The Sun.
London, England, 1866-08-01 00:00:00

GREAT FIRE IN MANCHESTER.

-- 6-

Yesterday evening, at half-past. 9 o'clock, a fire was dis-
covered in the waste warehouse of Messrs. Butterworth
and Co. (limited), Union-street, Ancoats, Manchester, close
to the canal. The premises aro a square block of buildings,
seven stories high, and of a length and breadth which we
may indicate by saying that the rows of windows include
nine each way. At the south end, nearest Great Ancoats-
street, there is a building of two stories, containing the
counting-house. Next to this, in the same direction, is an
extensive timber-yard, belonging to Mr. Andrew Wilson.
The north end of the main building is formed by a dead
wall, and is separated by only a few feet of space from
Messrs. Mitchell's weaving mill. To the east of Messrs.
Butterworth's warehouse is Alum-street, a very narrow
thoroughfare, the east side of which is occupied at that
point by Messrs. Jackson's smallware mill. On the west
side of the waste warehouse is the canal, and along the
west bank of this is Union-street, the west side of which
is occupied by the mills of Messrs. M'Connell and Messrs.
Murray. The waste warehouse is constructed with fire-
proof floors. At the counting-house end is a staircase
leading from the ground up to the top story, where the fire
appears to have originated. It spread with great rapidity
along this story, but so effectual was the fireproof floor in
preventing the flames from travelling directly downwards
that they only communicated by the stairway, till on
reaching the level of the upper story of the counting-house
the fire made its way through a window into the latter.
In the meantime the intervening stories of the waste
warehouse had remained intact. Their apparent
security continued until about 11 o'clock, but the
flames had by that time communicated, it is supposed,
by way of a hoist hole through the floor, with
the story immediately below, and thence in the
course of another hour there were appearances of the fire
having reached another stage in its progress downward.
It was feared that the fire would gradually extend by the
hoist-hole to the lower floors in succession. The fire bri-
gade, under Mr. Sergeant Tozer, began to arrive very soon
after the discovery of the fire, and in the course of a short
time the whole force of the town had been concentrated on
the spot. There seemed to be an abundant supply of water,
but the jets could not reach the upper storey from the level
of the street. Firemen who had scaled the roofs of build-
ings in the timber-yard were able to play upon the top
storey with some effect, but not so as to prevent the whole
of that floor being consumed before 11 o'clock. The roof
had fallen in about 10.15, and this was the cause of a sud-
den burst of flame which cast a glare over the whole city.
The top flooring had given way and fallen in by 11.15,
when some progress had been made by the conflagration in
the storey beneath. By this time the efforts of the brigade
had been directed principally to the floor below that.
About 11 o'clock the counting-house appeared to be in the
utmost danger, but by prompt exertion the spread of the
flames in this direction was checked. It was some hours
later before the fire was put out. Damage roughly esti-
mated at £30,000 to £40,000.
Suspected Murder of a Woman.

The town of Lancaster was thrown into great excitement
on Monday by the report of the death of an elderly widow,
under circumstances which throw suspicion on one of her
sons. The deceased was Eleanor Hewartson, the widow of
Mr. John Hewartson, a cooper and timber merchant, who
carried on an extensive business in the town some years
before his death, which took place about seven or eight
months since. The inquest was held on Monday afternoon,
when it transpired the deceased had been seen drunk on
Saturday night at 9 o'clock ; that a noise had been heard'
in the house about midnight, as of something falling; that
deceased not making her appearance on Sunday, the house
was broken into in the evening by one of the neighbours
and a married son of the deceased ; and that her body was
found in the parlour, in a condition which at once aroused
suspicions of foul play.
The medical evidence disclosed the fact that nine of the
deceased's ribs were broken, and there was a severe wound
on the head, which was the immediate cause of death, and
that the body generally exhibited marks of violence. The
face and head had the appearance of having been washed,
and there were marks of blood on the lobby floor which had
been partly cleaned up, but blood had run under the lobby
cloth.

William Hewartson, a son of the deceased woman, was
apprehended on suspicion of having been concerned in the
murder, and subsequently he made a statement in which he
said that he found his mother in the yard about 11 o'clock
on Saturday night; that he dragged her into the house, and
laid her down in the lobby ; that on Sunday morning he
came downstairs about 4 o'clock, and placed her on the
sofa ; that, on coming down again at 7, he found her on
the floor, and that he washed her face ; and at half-past 12
he went out of the house and did not return again till night.
He added that deceased told him to lock the door.

The Coroner, in summing up, said deceased must have
been dead some hours when she was left by her son.
The Jury, after an absence of half-an-hour, found " That
deceased mer her death by the injuries to the head, but how
they were inflicted there was no evidence to show."
Win. Hewartson was still retained in custody.

. CONFESSION OF MURDER BY A FENIAN.—A man
named Kearney has given himself up to the police as the
murderer of Clarke, in February last, on the banks of the
Royal Canal, near Dublin. He alleges he was told off along
with some other Fenians to assassinate Clarke, who was
suspected of being an informer. Kearney declares that he
fired the fatal shot. He was to be brought before the magi-
strates.