The Sun.
London, England, 1859-05-24 00:00:00

guilty confederates, he was of course in their power,
and he was generally employed in some other way
to further the guilty objects of the association. It
is rather a curious fact that the prisoner Bramwell
would, in all probability, not have been taken into
custody if he had not had the impudence to go to
the office of Mr. Mullens, the solicitor for the pro-
secution, to ask for remuneration for the time he
had lost in looking after the person who, as he
alleged, had sent him to Drummond's bank on the
21st of January with a forged cheque for £275, and
Watkins, who happened to be there accidentally,
at once recognised him as the man who had em-
ployed him in the first instance to present a cheque
"on the cross," as he expressed it, and he was
given in charge, and the evidence that was then
obtained clearly showed his complicity in'the guilty
scheme. It is calculated that during the two or
three years the gang have been carrying on their
operations they have succeeded in obtaining from
different bankers, by means of forged cheques, no
less a sum than £lO,OOO ; and this large amount
was the result of comparatively few operations, as
the cheques were mostly drawn for large sums, so
much as £440 being obtained by one forged instru-
ment. Wagner and Kerp, the old man who was
principally engaged in copying signatures to be
placed upon forged cheques, are both Germans, and
tke latter is said to have been an extraordinarily
clever penman, and to possess a peculiar facility in
copying different handwritings. The police have
made a strict search after him since the disclosures
that have taken place, but no clue whatever has
been obtained to his whereabouts, and it is believed
that the moment he heard that Chandler was
apprehended, and that the gang would be broken
up, he left this country, as all trace of him appears
to have been lost. There appears to be no doubt
that Wagner, although he was the prime mover in
the whole guilty transaction, was very anxious at
the last to get himself out of the scrape by selling
the whole of his companions, and it is consolatory
to the public to find how slight a hold persons of
this class have upon each other, and how ready they
are to betray their companions at the first symp-
tom of danger. During the trial of the prisoners,
the daughter of Wagner and the Miss Fairburn who
lived with him as his housekeeper, and whose name
was frequently mentioned during the trial, were
seated in the gallery of the court, apparently listen-
ing with the greatest attention to all the evidence
that was given ; but they did not betray the slightest
emotion when the sentence was pronounced. The
former is stated to be a very accomplished young
woman, speaking several languages with facility.;
and she has, it appears, at one time filled the posi-
tion of a governess. The whole of the prisoners will
shortly be removed from Newgate to the Millbank
Penitentiary.

THE LOSS OF LIFE A 7 THE WESMIN-
STER .HOTEL WORKS.

ADJOURNED INQUEST.

Yesterday afternoon Mr. Bedford resumed the
adjourned inquiry at the Westminster Hospital,
touohing the respective deaths of seven persons,
who lost their lives by being precipitated from the
top of the building, owing to the breakage of a
scaffold on Friday se'nnight.
Mr. Sergeant Ballantine appeared for Mr. Myers,
the contractor ; Mr. Burchell attended on behalf of
the Westminster Palace Hotel Company; Mr.
Henry K. Moseley appeared on behalf of the widow
of Cornelius Buckley.
The board room in which the inquiry was held
was densely crowded, and several directors of the
company were present to watch the proceedings.
Patrick O'Neil said that he was employed on the
13th of this month at the Westminster Palace
Holel Company's works. He was there at the
time the stage fell. He was not on it when the
stage actually came up, but got 8 or 10 feet higher
up in a northerly direction. There had been a
stage 12 ft. 6 in. before the other came down. It
had been removed a fortnight before. When that
stage had been removed there was nothing placed
under to support it. The timbers merely rested on
the outer walls. '

By the Coroner—Nothing had been placed under.
The stage consisted of 5 transoms, 9 inches by 5 in
width. The width of the opening was 36 by 7, and
he took the responsibility of placinc, a sixth tran-
som, bymeans of 6-inch deals. The transoms ran
from wall to wall, and were covered over with
boards, which extended over all.

By Mr. Sturgeon—Mr. Myers said that he had
never stood on a firmer scaffold during his time.
He examined the timber before the stage was
erected, and also afterwards. The first time he did
not detect any knots in it, but since the fall he had
noticed that there were knots in the wood. The dis-
tance from end to end was about 20 feet. He was a
judge of the weight of mortar which was on the
stage, and he should consider it to have been about
two tons. About two days before the accident, a
man named Shea said that one of the timbers had
become splintered, and he told Mr. Coleman of the
fact, and he came up and examined it, and said that
it was only a slight splinter, and would do no
harm, but on the contrary it was safe. He consi-
dered the stage was safe with three tons placed on
it, and even with five if it was properly distributed
over it, but the •nortar ought not to be placed in
the centre of the stage. At a quarter to six o'clock
the previous night there was very little weight upon
the stage.—(A model was here produced, and the
witness said it appeared to him to be perfectly cor-
rect.) He generally went round of a morning to
see that the scaffold was safe. There was a great
quantity of bricks and an extra amount of mortar
placed upon the stage than he had seen before.
He was positive that some of the materials hadbeen
removed since the accident. He heard George
Myers say, "Remove some of this, you know what
I mean."

By Mr. Ballantinc—He knew that another man
was missing, whose body was subsequently found
in the ruins. Mr. Myers was on the top of the
building when the man was found.
By .a Juror—He could not tell how many knots
were in the timbers. _

By a Juror—He had warned one workman off
the stage. He generally formed the scaffolding.
He told the foreman that he wanted six boards,
and he said that he thought five would have been
enough.
By the Coroner—ln a slight work like this it
was not usual for him to ask any question ; but the
foreman, being a skilful man, it was his duty to
have informed him if any danger existed.
Richard Smith, 3, Church-street, Lambeth, said
that he was a joiner, and foreman of Mr. Myers'
shops in Lambeth. He had made a model (pro-
duced), half an inch to the foot. The part that
gave way was about 65 feet from the base. The
width of the wall was about 20 feet and the length
,301 feet. The remaining transoms 29 feet long and
three feet wide. The middle transom. was about
six feet from the others. The transoms were not
confined in the wall when he saw them. The pre-
mises were nearly in the same state that day as
when he first saw them.

John Haigh said that he lived at 25, More-street,
Bryanston-square, and was engaged cleaning bricks
on the stage, and had been so for half an hour before
the accßent happened. He had been engaged the
over night, also, by direction of Mr. Myers, jun.
He left• off work at half-past six the previous night,
and commenced wheeling bricks and mortar at half-
past five next morning. Two of his mates were
landing and two taking away the bricks from the
stage that.fell down.
By the Coroner—He had no idea how many bar-
rows of bricks had been shot upon the stage, but
he should say there were between six and seven
tons of bricks and mortar upon or near the stage.
Witness was within half a foot of the stage when
it fell. At the time the stage was about falling
four or six of the men were ordered to leave. Six-
teen wPre then removing bricks and mortar in
hods, and they had been previously told to get off.
He made a remark to Goodlakc, the foreman, that
he thought the stage was not safe, as the bearings
had, been taken from below.

By Mr. Sturgeon—He had been working about
an hour the previous night, and Mr. Joseph Myers
said that he did not care a —, the stuff must be
taken up that night.
By a juror—The rubbish is less than it was
under the stage. Orders had been given to remove
it. Four men were employed removing the rubbish
in baskets. He did not hear Mr. Myers say, " Good
God ! we are standing on a body."
By Mr. Ballantine—He did not tell Mr. Myers
the morning after the accident that there were 500
bricks on the stage, There were 90 bricks generally
placed in the barrows, but they were not always
properly loaded.
By a juror—He did not know that 67 bricks
weighed three cwt. He knew that there was more
weight of bricks than there was of mortar.
By Mr. Sturge -m—From the hour on the previous
night until half-past six the next morning, bricks
and mortar had been conveyed up and placed upon
the scaffold.

By a juror—He had been at work since Satur-
day last. The stage had been employed for a fort-
night before, but he never saw it sp much loaded as
it was on the present occasion. _ _

By Mr. Mosley—ln his opinion the stage would
have borne the weight of three tons. The bricks
were not taken out by hand, but shot in a body
from the barrows in the bulk.

John Connor said that he was a, general laisourer,
and had been employed on the premises for ten
weeks. His work was to fill the barrows with
bricks previous to being hoisted. He had been
employed on Friday morning at that work, and he
should say tnat, being in a hurry, there were 60
bricks in each barrow. _

By the Coroner—Each load of bricks is generally