The Sun.
London, England, 1869-05-12 00:00:00

LAW AND POLICE.

Tiu LOAN SOCIETY. —At Guildhall, on Tuesday, Reid
and Jones, the secretary and collector of the National
and Provincial Union Assurance and Loan Society,
of which most of the directors were gentle-
men's servants, were brought up on remand to
answer the charge of conspiring to defraud. One
witness said that about the month of September last a
man was in possession of the furniture of the office for the
purchase money of it. About the month of December a man
was in possession for the rent, and Mr. Reid told him that
he had advertised for a collector. Other evidence was given,
and some amusement was created by the reading of two
letters from one of the so-called directors, Walter Taylor,
who had given his master's address in Eaton-square as
his own, a course naturally displeasing to the real
owner. As soon as the case appeared in the
papers the master, who was away, sent to the
ambitions servant a copy of the Telegraph, with the account
of " High Life below Stairs" underlined. Taylor's
letters strongly entreated his friends to make the best of
Lis case, and to let him know what they had said, that he
might keep to the same story. The case was adjourned
for the production of the director Kiddie as a witness.
HIGHWAY ROBBERIES AT THE EAST-END OF LONDON.
For some time past there has been a great increase of
crime in the East-end of London, and the magis-
strates at Worship-street Police-court have made
many remarks on the number of charges of
robberies from the person, "snatches," and assaults with
robbery. On Tuesday there were no less than five cases
of this description among the other night matters. Three
of the prisoners who were proved to have committed rob-
bery with great -violence were committed for trial at the
Central Criminal Court. Two others were remanded.
John M'Carthy, aged 18, was charged on remand with
having stolen a watch from the person of Henry Green.
Mr. Ellison gave him the option of pleading there, or
going for trial. He chose the former, pleaded guilty, and
Mr. Ellison sentenced him to six months* imprisonment
with hard labour.

The Recorder of Manchester (Mr. West, M.P.
made a very serious statement in his chase to the grand
jury at the city sessions, on Monday. "it was a fact," he
said, "that whilst the rest of the country was improving
in sobriety, and in general obedience to the law, Tancashire
was going backwards." He appears to have based this state-
ment upon "the general statistics of the country."
The excitement in Cork appears to have had the
effect of hastening the voluntary departure for America of
several of the Fenian prisoners lately released. Patrick
Barry, of Fermoy, and Michael O'Ryan, of Roscarberry, who
bad been in confinement under a sentence of seven years'
penal servitude, have sailed from Queenstown for the
United States.

The Belfast papers mention that the guns and re-
volvers stolen from the shop of Mr. Neill, a gunmaker in
that town, Lave been found in the house of a man named
Berry, who, along with Lis son, is in custody. The articles
discovered were seven revolvers, one four barrelled
repeater, two double-barrelled pieltis, two diggers, three
gun-swords, a powder flask, shot Lag, and a Lie of ball
cartridge. Beneath the floor, in another place, two lire( ell-
loading double-barrelled guns were found. Both the men
in custody are Protestants.
The banquet to Mr. Wise and Mr. John Hardy,
the Conservative members for South Warwickshire, has been
fixed to take place on the Ist cf June. It is supposed that
the gathering will be the largest of the kind which has taken
place in Leamington for many years. The Earl of Warwick
having declined to preside, another eminent Conservative
has been aske I to take the chair. All the Conservative
mem] erg in Warwick-hire, and the Cm, servative cand.dates
in the Itito contest ror Bit iningliarn, tire to be invited as
guest;. Sir JoLn Pak'ngton, 11r. G, thorno Hardy, and
others, are also expect, d to ho pre •ent.
DEPARTURE OF EMANCIPATED SLAVES FROM
LIVERPOOL.— On Tuesday the African Eoyal Mail steamer
Athenian left the Mersey with the,maits, passengers, etc.,
for Madeira, Teneriffe, and the 'West Coast of Africa.
Among the passengers on board the,Liithenian were several
negroes and negresses, who, after ationg term of servitude
in Cuba, are now returning to iite newly-formed free
colony of emancipated slaves at -Lagos. The released
slaves, so far as the female portiOt.t are concerned, are.
certainly above the ordinary stan 4ard; of their type, so far
as intelligence and attire go. !,y, by industry and fru-
gality, purchased their freedom•ein Cuba ; and are now,
with a good corr2petency, going ho; pe to Lagos to commence
business in the new colony. Mr. Edward Button, from
the Anti-Slavery Society, Loud on, and Mr. Boyd raw

..•

THE TERRIBLE CATASTROPHE IN
NEVADA.

It is thought that the fire is the Yellow Jacket
Mine, Nevada, was cluaecl by a candle left cere-
lessly sticking against a timber by some one be-
longing to the party on work at night, who leave off
at 4 a.m. ; those for the day conlimence at 7 o'clock,
three hours later. During the interval, on April
7, no workmen, except carmen, were in the mine,
but before the danger was discovered many had
been lowered into the Yellow Jacket, Crown Point,
and Kentuck Mines. As soon as the alarm was
given, the fire companies of Gold Hill and Virginia
City brought their engines, but the first effort was
to save those underground. At about 11 o'clock a
cage was sent
.down the Crown Point Mine to the
1,000 feet level, where it was known several miners
were at work; with a lighted lantern upon it, a small
box with caudles,and the following despatch written
by Superintendent J. Jooes We are fast
subduing the fire. It is death to attempt to ceme
up from where you are. We will get to you soon.
The gas in the shaft is terrible, and produces sure
and speedy death. Write a word to us and send it
up on the cage, and let us know how you are." No
answer wry; returned, and those addressed must
have been all dead before it reached them. The
scene that followed when the terrible news .be-
came known was heartrending. The wives and
children of those imprisoned in the burning . mines
crowded to the works ; but there was no comfort
for them, as a stifling column of smoke rose from
the shafts, charged with pungent gases from the
burning wood and heated ores below. By closing
the shafts and turning down into them the steam
from the hoisting works the fire could have been
extinguished almost immediately, but this would
have •been equivalent to saying all were dead be-
lOw, for it must have caused the death of any one
who survived. At the Crown Point the men so
crowded the cage that it was detained five minutes,
the station man fearing to give the signal to hoist,
while so many were in danger of being torn to
pieces. One man, unable to ,find room to stand
upright, thrust his head between another's legs and
begged to be allowed to remain there and go tip; his
l.fe was thus saved; but as the cage ascended those
left behind were heard to throw themselves into the
shaft, and some were heard falling back on the
floors. At one lowering of the cage, a Man who
had gone down to rescue the sufferers, finding that
there were more persons than could be brought up
that trip, got off tae drift, and put a young
man on instead, who was already too suffo-
cated to stand. Here was heroism ! his name
hvs not transpired, but it has been ascer-.
tained that he was among those saved. The body
of one -man in Crown Point was found doubled up,
his head resting on his knees immediately under a
trickling stream of water; another was embracing
a blow pipe, bet all presented a shocking appear-
ance. The features were so swollen and distorted
that the wives and relatives were not permitted to
see the faces of the dead. Amongst them are John
Hallisey, of Virisconsin, aged 35, relatives unknown.
John Hogan, of New York, aged 22, parents at .San
Francisco. Joseph M'Lellan; County Derry, Ireland,
aged 36, relatives unknown. George Tompkins, of
Canada, aged 29, mot her in San Francisco, a brother
in Virginia, and a sister in Gull Hill. Richard
Bickle, of Cornwall, England, aged 33, father and
mother living in Coruwall. Gorge Peters, of
Crowan, Cornwall, England, aged 26, only relitive
ktio%‘n is an uncle residing in Cornwall.