The Sun.
London, England, 1870-09-28 00:00:00

DRAGGED TO DEATH.

On Monday night, a master bleacher, named Henry
Lomax, whose works are situated at Ainsworth Val-,
between Bolton and Bury, was returning home from
business at Bolton, when his horse ran away, throwing
him out of the gig, and dragged him to his home.
Nearly every bone in his body was smashed. Deceased
leaves a widow and two children.

THE CAPTAIN COURT MARTIAL.
(CENTRAL PRERS.TELEGRAIL)

The inquiry into the loss of the Captain was held yester-
day on board the Duke of Wellington, at Portsmouth.
Admiral Sir James Hope, the president, on opening, said
that owing to the importance of the investigation the same
facilities would be given to the press as at the Wilmshurst
trial.

May, the gunner, was examined, and said he ho-
neyed the cause of the loss to be undue or overpressure
of canvas ; the ship, at the same time, making a very
heavy roll by starboard with much water over the side
of the main deck. Possibly the wind may
have acted on the under side of the hurricane deck. The
sea most likely struck her before she recovered the heavy
roll. She never stopped heeling till she foundered. The
canvas was a heavy press for a heavy gale, and he should
think that with the same canvas in a ship of the Captain's
size the spars and sails would be more likely to suffer than
the ship, The Captain's greatest roll was fifteen degrees,
and the greatest heel the witness knew of vas from eight
to ten degrees. He never heard that that there was a
degree of heel under which the vessel had been unsafe.
His feeling was that the ship was hove over by a heavy
sea, as well as by the press of canvas. When the vessel
foundered she had from 200 to 400 tons on board. Mr.
Myers was washed away when they had left the ship.
Charles Tregunna steered the boat with an oar for ten
hours. Witness and others tried to relie-7 e him, but could
not steer so well. Witness had no complaint to make as
to the conduct of the survivors. When Captain Bur-
goyne was in the sea he begged of witness and another to
assist him on to the bottom of the pinnace. They saved
him once. Witness was on board the Captain in a gale
in May. There was then a long sea. When the Captain
was lost it was a short sea. In May the Captain had the
wind on her bow, and did not heel so much as the night
she foundered. There was steam in four boilers, but
witness did not know if the engines were going. When
witness last saw the Captain she was as nearly bottom up-
wards as possible. In conclusion, the witness bore testi-
mony to the excellent manner in which all the survivors
behaved.

James Ellis, gunner, said : On the night of the loss the
middle watch was mustered under the bridge of the hur-
ricane deck. The watch was not really relieved. The
Captain rolled very little. He heard the order given to
let go the topsail sheets. They never were let go,
but were belayed at the fore bits. About ten
minutes after " little one bell" the ship capsized.

lle was in the lee gangway when she upset. There was
no rigging or anything that could entangle him. Be ore
being called to muster witness was ordered by Captain
Burgoyne to cover the turrets. The guns and. turrets
were reported to witness as secure at eight o'clock.
Lewis Werry, captain of the foretop, said the vesse
'heeled very gradually. When in the sea he heard a roar,
and on looking rouud he saw the Captain bottom upper-
most. According to this heel of the ship he did not con-
sider double reefed topsails too much. The yards.were
braced very much. He considered the ship to be over-
masted, and believed the reason that Captain Burgoyne
would not jump from the launch was that he would not
when there were two men on her.
James Harvey thought the hurricane deck afforded
room for the working of the ship. George Bride, the
coxswain of the pinnace, was also of opinion that the
ship was overmasted. The wind suddenly increased.
Witness had been in the Monarch, and considered that
she could have carried head-reefed top-sails in a squall
such as the Captain foundered in, but not fore-sails in
addition.
Charles Tregunna believed that the September gale
was heavier than that in May. Robert Wsrd gave
corroborative evidence.
Lieutenant Bolitho, of the Agincourt,was near the Cap-
tain. The weather was squally about eleven. He had
his topsails lowered, and had hands by the lee sheets
and topsails, and increased the speed of the en2ines.
Before the topsails were lowered the Agincourt cer-
tainly was not heeling more than six degrees. Witness
did not consider from the state of the weather at twelve
there was risk to any ship in the fleet.
Staff Commander Gibbey, of the Bellerophon, said
at 12.25 there was a nasty cross sea, but not
a particularly heavy one. If the Bellerophon had been
in the trough of the saa, he did not apprehend that she
would have suffered any inconvenience.
Other evidence of a similar description having been
given, the eourt adjourned. It is expected that important
evidence will be given as to construction.

CRYSTAL PALACE.—One Shilling day, Tuesday,
September 27, 1870. Admission by season tickets, 1,887 ;
do. on payment, 2,661; total visitors, 4,548.
FATAL FIRE IN THE CITY. Yesterday a fire
broke out in the City, which resulted in the deaths of
four persons. The fire occurred on the premises of Mr.
Bush, Liverpool-street, Bishopsgate Without. The flames,
in extending, reached bottles of inflammable matter on
the premises, which increased the intensity of the heat.
In the first floor, cutting and preparing labels, were two
females and a lad, who were burnt to death. A man
who tried to extricate the sufferers was suffocated, and a
third woman who was on the premises, was rescued, but
it is thought she has received mortal injuries.
MESSRS. MILNER'S SAFES AND THE BRITISH ASSOCIA-
TION.—In compliance with a request from a numerous section of
the British Association, some interesting experiments were
yesterday made 'with Messrs. Thomas Milner and Son's fire and
thief resisting safes, at the Phcenix Safe Works, Liverpool.
Between three and four hundred spectators (including members
of the British Association) witnessed the experiments, and even
the most prejudiced could not help confessing that everything
was conducted with the utmost fairness and impartiality, and
that the results of the tests were highly satisfactory in every
way. In the first instance an ordinary cast-iron safe, without
any fire-resisting chambers, and one of Messrs. Milner's ordinary
fire-resisting safes, of the weakest quality, were tested in a large
fire Composed of coal and wood, the result being, after two hours
and a half, that the former was entirely destroyed, while the
latter remained intact, a £lOO note and a large number of
circulars which were placed in its interior being wholly
untouched. In a second test one of Messrs. Milner's safes,
containing a £lOO note, several gold watches, and a
number of circulars, was consigned to a terrific fire, in which
it remained for five hours and a quarter without any effect of the
flames—save a dulness in the colour of the iron—being visible,
while the contents were perfectly unharmed. Afterwards there
was a testing of the locks, and those of ordinary use were shat-
tered to pieces from the effects of gunpowder, while Messrs.
Milner's double patent gunpowder-proof and thief-proof locks
defied the effects of gunpowder and remained perfectly secure,
after all the powder (sixty grains) which could be introduced
into them had been exploded. A number of attempts were
also made to wedge open a safe, but without the slightest effect.
Indeed, the whole of the experiments (which were conducted
under the personal supervision of Mr. D. R. Ratcliff, one of the
firm) were of au interesting and highly-satisfactory character,
and proved that for every purpose, and under any circumstances,
Messrs. Milners's safes are perfectly reliable.—" Liverpool Daily
Post."