The Sun.
London, England, 1861-01-08 00:00:00

FATAL ACCIDENT ON THE LONDON,
CHATEAM; AND DOVER RAILWAY.

TEYNHAM, lAN. 7.
The appalling accident which occurred at a late
hour onSaturday night, on the London, Chatham,
and Dover Railway, near this station, whereby two
persons lost their lives under the circumstances
detailed in ?he Sun of this day, has resulted in
the death of another of the sufferers, the engine-
driver, William Matthewson (not Pattison, as was
previously stated), having expired last night from
the fearful nature of the injuries he had received ;
making the third person who has been killed
through the unfortunate occurrence. All the three
men are stated to have been excellent servants of
the company, and well acquainted with their duties.
It is, however, asserted that Matthewson, the
driver of the engine, had only been in the employ
of the company a few days, having recently re-
turned from India, on one of the railways in which
country he had previously been employed. Whether
this statement is correct, and his alleged want of
knowledge of the line led to the accident, will
doubtless form the subject of investigation by the
coroner and jury. The fireman who was with him,
and who is one of the men killed by the accident,
had been in the company's employ some time, and
is stated to have been thoroughly acquainted with
every portion of the line.
The particulars already given of the accident
convey but a faint idea of the frightful nature of
the occurrence, the railway officials and other
parties connected with the line, whose duties have
brought them to the scene of the fatal calamity,
one and all declaring that during the whole of
their experience in railway accidents they had
never witnessed one the results of which, in the
destruction not only of life but also of valuable
property, had been of such an appalling character.
The only surprise appears to be that every person
connected with the train was not killed, and that
any of the passengers escaped with their lives ap-
pears altogether marvellous.
On the engine giving the bound which caused it
to leave the metals it ran for a short distance along
the permanent way, when both it and the tender
turned completely over, rolling down an embank-
ment, on which the line there runs, and falling into
a field below. . The line for some distance was torn
up, and the rails bent and twisted into the most
fantastic shapes. The guard's break van, next the
tender, and the carriages behind, were all thrown
off the rails, and were huddled together in one
mass and dashed to pieces ; indeed, so complete
was the work of demolition from the violence of i
the shock that scarcely any distinguishable portions
of the carriages are left remaining, huge pieces of
iron, wheels, splinters and boards having been scat-
tered about in all directions. During the whole of
the night workmen were employed clearing the
line, replacing the broken rails, and removing the
wrecks of the carriages, and they lighted fires with
the broken pieces of wood which formed portions
of the first-class arid other carriages.
It is an exceedingly fortunate circumstance that
there were only a very few passengers in the train
at the time, this being the last station at which
the down train stopped, or the number of lives
sacrificed must have been very large. Most of the
carriages were empty at the time, but of the pas-
sengers who were travelling not one escaped
without injuries of a more or less serious charac-
ter. During the whole of Saturday night and
yesterday relays of workmen were employed, under
the direction of Mr. Finnigan, in clearing the line
and getting the down rails ready for the traffic,
all the trains passing over the up portion of fhe
line. The work of getting the engine on the line
was one of great difficulty. Although of a very
large size, the manner in which it has been twisted
and bent is most astonishing.
No satisfactory reason for the cause of the accident
can yet be discovered, but this no doubt will form the
subject of a searching inquiry by the coroner.
There appears, however,. every possibility that the

.. .
late severe frosts might have been indirectly the
cause, several remarkable instances having recently
cecurred which show the astonishing effects the
frost has upon metals.
All the bodies lie in the immediate vicinity of

this station, and official intimation of the occurrence
has been forwarded to Mr. T. Hills, the coroner for
West Kent.

MAIN DRAINAGB WORKS.

Mr. Bazalgette, the engineer to the Metropolitan
Board of Works, has drawn up a report on the pro-
gress of the main drainage works on the north and
south side of the Thames, of which the following is
an abstract :—The bulk of the main drainage works
has of necessity been stopped for a considerttble
portion of the past month on account of the frost.
The northern high level sewer works will probably
be recommended and rapidly finished off as soon as
the weather permits. The middle level sewer,which
has been re-let to Messrs. T. Brassey and Co., also
awaits a change in the weather, The arrangements
for placing Mr. Furness in possession of the land
along the whole line of the northern outfall sewer
are new nearly completed, and this work will be
commenced in the course of the present month. The
Ranelagh Storm Overflow Sewer, across Hyde
Park, progresses satisfactorily, works to the amount
of £5,700 having been completed, in addition to
the underpinning of the old sewer to the value of
£2,688. Un the south side of the river the southern
high level sewer is now in progress at five different
points, three on the main line and two.on the Dul-
wich or Effra branch. The value of the work
done is £5,800, and the total length completed
is 3 miles 1,812 feet. The southern outfall sewer
continues to be carried on in a very business-
like and satisfactory manner. The tunnel
under Woolwich is about one mile in length,
and varies from 45 to 75 feet in depth; four
shafts have been sunk, and 2,253 feet of tunnel
completed, the headings being lighted with gas,
and the miners working day and night ; the tun-
nel will probably be completed next autumn. The
rest of the work is, with trifling exceptions, being
constructed in open cutting, and about 6,527
feet have been completed, making 8,510 feet in
tunnel and open cutting. The value of the work
done is about £BO,OOO. The works for the low
level sewer under the Surrey Consumers Gas Com-
pany's property now progresses satisfactorily; the
water having been subdued, the excavations are
nearly completed. The Earl outlet was in a very
dilapidated condition ; it is now being recon-
structed, and the sewage conveyed through pipes
to low water, and this will form a storm overflow
in connection with the low level sewer.

THIS DAY'S .MAREETS.

HAY MARKETS.

SMITHFIELD.--Meadow hay, £2 lOs to £5 12s Od ; clover
do., £3los to £slBs ; and straw, £1 16s to £2 6s per load.
Trade firm. Supply limited.
CIaMBERLAND. Meadow hay, £2 lOs to £5 los
clover, £3 lOs to £5 18s Od ; and straw, Al 16s to £2 Gs
per load. Both hay and straw realised the extreme rates of
last week.

WanEcniP2L.—Meadow hay, £2 103 to 12s Od ;
dove!, £3 10s to £6 Os Od ; and straw, 16s to £2 6s
per lead. Trade firm.

COLONIAL.
Tx.k..—The market has remained very quiet, with 110
change to report in values.
Spero.—Only moderate quantities are announced for
public sale during the next few days, and operations have
been checked by the advance in the rate of discount.
COFFEE.—The dealings have ,been very limited
and confined to a few small parcels of Planta-
tion Ceylon for immediate requirements, without any
material alteration in prices. The stccks on hand, compared
with those of the same period of last year, show an increase
of about 200 tons.
RicE.—The inquiries have been to an average extent,
and quotations have been steadily maintained for the better
qualities of East India.
SALTPETRE.—Business has been rather inactive, and
holders have shown a disposition to accept lower terms.
INDIGO.—The market remains steady. The next public
sales are fixed to commence on the 12th of February next.
TALLOW.—There has been rather more animation in the
market during the last few days, the demand for consump-
tion having increased, and prices have tended upwards.
P.Y.C. on the spot is quoted 60s 6d; 60s 3d January to
March ; and 678 6d per cwt. for last three months.

COURSE OF EXCHANGE.—TIits DAY.
Afitsterdam
Ditte • t 3 Months. 11 18 11 181
Rotterdam — 11 181 11
60
18i
Antwerp -25 45 25 60
25
Brussels
Ilamturgh
13 71. 30
4
25 65 25
Paris
Ditto
25 65 25 721
Marseilles — 1131 1181
Frankfort on Maine — 15 60 15 80
Vienna
15 60 15 80
Trieste .. .
Petersburgh

Berlin ... ;
48
Madrid & - 49
49. 491
Cadiz
Leglora ..... . ..... , -- 25 Z-2 0 25 90
lilan ............ --25 80 25 85
Genoa — 25 80 25 85
Naples
Palermo — 119 119)4
Messina — 1191 1191
Lisbon
Oporto
Rio Janeiro — •• •II
New York — •0 • •
Foreign Gold in Bare (Standard).... per oz. £3 17 9
ktexican Dollars .. ~• fil 00 0
Silver in Ban (Standard) .......... 7t 0 5 11
youth American Doublons ........ ~ 00 0

I CONDOLENCE.—An American editor, noticing
the decease of a rich subscriber, observes—" He has died
regretted by a numerous circle of friends, and leaving a
widow as disconsolate as need be who has obtained the un-
controlled possession of 20,000 dollars' per annum. More
than 20 young men have pent letters of condolence to her."