The Sun.
London, England, 1859-10-18 00:00:00

TUESDAY EVENING, OCTOBER IS, 1859.

been no greater • than it was in these 64 districts,
91,652 lives would have been preserved in that year.
England has been divided by the Registrar Gene-
ral into two classes of registration districts of about
equal populations, one consisting mainly of urban
and the other of rural inhabitants, and it is found
that the rural death rate reaches only 22 in 1,000,
while the urban is 26. The facts we possess at pre-
sent support the theory that unhealthiness prevails
in proportion to the density of population ; but
this, like other branches of the subject, requires
elucidation. An examination of the soils on which
epidemics mostly prevail, would, I believe, lead to
:me remarkable conclusions, for the different in-
fluences exercised over certain diseases by clay and
gravel soils has been too much overlooked. But
the light we now possess is sufficient to prove the
startling fact, that in England alone a hecatomb of
victims, at least 100,000 of our people, are being
annually sacrificed to ignorance and disregard to
the laws of health, and that in addition to these
100,000 deaths, far more than a million of persons
are suffering from serious illness from the same
cause. For the more complete confirmation of this
fact, we require that the total mortality should be
separated and distinguished according to the diseases
by which it is occasioned. An important contribu-
tion to this knowledge has been made by Dr. Green-
how. He has extracted from the general returns
the mortality occurring from diseases which prevail
under those evil conditions of life which are most
within the power of the community to remove.
These are-1, typhoid fever ; 2, diarrliceal diseases ;
3, pulmonary affections ; 4, contagious diseases of
children, consisting of scarlatina, measles, and
whooping cough ; and 5, the nervous diseases of
infants. On comparing the mortality of districts
at the top and bottom of the scale of health it ap-
pears that the difference between them is nearly
equal to that mortality which occurs exclusively
from the five classes of disease thus selected :
AVERAGE MORTALITY TO 1,000 LIVING.
More Exclusive
preventible of those
Diseases. Diszases.
5 • . 11
12 • • 11
16 .. 11
16 11
20 11
22 , . 12

Total.

Rural districts
England and Wales 23
London
Birmingham .... 23
Leeds
Manchester

Liverpool district .. 33 _ 25 12
From which it appears that if the excessive morta.
lity from these more preventible diseases could be
reduced everywhere to the amount which is found
in these selected rural districts, one-half -the deaths
in England would be prevented, and two-thirds of
the deaths in the district at the bottom of the scale.
I think no one will deny that the prevalence and
fatality of these five classes of diseases could be
checked by the energetic employment of compre-
hensive sanatory measures. Typhoid fever has its
home in illsdrairel places, and requires for an ally
some impurity in the air. It never springs up in
the homes of the wealthy, though it sometimes in-
vades them by means of contagion. The nature and
locomotion of the cholera poison has not yet been
discovered, but all experience shows that only amid
the decomposition of organic substances can it de-
velop its crushing power and acquire its full viru-
lence. This is also notoriously the case with its
kindred diseases. A large proportion of fatal dis-
eases arise from working in overheated and too dry
workshops, and from inhaling dust, fluff, or other
arid impurities. The death rates of young children
afford an instructive test of sanatory circumstances,
allowing only for the different demands upon the
time and attention of the mothers in different
places. The sensitive and delicate frames of very
young children show more directly the influence of
their dwellings than the more hardened and resist-
ing constitution of adults. It is naturally found
that where most deaths of infants are recorded
there are also more weakly and scrofulous children,
who drag on a'debilitated existence, and perpetuate
a race deficient in stamina and vigour, both of
body and mind. In Mr. Simon's report to the Board
of Health in 1858, it is stated that every year more
than 23,000 children under five years of age die of
inflammation of the respiratory organs, besides
nearly 4,000 whose deaths are attributed to phthisis;
and these 27,000 deaths are so unequally distri-
buted that the corresponding death rate, in propor-
tion to the infantine population, ranges from 213 in
the healthiest district of England to 2,897 in the
unhealthiest. In Combe's work on Physiology it
is stated that 100 years ago, when the pauper in-
fants of London were received in workhouses, and
brought up amidst impure air, and with unwhole-
some treatment, not above one in 24 liyqd to be a
year old, so that out of 2,800 received into them,
2,690 died; but when the conditions of health came
to be better understood, an act of Parliameat was
obtained obliging the parish officers to send the in-
fanta to the country, and this frightful mortality
was reduced to 450 instead of upwards of 2,000.
The large establishment for pauper children at
Norwood used a few years ago to be ravaged by
epidemics, and to suffer a high rate of average
mortality. The sanatory arrangements that have
been adopted have reduced the average death-
rate to 20 in 1,000, which is one-third or one-half
of what prevails among the classes from whom
they are drawn, who have not the benefit, as it is
in this instance, of becoming paupers, and neither
typhoid fever nor measles have ever originated in
the new building. In the district school of the Step-
ney Union the death-rate has fallen to 17 in 1,000.
The military school at Chelsea affords a striking
example of the results of sanatory improvements.
Dr. Balfour improved the ventilation, apportioned
the diet more judiciously, and secured.opportunities
for cold bathing, and by such measures has suc-
ceeded in reducing the mortality, which on an ave-
rage of 10 years had been 9.5 per 1,000, 4.8 per
1,000 on an average of eight years, and the num-
ber reported unfit for military service from si ramous
and other diseases has been reluccd from an average
of 12.4 to one of 4.6 psr 1,000. One personal visit
to the single room with stained walls and sickening
smells, where a whole family swarm for bare shel-
ter—inhaling sickliness at every breath, drinking
green and stagnant water, and swallowing damaged
fool—will stir up a more fierce and indignant de-
sire to come to the rescue and do battle on their be-
half, than the largest array of incontrovertible
figures. We want the acknowledgment both by law
and custom of a higher standard of the necessaries
of life. The poor law protects life by offering to
every one in the land who.needs it necessary food;
but as yet the necessity of protecting life from the
influence of poispnous dwellings has not practically
been acknowledged. The principle is in the Statute-
book. The rudiments of physiology, and anatomy,
and hygiology ought to form part of education, par-
ticularly is girls' schools ; for until wives, mothers,
and servant-maids understand the rules of health
and something of their meaning, our object can
never be accomplished. Many things which
appear trifling in themselves are, in this point
of view, of great importance. It is provoking,
for instance, to see the pr:judice with which
people adhere to old clumsy fire-grates which give
out a minimum of heat with a maximum expendi-
ture of fuel. Dr. Arnott has bestowed on the pub-
lic a valuable improvement, and the experiments
on that and other newly-invented grates, which are
recorded in a blue-book of 1857, might with great
advantage be extended. Warmth is an important
condition of health, and it is only by our deficiency
of mechanical skill in the arrangements of our
dwellings that warmth has so often to be sacrificed
to the ventilation of the apartment. It is very re-
cently that it has generally been admitted that for
the proper government of a town its authorities
must be armed with sanatory powers. The common
law promises redress for chemical as well as me-
chanical injuries, and will prescribe the abatement
of everything that can ha proved to be a,nuisanco.
lint as the cleanliness of a town requires co-opera-
tion, the ruling body mu,t take the direction. If
government is maintained for the protection of per-
son and property from breaches of the law, why
may it not protect, from breaches of sanatory law,,
the lives of those subject to its authority, an d'health,
which is the capital and stock in trade of the
labourer The local authority must in all towns
be charged with jurisdiction over the air, and be
responsible for preventing its purity from being
unnecessarily ielled. The e :penscs of a local act
have become unnecessary, end the ample powers of
the Public Health Act and the Local Government
Act may be adopted without expense, and to such
an extent only as may be suitable to the circum-
stances of the place. One of the greatest advan-
tages of the last-mentioned act is the facility it
affords f altering the boundary of municipal go-
vernment in conformity with the extension and
contraction of the area over which the jurisdiction
ought to extend. The law is no longer in fault,
hut I ant sorry to say the administration of the law
often is. If the good that is to be accomplished
by sanatory administration could be be better un-
derstood end more widely appreciated, benevolence
and tl,e noble ambition of taking care of the vital
interests of the poor would bring forth eandidat C 3
for town councils and local boards where the disre-
gard of such results now leaves the field uncontested
to such low motives as notoriety, personal in-
terest, cr the mistaken economy of saving the rates
rather than the poor. Scarcely any performance
eloalshteicti.leiNoeaNit-ttrlvnpi
altua,l3r!spioa-
purpose
iiropm:,ropeiefti..se.yo:3::elilee,etamstleseritiNslhit:oriiirs,ftpttal;:eni
parish
lives
ee as_
o"rhaiTsi
scoi,t
view
fellow-citizens.
taken of chief
bates, but submits to much that isrepugnant to his
afinedialhacanldthi:
pable but rates
snsuot
lunt
economy'.
ontbßalflasainntdteegus7;fl.:tlooriliscalti:::iel.
that are saved require faith to discern. But it is
easy to demonstrate to any one who will li,ten that
the refusal of rates for effective drainage and water
supply is as extravagant in finance as it is heart-
less in feeling. If health be not protected by the

local rates, the want of it will draw on the poor
rate. Sickness breaks in upon the independence of
those whose wages only suffice for their support in

health; and when an epidemic has forced a Man to
receive parish relief he returns to the same resanrco
with less repugnance on slighter occasions. Fevers
are known to spend their greatest virulence on men
in the prime of life, and the extravagance of per-
mitting, widows and orphans to become chargeable
on others is as great as allowing the loss of strong
and skilled workmen. Dr. Farr has made an in-

genious estimate of the average pecuniary.-value to
the community of each human liL, and his figures

prove what sommon sense would not question or
deny, that it is as profitable to the public purse as
it is consonant to every other human interest to
execute the dictates of natural laws for the preser-
vation of life. It seems to me an evidence of the
backwardness of our civilisation that sanatory sub-
jects have so little place in general politics. And
it is remarkable that the working classes should
never have been made to see how greatly these
matters affect their interests. Many agitations
have been set on foot among them which have come
to nought because not founded on what the rest
of the community have admitted to be wisdom
and justice. But there is an agitation which I
believe would be successful—an agitation for the
essentials of a healthy existence. A cry for a new
charter might succeed: and certainly would not be
treated with disdain, if the five points of that
new charter were to lote pure air, pure water, good
drainage, unadulterated food, and open spaces for
exercise. Such a cry as this would rally together
all those who, however they may differ in party
politics, arc agreed respecting the brotherhood of a
common humanity, and whose heart's desire is to
see no one wanting the simple necessaries of a
healthy I;fe. Hitherto calamity only has been able
to rouse the public to a sense of the importance of
this subject. The losses of our army in the Crimea
awakened the military authorities to the necessity
of consulting sanatory commissioners. During the
two years and a quarter that the campaign lasted,
out of an army of which the average strength was
34,500, 20,800 died from all causes ; but of these
deaths only 5,000 occurred in action, or from
wounds inflicted by the enemy. Two-thirds of the
whole mortality arose from other causes more de-
structive than shot, bullet, or bayonet. An equal
number of men of the same ages would, according
to the average death-rate of the more healthy dis-
tricts of England, have suffered a loss of only 610
in lieu of 20,000. The astounding discovery that
the pi,2ked men of the army, the most favoured regi-
ments, were dying at a greater rate than the most
neglected classes of the community, was required.

before the ignorant and barbarous customs of bar•
rack life could b. remedied. The periodical ap-

preaches of cholera aroused attention to precautions
which have saved thousands from other less strik-
ing diseases. But it becomes a wise nation not to
wait for panics, but to make timely and scientific
preparations against every invasion, whether of
disease or more visible foes. The health of the people
ought to arrest more of the attention of rulers, if it
were only that a good digestion and healthy feel-
ings promote content, while the lean and bilious
Cassios always excite apprehension in those who
stand round Caesar's throne. The present is a time
when we may expect to secure the attention of the
public. The great questions in agitation are hardly
sufficient to occupy men's minds, or to supply the am-
munition for party warfare. And it may be seriously
questioned whether the discussions about the distri-
bution of politicalpower,the adjustment oftaxation,
and the extension of commerce, important as they
are. are likely to lead to a greater increase of the
national welfare than the improvements under dis-
cussion here in the social condition of the people.
That improvement, to be real, must extend to the
three great parts of our earthly nature—the moral;
the intellectual, and the physical. The three can-
' not be separated. It is in vain that schools and
institutes draw upwards to a loftier region, if they
are to be counteracted by repulsive homes, in which
the atmosphere is so debilitating as to impart even
to the women a craving to get from strong drink
the stimulus which nature is there prevented from
supplying. And now I come to the part which
should devolve upon the Queen's Government in
the general effort for the sanatory improvement of
the people. There are some who would exclude this
altogether from the functions of Government, just
as there are some who contend that the Govern-
ment is the only body in the country that should
be debarred from promoting education or the teach-
ing of religion. But voluntaryism in pestilence
and plague has not yet been erected into a con-
scientious doctrine, nor have the opponents of com-
pulsory cleanliness declared themselves to be the
party for dirt, but they have found a cry a matter
of the first importance in such controversies. Their
cry is " no centralisation ;" and they declare that,
if the Administration at Whitehall is to have any
authority to protect health, the sacred principle of
self-government ie invaded, and England will be
centralised. No I feel as strongly as any inc
that centralisation, in its proper meaning, is re-
pugnant to British notions, and ought to be utterly
repudiated. It exists in France, where the local
authorities are nominated from the capital, and
have to act under directions Elm the Minister of
the Interior; but what we have in England is only
central superin!endence, as in the instance of the
Poor-law Board, which is authorised to compel ob-
servance of the law by the boards of guardians, and
to take cognisance of failures or breaches of their
duty, and in the inspection of factories, coal mines,
and prisons. The central action which is in accord-
ance with our constitution, and highly beneficial, is
that which renders the responsibility of the local
governments a reality, which by skilled inspection
and official reports secures publicity to their con-
duct, and only intervenes when the powers of the
local authority are grossly neglected or flagrantly
abused. For some years we had a distinct sanatery
department of the Government represented in Par-
liament, but it had no power that could he called
centralising, in the obnoxious use of that term. It
is true it attempted to guide and to teach, but it
had no vocation to coerce. It colleced the experi-
ence of particular places where experiments had
been made for general information. It published
reports on the most pressing and difficult sanatory
questions, and its advice 'was sought from all parts
of the country on legal, medical, and engineering
difficulties. It aimed at becoming the brain of the
sanatory body, diffusing energy anti guidance
through every limb, but it never assumed the pre-
tension of becoming arms or legs, and of substitut-
ing its own action for any other. The powers of
the General Board of Health were, doubtless, too
limited, and it was taunted with having so little to
do. This taunt might have led to the extension of
,its powers to larger spheres had not its opponents
succeeded in its destruction. But out of its ashes
arose a pheenix which may hereafter take a higher
flight. -The medical officer of the Board of Health
has become the medical officer of the Privy Council,
and has to watch any extraordinary epidemic or
excessive amount of fatal disease which may require
inspection and report. While Mr. Simon holds
that important oflice, its full benefits will be un-
doubtedly secured. By his comprehensive report
on vaccination, he dispelled the doubts and suspi-
cions of the efficacy of that practice which were
lurking even in educated minds, and has laid a
foundation in which may safely be rested the justi-
fication of more effective measures for the abolition
of small-pox. 'I he State has a direct interest in
guarding against a deterioration of our race. The
English workman is the best in the world; the Bri-
tish soldier has never crossed bayonets with his equal;
but the crowdinfs° of the population in large towns
without efficient sanatory provisions,-and the want
of prudent reeulatinis in many occupations, have
an undoubted° tendency to enfeeble our people.
The day cannot be far distant when the improve-
ments in steam will expose our island to that which
every continental country has endured—a struggle
for life or death with a foreign invader on our own
soil, and our national glory, and possibly our na-
tional existence, may depend on the undiminished
vigour and boldness of our men. I can have no ap-
prehension about the result ; but I wish to keep in
mind that the physical strength, the healthy frames,
and the contentment of the people arc no slight ele-
ments of our national greatness ; and I am confident
that in the enlightenment and right feeling of the
present generation we shall find a hearty response
when we declare that the public health is of funda-
mental importance, and demands the co-operation
of every one who can give a helping hand in every
class, from the lowest to the highest in the land. It
•is no small help to me in presiding over this depart-
nient to have the support of so many of those who
have taken the earliest and most prominent part in
instructing the public mind upon matters relating
to the public health. Close to me sits Dr. South-
wood Smith, who first expounded clearly the con-
nexion bet Ween the prevalence of fever and the ab-
sence of drainage, and who for so many years has
devoted the energies of -his benevolent mind to the
exposit ion of sanatory trat h—M•r. Edwin Chadwick,
to whom we are indebted fin' those comprehensive
and detailed reports which formed the lever by
which the puhlie mind was first moved—Mr. Sin-
cox, whose admirable reports to tho city of London
furnished model; for that species of literature, and
whose untiring and fruitful labours in his official
capacity we cannot estimate too highly or acknow-
ledge too thankfully—Dr. Farr, whose magical
mastery over figures in analysing, combining and
abstracting, forcing them to speak out the truth,
has popularised statistics and invested them with a
living interest—and our noble President, the Earl
• of Shaftesbury, who, directing the Board of Health
during the cholera epidemic, exhibited the practical
sagacity and self-denying zeal by which lie set a
bright example .in so many branches of practical
benevolence. (Loud cheers.)

THE BUILDERS' STRIKE.

-1. --

It has been intimated in previous reports that
there are some members of the Masters' Association
who are in favour of a more moderate course than
that which has heretofore 'been supported by the
majority. The protracted discussions at the re•
cent meetings were sufficient proof of this difference
of opinion, taken in conjunction with the fact
that some of the leading employers have constantly
shown a great desire to terminate the struggle, if
possible, by undertaking to bring under the notice
of the executive any proposals emanating from the
operatives with that object. The uniform failure
of these attempts on their part led last week to the
impression, on the part of the men, that ere long a
separation would take place between the moderate
and extreme sections of the employers' association,
and what transpired on Saturday and yesterday
seems to confirm that impression. On Saturday
the following official communication was received
by the Masons' Committee :

" To the Masons' Committee, Sun Inn, Lambeth.
" Gentleznen,—l invite you to return with the others in
Mr. Jay's employ to your foitaer places of work uncondi-
tionally, without the declaration.
" I remain yours truly,
" JOHN llawnEs, Foreman of Masons.

" Oct. 15, 1859."

Yesterday, in reply to a written application, Mr.
Thos. Crisp, th© foreman of Mr. Battersbury, Cam-
den•town, sent the subjoined :

" Gentlemen,—Mr. Baitersbury has boon to the yard
this morning, to tell me that ho has unconditionally with-
drawn the document from all branches of his business.
Yours, truly, " Taos. Ciusr.
" October 17th."

This intelligence was confirmed at the Paviors'
Arms, where the mceti:ngs of the other four build-
ing trades are held, With the addition, that Messrs.
Wardell and llake.•, of Westminster, had also with-
drawn the decle.ration, and in both quarters it waa
stated that other employers are likely to take the
same course. The firms above mentioned will, in
the aggregate, employ, a considerable number of
those now " locked out." -

Mr. Potter, the Secretary of the Conference, re
turned to town on Saturday, after having visited
some of the principal towns in the manufacturing
districts for the purpose of organising local com-
mittees to procure a continuous supply of funds, if
such should be unfortunately required, for the fur-
ther maintenance of the' position taken up by the
trades' societies in resisting the document or decla-
ration, and will leave town again this day, to be
present at a great demonstration of the trades of
Birmingham this evening. Similar meetings are
expected to be held in other towns for the same
purpose.
Yesterday the Conference made their thirteenth
weekly payment to the men on strike, and the
eleventh to those locked out. They paid, as before,
12s. to the skilled and Bs. to the unskilled labourers
on strike from Messrs. Trollope's, and the usual
dividend of 4s. to the masons, carpenters, plas-
terers, and Woolwich men. To the stone sawyers
and labourers they paid 35., or ls. less than they
have hitherto received. This shows a total of 6,079
men, and of cash expended £1,091 Gs., as compared
with 5,786 men, and £1,209 last week, or an in-
crease of 203 men and a decrease of £llO 14s.
paid. The result is explained by a considerable
number of men having been " called out" from the
jobs they were at, and the diminution of the
dividend to the labourers. In explanation of this
latter step the Conference state that it has always
been doubtful how far they were justified ori-
ginally in placing the labourers and skilled opera-
tives on an equality with respect to the dividend,
seeing that in the first place there was a difference
made baween the skilled workmen and labourers
in Trollope's ease ; and in the second, that the
funds from which these dividends have been mainly
paid were subscribed by the skilled trades in the
metropolis and the provinces. But in addition
to this reason, there was the fact that the
skilled building operatives who are in work are
contributing an average of 6d. per day to the sup-
port of those on rilze and locked out, while the
labourers, though bound to contribute in like
manner, in proportion to their earnings, have not
done so. There are about 8,000 members of the
" lodges" enumerated in the preceding return, at
work, and yet the whole sum they contribute
weekly in the shape of " levies" does not amount
to more than £7 or £B, while au analysis of the re-
turn shows that they constitute nearly one-half of
the whole of the claimants on the funds, and their
resistance to or acceptance of the " document,"
cannot in any material degree affect the ultimate
issue of the struggle, because their services are
only ancilliary to those of the skilled operatives.
The following return shows the number of skilled
and unskilled labourers thus paid for the past week,
and the amount received by each body respec-
tively :

(1.
Masons .. .. .. 351 122 s.
0 0
Carpenters .. .. .. 1,071 . 214 4 0
Painters .. .• .. 180 36 0 0
Plasterers .. . .. .. 630 126 0 0
Stone sawyers .. .. 74 it 12 0
Woolwich men .. 1-14 28 16 0
Labourers —Lodge 1 .. 340 51 0 0
~ „ 2 .. 152 22 16 0
» 3 .. 151 23 2 0
3/ •• 4 268 40 4 0
, 5 . 103 16 4• 0
31 » 6 •• 421 63 3 0
~ ~ 7 .. 149 22 7 0
A/ " 8 . • 31 5 2 0
» 9 .. 323 48 9 0
1, ',
10 .. 190 28 10 0
» „ 11 (paid vial Woolwich men)
„12 .. 20 3 0 0
•13 .. 13 1 1 0
Nonl'sociely men .. .. 700 105 0 0
Trellope's men .. .. 118 54 0 0

6,079 £1,098 6 0
It would appear, however, that the diminution of
the dividend, and the distinction thus for the first
time made between them and the skilled artisans,
produced as soon as it was known great dissatisfac-
tion, which is likely to pervade the whole of these
lodges. Just as the Conference was about to close
the business of the day a riotous, violent, and dis-
graceful scene occurred at the Paviors' Arms. A
body of labourers, headed by a man known as Jim
Macarthy, made their appearance and demanded
instantly to see Mr. Potter and Mr. Noble, whose
names were coupled with epithets of the coarsest
description. They were informed that the members
of the Conference were at that moment busy, but if
they would wait for a few minutes they would be
attended to. This did not satisfy the leader, who,
using the most horrible imprecations and foul lan-
guage, rushed by the door-keeper and up-stairs,
followed by his companions, into a large room
adjoining the committee-room, where they com-
menced hooting, yelling, and stamping, and swear-
ing that they would pull every brick of the house
down. Mr.Macintee, a member of the Conference,
immediately made his appearance, and quietly in-
quired what they wanted, but it was some time
before any voice could be heard amid the clamour,
tumult, and confusion ; but in answer to the demand
for more money, Mr. Macintee said the Conference
had done the best they could for them, and if they
were not satisfied they were quite at liberty to act
for themselves. This statement led to a renewal of
the confusion and violence, and a personal attack
upon Mr. Macintee seemed imminent, when Mr.
Potter entered the room, and the leader advancing
to him in a menacing manner demanded to see the
books. Mr. Potter replied he had no objection to
produce ,the books at the proper time, but before
entering into any communication he wished to
know the name of the person who asked for them.
This request.vas met by evasion and fictitious
names for some time, but at last he gave the name
of Macarthy, and as residence, " No. 181, Ireland."
Mr. Potter, however, could not draw from him
a distinct statement of his business there, but
in the midst of the confusion, Macarthy seeing
that four police-constables had entered the room,
suddenly made a rush to the op en window, and
would have jumped into the street had not some
half-dozen of those in the room seized him by the
legs, and held him back. The appearance of the
officers, however, produced a sudden calm, which
enabled a member of the Conference to charge
Macarthy and another man, who had taken a pro-
minent part in these riotious proceedings, with
having received the strike money twice over, and
that on more than occasion. Upon heraing that
aclilayrgreel,4l,acarthv left the room without making
and was followed by his companions,
who threatened to return to-day and pull down the
house, if their demands were not complied with.
Of course measures will be taken to prevent the
renewal of such disorderly and violent proceedings.

EXTRAORDINARY PIT ACCIDENT.—A most extra-
orainary- accident occurred on Wednesday, at Messrs. Hall,
Ho!croft, and Pearson's pits, at Kingswinford, near Dud-
ley. Daring the day, while the men were engaged in the'r
usual work, about 50 tons of coal fell, burying 11 of the
men. The scaffold pales and supports, however, sayud the
men's lives • and only one man was severely injured. It
was seven !lours betbre the men could be got out.--Man-
elrester Guardian.

FAMILIES OF SOLDIERS SERVING IN INDIA.-I'llo
11ronieft, of 1,346 ions, Captain James Jaelcs,u, belonging
to 1:Ir. llenry Sharpies, of Liverpool, chartered by her
INlakisty's Emigration Commissioners, under directions
f the Horse Guards, sailed from Birkenhead, on the
14th1:() inst., for Calcutta, with 20 married couples, 218 mar-
ried women, 7 single men, 10 single women, 155 boys be-
tween the ages of 1 and 12, 132 girls between the same ages,
12 male and 9 female infants, making a total of- 583 souls.
equal to 418} statute adults, under charge of Surgemi
Superintendent Edward Kearney, aided by the services of
a suitable matron, and a few married soldiers, who will act
as constables during the voyage. The paSsengers consisted
of tha wives and children of the, soldiers belonging to the
60th Rifles, and the 3d, 31th, 35th, 60th, 67th, 69th, 71st,
73d, 75th, 79th, 8
in20,.84th. 88th, 90th, 97th, and 99th Regi
ments, now serving in India, from whom they have been
separated since the breaking out of the mutiny.

AQUA TICS.

TRADESMEN'S FOUR-OARED RACES.

The members of the Arundel Alliance Rowing Club and
the Prince of Wales Aquatic Club both contended yester-
day in four •oared races for silver prizes, from Lambeth Pier
to Battersea Old Bridge.

ARUNDEL ALLIANCE ROWING CLUB.—The following
were the results in this race :
Blue
Mr. F. Kerr Mr. J. Castles
Mr. 11. Waghorn Mr. W. Williams
Mr. E. Lancaster, coxswain.
_

Red ,
Mr. J. May
Mr. J. Philips
Mr. C. May, coxswain.

31Ir. J. Hobbs
Mr. T. Cotter

White
Mr. R. Allen Mr. A. Speer
I
Mr. J. Absolom Mr. E. Smith
Mr. E. Knightley, coxswain.
Blue took the lead, and kept it all the way, but only won
by a couple of lengths, losing their yoke lines during the
race. Red end Whitorowed a very desperate raco to Pim-
lico, White leading there by half-a-length ; but at the New
Bridge Red were too much for them, and went in second by
two lengths.
PRINCE OF WALES AQUATIC CLEl3.—This race con-
cluded as follows
Blue
Mr. W. Dineen Mr. C. Scott
I
Mr. J. Dineen Mr. J. McQuire
Mr. J. Hayes, coxswain.

Rod

Mr. F. Payne
Mr. C. Eyles

Mr. H. Dobson
Mr. T. Fricker
J. Burton, coxswain.
Blue took the lead, holding it by a trifia to Vauxhall-
bridge. At this point Rod came up, and a very determined
race followed to Pimlico Pier. Here Blue again went
ahead, and increasing their lead, won by two lengths.