The Sun.
London, England, 1860-11-19 00:00:00

The number of deaths resulting from the fatal
accident at Atherstone has now been increased to
ten, Michael Vaughan, who received some very
severe injuries, having died early yesterday morn-
ing. He was between 60 and 70 years of age, his
skull and ribs were fractured, and the lungs seri-
ously injured. The other sufferers, viz , Patrick
Fay, drover; Wm. Hill, George Smith, and James
Bowker, Post-office clerks ; though very t.everely
injured, still survive, and hopes are entertained that
they will eventually recover. Bowker, one of the
Post-office clerks, had but j ust recovered from the in-
juries received in a former collision, and had out a
few days since received from the Post-office the com-
pensation which was awarded to him. As will
be seen from the report of the proceedings at the
inquest, the nature of the injures received must in
the majority of cases have caused almost instanta-
neous death, and some difficulty was experienced
in identifying several of the bodies owing to the
severe wounds inflicted about the head. One of the
drovers could only be identified by the clothes which
he wore. Although called drovers, the deceased
were not all really of that class of persons ; with
the exception of two, they were dealers and owners
of cattle. They were principally from Ireland, and
the cattle, which were lean, were intended to be
taken to Norwich Market, for sale to the feeders.
The evidence already given at the inquest shows
that some most culpable negligence must have
taken place on the part of the station-master, the
driver, or the signal-man. At the present state of
the inquiry it would not be right to express any
opinion upon this point. The driver of the mail
train swears most positively that he saw no " red"
light at the auxiliary station, that there was a
white light, which meant " all right," at the sta-
tion, as he approached it, and that he saw it
changed to a red one as he was running in, and
when it was too late to arrest the progress of the
train. There is a sharp curve both on going into
and leaving Atherstone, and the auxiliary light
about a quarter of a mile distant from the main
one, is intended to afford additional security in
working this part of the line. Leaving the station
again there is a curve, so that the lights of the
cattle train, which had passed through for the pur-
pose of "shunting," could not be seen by the ap-
proaehing train until close to it. If it be true that
no red light was shown at the auxiliary station—
and the guard confirms the evidence of the driver
in th's respect—then no fault can be attributed to
the driver of the mail train. No evidence has, how-
ever, yet been given on the part of the person in
charge of the signals at this spot. With respect
to the driver of the cattle train, there would also
appear to be no blame, assuming that his evidence
is uncontradieted. He states that when at Tam-
worth station he was told by the proper officer there
to go on as quickly as he could, and get out of the
way of the coming mail train, and that he had 22
minutes to spare. The rails, however, were very
slippery, and finding that there was no chance of
reaching Nuneaton, where he was to have shunted
to let the mail by, he found his only course would
be to shunt at Atherstone, as the mail train was
then within a few minutes of its time. Had the red
light been shown at the auxiliary station, or seen
by the driver of the mail, the cattle train would
have been protected, and had ample time to get out
of the way. No witness has yet been called to re-
but the evidence of the driver of the cattle train as
to what took place at Tamworth. It will be some-
what strange if improper instructions given to the
driver of the cattle train should be found, combined
with the neglect of duty by the signalman at
Atherstone, to be the cause of this terrible acci
dent. Had the cattle train not been despatched
from Tamworth, the failure to show the auxiliary
signal would not have involved any casualty ; and
if the train had been improperly sent on, but due
care taken with the signal, no injury could have
arisen. Some further light will, no doubt, be thrown
upon the cause of the accident at the future pro-
ceedings of the jury.
At the conclusion of the inquiry the Coroner gave
his warrant for the burial of the bodies. Tnose o -
the deceased who came from Ireland will be for
warded to their friends.

THE GREAT ERA UDN IN TILELEAT.IIRR

TRADE.

Lewis Robert Poole, the senior partner in the
bankrupt firm of Poole and Bryan, boot and shoe
manufacturers, of New Oxford-street, London, and
of the town of Northampton, was brought before
Sir R. W. Carden at the Guildhall Police-court, on
Saturday, for further examination relative to the
charge of unlawfully removing, concealing, and
embezzling property of the value of £1,200 and
upwards, and with conspiring with divers other
persons (not yet in custody) with intent to cheat
and defraud the creditors of the bankrupts.
Mr. Van Sandau appeared for the prosecution ;
and Mr, Best (instructed by Mr. Waldron, of Lon-
don, and Mr. Dawson, of Northampton) defended
the bankrupt.
'lhe only witness examined was Sohn Woodford,
referred to in the evidence given by Thomas Beard,
the bankrupt's carman, but his evidence was merely
of a corroborative character.
In order to make that which followed the close
of Woodford's examination intelligible, it will be
necessary to explain that on the previous day Mr.
Van Sandau asserted that certain statements put
forward as having been made in Mr. Dawson's
office at Northampton, by the witness Beard, were
fabricated by the solicitor (Mr. Dawson) for the
purposes of deception and fraud. The magistrates
having previously commented upon the circum-
stances under which the witness's signature to the
document containing those statements was obtained,
Mr. Dawson, who at the time indignantly re-
pudiated the imputation, now rose for the purpose
of calling upon Mr. Van Sandau to retract, when
he was interrupted by
Mr. Van Sandau, who said—l have a prior ap-
plication to make, sir. I hold in my hand an in-
formation, sworn to by the witness Beard, to
the effect that he never made the statements to
which his signature was appended, and that at the
time he signed them ho had no knowledge of their
contents; and upon that I have to ask you, sir, to
commit Mr. Dawson, the solicitor, for conspiring
With the bankrupt in this matter.
Sir R. W. Carden—The contents of the informa-
tion you have read were given in evidence yester-
day, but I cannot take upon myself to commit Mr.
Dawson without something more to jeuvsetrif,yyomu eliikne
of giving
tsoucthakaen
uexpotrnaoyroduirnsaerlyf
tshteept.esplof,ushiobviviity
Mr. Dawson into custody. then I shall b© bound to
hear whatever charge you may think proper to
prefer.
—sf, a
Tlhe n,ndsirinlovdirogtivaekemtrh.apt
re-
sponsibility Sandau—Then,
ye
upon
Daw-
son into custody for conspiring, with Poole and
others, for the purpose of cheating the creditors.
un-
expectedpearedtaekilenegtr,ifisaeidd—atßtheeally:
M r Dawson,
tn whoheappeared
case was
sir, this has come upon me so unexpectedly that I
etl yl
lyvunpreparedwatchShallh
et o
alms
o:taco
vtn
eibtte,
ohaass
ltfalno
fria
at ti
nec nl dehen
the
ohafmemreitnmoeteaarl
dock, sir ?
Sir R. W. Carden—l have no voice in the matter.
Mr. Van Sandau gives you into custody, and I am
afraid you will have to take your place by the side
of the bankrupt.
Mr. Waldron--I think Mr. Dawson had better
say no more. If Mr. Van Sandau courts an action
for false imprisonment, I hope he is in a position to
pay aamages.
Mr. Dawson was then removed by Spittle the
detective, to the police station, where the charge