The Sun.
London, England, 1859-04-04 00:00:00

HEATLEY V. EVANS.

Mr. H. James and Mr. Pritchard appoared for
the plaintiff; Mr. Serjeant Pigott and Mr. Smythies
for the defendant.

The plaintiff in this action, George Heatley, was
a poor man, who lived at St. Nicholas, near Cardiff,
in Glamorganshire, and he brought the present ac-
tion against John Evans, a farmer in the same
locality, to recover damages for seducing his
daughter, Jane Heatley, who had been confined
with twins in 1858.

The plaintiff's daughter, a very young girl,
stated that in the year 1851 she went to live
with the defendant as nursemaid. She was at that
time 13 years of age, but before she was 14 the
defendant, who was a married man, had connection
with her. This continued from time to time till the
year 1856, when she left, and went to her grand-
mother's. After a month's absence she went back
again, and again left and returned to her grand-
mother.

At this stage of the trial the witness was ordered
to retire from court, and some discussion took place
as to whether the plaintiff could prove the loss of
service so as to sustain the action. It appeared
that this could not be done.

Mr. Sergeant Pigott said, there was no founda-
tion for the charge against the defendant ; and as
the latter wanted peace, and not costs, he would
take a verdict in his favour, without asking the
plaintiff for costs. _ _

Mr. Tames, on the part of the plaintiff, accepted
this proposal, and the jury found a verdict for the
defendant.

THE EXPLOSION AT HOUNSLOW.

THE INQUEST.

On Saturday afternoon Mr. Wakley, the coroner
for the western division of Middlesex, and a jury
of 16 of the inhabitants of Twickenham and Houns-
' low, assembled at the Hanworth Powder-mills to
inquire into the circumstances which led to the late
fearful explosion at these works, by which the lives
of seven persons were sacrificed and an immense
amount of property destroyed.
The jury having been sworn,
Mr. Wakley said, that this was one of the most
alarming, as well as one of the most destructive
explosions which had taken place for Many years,
and it was most desirable that they should obtain
the best evidence with respect to the catastrophe,
in order to be able, if possible, to account for the
sad occurrence. It would be useless for them to
hold an inquest at all unless they could arrive at
some conclusion with regard to the cause of the ac-
cident, and, with a view of affording time to collect
evidence for that purpose, he thought the proper
courso would be, after the jury had viewed the site
of the destroyed buildings and the remains of the
unfortunate sufferers, that they should adjourn the
inquiry, perhaps for a fortnight. An important
investigation like the present should not be hurried
over, and he felt that an adjournment would be
necessary in order to afford time to collect all avail-
able
evidence.

A juror said, that the feeling in the neighbour-
hood was so excessively strong upon the subject that
he was sure, in speaking for himself, he was speaking
the sentiments of the whole panel, when he said
there were none of them who would be unwilling
to give up any amount of time which would be
likely to throw any light on the causes which led

to so shocking an affair. He had lived upwards of
40 years in the neighbourhood, and although dur-
ing that time there had been several explosions and
much loss of life, still there had never been any-
thing to equal the recent disaster for wide-spread
destruction to property for miles around.
The Coroner said, there was undoubtedly a great
amount of excitement upon the subject, and for the
safety of the public, as well as those employed at
the mills, it was necessary that a most rigid investi-
gation should take place. Not only the workpeople
but all in the neighbourhood, were exposed by
these explosions to the most fatal risks.
The Coroner and jury then proceeded to view the
scene of the explosion, the devastations committed
by which have already been fully described in
The Sun. They afterwards visited a press and
corning-house upon the works, in order more fully
to understand the peculiar manufacturing process
to which the powder is subjected in each building..
The most painful portion of the proceedings was
viewing the remains of the wretched men who were
blown up,—viz., Thomas Albone, aged 33; J.
Compton, 37 ; Stephen May, 45 ; G. Lewcock, 31;
H. Davis, 33 ; W. Littleford, 27; and Jacob Stout,
27. The only one which could be identified was
the deceased May, who it will bo remembered
was walking at a short distance from the
press-house when the disaster took place. This body
lay at a cottage near the works, to which it was re-
moved after the accident. The other remains were
deposited in a shed on the premises, and consisted
mostly of mere fragments and portions of bodies.
On returning to the inquest-room the Coroner
said, he had at first proposed that after a formal
opening of the inquiry there should be an adjourn-
ment for a fortnight, when gentlemen of experience
and scientific attainments should be examined as to
the causes which led to the accident. He now,
however, thought, as there was such a strong feel-
ing existing upon the subject, that it was advista;Je
they should meet earlier, and therefore, after taking
such evidence as they could obtain on the premises,
he should propose at their rising to adjourn to
Tuesday next. They could not wonder at the ex-
citement which prevailed when the amount of
damage done was so great, even at so great a dis-
tance. It became a most important considera-
tion to know at what distance from such works
people were safe, and this was a question of
the deepest interest to the public and the owiters
of the mills. He had heard that damage had been.
done by this explosion as far off as six miles.
A juror said, as far as Kingston and East Sheen
windows had been broken and other damage caused.
The following evidence was then taken :
__

Thomas Rowse examined, said, he resided in
Twickenham parish, at the cottage where the body
of Stephen May was lying. He was foreman of the
corning and press houses of Messrs. Curtis's mills,
and over the houses which had been blown up.
Knew the whole of the men whose lives had been
lost, and whose bodies or portions of whose bodies
the jury had seen. The deceased Thomas Albone
was employed as a labourer in the corning-house
which had been blown up, and which was called
the lower corning-house. That was the body which
the jury had seen at the furthest on the right, and
that was the only one which witness could recog-
nise. John Compton, or the other bodies or re-
mains, he could not recognise. Witness was on
the premises when the explosion took place.
By the Coroner—Could state positively that the
first explosion took place in the lower press-house.
There were four men in the press-house and three
in the corning-house. The men in the press house
were Lewcock, Davis, Littleford, and Stout. They
all had got into the press house at a few minutes to
8 o'clock on Wednesday morning. They had to
empty the hydraulic press, and at that time they
had just done pumping. Although witness could
not positively identify any of the deceased but May,
he had no doubt that the names mentioned were
those of the deceased whose remains the jury had
seen.
Mr. John Cooper, examined—ls engineer to
MOM. Curtis and Co. at the Hawprorth Powder.

mills. It was his duty to look after the repairs,
and see that all the machinery was kept in proper
order.

The Coroner said, he would purposely abstain
from asking this gentleman any further questions
at this stage of the inquiry.
A juror said, that there was an engineer, a gen-
tleman named Taylor, present, who could give most
important evidence, and he hoped he would be
examined.

The Coroner said, he would take care that the
gentleman mentioned should be summoned. He
(Mr. Wakley) considered that they had now
arrived at the point at which it was most desirable
that the inquiry should be adjourned. As he had
stated before, they ought to have the evidence of
the most eminent scientific men who could be ob-
tained. He should like to have the evidence of
such men as Professor Faraday. and also the evi-
dence of some gentleman who was a great autho-
rity upon chemistry. On the subject of this addi-
tional evidence, however, he was in somewhat of a
difficulty, and therefore desired to ask Mr. Curtis
whether he would be prepared, on the part of the
firm with which he was connected, to incur some
expenses in order to enable the jury to elucidate as
far as possible the circumstances which had led to

this la-mentable affair. He (the coroner) did not
himself shrink from the responsibility, but he
thought it was not fair that the expense of such
a proceeding should be thrown upon him per-
sonally. There can be no doubt that, next
to the families and friends of the unfortu-
nate men who were killed in this explosion,
Messrs. Curtis and Co. were the most interested
parties; for, apart from the personal danger to
themselves every time they came upon the premises,
there were the serious pecuniary losses which such
calamities entailed upon them. Some time ago he
had held an inquest in Bloomsbury when 15 per-
sons lost their lives during a fire, and it was the
way in which he was treated by the magistrates in
quarter sessions in reference to that inquest which
drew from him these remarks. The inquest was a
protracted and a most harassing one, and in conse-
quence of its being discovered that some of the de-
ceased persons died by the fumes of arsenic, instead
of by fire, he sat day after day, and night after
night, and in order to fully elucidate the subject a
model of the premises was made. Yet, when he sent
his accounts, the magistrates in quarter sessions not
only disallowed his fee on 13 out of the 15 bodies,
but the expenses for the construction of the model,
somewhere about 12 guineas, were also left unpaid,
and thrown upon him (Mr. Wakley). Now, if he
sat in reference to the present calamity from that
time to Midsummer, he should not get a single
penny for any adjournment, and the jury would be
even worse of, for they got nothing whatever. He
therefore thought that, while for the satisfaction of
the public and the friends and relations of the de-
ceased, and to remove the anxiety of mind which
must exist on the part of the owners of the powder
mills, a full and complete in trestigation should take
place, it was not right nor fair that the expense of
obtaining the necessary scientific evidence should
be thrown upon him (Mr. Wakley) personally.
(" Hear, hear," from the jury.) He would admit
that it might appear a hard thing, when the serious
loss which the firm had sustained by this accident
was considered, that they should be asked to incur
further expenses, but at the same time he was
assured they must be deeply interested in the con-
duct of thatinquiry, in such a way as would per-
haps enable them to arrive at a conclusion as to the
causes of the accident, and if possible apply a remedy
against a similar one taking place for the future.
Mr. Curtis, on the part of the firm with whish
lie was connected, said they were most desirous of
doing everything which could be suggested for the
purpose of facilitating the inquiry, and whatever
expense the coroner and jury thought it necessary
to incur to procure additional evidence, he could
say, on behalf of the firm, that they would most
cheerfully and willingly bear it.
The Coroner said, it was highly creditable to the
firm so to do, and after a short discussion as to the
nature of the evidence to be taken and the most
convenient hour for reassembling, the inquiry was
adjourned till Tuesday afternoon.