The Sun.
London, England, 1858-07-07 00:00:00

THE LATE FATAL ACCIDENT ON TH.B
SOUTH-EASTERN RAILWAY.

CoEfILRAM, ToisD4Y EyErn:pro.
This morning sitfinqum4t was opened before the
county coroner, lir. T. T. DeLusui, at the Alm
Inn, touching the death of Alfred Wood, 12 years
of age, which was caused by the injuries he re-
ceived at the atcident on the Ramsgate and Mar-
gate branch of the South-Eastern Railway, within
a few yards of the Chilham station, on Wednesday
last.

Mr. Robinson (from the law offices of the South-
Eastern Railway Company), Mr. Knight (the su-
perintendent of the line), the traffic superinSen-
dent, and the locomotive superintendent, were in
attendance on behalf of the company, and also Mr.
Coxhead, local superintendent ; Mr. Towne at-
tended on behalf of the friends of the deceased boy,
Wood ; Mr. S. Plummer, of Canterbury, on behalf
of the Rev. T. Wood, one of the sufferers ; Mr.
Bartholomew, for the Rev. D. Darnell, vicar of
Welton, who was seriously injured on the occa-
sion, as well as several members of his family ;
Mr. Sharland of Gravesend represented the friends
of the deceased man, Channon.
The coroner said, in ord-r to save a second in-
quiry, he should presume that the cause of death
of John Channon was the same as that of Alfred
Wood. If, therefore, the present inquiry was (*-
eluded that day, he should not open All inquest
upon the body of the deceased Channon, but if it
were adjourned he should reswear the jury, and
view the body, so that it migh-.. be removed: for
burial.
The first witness was Henry Wood, station-
master at Chilharn, wit) said that on Wednesday
last he observed the 3.30 fast train approaching the
station a few minutes before six. The engine was
about 100 yards from the station. Nothing had oc-
curred to the carriages then ; they were then on the
rails. He saw the steam escaping:from the undtr
part of the boiler As soon as the steam was clear he
saw the carriages were thro►vn off the line ; they
were all off the line. The train consisted ofan engine
and tender, twobreak vans, three first, three second,
and three third class carriages. The carriages were
thrown with great violence, and many persons se-
verely injured. He should think the train was
travelling ut from 20 to 25 miles an hour. He sup-
posed, when the crank-axle of the engine was
broken, i, made a hole in the boiler. He believed
that was the cause of the accident. The engine tra-
velled about 150 yards after he saw the steam es-
capieg freta the bottom of it. After the crank-
axle was broken the engine could travel, as it had
six wheels. It was the middle wheel of which the
crank-axle broke. Ooly ordinary carriages were
with the train ; none of unusual length. It was
an excursion train.

Mr. James Cummings said—l reside in Rams.
gate. I am a guard on the South-Eastern Railway,
and had charge of the train that left Loudon at
3.30 on Wedueaday last. I did not observe any
thing part-radar until we arrived at the spot where
the occurrence took place. We had progressed at
the usual pace from London. While we were on
the curve I felt a shock as of something broken in
the engine, but what it was I could not say. I ap-
plied the brakes, and partly succeeded in so doing.
I was jerked away from the brake, but I caught
hold of it again. We afterwards came in contact
with a coal truck, and then carne to a standstill.
After the accident I saw the metals were torn up ;
but I cannot say how they were torn up. I do not
know what caused the carriages to get off the line.
At the time of the accident we were going at the
rate of about 25 miles au hour., Travelling round
that curve at 25 miles au hdtir would not break the
crank-axle. The engine came only front Ashford.
It was not usual for one engine to go right
through. He rode iu the break-van next tbe en-
gine. Between the tender and bis van the coupling
itous were broken, but he could not say whore that
took place, as he did not know until after the acci-
dent. The engine travelled about 80 yardsfurther
than the van.
.• The rails for 80 yards where the
engine travelled alone were uninjured. The axles
'of the wheels were all examined at Ashford so far
sreasp_ was - concerned. The incline cqntinues
thl44l4icitelPilittifeekleimriftrThitircifeitiiirfigViaut

a quarter of a mile towards the curve, and perhaps
a little more. Twenty-live miles an hour round a
curve is not dangerous. The incline creates au im-
petus ; with that impetus the train dii not exceed
25 miles an hour.
Mr. E. Lansdell, linendraper, of Ramsgate, a
second-class passenger, said he heard a' noise as if
the wheel was grinding the ground ; and shortly
after wards three of the ea)riages preceding his were
thrown off the rails. The train was going e,t its
usual speed, and the speed had been lessened just
before he heard the whistle. Five seconds elapsed
after the whistle before he heard the grating noise.
Mr. James Beal, of 20, Radnor-street, Chelsea.
another passenger, did not hear the whistle, and
did not observe that the speed was slackened. He
felt that the train was off the line, when it was
200 yards from where the accident occurred.
Mr. J. Latham, inspector of the permanent way,
said—Two days before the accident he walked.
along the line from Chilham to Wye, and the rails
were then in a perfect state. After the accident
four rails had to be replaced about 80 yards from
the station. The first rail was bent, but he could
not say how it became bent ; the breaking of the
crank-axle might have caused the rail to bulge out.
Wm. Ballard, platelayer and gatekeeper, saw the
train passing at the rate of 25 or 30 miles an hour,
and heard the axle break, and saw the carriage go
off the line and turn over.
Mr. C. T. Isborn, of Peckham, assistant-engi-
neer to the ra,lway company, produced a plan of
that portion of the line, and described the situation
of the carriages and broken rails, having himself
cleared the line the same evening. The gatehouse
(opposite to which the last witness heard the axle
break), was 48 yards from where the line was torn
up. The gradients average about 1 in 200 on the
curve, which was half a mile in radius. The rail
near the gatehouse was bent about four inches, but
remained in its place.
Mr. J. P. Knight, the superintendent, said that,
looking at the curve iu question, he should. say
from 25 to 30 miles an hour was not a dangerous
speed. On other lines they work at the same rate
on similar curve?. Forty miles an hour might be
dangerous upon the sharpest part of the curve. He
would not recommend such a speed. It would'not
Make much difference whether you go. round a
curve upon an incline or a level. He.did.not
think it would be a material fact, as regards going
down a curve, if there was a continuous declivity
of three quarters of a mile. By rule 344, section
6, of the instructions to drivers and stokers, "The
drivers are specially cautioned to slacken speed at
the falowiug places (after enumerating several
places) when running round all sharp curves." He
did not consider this a sharp curve.
Mr. H. Coxbead, local superintendent of the
Ramsgate branch, was the next witness, and the
inquiry was then adjourned until Monday next, at
half past ten o'clock.
The inquest was opened pro forma on the body
of Channon, and an order made for his burial.'

THE FATAL FIGHT AT GRAVESEND.—It will be re-
membered that a man called the "Brighton Pet" killed
another in a pugilistic encounter, a short time ago..at
Gravesend. Some cf the accomplices were apprehended,
but the Brighton man, whosa name was
,said to be
Morris, absconded. His Lam, however, is But, and
he formerly belonged to the focal militia. On Saturday
morning our chief officer, Mr. Wbite, received informa-
tion that Be,t was apprehended on Friday at Ports-
mouth, and that he was to be taken to Gravesend, 4
undergo an examination on a charge of manslaughter.
—Sussex Express.
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