The Sun.
London, England, 1844-09-02 00:00:00

FATAL RAILWAY ACCIDENT.

LEICESTER, AUG. 29.—A dreadful and somewhat
singular accident occurred last evening on the Leicester
and Swannington line, by which a fine young woman,
in her 23d year, met with almost instantaneous death.
The train which leaves Bayworth, a village about ten
miles to the north-west of Leicester, at 6 P.M., arriving
at Leicester at seven, consisted of twenty-six waggons
loaded with coal, and two passenger carriages ; these
last being placed in the centre of the train, thirteen coal
waggons in front, and thirteen behind. This train stepped
at Desford, about seven miles from Leicester, to take up
two passengers, the deceased and an elderly woman
named Darnells, who was with her. They were in the
first compartment of the last carriage. It is supposed
that the sudden jerk caused by the stoppage, fractured
one of the axletrees, for the train had net proceeded
more than a mile and three quarters, ahe a waggon
was perceived to have broken down: It was dragged on
however, about a hundred yards, when several more of
the axletrees having broken, one of them (probably the
one which first gave way) was forced endways into the
ground between the rails, nearly its whole length, and
the wheel at its other end turning up in a slanting direc-
tion, caused a dead stoppage, the suddenness of which
broke the coupling chains attaching the engine, which
proceeded a considerable distance by itself, and caused a
tremendous crash. The waggons in front being at a dead
lock, the two passenger carriages were forced up into the
air by the resistless impetus of the thirteen waggons ofcoal
which were behind. There were eleven passengers in the
whole, and it appears nothing less than miraculous that
the number killed should be limited to one only. Some
jumped out ; parts of the carriage had closed together
round the neck of one of the passengers, and he was in
great danger of being strangled, but was timely rescued.
Others were rescued by means of a ladder, and some idea
may be formed of the height to which the devoted pas-
senger carriages were forced up, by the fact that a 12-
round ladder which was at first obtained was found alto-
gether useless, and at length one about double its length
being procured and placed as nearly as possible perpen-
dicular, two passengers, a man and a boy, were extri-
cated from their perileus situation. But the worst re-
mains to be told. The elderly woman whom I have
mentioned, whose husband, a tailor, lives at Leicester,
felt (as she herself expressed it) at first a kind of jerk,
and then another, but more violent than the first, and
thought they probably were about to stop the train for
something, but almost before she had time to think
about the matter, she heard a great crashing nose, and
felt that she and her companion were being reared up in
the air. Then something pressed her down nearly
double, and she could compare it to nothing but being
ground down by a kind of mill. The pressure was awful.
She expected every moment to be killed, but while in
this situation thought of her companion, and called
to her, but received no answer. She felt for her while
in this horrible condition, and could
_touch her clothes,
and in two or three minutes (though it seemed an age to
her) she was extricated, sadly bruised, but without hav-
ing any bones broken, The ill-fated girl was extricated
in about ten minutes, but quite dead. They were
riding with their faces to the engine, and while one
escaped comparatively unhurt, the other was completely
jammed in between the coal waggon at her back and the
opposite seat on the front, which pressing across her
chest, produced suffocation, and almost instant death.
Her name was Elizabeth Atkins. She was possessed of
some personal attractions, and gained a respectable live-
lihood by dressmaking. She had been on a visit for ten
days previous at Hugglescote, an adjacent village, and
was returning to her mother's, at Leicester, when the
fatal occurrence took place. At the inquest held the
next day before Mr. Gregory, coroner, at the Rasby-
wharf, after hearing the evidence from which the above
facts are taken, the jury returned a verdict of " Acciden-
tal death," and a deodand of 501. upon the passenger
carriages. The jury expressed their disapprobation of
those carriages being placed in the midst of a coal train,
and strongly recommended that in future they be placed
at the end of the train.

The scene where the accident occurred defies descrip-
tion. The passenger carriages themselves were literally
smashed to atoms, and each side of the line was strewed
with springs, wheels, broken axletrees, broken glass,
&c. The sight, I was informed by an eye-witness, was
truly awful; those who escaped, expecting every mo-
ment, while scrambling away, to be crushed by the wag-
gons of coal, some of which were raised up to a great
height in the air.

It may be but justice to the management of this rail-
way (which was more exclusively projected for traffic)
to state that during the twelve years it has been worked,
not a single accident has occurred, except through the
rashness or carelessness of the sufferers themselves.

HIGHLAND MOORS AND 3TREAMS.—St. Swithin,
the famous watery oracle, finished his six weeks' reign
on the 28th inst., much to the joy of farmers and sports-
men, who now anticipate more success on field and hill.
On many moors grouse ate in flocks, and so wild, that
green cartridge will barely reach them : a few fine days
will probably separate them into single coveys, again to
secrete themselves among the heather. His Grace the
Duke of Richmond, the Earl of March, and Lord Temple-
more, have killed an immense quantity in Glen Fiddich and
Blackwater. Lord H. Bentinck, one day last week, killed
three fine stags, two of them instantly shot right and
left. Sir Richard Sutton, Bart., has terminated s short,
but successful campaign on the Killin moors, having
shot altogether 1,536 head. The party consisted of Sir
Richard, his son, and Mr. Heathcote. Great as the
number is, they would have bagged much more had the
weather permitted. The Balmacan party—Lord Reid-
haven, Mr. Hoare, Mr. Bacon, and Mr. Bainbridge
—bad a fair day's sport on Saturday, having brought
home seventy-one brace. On the same day Sir H.
Meux and Richard Arabin, Esq., at Dundriggan, came
in w1:11 six ti-seven brace. At Erchless Castle, Mr. Boul-
derson and if. Gray barged sixty, one brace. Anotherday
Mr. B. shot a coupe of stags, right and left shots. At
Invereshie, W. Evans, Esq., and G. Gisborne, Esq., had
a fortunate day in the corries lately. They secured five
stags, two of them by one rifle shot. The Red-
castle party have also been very successful, having
killed two stags, a hind, and a roe—the latter
Mr. A. Bailliedept.being his first shot at de.
Some ;zee stags' heads
have arrived here, for preserva-
Gillanders, Highfield, J. W. Eyton, Esq.,
tion, from 317.".
Fasnakyle, and Mr. Jones, Shiness. For angling, the
Ness has improved from iPerease of water. The other
(lay, Master W. Fraser, son of Affleck Fraser, Esq.,
landed from one pool three salmon, and a trout as large
as a grilse, in the course of an hour and a
half. A splendid clean run fish, weighing upwards
of 261b5., was taken by the rod in the Arndiljy
on the Spey, last Friday, by J. Ella, Esq. This
gentleman is a frequent visitor to the Highlands, and
f
seeks recreation jn angling, from his professional duties
in her Majesty's ItaL4'Opera baud, pf which he is one
of the most accomplished corformera. Mr, Arabin has
caught some fine grilse in the riccr Ness ; and the no-
fishing has greatly improved. On Saturday some salmon
were taken, weighing 271 b ; and yesterday several were
caught from 181 b to 201 b weight.--Inverness Courier.
INSURRECTION IN CANADA.—A return to Perl a.
meat has been printed, showing the charges incurred on
account of the Canadas, in respect of the army, navy,
ordnance, and commissariat, in each of the years 1835
to 1843 inclusive, and the amounts granted by Parlia-
ment from the year 1837 to the year 1843 inclusive, in
consequence of the insurrection in Canada, It Appears
that, for the year ending March 1836, the total chiages
of the army, navy, ordnance, and commissariat, in the
Canadas, amounted to 165,134/. ; and, in the year ending
March 1843, it was 606,6074 The largest sum was in
1839, when the charges were 1,629,070 Z The special
grants by Parliament on account of the insurrection in
Canada. amount, from 1838 to 1843, to the sum of
2,096,04c1. The largest sum in one year was in 1839,
1,000,000/. _ _

STATE OF TRADE.—LIVERPOOL.--There has bren
a very fair business done this week, and more demand
has appeared for consumption. Prices of most goods
have been steadily supported, and the fine harvest wea-
ther we are now enjoying has had its influence in giving
confidence to the buyers, especially in the cotton market
All descriptions of grain, of course, are dull of sale, and
dealers will not get into stock whilst the . present season-
able weather continues. Importers of flour and grain of
all sorts will be very serious losers, the duties being now
within a step of the highest rates ; even Canada flour,
admissible at a mere nominal.rate, is entailing a loss of
about ss. per barrel upon its importers. There is a good
demand for shipping to all parts, and a large export
business in manufactured goods is going on, with more
prospect of remuneration to the shippers than there has
been for a long time. In the metal districts, trade does
not thrive as it used to do, and prices, especially of iron,
are again receding, the orders on hand by the makers
being unequer to the production. This is a bad sign in
a trade where the consumption is so extended, and for
an article that is, and always has been, one of our princi-
pal exports.—Liverpool Mercury.