The Sun.
London, England, 1856-03-11 00:00:00

ARMY FINANCES.

READING, SERMONS.—NOTICE TO QUIT.—A. clergyman
at Doune, in Perthshire, has given notice to his congre-
gr.tion that he will be under the necessity of reading his
sermon in the pulpit. It would appear that his people,
who evidently prefer preaching to reading, have given
him notice, in rcturn, that if he is not. able to preach
without notes he had better resign his charge.
[ADVNKTIHSNENTI SIGNT AN) "[RAMC
POWSILITI,L Tnzsc,orss, Orsai, RAGS AND PZItSPNOTITI GLASSINE,.
_mem,. S. acct B. Solomon'', opticians, 39, Albemarle-
street, Piccadilly. Observe opposite the York hotel.
Bp leer Majesty's Royal Letters Patent for valuable and
extraordinary improvements in the most powerful aud
brilliant Telescopes, Camp, Racecourse, Opera, and Per-
spective Glasses, to know the distances of objects viewed
through there—of great importance to the army, navy,
and others. Those telescopes possess such extraordinary
powers that some three and a-half inches, with an extra eye.
piece, will show distinctly Jupiter's moons, Saturn's ring,
and the double stars; with the same teleszope can be
seen a person's countenance three miles and a half distant,
and an object from 16 to 20 miles. They are of larger awl all
sizes, with increasing lowers accordingly ; while their vary-
ing from 4 to 6 inches enable us to discover more than the
above, and the Georgian 'with his 6 satellites, &c.—The Royal
Exhibition, 1851.—VaLable, newly-invented, very small,
powerful waistcoat-pocket glass,the size of a walnut, by which
a person eau be seen and known 1 j miles distant ; they answer
every purpose on the race-course, and at the opera houses,
country scenery, and ships aro clearly seen at 8 to 10 miles.
They are invaluable for shooting, deer-stalking, yachting, to
sportsmen, gentlemen, gamekeepers, and tourists. Opera,
race-course, camp, and perspective glasses, with wonderful
power. Newly-constructed Spectacle Lenses of the great-
est transparent power. The valuable advantage derived
from this invention is, that vision becoming impaired is
preserved and strengthened, and very aged persons am
enabled to employ their sight at the most minute occu-
pation- can see with these lenses of a much less raaguify-
lug power—and they de not require the frequent changes
to the dangerous effects of further powerful assistance.
Peafeess—New Diseove.ry.—The Organic Vibrator, an ex-
traordinary powerful, small, newly-invested instrument for
deafness, entirely different from all others, to ar.rpass any-
thing of the kiwi that has been, or probably ever tan be,
produced. Being of the same colour as the skis, is not per-
ceptible ; it enables deaf persons to hear distinctly at church
and at public assemblies ; the unpleasant sensation of singing
noises in the ears is entirely removed ; and it affords all the
I assistance that possibly could be desirM.-39, All,ernarle-
*Vat, Piccadilly. ObserTe—eppeSitt the York NotpL

Lord MONTEAGLE then rose to move for copies
of any order or regulation issued since the establish-
ment of the office of Secretary of State for War to pro-
vide for the discharge of financial duties of the Com-
missariat, and for the administration of the Commie-
Eariat chest account.
[LEFT SPEAKING:I

HOUSE OF COMMONS—Crhis Evening.)
The SPEAKER took the chair at 4 o'clock, but 40
members not being present the house adjourned.

DESTRUCTION OF COVENT-GARDEN

THEATRE.

Official Inquiry This Day.

This afternoon, at three o'clock, Mr. Bedford, the
coroner for Westminster, and a jury, assembled at the
Piazza Hotel, Covent-garden, to inquire into the cir-
cumstances attending the total destruction of Covent-
garden Theatre, by fire, on the morning of Wednesday
last.
Amongst those present we observed—Superintendent
Braid wood, of the Fire Brigade ; Mr. White, of the
County Fire Office ; Superintendent Durkin and Inspec-
tor Dodd ; C. J. Carttar, the Coroner for West Kent ;
most of the officers of the establishment, Mr. inderseu,
the \Vizird, and nearly every one connected with the
management of the Theatre.
The preliminaries having been gone through, •
The C..roner said ho did not think it was necessary
the jury should be troubled with viewing the premises
The present inquiry was rather unusual, it was not
touching the death of any person ; but it was to Ascer-
tain the cause of the late destruction, by fire, of Covent-
garden Theatre. The churchwardens of the parish wire
extremely anxious to have an inquiry in the late con
flagration, and from the opportunities that bad been
offered to him, he had determined to make a thorough
and searching investigation. The public were entitled
to have an inquiry openly and in a public room, espe•
daily as the most intense interest existed in the minds
of every person in the laud, from the highest down to
the very lowest.
The first witness called Wes
James Castlen, fireman to C ,rent-garden Theatre.
He was employed by Mr. Robertson, as agent to the
proprietors. His duty was to attend to the general
sake). of the theatre. There were four firemen engaged
in the duty, each having an equal share of duty over the
hole of the premises. fie was in the theatre a few
inirutere after coo on Monday until after the fire took
piece. The time that he supposed the fire occurred was
between 4 and 5 o'clock on Wednes lay morning, ai
near as he could tell. He never left the theatre during
the whole time. Between 4 and 5, on the morning of
the fire, he was passing up to the flies where the ma-
chinery was, and returned to the stage, where it was
desirable that the fireman should he, in conseepence
of the number of smokers, and then entered into a eon-
versaoon with Mr. Brynnetont and Mr. Pa'mer, the
foremen of the gas department, and asked him what
" battens " or herder lights he would have left alight,
imagining that the people. would go to Rork to remove
the fitting. He had just spoke one word when he cold-peel
his hands, and said "Oh, my God, the theatre is on fire."
At that time he saw a glimmering light through the
floor of the carpenters' shop. At this time no tire bed
fallen. lie thee met Butler, another fireman, and told
him the house was on fire, and they both rushed up t
the carpentere' shop. When they got to the door a gust
of black smoke struck them which ',sued from the shop.
A plan of the theatre was here put in.
Examination continued—The smoke milled out of
the door which was open ; it was so dense that Butler
called to him to go on his hands and knees to endeavour
to get at the fire cock in the shop, and ho supposed that
they got about midway, but be then get so giddy he was
obliged to return, but not before seeing that the fire was
on the left side of the shop. As soon as he got to the
door he fell, but get up and ran to the fire cocks at the
end of the floor which was on fire. The fire mains were
charged for that place, but he was unable to find it. lie
remained there until he heard some one call him. lie
went to the flies and cut two or three ropes from the
windlasses, thinking they wouhl stop the fire, lie there
saw Mr. Lawrence and ether firemen on the stage at
work at the fire-cocks. The engines were playing when
he left the building. There was a rule for the firemen :
it was to the effect that one of the man was to go
round the building every hour. Three men were on
duty at night, and one during the day. It was the
duty of each to make the rounds as ordered. He had
passed from the front of the theatre to the stage fre.
queutly that day, and he had not smelt anything like
fire or gas in tl.e carpenters' shop. He had frequently
smelt gas, bat not more than might be expected from
wear and tear. The fire broke out by the side of the
carpenters' workshop. He did not think it could be
burning elsewhere. The "flies" were connected with
the carpenters' shop by a etaircr se. When he first went
to the "flies" he was about twenty feet from the car-
penters' shop. lie thought the theatre was set on fire.
The smoke was not like wood smoke, and the time that
the fire broke out, when they were all engaged getting
the people out, favoured the supposition. It was
merely his impression that the fire had been wilfully
made. There were some gas fittings in the carpenters'
shop, but they had not been used since Christmas. The
gas was turne I off from the pipes in question in the car-
penters' shop. Any person could turn the cock with a
key. If the gas escaped from these pipes it would have
gone up the shaft of the chandelier, which was sus-
pended from the roof through the carpenters' shop. The
chandelier could not be taken into the shop, as it was a
fixture. The shaft was an open one, and like a large
funnel. The draught, for the escape of gas, was very
great. The chandelier was suspended by irongirders; which rested horizontally on the tenber
supports, which were made fast to the floor of the
shop, which was the roof of the theatre. The supports
could be seen by any person in the carpenters' shop. The
distance from the chandelier to the floor of the carpenters'
shop was between 14 and 15 feet, and about 10 or 11
from the gas when alight. He never knew the
heat from the chandelier to warm the floor of
the carpenters' shop. There were flues in the walls of
the buildings, which formed the boundaries of the car-
pouters' shop, and on the night in question there were
several of the flues in use. There were about seventy
flues in the house, and during the whole of the time
he bad been on the establishment, and that extended
over some years, he never knew more than two or three
to take fire. The smoke ho had mentioned in te
former part of his evidence smelt like fumes of charcoahl,
not like burning wood.
By Mr. Clerk--There was no charcoal used in the car-
penters' shop, and until the fire broke out, he never
smelt anything burning. The reason he and his fellow-
servants were ou the stage was to prevent accidents
arising from the vi-itors smoking. The carpenters' shop
be felt so certain was quite secure that he did not think
it requisite to visit it every hour. It was the duty of the
firemen to visit every part of the theatre every hour.
During the performance their duty w to look after the
safety of the theatre generally. Thasere were
which would inform the proprietors whether they did
their duty or not, but it was not expected that they (the
firemen) should pull them every hour until the perfor-
mances were over.
By a Juror—He was in the lobbies of the boxes dur-
ing the night of the bal-masque. He was within 20 or
30 feet of the place where the fire broke out, but he
smelt nothing. He was perfectly sober during the who's!)
of the night.
By Mr. Solomon---There hai not been any one at