The Sun.
London, England, 1868-08-31 00:00:00

TIIE INQUEST.

The inquiry is conducted by Dr. Evan Pierce,
Coroner ; with Mr. Eyton, of Flint, as his Asses-
sor.

Mr. Littler, of the Northern Circuit, appears for
the London and North-Western Company; Mr.
Goddard, solicitor, of Dublin, appears for the rela-
tives of the late Lord and Lady Farnham and of
Mr. and Mrs. Aylmer ; Mr. David Galbraith, of
Dublin, is watching the proceedings for the family
of the late Sir N. Chinnery ; Mr. Edwards-Wood,
solicitor, of Birmingham, is present on behalf of the
relatives of the late Captain Priestly Edwards and
of the relatives of other deceased persons.
After the despatch of our parcel yesterday, Sarah
Anne Haughton was examined, and said she lived
at Milton-cottage. On the 20th instant she was
staying near Llanddulas. She saw the mail train
coming in the direction of where she was. She
saw smoke and flames, and ran to the
palings on the embankment of the line. She
did not see what caused the accident. She saw
the carriages on fire. She ran when when she
heard the crash, and having got over a wall saw the
flames.

By Mr. Edwards-Wood--When she reachel the
palings she had to look down on the line. She saw
the engine on its side and the tender across the line.
The first carriage was on fire, the second was not ;
but within less than a minute it had taken fire.
She saw the passengers and Mrs. Dicken on the side
of the line next the sea. Mrs. Dicken was lifting
her hand, pleading to the people to come out of the
carriages. She was then on the line next the sea.
Mrs. Dicken was addressing people in the carriage
next to the one on fire. It was before that Mrs.
Dicken was lifting up her hand.
By Mr. Littler—Witness was standing on a
paling above the side of the cutting when she saw
Mrs. Dicken doing this. She was about a dozen
yards from the engine. The carriages were opposite
to witness. The smoke was being driven straight
from thQ direction of the trains to the Acide over

, Alfred Sara, driver of the goods train, was then
examined by the Assessokl drove the goods train.
in ?question on the ':2oth inst. I had been in the
habit of driving that. tP
train for two years. I starte
from Crewe. I came on to Chester, the first stcip-'
ping-place. The time for leaving Chester was {
7,4. M.. The e.nd,of my journey with that train is.
Bdtrgor: I believe I left Chester at the proper time.
J keep no book showing the time I actually start.
The breaksman has a book showing the time we,
actually do keep. The time-table shows the tinie.
we actually do keep. There were with me that'
daY'rhomas Davis, the fireman, and two breaksmen:
I believe Joseph White, senior, and Robert JoneS,,'
janior, were the breaksmen who came with me as
far as ,Rhyl. Richard Williams and the said''
Rdbert Jones were the breaksmen from Rhyl. I
cannot tell the number of waggons I had when we
started from Chester ; we picked up some on the
road. We had no paraffin that I know of when we
started. At St. David's works, Saltley, near Ches-
ter, we took up two waggons with barrels which I
believed to contain oil. Ido not know what kind
of oil is manufactured at those works. Those two
waggons were placed in the rear of the train, next
to the break-van—in front of the break-van. I
have charge of the train as to working it-;- the'
breaksmen have to instruct me what to do. At
Rhyl station the train was a long one. It had 47
waggons, some loaded and some empty, when we
left Rhyl. We stopped at the Abergele station at
from five to six minutes past 12. I cannot say how
long we stopped. On the land side of the Abergele
station—a little beyond the station—l had to drop
some waggons. I had none to take up. I did
some shunting there, which occepied from two to
three minutes. To the best of my knowledge I left
Abergele at eight or ten minutes past twelve. lam
not positive, but, to the best of my judgment, we
left five or six minutes before our time. The par-
ticular train I drive is called "the pick-up train."
It has to pick up waggons at different stations. We
are timed to shunt for the Irish mail at Rayns and
Luptons siding. When we have doubts of being
able to do it in time there we do it at Abergele sta-
tion—scmetimes even at Rhyl. On Thursday, the
20th, we intended to shunt at Llanddulas, the ordi-
nary place. We had some waggons to leave there
and some to take up. The siding is under the con-
trol of the station-master at Llanddulas. He him-
self is the proper person to work the signals at that
station. He was on duty himself on that day.
Sometimes the station-master orders his son to work
the signals. To the best of my knowledge it was
the station-master himself who worked the signals
on that day. I saw him near the signals. As soon
as ever I arrived the signal was put up to " danger"
to prevent anything else from coming up. That is
the usual course. A portion only of the train was
on this occasion shunted into the siding, because
there was not room for the whole of it. Had
there been room the whole of it would have been
shunted into the siding. I could not of my own ac-
cord have shunted the train into the siding. I take
my orders from the breaksman. On that occasion
both the breaksmen gave me orders respecting the
shunting. The instructions were given to me first
of all by signal as I was drawing up. I drew up
the engine just at the end of the platform, where
the signal is placed. The break van and the two
waggons next to it would be further from me than
the points of the siding. A breaksman hooked off
a portion of the waggons. Richard Williams then
gave me the signal. I don't know whether two of
the breaksmen or one of them unhooked the wag-
gons. The tail end of the train was taken off. I
know they were unhooked, because when I started
again I left part of the train behind. I saw nothing
about the uncoupling till I got the signal and moved
on. I got a signal to go ahead." It was given by
the breaksman holding his arm up. I saw the tail
of the train which I had left behind at different
times within a space of, perhaps, from five to ten
minutes. They were on the main line: I cannot
swear as to the number of waggons left behind.
There were the break-van, the two waggons with
the oil, and one er two other loaded waggons. What
these latter waggons were loaded with I do not
know. When I had advanced far enough I got a
signal to stop—one given with both arms. It was
given by Williams. I obeyed it. I then got a signal
from Jones to come back. The station-master was
holding' the points. I stopped clear of the crossing
and " fly shunted" 10 or 12 waggons to send them
into the siding. To " fly shunt" is to give the
waggons to be shunted sufficient impetus to send
them into the siding without the engine going after
them. lam not sure, but I believe it was Robert
Jones detached the waggons. Those 10 or 12 wag-
gons formed the rear of the train when the other
waggons and the van had been left on the main line.
Richard Williams was standing and watching the
waggons going into the siding. The waggons and
van left on the main line were left standing by them-
selves. Jones was riding on the buffer of the last
truck remaining in the train. When the train came
to a stop he jumped down. Richards Williams was
somewhere about the points. Having got the wag-
gons into the siding, I got another signal to come
back again. I was on the Conway side of the
points. Jones gave the signal. I backed a very
few yards, when I stopped again in consequence of
another signal from Jones. I saw three loaded
waggons parted from the train, and went towards
the waggons and van which had been left Ptandin g