The Sun.
London, England, 1848-01-18 00:00:00

LONDON, TUESDA Y _EVENING, JANUARY 18, 1848,

away. On that night her boy Jem went out ;
with the prisoner, wittn he was going, saying he
should go to see him a little way home. On the fol-
lowing evening Miss Turtit came to her house to tea,
and at that time the watch was safe, hut in less than
ten minutes after she was gone it was missed, and
having no doubt that she it was who had taken it,
she gave her into custody on the following day, and
her conviction and sentence to six months' imprison -
ment followed. The testimony of this witness was
proceeded in to considerable length, and from her
further statement it appeared that though she had seen
the prisoner while the young woman was under
examination at this Court, and on the day of her
commitment for trial, he had not disclosed the fact
of her innocence, though he must have been
thoroughly convinced at the time that her son had
taken, and he had disposed of the property, and it
was not until the day of Turfit's conviction at the
Old Bailey that he had ::cknovvledged the guilt of her
SOD "Jem." She further stated, that she was cer-
tain, both from his own character and the disclo-
sures made by het son since his conviction (a part
of which was, that he had received only five shillings
out of the money received for the watch and chain)
that the prisoner had induced her son to commit the
offence.
In reply to the Magistrate, the witness said that
she heard something said by her daughter about the
confession of her son's guilt, before she gave him into
custody. Mrs. Ward further said that it was her in-
tention to haVe given the prisoner into custody as
well as her son, but as :he had stated he had given
her son the whole of the money he received for the
property, and as the officer did not think it necessary
to take him she did not persist in her original inten-
tion.
A little girl; the daughter of the last witness, cor-
roborated the statement of her mother as to the pri-
soner seeing the watch the night before it had been
stolen.
Mr. F. Pate, a shopman to Mr. Sangster, the stick-
manufacturer in Fleet- street, deposed to having pur.
chased the watch and chain alluded to from the pri-
soner, on the .16th of October last. The prisoner
told him he had got it in exchange from one of his
customers. _ . _ _

Mr. Wenman, the prisoner's father, was the next
witness, and after the oath was adminstered to him
in the usual way, the prisoner objected to his evi-
dence being received, on the ground of his being an
Atheist; but this the father solemnly denied, and
after the exchange of some angry expressions between
father and.son, the former identified the watch and
chain produced as his.
The prisoner entered into a lengthened statement in
his defence;' said that the charge was brought through
mere spite and malice, and declared that he had sold
the watch for the boy upon his representation that his
mother wanted the money for it, and that he gave the
lad the whole of the money.
Mr. ELLIOTT remarked that the evidence before him
proved the fact that the prisoner, when disposing of
the watch, bad given a false account of it, and it was
also clear that the prisoner was perfectly aware of the
fact that the young woman was perfectly innocent of
the charge alleged against her on the day she was
taken into custody, yet -it was not until after her con-
viction and sentence to six months' imprisonment that
he disclosed the extraordinary fact. Mr. Norton had
already taken some trouble in the case, and was ac-
quainted with the whole of the circumstances and he
should therefore remand the prisoner for further exa-
mination on one of his (Ur. Norton's) days.
Mr. Young, the assistant-superintendent of the
South-Western Railway Company, applied to Mr.
Elliott, at the request of the directors, for an order to
remove the prisoners, Jones and Fleming, in custody
on suspicion of causing the death of David Markland,
to Woking, so that they might be present at the coro-
ner's inquest, to be holden that evening, to suggest
any questions to the coroner or jury, or make such
statements as they might deem beneficial to them,
under the circumstances in which they were placed.

Mr. ELLIOTI replied that he had no power to give
such an order, that authority being vestel only in
the Secretary of State for the Home Department.
Mr. Young asked if it was likely the governor of
Horsemonger-lane Gaol, in whose charge the pri-
soners were, would sanction their being taken down
to Woking in proper custody, the directors being
anxious that they should be present to hear the evi-
dence against them.
Mr. ELLIOTT replied that he did not know, but
Mr. Young might wait on Mr. Knox and ask him the
question.
Mr. Young said he would do so, but soon after
returned and said the permission was refused.

THE RECENT FATAL ACCIDENT
ON THE SOUTH-WESTERN RAILWAY.
The inquest upon the body of the unfortunate man,
David Markland, who met with his death under pe-
culiarly shocking circumstances, on Friday evening,
commenced yesterday before Mr. C. J. Wood, the
Coroner for West Surrey, at the Railway Inn, near
the Woking station. .
The company was represented by Mr. Dalrymple,
one of their solicitors ; Mr. StOviri, general superinten-
dent of the • traffic; Mr. Gooch,.-superintendent of
the locomotive department; Mr. Beattie, superin-,
tendent of the carriage department ; and Mr. God-
son, superintendent of the passenger department at
Vauxhall.
Mr. Games, the soliciter,Attended to watch the
case on the part of Brownsmith, the second guard,
who was brought up on Saturday before Mr. Elliott,
at Lambeth, and discharged from custody, as there
was not, in the opinion of the worthy Magistrate,
sufficient evidence to warrant his detention.
In answer to a question from the Coroner,
Mr. Dalrymple stated that information of the ac-
cident had been given to the Railway Commissioners,
but it did not seem that any one appeared on their
behalf.
The CORONER then very briefly addressed the jury
on the object of their assembling. Having stated
such facts as have already appeared in this journal
with reference to the melancholy accident, he went on
to observe, that at this day, when railways had be-
come the ordinary and most usual means of transit
from place to place, and when hundreds and thousands
of persons were compelled daily, and almost hourly, to
place themselves in the hands of railway companies
and their officials, it became the bounden and impera-
tive duty of the companies to take every necessary
precaution, in order to prevent the occurrence of acci-
dents; it was their bounden duty to lay down certain
rules and regulations for the guidance of their ser-
vants, and it was equally the bounden duty of those
servants strictly and impli,itly to obey those rules and
regulations; and those rules and regulations should be
entrusted only to persons of known character, so-
briety, and trustworthiness. The jury must not imagine
from there observations that he was prejudging the
case, or presupposing that there hail been any
wilful neglect on the pert of the servants of the
company. He knew nothing of the case beyond
what he had seen in the newspapers. This was a
subject into which the jury would have to inquire.
If the servants of the company had disobeyed the
rules laid down for their guidance, if they had been
guilty of any wilful or culpable neglect, they would
be chargeable with an offence for which they would
be liable to be sent before another and more compe-
tent tribunal than theirs. That, however, was for
the jury to decide. He did not think it would be
possible to conclude the inquiry that evening, for,
amongst other reasons, he understood that two per-
sons had _been examined before the magistrate of
Lambeth-street, and that they had been remanded.
He thought it would be desirable that those persons
should be before the jury, and certainly before the
inquiry terminated he should make application in the
proper quarter to that effect.
The jury then proCeeded to view the body of the
deceased. On their return,
The following witnesses were examined :
Mr. David Nicholson, surveyor and builder, of
Wandsworth, having identified the' body of. the de-
ceased, said—l was a passenger by!the six o'clock
train, which left Southampton on Friday evening.
Qn coming down the inclined plane of the Frimley
embankment, about a mile and a half or two miles
from Woking, we came to a stand-still in conse-
quence of the engine being out of gear. I retained
my seat for five minutes and then got out. It was a
clear moonlight night, and we could see, I suppose,
three miles in the rear. I ascertained that Brown.
smith, the under-guard of the train, had been sent
back with a signal-lamp to stop the train behind us.
I saw the usual three signal-lamps on our train, one
centre and two side lights. I returned to my car-
riage, and, firiding that we did not get on, I again
got out and went to the locomotive, the axletree of
which was out of orde-r. I think we had been stop-
ping a quarter of an hour or. twenty minutes, when
I saw a white light approaching us at a considerable
distance. Mr. Young told me that this was probably
the goods train,.but that the guard was far enough
ahead to stop it. The t ugine-driver (Markland) was
under his engine with another man ; he appeared to
be driving a pin, connecting the coupling-iron or the
axle. Whiting, the guard, was kneeling down hold-
ing a light to Parkland, who was underneath ; the
stoker, who had before been under the locomotive,
had got out as the train was coming. I heard the
deceased say to the guard, " By the time your pas-
sengers are seated I shall be all right," and I re-
turned to my seat. I had scarcely seated myself
when a tremedous crash occurred. I was thrown
violently forward. My lip was cut, a piece of one
tooth was broken, another was thrust on one side, and
I grazed my knee. We had a great power of steam
on our engine, which may have prevented the de-
ceased from hearing the noise of the approaching
train. I afterwards saw the deceased lying across
the rails. He was quite dead. The train, after a short
delay, proceeded on its journey, and was brought to
Woking. The train that ran into us was, a long
luggage train, with a great number of carriages. The
deceased was au old servant of the company, and I k„

understand he leaves a wife and four children. I
uppose it was from five to eight minutes after the
lu.4.gage train was seen before it was into us.
By the Foreman—l have no doubt that the red
light was capable of being seen if the driver and the
stoker of the luggage train had been on the look out.
I had no means of judging whether the luggage train
had slackened its pace when I saw th lights the
second time; I thought it had stopped when I got
into the carriage a second time, or I should not, of
course, have resumed my seat. The train I was in
consisted of six or seven passenger-carriages, a truck
next the engine, and a truck, or guard's van, in the
rear.

Re• examined—l saw that Brownsmith had a light
in his hand when be left our train to meet the
luggage train; but I did not observe whether it was
a red one.

Mr. Behan, of Southampton, a passenger by the
train, had, like the last witness, resumed his seat in
the carriage when the luggage train ran into them.
The witness said he felt a sensation as if the carriage
behind him was lifted up. He was thrown forward
violently, but escaped unhurt. It was not a very clear
night, but sufficiently clear to perceive a light at a
considerable distance. . .

Mr. William Young—l am assistant-superinten-
dent of the South-Western Railway. I was travel-
ling by the train in question on Friday evening, and
Zn it stopped I got out. I saw the head guard
(Whiting) and the engine driver (Alarkland). I
inquired whether the accident would detain the train
long, and the deceased replied that it would not.
Brownsmith was sent back to stop the luggage-train,
and I assisted in holding a light to the deceased and
the stoker (Calvert), while they were under the en-
gine making the necessary repairs. The deceased
told me I had better send for a pilot engine, and I
sent off a platelayer to Woking for that purpose. We
had been waiting twenty-five minutes, I suppose, be-
fore we heard the noise of the advancing train. It
must have been a quarter of an hour or 20 minutes
previous to that that the under-guard (Brownsmith)
had been sent back with a light to stop it. The
usual red signal lamps were attached to the last
carriage of our train. When I heard the train ap-
proach I requested Mr. Ward, a pay-clerk at the
Nine-elms station to run down the line, and
he did so. I followed him. I got some little
way down the line, and then heard a shouting,
and then the whistle of the approaching loco-
motive. The luggage train went by us; it was
going at a great rate. I will not undertake to say at
what speed it was going. I was about fifty, yards
from the passenger train when the luggage train ran
into it. The deceased was killed by the collision.
The train was due at Woking at eight o'clock ; it was
as near eight as possible when the train came to a
stand-still at Frimley ;we were then about two or
three miles from the Woking station. We were not
much after time. A copy of the printed rules of the
company was produced by the witness, from which it
appeared that the under-guard (Brownsmith), who
was sent to stop the luggage train, was bound to have
been provided with six fog signals, and to have used
them. This was not done, Brownsmith having ad-
mitted to witness that he had not used the detonating
signals. The persons travelling with a luggage train
are the guard and breaksman, the driver and stoker.
The guard should be in the carriage next the engine ;
the breaksman in a carriage at the rear.
The CORONER—What are the regulations as to
keeping a look out ?
Witness—The engine-driver and fireman must
both keep a sharp look out forward, and use their
breaks and stop the engine:as soon as a signal is given.
Every guard, by rule 30, is also bound to keep a
good look out, and be prepared, on signal, to apply
the breaks. William Jones was the engine-driver of
the luggage-train, and Lewis Fleming the stoker.
The guard's name was Fortescue, and the breaksman
was William Hudd.

The CORONER said it was important that Jones
and Fleming should be present, either as witnesses in
this inquiry, or to hear the evidence that might be
given affecting themselves. He did not think it right
to proceed further until he had made an application
urging the necessity of their being present.
The jury concurred ip the view taken by the
Coroner.

Mr. Young, in reply to the foreman, said that
when he saw the luggage train epproaching, the
stoker and driver were both standing on the engine,
and looking ahead.
A juryman—Supposing the guard of the luggage-
trrin had seen Brownsmith's signal lamp; how would
he have communicated the fact of the danger to the
engineman and stoker ?
Witness—The guard has a signal lamp, and if the
fireman and stoker kept a good look out, as they
ought to do, they_would see the lamp, and stop the
train.

It was stated that a period of six weeks or two
months must elapse before Fortescue would be in a fit
state to be examined.
The CORONER said it would be his duty to adjourn
the inquiry from time to time until the jury had
before them every person whose evidence they thought
to be material.
The inquest was then adjourned until ten o'clock
on Thursday morning next.
(LATEST PARTICULARS.)
Upon making inquiry at half-past eight o'clock last
evening in the accident ward at St. Thomas's Hospi-
pital, the reporter was informed that the unfortunate
man Thomas Fortescue, the guard of the goods train,
had been in an insensible state at various intervals
during the day from the severe loss of blood resulting
from the injury to his arm, and that it was deemed
necessary to delay,the amputation of the limb (which
was most fearfully crushed) until he had somewhat
rallied. However, at eight o'clock last evening he
had much improved, and seemed to have rallied con-
siderably.
At the time above-named Mr. M'Murdo, one of the
senior surgeons to the hospital, who had the care of
the unfortunate man, discovered that mortification cf
the arm had presented itself, and such being the case,
the removal of the limb was considered absolutely ne-
cessary, as the only chance of saving his life.
The poor fellow readily assented to the operation,
which was performed on the bed in the ward by Mr.
M'Murdo, who took the arm off just belOw the shoul-
der joint. Fortescue bore the operation with much
fortitude. The other injuries about his person are
progressing favourably.
At nine o'clock last night he was of course in a
very weak and exhausted condition, and at present he
remains in a very uncertain and precarious state.
The man Thomas Calvert is as well as can be ex-
pected, and is going on comfortably. The former
has a wife and five children dependent on him for
support, and his wife was only confined three days
before the accident, thus leaving the family in the
greatest distress.
The two house surgeons (Messrs. Hubbard and
Hartnall) remain in constant attendance on the un-
fortunate men, and tie whole of the officials con-
nected with the institution are unremitting in their
several duties.

NAVAL INTELLIGENCE.

PORTSMOUTII, SUNDAY. —We have received letters
from the squadron at Malta, dated January 2, each
descriptive of the awful loss of the Avenger and her
crew, but they throw no more light upon the cause of
the melancholy catastrophe than the documents fur-
nished by the Admiralty.
The arrival of the packet puts us in possession
of letters from our friends in Sir Charles Napier's
squadron :
" Dec.l3l.—The English packet of the 27th arrived.
"Jan. 2.—The Scourge steam-sloop, Commander
Wingrove, left to- day for Madeira with dispatches for
the Queen Dowager.
"Jan. 3 —The squadron shifted topgallantmasts
and jib-booms; the Howe, 120, Captain Sir James
Stirling, performed the manceuvre in 49 minutes ;
the Queen, 110, Captain Bruce, 72 minutes ; Cano-
pus, 84, Captain Moresby, 76 minutes ; the St. Vin -
cent, 120, Captain Dacres (flag), 89 minutes. After-
wards unbent sails. _ _ _

" Jan. 4.-lie Alert, 6, Commander Hugh
Dunlop, after a refit, sailed this day for the coast of
Africa.

"Jan. .s.—The packet arrived from Gibraltar with
the sad intelligence of the loss of the Avenger, com-
manded by Sir Charles Napier's step-son. The
awful fate of the captain and crew has created a
mournful impression amongst us ; few of us but had
friends in the vessel ; the admiral's feelings I will not
touch upon. We are all too much distressed to offer
comment. You will, doubtless, have received ere this
the particulars of the dreadful wreck from your Malta
correspondent.
" 7th. A Court-martial assembled this morning at
nine o'clock, by signal-gun from the flagship, to try
the carpenter of the Amphion, screw-ship, 36, Captain
W. J. Williams, on a charge of drunkenness. The
Court comprised Captain Fairfax Moresby, C. 8., Pre-
sident ; Captains Sir James Stirling, S. C. Dacres,
and W. H. Hall. After a patient investigation of all
the circumstances pro. and con., which lasted five
hours, the Court declared the charge not proved, and
recorded the prisoner fully acquitted.
"9th. The Terrible and Stromboli steam-frigates
are daily looked for. Conmander Rogers, late First
Lieutenant of the St. Vincent, goes home in this day's
packet. Squadron all well.
"We shall be all adrift one of these days for the
want of serviceable anchors to hold us."

The Stromboli steam-sloop, Commander Lord A.
W. Beauclerk, remains at Spithead.
The Styx steam-sloop, Commander Chads, employed
in the suppression of the slave trade, made her 13th
capture on the Bth of November, and sent her into St.
Helena fur adjudication.

The following are the promotions and appointments
of the past week :

PROMOTION.
Lieutenant—Thomas E. L. Moore (1843), of the
Plover, to the rank of Commander, and to proceed in
command of that vessel round Cape Horn, and to
Behring's Straits, in quest of Sir John Franklin's ex-
pedition.