The Sun.
London, England, 1847-01-06 00:00:00

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FATAL ACCIDENT on the NORTH-
WESTERN RAILWAY.
A melancholy accident, attend“l with the loss of tv,'o
lives, took place yesterday at the. King's Langley sterion
of the North-Western Railway, 21 miles from .London.
A waggon train, laden with coals, from the inid:and
counties, was on its way up the line, and had stopped at
the King's Langley station about one o'clock cn Tueneday
morning, to leave some of the waggons. While the
latter were being "shunted" a luggage train, from
Birmingham, was heard approaching. The danger
lamp at the station was duly displayed, and the ,ail
lamp and side lights of the last waggon, or " break." as
it is called, of the coal train were also properly affixed.
The night was extremely foggy, and the policeman on
duty at the King's Langley station supposing, from the
undiminished speed of the advancing goods train, that
the engine-drivers had not seen the lights, ran
down the line and waved his lantern. These
signals were seen when about 50 yards off by
the engine-driver and stoker of the first, locomotive. er
"pilot-engine" (No. 16) of the goods train, who, per-
ceiving that a collision was inevitithle, hestily shut off the
ste am, sounded the steam whistle as a warning to the
driver and stoker of the second locomotive (No. 115),
and saved their own lives by jtimping A rt.& mend,lls
collision took place almost ins; waiy after wards. I lie
luggage train, wish all tla. impetus imparted to it by a
speed of 15 miles an hour and the weight of 20 or 30
carriages, ran into the coal waggoos, smashed the break,
rid other waggons, aid strew.ot large heaps of coats
upon and about the-line. The locomotive and tender of
tt.e pilot engine became a shape-less roans crow the force
of the collision. The men who lost their lives were tl.e
engine-driver and Et, her of the second locomotive. From
the position in which their disfigured remains were
tound, it appeared that they must have been sitting
down, one on each side of the engine, aid it is also con-
jectured, that worn out by fatigue, they were probably
bath a sleep. Before they could have been apprised of
their danger by the crash, the tender behind them,
by the prodigious momentum of the weight of the
train, was lifted up and driven into the part of the
engine where they sat. The unhappy men were
crushed beneath the superincumbent mass, and in this
helpless position they were miserably scalded and burnt
by the steam and fire of the boilers and furnace. Escape
was impossible. The steam rushing out on all sides
with an immense noise prevented any one from coming
near the sufferers ; and, with limbs mutilated and
mangled under the tender, the pour fellows could do no-
thing for their own relief. About an hour or an hour
and a half elapsed before they could be rescued from
their frightful position, by which time their features
could scarcely be recognised, so blackened and charred
were they from the effects of the fire, &c. The driver
and stoker of the pilot-engine were but little injured.
The York mail train, which was due at King's Lang-
ley about a quarter to four A.M„ and the Liverpool mail
train, due at a quarter past four A.M., were in conse-
quence of this accident delayed at Boxmoor until thirty
minutes after seven, when, the down line having
been cleared of the debris of the broken carriages,
&c., these trains proceeded up this line as far as
Watford. The early morning trains leaving London at
thirty minutes after six o'clock, seven o'clock, thirty
minutes after seven o'clock, and thirty minutes after
eight o'clock, were also detained for a considerable
period. Mr. Miller, the station-master at King's Lang-
ley, lost no time after the accident in repairing to Wat-
ford for assistance, and a number of hands having been
obtained, and the greatest energy displayed, both lines
were cleared about ten o'clock, and the trains ran as
usual without interruption. The names of the men were
William Alsop and Mather.
The bodies were removed to the village of King's
Langley, where an inquest was to be held this morning
(Wednesday), at eleven o'clock. The attention of the
coroner's jury, so far as the railway company are con-
cerned, will, we imagine, be mainly directed to two
points; firstly, whether the engine-drivers of the luggage
train were duly apprised at Rugby that a coal-waggon
train was before them on the line; and, secondly, whether
a sufficient force was employed at Langley to "shunt"
the coal waggons without unnecessary and dangerous
delay.

The proximate cause of the accident appears to have
been the fog, which prevented the engine-driver, from
seeing the lamp signals. It is worthy of the considera-
tion of the directors whether, on occasions like the
present, when the policemen hear the approach of a
train under circumstances which render the ordinary
signals of danger valueless, they might not introduce
with advantage the detonating fog signals, which explode
with the noise of a cannon, and may be heard at a great
distance.

Since writing the above, we have received a commu-
nication from an official source, which states that the
accident " could not have occurred had the signals which
were given at the Boxmoor station and responded to by
the engineman of the leading engine of the goods' train
been properly attended to, and the printed regulations of
the company duly observed."

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