The Sun.
London, England, 1858-09-28 00:00:00

VANCOUVER'S ISLAND,

We have received a copy of the Vancouver Island
Gazette of the 14th of August. It publishes the
following in very conspicuous type under the head-
ing " Glorious Intelligence" :
" By the arrival last night of the steamer Sur-
prise, at 11 o'clock, from Fort Hope, we have re-
ceived the most important, reliable, and cheering
intelligence which it has yet been our good fortune
to communicate to our readers from our gold mines
in New Caledonia ; at a moment, too, when people's
minds were worn out with suspense and expecta-
tions collapsing, real estate nowhere, merchandise
a drug, comes a silver lining to our cloud of de-
spondency, and all is again full of sunshine. As
Pope says, Belinda smiles and all the world is
gay.'
The following are a few brief facts which is all
we can despatch in our Supplement for the P.M.
steamer Panama, leaving this morning :—Mr.
Kent, passenger by steamer Surprise, states that
the river has fallen 21 feet at Fort Hope, 41 at Fort
Yale ; that 10,000 miners are at work, and with
good prospects, and all miners below Fort Hope are
doing well. The water is low and still falling, it
is now so low the steamer Surprise cannot return
up the river. 601 b. of gold, now in the hands of
Wells Fargo and Co.'s express, has been brought
down to Victoria. Henry Apple, of Nevada, was
drowned at Fort Hope by the upsetting of a boat.
Six men have taken out 600 dollars in six hours at
Fort Hope by using a rocker only, and 3,000 miners
are there at work. All doing well at Fort Yale.
" The above information arrived at an hour some-
what late in the evening ; the glad tidings soon
got wind, and filled every one's mind with the most
lively satisfaction ; knots of persons who had worn
elongated faces at the auction sales of town lots at
something less than cost prices were immediately
seen to regain their wonted cheerfulness, and all
went 11.
merry as a marriage be' The steamer
urprise had, indeed, occasioned them all a most
agreeable surprise. The above encouraging and
most important news communicated to the readers
of the Vancouver Island Gazette, has been fully
corroborated by the receipt of authentic statements
of a similar nature by his Excellency Governor
Douglas, who will forward the intelligence to the
Home Government in England, by the present
outgoing mail. We have now, then, fairly made
our start as a gold producing colony, and
claim to rank as such with our older rivals, Cali-
fornia and Australia. In expressing our complete
satisfaction at receiving this first and largely en-
couraging proof of the vast richness of our mines,
we must not overlook the fact that our excellent
and sagacious Governor Douglas has never for
moment doubted their richness."

THE LATE FIRE AT GREENWICH.

ADJOURNED INQUIRY.

Yesterday afternoon the jury previously empan-
nelled before Mr. Carttar, coroner for West Kent,
re-assembled at the Globe Tavern for the purpose
of inquiring into the circumstances and origin of
the fire in which Isabella, Caroline, and Eliza Jane,
daughters of Mr. Richard Roper, corn-chandler, of
Royal-hill, lost their lives, on Sunday, the 12th inst.
'the usual preliminaries having been gone
through, prior to the first witness being examined,
the coroner mentioned that it was the wish of the
jury that Mrs. Roper's evidence should be taken.
Mr. Ingle, who appeared for Mr. Roper, fully
concurred in the wish expressed by the jury.
Mr. Allwright, an auctioneer and appraiser of
the Lewisham-road was next examined, and stated
that between ten and eleven o'clock on the morn-
ing after the fire he had an interview with Mr.
Roper in the front parlour of Mr. Cowell's house.
He was in a terrible state of mind, consequent on
the loss of his children. Witness thought it would
be better to divert his mind, and therefore ques-
tioned him as to an inventory respecting his
claims. He replied that he did not want to make
a claim, for no money would pay him for the loss
of two children. After a while witness asked hint
in what office he was insured, when he replied,
in the Kent for £3OO. Witness then told him he
must make his claim out, and prepared an in-
ventory for him, and went over the premises to
see of what the inventory consisted. He commenced
with the attic, and there found a Brussels carpet
down, which was accounted for as being in
such a room, as it belonged to the other house.
On going through the premises he found furni-
ture sufficient to form an excess over the sum
named in the policy. Having gone over the re-
maining items he valued the wearing apparel and
fixtures at an excess. He therefore thought it
superfluous to proceed any further with respect to
the stock. When Mr. Sanderson came down he
(Mr. Roper) told him it might be £3O or £100;
when Mr. Sanderson took the average at about £7O.
On the same evening witness prepared the claim,
and took it to Mr. Roper, at Mr. Cowell's at Dept-
ford, on the following morning, and asked him to
sign it. Mr. Roper was then in the garden, and as
he (the witness) was anxious to catch the train for
London, a person named Abbott went and got a,
pen and ink, and Roper signed it without reading it.
Mr. Wm. Sitgrave, auctioneer, of 28, Leadenhall-
street, city, was engaged, during the absence of Mr.
Hodsall, to act for him on the
.part of the Kent
Fire-office. He deposed to going over the ruins,
and to his surprise found no remains of wearing
' apparel, for which the extraordinary sum of £153
had been claimed. He examined carefully for the
remains of china articles, but found nothing but a
broken teacup. With respect to the wearing ap-
parel, he broke open the four drawers of a ward-
robe and found scarcely anything therein. The
upper part of the wardrobe was empty and was but
slightly charred. Had there been any wearing
apparel there he should have expected, if consumed,
to find some remains, such as buttons, collars of
coats, sleeves, &c. ; but nothing of the sort could be
seen. There was a gold and silver watch said to
have been lost, but they were not charged. On
referring to the inventory he found a sum of
£365 4s. charged for furniture, including £155
3s. for wearing apparel, which he reduced to .£2lO
ls. ; the stock was set down at 14s. 6d., but
finding that 14 sacks of flour had been claimed for,
and no appearance of any such stock being
found, he questioned the boy Morris, who said that
certainly not more than one sack of flour was in
the place on the night previous to the fire. The
£36 for fixtures was allowed.

The boy Morris was next called, and stated that
his master sent him to Mr. Denham' corn-dealer, at
Deptford, to tell him he had in all probability let
his business, and to ask him if he (Mr. Denham}
would be able to come on the following Tuesday, if
sent for, to witness an agreement.
Elizabeth Waterfall, the nursemaid, was next
called, and questioned very closely by the coroner
as to whether she had seen parcels of goods taken
away by. Mr. Cowell from her master's house, and
as to whether she had seen any pawnbroker's dupli
cates, and after some repeated denials and hesita-
tions said that she had seen a pawnbroker's dupli-
cate and a large bundle of her mistress's dresses
packed up ready for removal, the drawers of the
wardrobe in which they were usually kept being
empty.
William Cowell, tailor, of Church-street, Deptford,
having been cautioned by the coroner as to the
answers he should now give, in consequence of the
contradictory statements made on the last exami-
nation by himself, wife, and son, on pain of being
committed for peijm7, admitted having taken a.
globe of wax flowers from Mr. Roper's to his own
house ; also to pledging articles of wearing apparel
of every description, spoons, liqueur glasses, Sze., at
different pawnbrokers at Greenwich, in the name
of Buchan.

Mr. Inspector Barry was here despatched to the
several pawnbrokers named by the last witness,
and. shortly afterwards returned with the property,
the whole of which had been pledged within 14
days of the fire, and which were claimed for.
During the inquiry the writing-desk already men-
tioned as having been taken from Mr. Roper's resi-
dence before the fire, and removed to the house of
his sister, was produced in court, it having ,been
opened, although taped and sealed by Mr. Inspector
Wilson.

Mrs. Emily Cook, sister to Mr. Roper, on being
examined on this point, said Mr. Roper broke it
open of his own accord. Witness told him to be
cautious asilit was sealed up ; but he said he would
take all responsibility as there were papers in it
that might be of service to him. She did not know
what was taken out.

At this point of the inquiry an adjournment of
the Court took place, and on its reassembling after
the absence of about half an hour,
The Coroner said that himself and the jury had
agreed to a further adjournment.
Mr. Ingle concurred with their determination,
and the inquiry was adjourned till Friday next.

SERIOUS RAILWAY COLLISION.—On Saturday
night, at 10 o'clock, a collision, which might have been at-
tended with very serious loss of life, occurred at the Preston
station. The 9.55 p.m. train from the north, carrying a
portion of the night mail, was leaving the station, when it
came into collision with a luggage train, oonsisting of an
engine and seven or eight waggons, which was being
shunted on to a siding. The shock was a severe one ;
three of the waggons were smashed to atoms, the persons in
the passenger train were a good deal shaken, and the smoke-
box of the engine attached to it was knocked in. It had, of
course, to be replaced by another engine, which occasioned
a delay to the train of one hour. The driver of the engine
to the passenger train acknowledges that he was to blame,
as the proper signals were displayed, and unattended to by
him ; but he says that after he saw the danger he did all in
his power to avert the collision. The train left on its jour-
ney gouth at 11 o'civok.--.Limpool Mercury.