The Sun.
London, England, 1869-05-14 00:00:00

SHOCKIA a COLLIERY FATALITY.

On Thursday morning a colliery accident occurred at
the No. 1 Worthington Pit of the Norley Coal Company,
near Wigan, where for some time past sinking operations
have been in progress to reach the cannel coal. This
should lie at a distance of :IGO yards from the surface, but
the workmen have now descended 600 yards, and the
seam has not yet been found. The work, however, has
been progressing vigorously ; two parties of labourers,
known as the day and night shifts, being emplcyed, and
until Thursday morning they had proceeded most satis-
factorily. The day shift men, seven or eight in number,
descended the shaft at six o'clock, and a little before eight
all preparations were made for the firing of a shot. The
bulk of the party were drawn to the surface, and three
others, named Richard Manson, William Ince, and
Nathaniel Mather, were left below to superintend the
ignition of the fuse. The hoppett or bucket was being
lowered to bring these also above ground, when suddenly
the crank of the engine snapped in two, and the rope thus
released from all control rushed down the shaft with
amazing velocity, and then parting from the drum fell
into the pit. Preparations were at once made for ascer-
taining the extent of the damage below, but a long time
passed before they could be completed. Two of the men
had been recovered alive. One of them bad been covered
by the first coil of rope which fell, and was so saved ; the
other crawled into the bucket.

AMERICAN LEGISLATOES.

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The Stock Exchange (says the Pall Mall Gazette) may
take comfort from reading the New York Herald of the
28th ult., in which they will see that America has internal
dissensions which appear to occupy at present much of
her attention. A great part of that journal is taken
up, not with the Alabama claims, but with the details of
what is called the " Sprague Excitement," arising from a
scene in the Senate House at Washington, and a very
interesting and instructive narrative it is. Senator
Sprague, who is familiarly called " Little Rhody," made
use of the expression " puppy dog," which Senator Abbott
took to himself, and, according to the New York Herald,
threatened in private life to " wallnp little Rhody from
the Capitol to George Town Height." It is not, there-

fore to be wondered at that, when Senator
Abbott came to the Senate House with these bloodthirsty
intentions, Senator Sprague took an early opportunity of
leaving it ; this made Senator Abbott more angry
than ever, and he expressed his intention of
having satisfaction outside the Senate. And here
we must express our deep regret that Senator Nye thought
fit to add fuel to the fire by shouting out, " Spank little
Spraguey ; spank him and send him tobed." The New York
It eralcd states that this incident led to a great sensation in
Washington ; some had it that Senator Abbott had cow-
hided Senator Sprague ; others that he bad pulled his
nose, boxed his ears, and otherwise heaped indignities
upon him. On the other hand, Sprague's admirers cir-
culated stories precisely the reverse, giving all the prowess
to " little Rhody," and annihilating Abbott, "the rotund
and muscular, as did David the gigantic Goliath." It is
therefore with intense relief tb:,t at the end of four
closely • printed columns devet,l to minute details
of the affair, we read the foli,,wing The Abbott-
Sprague Imbroglio adjusted—No Faces slapped—Nobody
spanked —No bloodshed Wounded Honour readily
healed." It appears that Senators Sumner, Sherman, and
Pool, after negotiations which occupied nearly four hours,
adjusted the difference ; Senator Sprague explained that
the term "puppy dog" was not intended for Senator
Abbott, who accepted the apology, and it is comforting to
read that at 11.30 p.m., April 26, " Abbott is jolly, ditto
Sprague."

Mr. O'Sullivan, ex Mayor of Cork, is lying ill in
London from " over anxiety and mental excitement."

Some property in Westmeath was put up for sale
in the Landed Estates Court, Dublin, on Tuesday, but the
biddings were so low that the sale was adjourned. The
landlord's solicitor attributed this weakness of the land
market to " the depression caused by the late agrarian
outrages."
A RIGHT REV. PRIVY COUNCILLOR.—At a Court
held by her Majesty at Windsor on Thursday the Bishop
of London attended, and, in accordance with the practice
observed towards the holders of the metropolitan see, his
lordship was sworn as a member of the Privy Council.
ANOTHER COTTON MILL BURNT DOWN.—At two
o'clock on Thursday morning a destructive fire broke out
in the cotton mill belonging to Messrs. Little and Smith,
at Belmont, near Bolton. There was, unfortunately, no
fire-engine in the village, and none arrived until four hours
after the fire had been discovered. By this time the flames
had entirely destroyed the building, causing damage to the
extent of £20,000.

MORTALITY FROM SMALL-PDX IN GLASGOW.—
In 1787, when Glasgow contained about 50,000 inhabitants,
and when the aggregate mortality reached 1,759 persons.
small-pox carried off not fewer than 484, being nearly one
out of every three and a half deaths, whereas now the
tleaths from small-pox have fallen, during 1808, to six, and
In the other seven chief cities and towns of Scotland cora.
bined they only amounted to five ; thus, in an aggregate
'own population of above 800,000, the deaths from small•
pox did not exceed eleven—all infancy.—British Medical
Journal.

LONDON WORKS AND BIPROVEMENTS.—At a
meeting of the Court of Common Council of the City of
London, on Thursday, reports were received from two
committees relative to the progress of Blackfriars Bridge
And the Holborn Viaduct. With respect to the former.
It was stated that although a considerable amount of work
yet remained to be done, there was every reason to believa
that the structure would be opened towards tie end of
July. The committee asked for powers to make arrange-
ments for a public ceremony on the oreasior, and these
were granted. The committee ;-nder hose superin-
tendei.ce the Holborn Viaduct ha,- he:•!t raked expressed
a hope that her Majesty would inlugnrate that important
work.

CnAln-DANCING.—The following, signed "Veri-
tas," appears in the Northerit Daily Express:—" CiiEar-
dancing and chair•flying seems at present much in vogue
among the believers in spirit• rapping, &c. Permit
me to inform you that chair-dancing occurred in a cele-
brated house in Sunderlar'd one afternoon last week. Tha
proprietor and a toy being engaged in the kitchen, a
chair, without any visible agency, commenced dancing
into the middle of the room on one leg, and returned
again, after going through a variety of capers, to its
original place in the kitchen.. Both patties became
alarmed, the proprietor so much so as to be unable foie
some time to follow his usual employment. Can an,
of your readers or_believers in spiritualism
_explain Os

.. , .
phenomena?" .