, had been
consulted, and he bad said that, with the excep-
tion of one, the bodies were in such a state of
decomposition, that it would be advisable to
have them moved as soon as possible; and, with