The Sun.
London, England, 1829-10-14 00:00:00

DESTRUCTIVE FIRE.

(FROJI A CORRESTONDENT.)

MANCHESTER, OCT. 12.—This morning, between
the hours of five and six o'clock, this town, and
more particularly the neighbourhood of Piccadilly
and Dale-street, was thrown into the utmost state
of consternation, in consequence of a report having
been spread that the extensive warehouses belong-
ing to the Company of Merchants trading to and
from Liverpool, Leeds, York, and Halifax, had taken
fire. The fire-engines of the Royal Exchange As-
surance-office, the Norwich, the Manchester, and
the various other offices who have stations in the
town, were immediately upon the spot, and com-
menced playing upon the building; but notwith-
standing the plentiful supply of water (the Roch-
dale Canal adjoining the premises), the destructive
element had proceeded too far to entertain any
hopes of checking its progress until the demolition
of the premises had been the consequence. The
firemen therefore directed their labours to those
warehouses adjoining, belonging to private indivi-
duals, which appeared every moment to be in dan-
ger of taking fire, from their having a communica-
tion with the Company's warehouses. The engines
played incessantly upon the buildings in the neigh-
bourhood, but unfortunately the warehouses of
Messrs. 13arnaby and Faulkner, carriers to and from
Manchester and Hull, being in the immediate vici-
nity of the Company's warehouses, fell a victim to
the devouring fury of the dames. About half-past
five the fire appeared to assume a most formidable
and terrific aspect ; four barrels of gunpowder, which
were on the premises, belonging to Messrs. Holland
and Curtis, druggists, exploded, and shook the tot-
tering timbers like an earthquake, and caused them
to fall instantaneously down, and with them a part of
the brick-►work. The warehouses being full of bales
of cotton, burnt with a rapidity that may easily be
imagined; the firemen endeavoured, amongst the
burning ruins, to rescue some property which was in
the further end of the premises, arid being of very
great value, they had played upon it with the engine
for a length of time; 16 or 17 of them, however, pro-
ceeded to venture their lives in endeavouring to pro-
cure it from the flames, but just as they had reached
the spot a part of the wall gave way upon theta, and
buried several beneath the ruins ; fortunately, how-
ever, they were all most miraculously preserved, with
the exception of one poor fellow, named Thomas
Taylor, a fireman of the Royal Exchange Assur-
ance-office, who was picked up in a dreadfully muti-
lated state, and carried to the Manchester Infirmary,
where he expired a few minutes after his arrival.—
Several others are materially injured, though not as
affects their life. The unfortunate man who has
lost his life was about thirty years of age ; he has
been some time in the employment of the Royal
Exchange Assurance Company, and was much re-
spected. He has left a wife and three children to
deplore their loss. How the fire originated it is
impossible at present to divine. It appears that the
persons employed by the Company, during the whole
of Saturday and Sunday had been engaged in ship-
ping goods, and recommenced their labours at half-
past twelve on Monday morning. A blacksmith,
named Eaton, was the first to discover the fire; arid
it is reported that the origin of it was, that one of
the workmen of the Company fell asleep upon a quan-