The Sun.
London, England, 1856-09-05 00:00:00

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DERBY RACES—(Ms Day.)

(BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.)
INNKEEPERS' PLATE.

Noisette
Dolly

Two ran.
CIIATSWORK STAKES.

Stork ,
Vulcan .,

Five ran.
CHESTERFIELD STAKES
Gemma di Vergy
04c1 Trick

Tbreo ran.
SUDBUBY STAKES.

Yorkshireman
Uneipected

Eight ran.

THE FATAL CATASTROPHE IN
LITTLE SWAN-ALLEY.

INQUEST ON THE BODIES (THIS DAY).

This morning Mr. W. J. Payne, deputy-coroner for
the City of London, opened an inquiry at St. Barth-Ao-
mew's Hospital, relative to the melancholy and la,uent-
able deaths of Thomas Palmer, and Elizabeth Pullen,
Thomas Pullen, and James Pullen, his step-children,
occasioned by the fall of the house No. 9, Little Swan-
alley, Moorgate-street, on the morning of Wednesday
last.
Previous to the jury assembling at th• hospital, they
met the coroner in Little Swan-alley, and examined the
ruins.

Mr. W. Jones, ward clerk of Coleman-street Ward,
in which district the house was situated, attended and
watched the proceedings, accompanied by several of the
members of the Common Council, Commissioners of
Sewers, and vestrymen of St. Stephen's parish. Mr.
Woodthorpe, the district surveyor, was present with
plans of the premises.
The jury was a highly respectable one, comprising
the principal tradesmen of the parish in which
the dreadful calamity occurred. Mr. Perkins, of Cole-
man-street, a member of the Common Council, was
appointed foreman.
The jury having viewed the bodies (that of Elizabeth
Pollen having been removed from St. Stephen's dead-
house to the dead-house of the hospital), considerable
delay occurred in commencing the inquiry from the want
of accommodation for toe jury, and the proceedings had
to be conducted without tables for the jury to wrlte on
and take notes of the evidence.
The jury having been sworn,
The Coroner said that, as the inquiry WAS one of cen-
eiderable importance, he Froposed first to take evichnce
identifying the bodies, then medical evidence as to the
nature of the injuries from which the deceased persons
died of, and then such evidence as would show ho N and
why the building in question fell, and ascertain thereby
if any blame attached to any person.
Elizabeth Pullen &posed that she lived with Palmer,
the deceased, who was a labourer, about 31 yearA of age,
at No. 9, Little Swan-alley. The three children now
dead were hers, and resided with her and Palmer in
Little Swan-alley, at the time of the accident. She Lad
resided in the house on two occasions. She had been
back the last time about throe or four months, nod
occupied the first floor back. The front mom of the
first floor was occupied by other persons. The Kings
occupied a room above. Abint four months age she
lived in the room of a Mrs. Marsh, at 2s. a-week, and
continued her tenant till about six weeks since, when
Mr. Crane became the landlord of the premises, and she
had since that paid the rent to him. She had coniWeined
to Mrs. Marsh of the state of the house. There was
only one room on the ground fl nor ; the fl 'or
of the room underneath that she occupied hal been
taken away. Last Seturtiay night week she com-
plained to Mr. Crane, when she paid him her rent, of
the state of the fluor, and pointed out the broken state of
the flooring near the fire place. The wool was much
decayed. As he stood at the door he looked at the
place, and said he would look to it. Ho did not call
again until Sunday last, when he came for his rent.
On Sunday last she paid him again her rent, but nothing
bad occurred then to excite her alarm. In the course
of the evening she fancied she hear] a craa!eirg
and noticed it to Mrs. King and deceased, Palmer, and

said she should soon wet out of the house.
By the Foreman—Mrs. King said at the time that she
had hear I strange sounds, and that they had bet ter get
out as soon as possible.
Witness continued—About nine o'clock on Tuesday
night she heard a cranking noise near the fire
place. ft appeared to be in the same place
she had heard it before. She and deceaeed,
Palmer, had not then retired. All the family elep: in tl_e
same room, hut in different beds. The children tin
-a bed under the place where she heard the noise. TI er-
self, Palmer, and the baby slept in one bed, end the
three children new dead in the other. About 10 o'clock
they retired to rest, and about 5 minutes past 12 she
was awoke by bar child. She got out of bed to give him
something, and walked the room with him for a short
time. Sbe then heard a fearful cracking again. Her
hushing the child did not shake the room. The room
began to Anita very much, and she awoke Palmer and
desired him to get up, as the house was falling. Beget
up and went to the children, and she opened her room
door and alarmed the other inmates (the Kings, who
were over her head). Whilst standing on the top stairs
outside her room door, one half of the II eer of
the room gave way, the window fell, and was
smashed all to pieces, as was also the fire-
place ; hearing the crash she tried to run do sn
stairs, and the shaping of the house threw down the
stairs, and she and her baby were thrown into the
street ; but how it happened she had no recollection.
She had made no complaints to the ward beadle or any
other person. She had not seen any of them round that
neighbourhood. She believed her mother, who lived in
the house before her, had complained of the state of the
house to a lady who visited the neighbourhood to distri-
bute charity amongst the poor occupants of the neigh-
bourhood. Crane accepted her as a tenant from Mrs
Marsh, about 6 or 7 weeks ago.
By the Jury—Last week she experienced difficulty in
closing the door, but it did not create alarm in her mind
as to the state of the house.
By the Foreman—Her other son, who was about 15
years of age, had not returned from his work when the
accident occurred. She saw him in the court shortly
after the house fell. She did nut know where Ciane lived.
She believed in Charles-place, Bell-alley. The boards in
front of the fire-place were all broken away and decayed.
There were no nails in them, and after sweeping the
fluor she had frequently to put the boards in order the
best way she could.
James Frederick King deposed that he was a book-
binder. He occupied the top floor back, over that of
the last witness. The other room on that floor was
unoccupied. He had lived in No. 9 about seven months,
always occupying the same room. During that time he
had complained of the state of the house. A week
before the house fell he complained to Crane of the dila-
pidated state of the house, particularly the state of the
window of the room ; it had a frame, but most of the
glass was broken. On complaining of it to Crane,
he said they might put in the glass themselves if
they wanted it. He paid Crane ls. 6d. lee
week rent. When he took the room of Mrs. Marsh the
glass was then broken, but being unable to buy glass he
patched it up the best way ho could. The floor of his
room was " thoroughly rotten and eaten away." He
showed it to Crane, who said, "Oh, you must make the
best of it." On Sunday morning last Crane called for
the rant. He was unable to pay him, and again com•
plained of the state of the house, to which Crane replied
" If you don't pay you know the consequences," and he
then left. On Tuesday night he was engaged preparing
his work for the following day. About ten minutes to
12 he and his wife retired to rest ; a few minutes after
he was aroused by a sound, and he said " Hark, how its
hailing." His wife said it was no such thing for the stars
were shining. He and his wife, and his wife's sister
and four children slept on the floor, having no beds ;
shortly after hearing the sound he found himself below ;
the floors appeared to kayo " fallen in all of a lump
together ;" there was only a shop on the ground floor ;
the cellars went down a few steps ; he did not think any
of the ground floor had been cut away ; he had never
complained of the state of the house to any one but
Crane ; he believed the house had not been examined
by any one ; be bad never seen a surveyor there ; Crane.
the landord, lives at 19, Little Bell-alley ;heis a Ines.'
monger in some office in the City.
Mrs. King, who walked borne, and appeared to be
suffering from the injuries received on Tuesday night,
deposed that about three months ago a person inspected
the house, and ordered the rooms to be whitewa.hed.
He inquired who was the landlord, and said the house
appeared in a very bad state, From the manner in