The Sun.
London, England, 1869-06-18 00:00:00

---.•,-..... ',.........''

POWDER MILL EXPLOSION.

The details concerning the powder mill explosion at
Hounslow are to hand. It occurred at the powder
nills of Messrs. Curtis and Harvey, at Hanwortln bring
midway between Hounslow and Twickenham. It
3ppears that the work at the mile went on as usual uP
o 3.45 p.m., when about eighty men were busy in the
buildings. About this time two explosions occurred in
rapid succession, which blew down all the buildings
near the glazing house. Bricks and timber were
hurled to great distances, and the trees around rent int°
,hreds and scattered about. When the smoke and duet
had cleared away. Mr. Brown, the manager of the mills,
and a number of assistants set to work to ascertain what
damage had been done, and a number of men were told off
as a guard to prevent the ingress of a crowd that had begun
to collect. The roll of workmen was then called over, and
it was found that the following were missing :—William
Penfold, single man ; Richard Fulham, married ; Samuel
Gardner, married ; and a lad of 15, named Holloway. 11,
examination of the ruins sheaved that ten of the houses had
been totally destroyed, and many others seriously injured.
These included storing, drying, and glazing houses.
charge house had also been blown up, although built under
ground, arched over with bricks, and covered with earth.
On examining further it was discovered that every building
near the stream had been des' royed. The lad ItollowaY
was at the moment of the explosion riding past, and both
he and the horse were blown to some distance and killed.
As the ruins were removed the remains of those killed
were found in every direction, torn to pieces and disfi•
guyed in such a way that identification was impossible.
Dr. Douglas, of Twickenham, was sent for, and attended
to the wounded, of whom there were upwards of 20, in'
eluding two women. The concussion was felt ten wiles
off, and in the towns and villages adjacent to the Wills
considerable damage has been done to buildings. A't
Twickenham Common the windows of houses have been
shattered, and the buildings themselves shaken to the
very foundation. The greatest excitement prevailed at
Hanworth, and great difficulty was experienced in obtain'
ing information regarding the accident.
Another account says The wounded, more or he
slightly, numbered about twenty, among whom were tivn
women. In the case of the three men killed on the sPet
identification was all but impossible, for their heads were
e
disfigured, and their limbs lay here and there overthe scen
of devastation, which was sickening in the extremity of
itsa
horrors. The explosion burst the river dam and fin'prle
the lower part of the premises, in which the clock-face cos
shattered, the bands stopping at ten minutes to fool'e
Altogether since the explosions at Erith and Dartford r
have had no more frightful calamity of the kind to report;
and we hope that even this may have been, at the firs
moment, somewhat exaggerated in its details."
ost
The scene which ensued at the explosion was
to the
exciting. In a few minutes the avenue leading
mills was a scene of the wildest commotion. Medical ee
tutee
riding at the top of their speed ; women, some of
with children in their arms, rushing to the scene of the
disaster half frantic with terror and alarm. At the gate
of the mills the scene beggared description ; the ravings,:
faintings, and frantic inquiry of the hundreds who 11 uf
assembled rendered the task of keeping the gate one of
the most difficult and painful. The interior was one wass°t
confusion, and no one was able to ascertain the full eaten
the mischief ; for, although close to the spot, ne tsco
accounts of the excited assistants were alike.

The strike of colliers at Tyldesley has teiuliaatedi
The d(mand upon the collieries just rely, in consequel363:e
the slackness of trade, is only small, and the masters 11,a,
been able to insist upon the acceptance of their own ter't
The Norwich correspondent of the Star says
thsA
a rumour is in circulation there that, in the event of
creationof a batch of new leers, it is understood that Slir
kir Thomas Western, Mr. Gurdon Rebow, anti s-
Shafto Adair will bo raised to the peerage.
The educational movement is making itself felt.
There is about to be established in Sheffield abrateh of the
National Education League, which has been orgiflated 1.
Birmingham. A provisional committee was appointed at
preliminary meeting held on Wednesday evening-
The Association of the Irish Non•subscribi.ll
Presbyterians held a meeting on Wednesday at Belfast, a°6 it
was resolved to form a sustentation fund for minister
once, the prevailing opinion being that the Irish Chu'
Bill would pass through Parliament.
Mark and Joseph Berry, father and son, WI
charged at the Recorder's Court, Belfast, on Wrednesclanll:o/
stealing firearms from the shop of Mr. Neill on the uigh",„,
the sth of May. The father was sentenced to 12 mouths
imprisonment, and the son to one month, and five ;ears
a reformatory.

's
In Paris the letter of the Emperor Napoleou
regarded as an Imperialist manifesto of great in-1/0013°,
His Majesty's declaration that "a Goverment rpet,
V
Erects itself ought to yield neither to pressure, excitetoe ept
nor revolt," is looked uron as a declaration against es

concessions. Leeds
Three persons were brought before the
re
magistrates on Wednesday on the charge of refusing (°'' a
their children vaccinated according to law. One sslis leg
20s. and costs, but the other uses were adjourned,
be
P°l3l,l3re
the trial of the questions of the law involved in thera -
the Court of Queen's Bench.
At a public meeting with reference to the encottrage:
ment of the cultivation of cotton, held at Bolton on Wetaintsery
day, a deputation was appointed to writ upon the Secr',ig,
of State for India to secure the abolition of the import all'tiir"
"which so injuriously operate upon our cotton intallifAc

ing trade with that cnuntry." • 66
A conference of representatives of trades' s°cle des
held in Manchester on Wednesday, to consider tb°
Union Bill of Mr. Hughes and Mr. Mund€lla, passed a
reiiiix
tion in support of the measure. The meeting did i'c4itticlecl
the bill went far enough to meet their views, but coljc
to accept it as a step in the right direction.

the
GREAT Loss OF SHEEP.—TIIO storm fr°i-
north-east which succeeded to the thunderstorm of
-1-10
day
afternoon, and continued during Wednesdai:oort
caused great loss to tho se Yorkshire farmers wh°
to early sheepshearing. The northern escarp luents DP
wolds felt the full force of the gale, and it is on
Ws" lip
that the great loss has occurred, fat sheep and ewes :peer
dying from the cold and exposure. The losses frora
of
Ml
already dead have been more severe than faroler°a
admit, one farmer having on Thursday sent A
I°°
seventeen dead sheep to the manure works.

THE FRENCiIATLaAnBNdrTeIa:ti CABLE. -Captain She
'
h Ora
the Tele
Osborn, R.N., CB , the managing director of - tole'
the French Atlantic Cable w'
graph Construction•• aftiontenacnec.efuu
june 17 —TCI:33I
I,sll:ja:riebilyeniclialf°:
graphs as follows :—"
tIo be elleeci..
pthaset ten this morning,
and
is
now
wucreassdy
nt cable on the arrival of the Great
says'Easter
Another
success, and the e
"The shoreelegram end of the cable was laid today with :trbel''
:denattewdasßrfeasvto,Juruende Ib7y 1.30 p. 1330 0 feet
The Chiltern a' nd the Hawk left thesPhleorilbcioiclurwl,illt four
o'clock this morning, and at seven a.m. the 01°3,- thelos
Lion with the Chiltern at a distance of 60° olettr,-
tghaev eu
nedveerrtya
king. assistance
P°
i the
Maritime Ther task was completed at nine 11.0. woo
those engaged inA Saturday° cross
French ironclad fleet is expected here on tter
Cherbourg, and the Great Eastern on SundaY, the icit' /
starting on her journey in the evening of the he
--1‘ •
vat FIST_,;
THOMAS WRIGHT, THE PRISON PIIILAN- : ion,
—The committee formed a short time angf°o'
ewtii.:ti:ng tiPb;
Shaftesbury at its head, for theur ose
memorial to commemorate the services rel3-ereci'deci
decl
Thomas Wright, the prison philanthropist, ha've • tare°
that there shall be at least three life-sized Pie At
that there shall be at least three life.sd P
il
of
th
ted bY t
e pictures, "The Condemned Cell," Pain 4.1,00
Charles Mercier, represents the prison Plii1311". The
ministering to a convict under sentence of death' of tbe
committee have placed this picture in the holiciti ~vy of
engraver, it having been determined to present 0 c Aeo
the engraving to every prison, ragged•school, Do
reformatory in the kingdom. The picture itself is 0 of
in the Ov3eic.
publicly presented by Lord Shaftesbury
the subscribers, to the City of London on ,po ,
the Ist °f 111
be
A grand banquet to the prison p bilanthropist wi
ra°
.00
given on the evening of the same day,at the Vree
Tavern, the Lord Mayor presiding.

THE ELECTION DISTURBANCES AT 9
HAIL —At the Nottingham Police-court, on pekoe9:ll°ji‘s'
before the mayor and other magistrates, thirteen d
were brought up in custody, charged with being last'c='llellys
ti_vialaysthea:itdhiesturbances which took place on TuesdaY cite'
day election. The proceedings created great e%,ere
Town Hall being crowded, besides
large snob outside, who hooted and hissed the P°_4o
•igorousl The rforii,
usly as they brought the prisoners •
10• t 01'2'
which °lice
if the accused were George Osborne, Williem I‘-s oor
_Robert Billings, George Bullard, Samuel Stones. l“ At
clan,
IC eet-ly, James Derrick, Edward Brown, Edward
William Webster, John Bladon, Charles Tittin3is'etoe
Chary Anderson. It was shewn that on the day of et'e,,,,,-
lambs
thretownw stones and broke windows ; that Mr. Cbi,i,ist•
Seely, the successful candidate, was pelted on the P-e
.ngs after the close of the poll, and that all tile Priß°l3cfs.
lad been more or less instrumental in creating tla,e dig'
:urbances. There were er_tenuating circumstances 111,,01
vases of Timms and Anderson, and they were only PPiti
leieach, but all the rest were ordered to PaY4Cith tt
u9nautblt: eight or ;line_ of thep,yver? e_94._._t?, V.r,.--s°,4i'9r