The Sun.
London, England, 1868-08-22 00:00:00

LONDON, SATURDAY, AUGUST 22, 1868.

Last Thursday will long be remembered as the
occasion of a most sad and serious accident. The
records of travelling in this country cannot, indeed,
present a parallel to the fearful details which reach
us from the scene of suffering and disaster. "In
the midst of life we are in death," was never more
fully illustrated, or more impressively shown than
by the sudden and striking change that overtook
the travellers at Abergele. It is now comprehended
how the affair took place, and it will be seen that it
is not the number that perished that makes the
horror of the recital so much as the fearful death
they met with. Had no change in the
arrangement of the carriages taken place at Ches-
ter many more would have been sacrificed, so
that circumstance must be accepted as some
palliation of the horrors which are sufficient
to overwhelm those who contemplate them.
The accident would not have been of so much mag-
nitude had more time been given for preparation,
but almost the moment that the driver saw some
trucks coming on the line towards him they were
upon him. He saved himself by jumping off, but
not so his companions and those who occupied the
carriages just behind him. The force of the colli-
sion may be estimated by the fact that the mail
was going at forty miles an hour, and ran into the
trucks coming towards it from an opposite direc-
tion. The worst part of the affair has yet to be
comprehended, though this alone would have con-
stituted a dreadful accident. The trucks which
caused the evil contained barrels of paraffin or
petroleum, and these exploded directly they
came in contact with the fire of the engine,
the foremost carriages catching fire, and
the scene becoming one of an awful descrip-
tion. Nothing was wanting to complete the hor-
rors of the scene, and our only consolation must be
to think that in all probability the victims were
suffocated by the smoke before the more dreadful
fate overtook them. No cry was heard from the
burning carriages, and this emboldens one to hope
that what would have been the worst of all was
spared the sufferers, and that they were not shut
up in burning carriages with no hope of escape, and
yet a full consciousness of their position. No one
could be extricated from the mass of burning car-
riages, and all that could be done was to separate
the Post-office van from the one before it, and thus
the line of connection with the fire was broken.

The complete and utter nature of the destruction
may be estimated by the fact that recognition
of the bodies was found quite impossible, and all
that could be depended upon for recognition were
the watches, trinkets, and other memorials belong-
ing to the departed. A more distressing thing
than this cannot be imagined for the friends of
those who perished, and, after the chief sufferers,
they must be ranked as most deserving of public
sympathy. When we have got over the first shock
of this dreadful event, we naturally think how did
this calamity occur, and "who was in fault." That
is a question easier to ask than to answer, but it
may be well for the matter to be carefully con-
sidered, so that for the future the lives of passen-
gers need not be e:posed to such fearful risks. In
all probability no one is more to blame, and no
greater hazard has been run than every day can wit-
ness, but the circumstances connected with
railway accidents render it expedient that
all possible means be taken to prevent
the likelihood of their occurrence. The
arrangements with respect to goods trains are not
good, and some other means must be resorted to.
It would be far better to lose time and occasion
some irksomeness in travelling than to follow a
course which is generally safe, but which, never-
theless, may be most dangerous. The full parti-
culars of this tragic affair will soon transpire, but
meanwhile it is not premature to say that some
change for the better must take place in the regu-
lations of the trains, so that these fearful collisions
shall not be likely to occur.

Intelligence reaches us from Paris :relative to
Lucerne which is of a very startling character. It
appears from the Gazette de France that a Fenian
has been arrested in front of the Swiss Hotel by
two English police agents, and that great excite-
ment prevails among the English residents there in
consequence. It is thought that the man did not
come alone, which was not very likely under
the circumstances. It is, furthermore, added
that her MAJESTY was informed of the plan to
assassinate her previous to her departure from
England. This communication is imparted in a let-
ter from Lucerne, and the writer seems convinced
the intention of the man was to make an attempt
on the life of the QUEEN. Until more authentic
&tails reach us or a positive denial be given it is
impossible to give a definite opinion on the matter;
but it certainly may be true, for the Fenians have
given so many decided proofs of their desperate
character and insidious devices that nothing is too
bad to attribute to them. For many reasons the
public will learn with satisfaction that the news is
incorrect, or has but slight foundation in fact, but
if it should prove too true it will show the
necessity for care and caution being adopted.
After the desperate attempt on the life of
the Duke of EDINBURGII in the distant
shores of Australia there is nothing to be wondered
at in the mania spreading to a place so much nearer
head-quarters as Switzerland. In awaiting further
intelligence, it may well be remarked that those
public speakers and commentators on events in
general have much to answer for who make light
of this matter of Fenianism, and, unintentionally
perhaps, convert it to party purposes by the
vehemence of their language and the bitterness of
their comments. The only real and effectual way
to put down the conspiracy is to treat it with the
contempt and indignation which it deserves to meet
with ; and all shades of politicians and sects of
opinion should unite in. the common interts of
peace and order, and form a neutral ground on
which to meet to put down this obtruding and
dangerous effort. It is sufficient condemna-
nation of Feni inism to say that this report
is worthy of credence, and cannot really surprise
those who have followed its course and watched its
devious ways, while its verification will teach those
who slight the affair to be more wary for the future
and to attach due importance to an evil that has
taken too deep a root, and spread too widely, not
to possess more real influence than can be briefly
estimated or understood.

The recent correspondence between the British
and American Governments relative to the disputed
question of naturaliz2tion, and more especially to