The Sun.
London, England, 1827-06-28 00:00:00

The water Laving been so far reduced as to per—
mit a very close aro,,minute inspection of the works,
the full extent of the damage. Which has been sus-
tained has now been fully ascertained.
It will be recollected that some months since, s
temporary room, which was
,called a cabin, wag
erected at the eastern archway, for the double pur-
pose of transacting any hasty business which might
be required, and as a resting place for the officers
who happened to be on duty during the night. This
cabin, which was so attached to the shield as to
move with it, was, considering its locality, a re-
markably convenient place, and was very respectably
famished. On inspecting the spot where it stood
previously to the irruption taking place, no trace of
such an enclosure is to be discovered. The backs
and arms of chairs, the fronts end sides of drawers,
the lids and bottoms of writing desks, are to be
found in wofid abundance, but not a single perfect
piece of furniture is to be found. It looks, indeed,
as if some half dozen stout men had been exorcising
sledge hammers upon them with all their force.
In the other archway a stage followed the shield,
on which the cement for the bricklayers was mixed,
and were also the soil was received from the top
boies, and subsequently conveyed to the base of
the tunnel. This stage is also completely destroyed,
and must of necessity be reinstated before it can be
capable of utility. There is no question that much
of this damage has been occasioned by the quantity
of floating timber which has remained in the tunnel
since the irruption, and of which there is such a quan-
tity that it is expected it cannot be removed for
three or four clays to come.
It is not intended to sink the tarpaulin which was
recently attempted to be lowered, in its original state,
but new pieces of canvass have been most stoutly
sewed together, of the same size, upon which the
old tarpaulin will rest, and Outs be sunk in the same
manner as that at present at the bed of the river.—
It is a mistaken impression that this tarpaulin is in-
tended to be continued throughout the whole line of
excavation. It will be confined entirely to the re-
cent aperture, and the ground immediately round it ;
for by the borings which have taken place, it has
been found that at the. distance of a very few feet
of the present spot of excavation, the stratum of
earth is even of a superior quality than any that they
have yet penetrated, so that the sinking of such an
apparatus would be altogether useless. The new
tarpaulin will not be ready for descent for some few
days to come.

Since writing the preceding particulars, we're'gret
to state that a serious accident, already attended
with the loss of life, has occurred on the works, by
which the existence of two of the Directors has
been placed in imminent danger.
It appears that at the weekly meeting held on
Tuesday, at the offices in Walbrook, a resolution
had been come to of opening the tunnel for the in-
spection of the public, even in its present state, pro-
vided it could be so done without any just cause for
apprehension. In order to be certain on this point,
and to fix a day for such opening, Mr. Robt. Hum-
phrey Martin, well known in the commercial world,
and Mr. Harris, yesterday visited the works, for the
purpose of personally inspecting them and making
a communication to their co-directors on the sub-
ject. It is understood, that in consequence of the
descent in the road-way of the tunnel, there is still,
in the immediate neighbourhood of the shield, about
nine feet of water, and that, therefore, it is necessary
to approach the boxes by means of a boat. In this
boat Mr. Marten and Mr. Harris seated themselves,
and it being a flat-bottomed vessel, the slightest
jerk, either on the one side or the other, when so
heavily laden, is calculated to overturn it. On ar-
riving at one of the openings, Mr. Marten
hastily rose for the purpose of inspecting the
brickwork, and being a very heavy man, he so turned
the boat as to lose his own balance, and he was pre-
cipitated into the water,but, fortunately, so near the
middle pier of the arches as to be enabled to seize
hold of the plinth, as it is termed, which is a small
abutment of the brickwork ; and by this he held until
assistance was procured. Immediately on his falling,
the boat flew upwards, and threw the whole of its
inmates, including Mr. Harris, into the water on the
other side. Dowling, a youth engaged on the works,
was the last person who remained in the boat, but
finding it rap ally sinking, he, too, secured himself
by clinging to one of the brick openings. A scene
of alarm and confusion now ensued which beggars
all description. The names of all the persons known
to be in the boat were vociferously called out, and all
answered but a man named Samuel Richardson.
Fortunately there was 'another boat in the adjoining
arch, and whilst that proceeded to the rescue Of 'Mr.
Marten and Mr. Harris, Mr. Brunel, jun., and
Mr. Graratt threw off their clothes, and,' accom-
panied by a man named Short, jumped into
the water, and kept swimming and diving to
discover what had become of Richardson. Their
efforts were, however, unavailing ; and it was not until
the arrival of the Humane Society's drags that they
could gain any intelligence of him. Short was the
first man who discovered him ; but having been up-
wards of twenty minutes under water, no hopes were
entertained of restoring animation. He was carried
into Mr. Granites private house, and the usual re-
medies adopted by the Humane Society were
promptly resorted to, but without effect—the vital
spark had tied. He was a man of very sober and in-
dustrious habits, and only a fortnight since became
a father. The child; however, is not living. The
wife, on hearing the circumstance, vent down to the
works in the most: frantic state, and it was with
difficulty she was persuaded to quit the scene of
death.

It is but justice to Mr. Brunel, Mr. Gravatt, and
indeed the men• generally, to say that on this occa-
sion they exhibited the most praiseworthy fortitude
and anxiety.
Mr. Marten and Mr. Harris, on being extricated
from their perilous situation, which was effected by
means of their clinging to the stern of the boat
which was forwarded to them, retired to Mr. Brunel's
house, and after receiving proper medical assistance,
wrapped themselves in blankets, and were put to bed.
Mr. Marten, though not in a dangerous state, suf-
fers very materially. His full habit of body, and the
suddenness of the shock, have had a very strong
effect upon his frame. Mr. Harris does not suffer so
much.