The Sun.
London, England, 1870-06-02 00:00:00

TWENTY. I'ERSONS DROWNED.

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A terrible accident has just occured in Switzerland.
The Choral Society of Vevey had been to Gruyeres
to give a concert for the benefit of an orphan asylum,
and were returning by the valley of Allieres, when
some of them proposed an excursion on a lake which
exists on the plateau of Jaman. That place is cele-
brated for a delicious trout, which the inhabitants fish
for from a species of raft. Upon one of these about 30 of
the company embarked and had attained the middle of the
lake, which is not above 600 yards in diameter, although
very deep, when their frail support became dislocated, and
sank with them. Although nearly all were good swimmers
20 were drowned.

BRUTAL MURDER AT WAKEFIELD.
About half-past seven on Tuesday morning a woman
was found, quite dead, with her throat cut, in a thorough
fare called Hudson's-yard, Wakefield. The victim turned
out to be a woman who has only lately come into the
town, whose name, from letters found upon her, ap-
pears to be Emma M`Lavery. A great deal of mystery
surrounds the affair, and the best idea of the facts con-
nected with the case will be obtained from the evi-
dence which was given at the inquest held on the body
the same night, before Mr. Taylor, the district coroner.
Mrs. Harriet Padley, wife of a lodging-house keeper
living in Providence-street, said that about seven or
eight weeks ago the deceased, whom she knew only by the
name of Emma, or Ellen, took lodgings with them along
with a man, who was a plumber, and who was said to be her
husband. At the end of a week the deceased dislocated her
right shoulder, and was taken to the workhouse, and her
husband left the town. The deceased came out of the work-
house on Thursday, and remained at witness's house until
Sunday. In the afternoon of that day she went out, and
did not return until Monday morning, about eight
o'clock; she was then tipsy. Witness told her that she
could not do with people who stayed out at nights, and
sent her about her business. The deceased and Welsh, a
female lodger, left together, and she did not see them
afterwards. Witness had not seen the deceased's husband
after his wife went into the workhouse. He left her be-
cause he said he could not do any longer with the latter's
dissipated habits.
Welsh deposed that the deceased took her to a public-
house in Kirkgate, and paid for two gills of beer, and then
left to keep an appointment with a man who she said was
a widower with two children. Witness, after getting
drunk, and being locked out, spent the night in an out-
house. On emerging from the place in the morning, she
met a navvie, named James Johnson, who pawned his
shirt to pay for some beer for her, and on whose head were
the marks of some cuts, about the infliction of which he
told her various stories. The man had been apprehended,
and she identified him at the police-station.
William Sims, a private in the 25th Regiment, who,
with some ten members of the same regiment, had escorted
a number of prisoners from Portsmouth to Wakefield, de-
posed that he and Corporal Southam left Johnson and a
woman, who was identified as the deceased, standing near
the parish church at half-past twelve on Monday night.
Dr. Wade, the police surgeon, who saw the body, stated
that in the neck was a deep wound, some four and a half
inches long, penetrating to the bone. The wound must
have been inflicted by some one from behind with a sharp
instrument, at one stroke, although from marks on the
vertebrae, the weapon had been inserted at least twice
afterwards. From the small quantity of blood at the
place where the body was found, and the appearance of
the body, he was of opinion that the body had been
dragged there after death. The woman was between
two and three months advanced in pregnancy. The per-
son who committed the murder must necessarily have
been covered with blood, and the drops of blood on
Johnson's smock were fully accounted for by the wound
on the head.

Field, a police-officer, saw the deceased in Westgate,
followed by Johnson. He told the woman to go to her
lodging, and sent the man off in an opposite direction,
towards Sharlston, where he said he lived.
The inquest was then adjourned.

EMBEZZLEMENT OF £lOOO BY A MANCHES TER
CLERK.—At the Manchester City Polic-court yesterday
Peter Birmingham was charged with having embezzled
various sums of money, the property of his employers,
Messrs. C. Wood and Co., Mosley-street. On the 13th
August last the prisoner wont and collected various sums of
money on account of his employers and then decamped.
The police were not able to find his whereabouts till Tues•
, day last. It was found that the total sum embezzled was
between £9OO and 1000. The prisoner pleaded guilty, and
was sentenced to six months' imprisonment.
A CONSPIRACY IN AUSTRIA.—The Vienna Presse
has received news from Prague, which, if authentic, is
of a serious nature. A secret press has been
seized in that city, and eight persons, some students
others workmen, belonging to the secret associa-
tion, Blanik, have been arrested. It has been ascertained
that the society has branches in the provinces. The ac-
cused have confessed that its object is to provoke a
general uprising, and bring about a complete dissolution of
the Austrian Empire. Documents of a very compromising
nature have been found on the accused.
AUSTRIA. —A special telegram of the Eastern
Budget says that the negotiations of Count Potocki with
the Polish leaders have been concluded with a favourable
result. The preliminaries of an agreement have been
decided upon, and the Poles promise to support the
Government in the Reichsrath. The German Democratic
party has adopted the policy of the Government, and has
commenced an electoral agitation in this sense. The
feudal party in Bohemia has become disorganised owing
to the union of some of its members with the Czech
national party. This will greatly facilitate the attempts
of the Government to arrive at an agreement with the
nationalities. Count Andrassy's presence here has con-
firmed the impression that complete harmony prevails
between Count Beust and the Presidents of the Cabinets
at Vienna and Pesth.

THE GOOD OLD TIMES.—A few days since, as
some workmen were digging in the ruins of Wigmore
Castle, Herefordshire (in early days the property
and residence, of the Mortimer family), they came upon
the solid masonry of an arched roof, and, on
removing one or two of the large stones, found a
dungeon communicating with another of equal size, each
about fifteen feet square, and covered with arched
stone roofs. They were approached by means of
stone staircases, which have been buried in the rubbish
of the ruins for many years. In the stonework of the
side walls were embedded large, strong iron staples, sup-
posed to have been used for securing prisoners during the
civil wars. The dungeons contained a few bones in a
very decayed state and some lead rolled up. Hundreds
of parsons from Hereford, Leominster, and the surround-
ing neighbourhood have visited these interesting remains
of former ages.

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TERRIFIC HAILSTORM IN AMERICA.—On Sunday,
May Bth, Philadelphia was visited by one of the most
remarkable storms on record. The season for thunder
showors in this section is leginning, and about two o'clock
one was observed approaching from the south-west. The
temperature was about 70 deg. Fahrenheit. As the storm
came up it met with an adverse air current from the north-
etist ; and shortly afterwards another from the north-west,
so that for several moments the clouds hung in suspense
over the city, but could be seen in most violent commotion.
At 2.15 p.m. the north• western current gained the mastery,
and the storm began moving in a south easterly direction,
while five minutes later rain began to fall. This soon turned
to hail ; and the hailstones, at first small, soon came as large
as walnuts and hens eggs, and in enormous nutnbe s. For
15 minutes Philadelphia was treated to a terrific fusillade
of these huge hailstones, which made sad havoc among
window-panes, skylights, hot-houses, and conservatories.
Fruit trees and shrubbery windows exposed to the north-
western wind were completely riddled, while the streets
were strewn with broken glass, hailstones, leaves, shingles,
and rubbish of all kinds. The storm, which began sud-
den!, ended as quietly at 2.25 p.m., but in that time had
broken half the windows in tho city, and caused at least
500,000 dollars damage. Horses took fright from the
pitiless pelting, and many persons were injured, while one
man died from fright. The average size of the hailstones
was liin, to 2in. in diameter, while ono is reported that
was 11in. in circumference, and weighed 7oz. They were
beautifully formed, being conglomerations of smaller hail-
stones frozen together. Only the thic est and heaviest glass
could withstand the storm, and the windows after it pre-
sented a most dilapidated appearance. Window glass is at a
premium, while glaziers are in demand and everywhere the
chief business progressing is putting in new window panes.
he storm did not extend over a very wide section, and
seems to have spent its fury on this city. The heaviest da-
mane was done to the large and valuable windows of
churches and to the glass roofs of conservatories.