The Sun.
London, England, 1861-08-26 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, MONDAY EVENING, AUGUST 26, 1861.

TERRIBLE AC, WENT ()N 7HE LON-
DON AND BRIGHION RAILWAY.

One of the most terrible accidents which has
occurred since the introduction of our railway sys-
tem took place yesterday on the London and
Brighton Railway in the Clayton tunnel, about five
miles from the Brighton terminus. It will be ne-
cessary, to enable the public to arrive at a correct
knowledge of the exact circumstances, to state that
an excursion train leaves Portsmouth for London at
6 a.m., calling at all the stations on the South
Coast line, and is made due for departure from
Brighton at 8 5 a.m. There is also an excursion
train which takes its departure from Brighton every
Sunday morning at 8 15, which runs to London
without stopping at any of the intermediate sta-
tions. The regular Parliamentary morning train
stopping at all stations leaves Brighton at 8 30,
being due in London at 10 40. Tilere are besides
occasional excursions trains from Brighton ; but
whenever these trains are put on special instruc-
tions are sent out to the various stationmasters,
signalmen, and other subordinate officers within
whose province it may come that the line should
be duly kept clear for the regular traffic, and pro.
per caution observed. It will be noted hereafter
that there has been some unexplained failure of a
portion of these arrangements. To that circumstance
may be attributed the terrible calamity which has
taken place. It may be added that all excursion,
like other trains, are timed, and that every precau-
tion seems to be used by the traffic manager for the
careful and regular conduct of the duties confided
to his charge.
Yesterday morning the Portsmouth train which,
as previously stated, passes through Brighton for
London at 8 5 a.m., left the station about its ap-
pointed time, and duly arrived at the Clayton
tunnel, where the " all right" signal was displayed.
The train passed on without interruption. Imme-
diately afterwards the 8 15 from Brighton came
within sight of the signalman. He, remembering
that the Portsmouth excursion train had only gone

by a very short time previously, alleges that he
attempted to put on the " stop signal," which he
found would not act. He then showed a red flag,
indicating danger, to the driver of the Brighton
train, who, however, was close upon the signalman's
box, near the tunnel's mouth, at the time. The
engine driver, however,with great presence of mind,
thinking doubtless, from the signal, that the train
which he knew had preceded him had not got clear,
immediately reversed his engine. The impetus, how-
ever, with which he had been travelling prevented
the train being pulled up before it had proceeded
some distance into the tunnel. Of course the num-
ber of tunnels between London and Brighton ren-
ders it necessary that special precautions should be
adopted for preventing accidents, and there is a man
stationed at both ends of each tunnel, whose duty

it is to telegraph the entry and egress of the trains
in order that two trains shall not be in the tunnel
at the same time on the same line of rails. The
signalman at the Brighton end of the Clayton
tunnel, perceiving that, in spite of the reg flag, the
second train did not stop, imagined that the driver
had not seen it, and immediately telegraphed to the
other end of the tunnel to know whether the train

had passed through, and received for answer that it
had. He did not know at the time that the driver
of the second train had seen the red signal, that he
had reversed his engine, and that the train was in
backward motion towards the south, or Brighton
end of the tunnel. Meanwhile the 830 stopping-
regular Parliamentary train came in sight, and the
signalman, having received the answer above refer-
red to, gave the usual signal for the train to pro-
ceed, which it did at its ordinary speed. Within a
very short distance of the mouth of the tunnel a
fearful crash ensued, the second train backing hav-
ing come into violent collision with the other train,
which was rushing forward. The shrieks and cries
are described as being most fearful and heartrend-
ing, the darkness tending to heighten the terror of
those who were uninjured, and leaving them power-
less to aid the wounded.

_ .
After a short time some passengers in the first-
class carriages procured lights from the roofs, and
proceeded to render every assistance in their power.
The extent of the fearful catastrophe then became
apparent. The engine of the Parliamentary train
had smashed the last carriage in the excursion train,
which had mixed compartments for luggage at one
end, passenger seats in the middle, and a guard's
break at the other end. The locomotive had been
pitched over the last carriage to the back of the last
carriage but one, and shivered it into fragments.
This carriage comprised four compartments, each
containing 10 persons, and the consequences cannot
be adequately described ; the unhappy passengers
were scattered and mutilated in all directions,
several were scalded with the boiling water from
the engine, and their yells of agony were pitiable
in the extreme. The telegraph was immediately
set to work, communicating the terrible nature of
the calamity to Brighton. As speedily as possible
Mr. Hawkins, the traffic manager, Mr. Denvil, his
assistant, Mr. Craven, superintendent of the locomo-
tive department, with a numerous body of workmen
and others proceeded by special engine to the spot.
They were accompanied by Dr. Burrell, Dr. Hall,
Messrs. Furner, Pocock, Tatham, Jowers, Judd, and
other eminent medical men, in order to alleviate as
far as possible the sufferings of the wounded. Un-
fortunately, in too many cases, all medical aid was
unavailing. Upon the fragments of the carriages

being removed upwards of 20 persons were found to
be dead. The engine (as our reporter was informed)
had literally sunk upon the second carriage, and the
bodies of several of the sufferers were underneath.

They had either been smashed or scalded to death.
One unfortunate woman had both her legs cut off
just above the knees, and she was quite black in the
face. Another woman had her scalp torn completely
off and both her arms broken. One man had his
face crushed in such a manner as to force his eyo-

balls from his head. A strong body of men, under
the direction of Mr. Craven, proceeded to clear the
line, which was comparatively uninjured. Mr.
Hawkins despatched the uninjured part of the train
to London.
The bodies of the dead, 22 in number, were care-
fully placed in carriages which had followed the
special engine from Brighton, and the wounded re-
ceived the most careful and unremitting attention
from the medical gentlemen who were in attandance.
As soon as possible the wounded, the dying, and
the dead were conveyed to Brighton, where the un-
happy sufferers who have died were placed on tables
and forms in the library at the company's offices to
await identification, The wounded were taken in
carriages and fly
s to the Sussex County Hospital,
where Mr. Furner, who accompanied them from
the scene of the disaster, attended to their necessi-
ties, assisted by Messrs. Holliss, Catts, Lowdell,
Blaker, and other medical gentlemen. Nine of the
passengers had been taken into the hospital, and
two of the cases were at once seen to require sur-
gical operations. In one instance, a man named
Anthony Kean, a tailor, who resided at 54, Gos-
well-road, London, had his left leg amputated, and
William
rightof leg amputated, the left leg
New England Farm, Rear
Brighton, An 01,
had r
h s
being fractured. Kean was stated to be sinking,
the state of the femoral artery rendering recovery
scarcely possible. Of the other patients at the
Hospital, Thomas Noble, of No. 5, Richardson-
street, Bermondsey, had a, severe wound on the
right temple ; George Noble, of No. 8, Frederick's-
place, Brighton, several severe wounds on the head;
Timothy Tester, of 15, Frederick's-place, Brighton.
several bruises ; a child about two and a-half years
old, name unknown (supposed to be a child of one
of the deceased), severe scalds ; Thomas Parker,
26,Brunswick-place, Brighton, severe injury to the
knee and right arm; Elizabeth Westcott, a leg
broken in two places, and her daughter, contusions
on both sides, and also some scalds on her legs.
Besides the above, other wounded persons were

conveyed to their o wn:residences in Brighton. Among
these were Mr. Surman, a visitor from London, who
lives at Webb's County-terrace, New Kent-road,
whose hands and legs are much bruised. Miss At-
kinson, who also lives at Webb's County-terrace, re-
ceived severe injuries on the head. Two other
ladies, who were of the same party, suffered much
from the effects of fright and being severely shaken.
Mr'. James D. Child had his face much bruised ;
Mr. James Parson, of 32, Mighill-street, Brighton,
his mouth and chin much cut and several teeth
knocked out ; Mr. Swaisland, bird-stuffer, Queen's-
road, Brighton, his leg fractured ; Mrs. Dickenson,
internal injuries; Mrs. Hodges, Brunswick-place,
Brighton, her knee much hurt; Thomas Bedford,
Orchard-terrace, Kensington, his thigh severely
lacerated.

Of the 22 persons who have lost their lives the
Following were identified in the course of the after-

noon :

Mr. Coomber, 29, Gardener-street, Brighton
(both legs cut off).
Mrs. Ellen Lower, 1, Liverpool-street, Brighton.
Mrs. Ingledew,sen., St. James's-street, Brighton.
Mr. Geo. Westgate, 44, Lewes-street, Brighton.
Mr. Simpson, bird-dealer, London-road, Brighton.
Mrs. Catherine Barnard, 22, Charles-street,
Brighton.
Amelia Tempest (apparently a domestic servant) ;
address unknown.
Mr. E. Fares ; address unknown.
William Hubbard, lately staying at 17, Viaduct-
terrace, Brighton.
Henry Hayward Hubbard, a boy aged four years,
grandson of the above.
Christian Manthorpe, Lennox Arms, Richmond-
street, Brighton.
John Greenfield, 5, Montpelier-place, Brighton.
The bodies having been carefully laid out were
searched under the direction of Mr. White, chief
constable of Brighton, and Superintendents Crost
and Barrenden. Several of the above were identi-
fied by letters and papers which were found upon
them. As soon as the intelligence of the accident be-
came known in Brighton the greatest sensation pre-
vailed, it not being ascertained to which train the
disaster had occurred, and many hundreds besieged
the railway station either to learn whether their
friends who had gone by one of the trains were the
probable sufferers, or those who were expected from
London. The railway officials could not for a time
afford any satisfactory information, and the excite-
ment was increased when the London excursion
trains did not arrive until considerably after they
were due, caused, it was ascertained, by being com-
pelled to branch off at Hay ward's-heath, and come
via Lewes. This, at all events, set at rest the minds
of those who expected friends from the metrapolis,
and increased the anxiety for the safety of the
Brighton excursionists to London. When the bodies
of the dead had been properly arranged, Mr. White
instructed the police-constables to admit such per-
sons as stated they had relatives or friends who had
gone by either of the trains from the town that
morning, and they were allowed to pass through the
room in which the unfortunate deceased lay, with a
view to ascertain who might be among them. The
recognition in one or two instances was most me-
lancholy, the husband seeing the mangled corpse of
his wife, who a few hours before had left him in
health and happiness—the daughter weeping over
her mother's shattered remains.

The intelligence of the accident first reached
the metropolis when the uninjured portion of the
train arrived at London-bridge. About 30 pas-
sengers came up by this means, several of whom
had sustained injuries more or less severe. The
news soon circulated, and throughout the day
many anxious inquiries were made at the ter-
minus. It is due to the officials of the company
to state that they did everything in their power
to satisfy the doubts of all who made appli-
cation to them. Mr. Anscombe, the superin-
tendant, frequently telegraphed to Brighton for the
names of those killed and wounded, and supplied
all other information within his reach. Last night
towards the time the excutsion trains Were expected
to return, the crowd was very great at the station,
and knots of persons listened with painful interest
to the details supplied by eye-witnesses of the acci-
dent, and by others who had gathered the particu-
lars during their visit to Brighton. llr. F. Slight,
ti:e secretary of the company, arrived at the Euston
station from Yorkshire last evening at 6 o'clock,
and was met by a telegram conveying an intimation
of the dreadful occurrence. He repaired to London-
bridge as rapidly as possible, and remained at the
station until a late hour last evening, rendering
valuable advice and information to fbe relatives and
friends of those who were known to to either killed
or wounds d. A similar condition of things existed
during the day at the Victoria station-
A passenger who was in the train thus describes
the accident :—I noticed after we had proceeded a
short distance into the tunnel that the speed of the
train slackened, and I think I heard the whistle
sounded, but of that lam not certain. I then saw
that we were getting towards the end of the tun-
nel. I imagined I heard another train coming up,
but before I had satisfied my mind upon the point
I was thrown off my seat. I theta heard fearfu
screams, and the steam of an engine hissing in a
terrific manner. When I got out I saw that a great
number of passengers were lying wider the engine,
which had jumped upon the carriage second from
the end of the train. The boiling water was pouring
out over the people, and the steam prevented any
one seeing any distance. We all did what we could
to render assistance, but we could not accomplish
much in consequence of the engine being on the top
of the people, and by reason of the hot water and
steam. I came up to London by the train which
was sent off after the accident."

We take the following account from the supple.
went to the Brighton Herald ;
" Herald-office, Sunday Evening, half-past 5.

"About half•past 9 o'clock this (Sunday) morn-
ing the intelligence was received at the Brighton
Railway station that a very serious accident had
happened in the Clayton-tunnel to the two excur
sion trains which had shortly before left Brighton

for London.
" The painful news soon got abroad, and in a short
time the terminus gates in the Queen's-road and at
the top of Trafalgar-street were besieged by an
anxious crowd, eager to know the particulars and
learn the fate of friends or relatives, from whom,
probably, they had just parted.
"To these anxious expectants a confirmation of
the report was brought by the non-arrival of the
usual down trains from London, and by the arrival,
between 10 and 11, of an engine, with one corpse
(that of a woman) and several wounded passengers.
But for some time little was known beyond the fact
that the scene of the catastrophe was Clayton tun-
nel, and that its extent was of fearful magnitude.
"Having proceeded to the spot, and been fur-
nished by the railway authorities with every ob-
tainable information, we will proceed to describe the
nature and cause of this most deplorable event.
"We may state at starting that Clayton tunnel
—the scene of the accident—is the second tunnel on
the main line out of Brighton and the longest on
the line. It is about five miles from Brighton.
" The first train to leave the Brighton station for
London on Sunday was the excursion train from
Portsmouth, whose time for leaving Brighton is a
quarter to eight o'clock. It left soon after that, and
in due course arrived at and entered the Clayton
tunnel. Very shortly after the Portsmouth train
had left Brighton it was followed by the regular
Brighton train to London, whose hour for starting
is half-past 8 o'clock. On this train approaching
the tunnel the signalman at the mouth of it says
that he looked behind and saw, to his horror, that
the signal (which ought to have intimated to the
Brighton train that the Portsmouth train was
in the tunnel) had not worked. He therefore
immediately exhibited a red, or danger, flag

at the mouth of the tunnel ; and the driver of
the Brighton train, on seeing this, immediately re-
versed his engine, and did all he could to stop it.
He did not, however, succeed in doing so until he
had proceeded a considerable distance up the tun-
nel. After he had brought it to a stand-still, he re-
versed his engine and came slowly back the tunnel,
his object and duty being to wait at the southern
end of the tunnel until the signal announced that it
was clear. In a short time the Portsmouth excur-
sion train had got through safely, and this fact and
the fact that the tunnel was clear were signalled to
the driver of the Brighton train, who, in the ordi-
nary case of things, would have immediately pro-
ceeded through the tunnel. But, most unfortu-
nately, in the meantime, the second excursion train
from Brighton, which follows close upon the first,
came up. The signalman at the tunnel called out
to his mate to know if the train—meaning the first
Brighton train—had got through, and the reply
was that the telegraph at the other end of the tun-
nel had signalled back to say that the train had
passed through, the fact being that this telegraph
referred to the Portsmouth excursion, and not to the
first Brighton. The signalman, therefore, on the
second Brighton train coming up, showed a white
or safety flag, and the driver of it proceeded at fall
speed into the tunnel. It had not got above 300
yards before there was a tremendous shock ; it had
run into the first Brighton train, which in fact was
at the time slowly backing out of the tunnel. The
consequences were awful ; the engine of the second
Brighton train ran right over the last carriages of
the first Brighton train, and then, falling upon them,
literally crushed the unfortunate passengers, for it
so happened that to this train the usual precaution
had not been taken of leaving the last carriage
empty, or of having a van or truck. The last car-
riage, therefore, was full of passengers, and the
engine fell upon them, and, as we have said, crushed
them, and the horrors of the scene that ensued are
not to be described or conceived. The tunnel was
quite dark. In a moment it was blocked up with
a horrible mass, in which were mingled dead and
dying men, women, and children, buried beneath
and amid heaps of broken carriages, with the engine
and tender crowning and pressing down the whole.
To add to the sufferings of the unfortunates, the
steam and boiling water descended in showers upon
them, scalding those whose bodies were at all ex-
posed. The feelings of those who first entered the
tunnel were harrowed to the last degree. There
were the screams of women, the groans of the
wounded, and the cries of poor little children. Of
these latter, and one of the first to be extricated, it
was found that both its legs had been broken and
that it had been badly scalded.

" The accident must have occurred soon after 9
o'clock. By half.past 9it was known at the Brigh-
ton station, and steps were immediately taken to
send aid to the spot. Mr. Hawkins, Mr. Craven,
Mr. Farmer, Mr. Denvil, Mr. George Faithful, jun.,
—in fact, all the Brighton staff of the railway, went
down with a large force of men, and with them went
several of the Brighton medical men : Mr. H. Ver-
rall, Mr. Tatham, Mr. Richards, and his assistant,
Mr. G. Pocock, and Mr. Jowers. These gentlemen
left about 10, but even before they arrived medical
help was on the spot. The first to come was Mr.
Tiley, of Ditchling, with men from the same locali-
ty; Mr. Holman, of Hurst, and Mr. G. Blaker, of
Pangdean, and they were closely followed by Dr.
Hall, of Brighton, and Mr. E. Furner, ditto, both
of whom had been awaiting the arrival of a down
train at Hassock,s-gate, and on hearing of what had
occurred walked over the hill to the southern end
of the tunnel."

As to the tunnel itself, it was impassable; it was
filled up about 300 yards from the Brighton end by
a dreadful mass of ruins of dead and wounded.

Here we may state that the engine of the first
Brighton train, and about half of the train, consist-
ing of some 20 carriages, felt little or nothing of the
shock. A gentleman sitting in one of the middle
carriages tells us he only felt a slight shock, which
threw him into the laps of two ladies on the oppo-
site seat, but without hurting either of them. This
portion of the train, therefore, was, after a time, de-
tached from its shattered half and taken on to the
Hassock's-gate station, where every assistance pos-

sible was rendered to the alarmed, and, in some
cases, injured passengers. For here there were in-
jured passengers ; one gentleman sustained a rup-
ture by the shock, and there were scratches and
minor hurts of every description—some, say the
medical men; of a most singular nature.
But it was, of course, at the other or Brighton
end of the tunnel that the dreadful scene of suffer-
ing was presented. Here the first efforts of flip
railway officials were directed to extricate the suf-
ferers and bring them to the open light of day. The
first to be brought out, under the direction of Dr.
Hall, was a lady, quite dead, whose body, fearfully
crushed, was taken out from under the engine. The

little child we have named, whose cries were heart
rending, followed ; then Wm. Arnold, a gardener
in the employ of Mr. Pegg, of the Royal York
Hotel, with a compound fracture of both legs ; next
came a man named Tein, of 54, Goswell-road, also
with both his legs broken ; next a girl, with seve-
ral flesh wounds in the legs; and then a man with
his face severely cut, but not otherwise injured.
All these were put into a carriage and sent to the
Brighton station under the care of Dr. Hall, and
thence to the county Hospital, Dr. Hall returning
to the place of accident.
Here, in the meantime, a great number of per-
sons had assembled, both on the hills above the
deep cutting and in the cutting and tunnel itself,
out of ,which momentarily objects were brought
which harrowed the feelings of all ; bodies fearfully
mutilated and blackened by the pressure; and liv-
ing sufferers, but whose condition in some cases was
more to be pitied than that of the actually dead.
Into this scene, from which many had to retreat,
unable to bear it, we will not go further. :An idea
of it may be gathered from the fact that the num-
ber of killed in this most calamitous accident is
known, at the moment we write, to be 22 ; and the
number of injured is not, perhaps, under 100. But
these latter it is impossible to compute ; they
covered the platform at Hassock's-gate, and were
continually arriving at Brighton.
After a time the engine and the first portion of
the first Brighton train went on to London with
such of the passengers as had escaped.
We do not hear that the passengers of the second
Brighton train suffered much injury. The engine
driver and stoker escaped by jumping off, and the
shock of the collision was of course much broken
by the engine itself running over the last carriages
of the first Brighton train. It needed all the efforts
of the railway men, with ropes, &c., to remove this
engine, which, strange to say, had not fallen over.
The carriages on which it fell were of course smashed
to atoms, and their fragments were merely bits of
wood, &c., but the carriages attached to this engine
were not so much damaged, and some were imme-
diately sent back to Brighton with the wounded.
A passenger in the front part of the first Brighton
train describes his experience in this way
We had got a considerable Oistance into the
tunnel when the train gradually stopped as if it
had come to a station. Our impression was, but of
course we knew nothing about it, that the engine
had broken down from its strength being over-
tasked, or that the coupling chains had broken, and
it had become detached from the carriages. This
did not occasion us any particular alarm—the feeling
was rather one of annoyance. But we had not been
in the darkness of the tunnel more than a few
minutes when we heard a whistle as of another
train approaching, and before we had time to think
of the consequences there was a shock and a smash.
It was instantaneous. I was knocked forward
against the man opposite me, but not so violently
as to cause either of us any injury. But then, you
N‘e were in the fore part of the train, about a
dozen carriages from the engine; and I dare say
the train was nearly 30 carriages long.
4, The scene that followed X have no power to