The Sun.
London, England, 1857-07-31 00:00:00

A TRAIN ON FIRE.

A serious accident occurred last Tuesday night
between Chalons and Epernay, on the Strasburg
Railway. The train No. 24 was returning to Paris,
when the waggon containing the baggage took fire,
unknown to the servants, a short distance from
Jalon les-Vignes. The engineer, unconscious of
what had happened, was hastening the speed of
the locomotive, when the fire, fanned by the
wind, extended its ravage, increased in inten-
sity, and shortly atterwards the flames, rising in
a whirlwind, covered the waggon. The engineer
then blew the alarm whistle, and the conductors
lost no time in tightening the breaks, so as to
stop the train as quickly as possible. Unfortu-
nately, at the sight of the flames the travellers
who were in the carriages neared to the
baggage-waggoxis, and particularly the women
and children, raised piercing cries, and created
a panic which it is easy to comprehend. A
great number of travellers, without waiting
for the train to be stopped, forced open the
doors and jumped out on the road. Thank., how-
ever, to the energy of the railway servant., the
train was stopped, and the burning waggon r,er.•a-
rated from the others. The fire was then extin-
guished without much difficulty. During this time
all possible attention was given to the wounded,
amounting to eight or n'ne. Four of the travellers,
two women and two children, were killed. It is
believed that one is Madame Boulichoff, a cousin
of Prince Balabine, an attache to the Russian Em-
bassy. It was found necessary to leave some of the
wounded at Epernay, as they were unable to con-
tinue their journey to Paris. The railway directors
sent surgeons from Paris by an express train to
diem their wounds. After the fire was extin-
guished the train confnued its course to Paris,
where it arrived one hour and 25 minutes behind

time. The directors of the railway company have
communicated the following particulars to the
Paris papers :
" The train No. 24 quitted Strasburg on the 28th
for Paris, and at the station of Oiry, the baggage-
waggon took fire. The carriage coming from Metz,
placed immediately behind that waggon, was almost
exclusively occupied by women and children. At
the sight of some sparks of fire the women, yield-
ing to a very regrettable panic, opened the doors,
notwithstanding the earnest efforts of a traveller to
prevent them, and jumped to the ground, carrying
their children with them. The train being in mo-
tion, the consequences inevitable in such cases
ensued. We have to deplore the loss of two ladies
and two children killed by the fall. Eight other
persons are slightly wounded. This misfortune is
a fresh example of the danger arising from the
public not observing the railway regulations. If,
as those regulations command, the travellers had
not attempted to alight from the train while in
motion, but had waited for it to stop, which it did
in a few minu. es afterwards, we should not have to
deplore any accident. The fire appears to have
been communicated to the interior of the baggage-
waggon by some combustible matter contained in
travelling trunks of which the contents were un-
kno wnas they were sealed and leaded at the Custom-
house of Forbacb."

VESSELS AND TONNAGE.—The number of vessels that
entered inwards and cleared outwards last year at the
twelve principal ports of the United Kingdom amounted
to 26,017, and to 24,877 respectively, and the tonnage
thereof to 7,528,387 and 7,479,684. The number of
vessels that entered inwards is thus distributed, viz.,
Landon, 9,922 ; Liverpool, 4,405 ; Kingston-on•liuli,
3,097 ; Bristol, 682 only ; Newcastle, 3,992 ; Sluth-
ampton, 878 ; Leith, 1,241 ; Glasgow, 509 ; Greenock,
226 ; Dublin, 324 ; Cork, 428 ; and Belfast, 252.
The Europ, al and American Company will victual the
troops which Oaf take out to India, and will receive
491. per head. The company's two vessels, Golden
Fleece and Laiy Jolelyn, which have been chartered
by the East India Company, will take out about 2,000
troops, and the: r passage to Calcutta will costnearly
100,0001.