The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1838-09-18 00:00:00

FATAL STEAM-BOILER EXPLOSION.

NEWTON-IN-THE-WILLOWS, MONDAY NIGHT.
The Viaduct Foundry on the Manchester and Liverpool
line of Railway at this place, the property of Messrs. Jones,
Turner, and Evans, was this morning the scene of a dreadful
and fatal steam-boiler explosion. Six persons are already
dead, and four others are lying without the least hope of re-
covery. It appears that Messrs. Jones and Co. employ
about two hundred men, and in the course of their business
use two steam-engines, one of sixteen horse-power to drive
the machinery, and one of eight to blow the blast for the
smiths' furnaces. Last week a new boiler was attached to
the eight-horse engine, and the foreman of the yard, Joseph
Dangerfield, who superintended the erection of the boiler,
resolved upon setting it in motion himself. It was tried on
Saturday last, and was then found to work well. This morn-
ing he was called by the watchman at five o'clock, and he
immediately proceeded to light the fire and get the steam up
in the boiler. He accomplished the task by six o'clock.
At that hour the men came to work, and about ten or a dozen
of them stood at the mouth of the furnace, anxiously waiting
to witness the evolutions of the engine which had been stop-
ped for the purpose of attaching the strap communicating
with the machinery of the foundry. This had been in part
accomplished, when all of a sudden the, steam and water
burst through the flue of the boiler, and carried the contents
of the furnace and part of its brick work full forty yards
from the building. The explosion was terrific. The bye-
standers and Dangerfield was carried as if by a gun shot,
into a corn field on the opposite side of the foundry palings.
The palings were knocked down, and the corn levelled to the
ground for full twenty yards distance. Three of the men
acre picked up quite dead. Their names are Joseph Dan-
gerfield, (the foreman,) Samuel Appleton, (striker,) and
George Fazakerley. John Dean, a striker, was found on his
knees fervently praying to the Lord to have mercy on his
soul. He lived until ten o'clock this morning. Thomas
Price, another striker, was picked up insensible. John
Parker was dreadfully mutilated. Win. Wells, 'a moulder.,
Geo. Hough, a striker, Wm. Dane, and Wilson, a fitter,
were taken up dreadfully scalded and bruised. They were
quickly attended by Mr. Barrow, and Dr. Green of Newton,
and Mr. Gaskell of St. Helen's. George Hough and Wm.
Wells lived for a few hours. Only one of the other sufferers
is expected to survive.
The foreman, Joseph Dangerfield, has left a wife and
seven children; Williein Wells, a wife..(preguant) and one
child; Samuel Appleton, a wife and nine children, (his wife
is pregnant and a cripple;) John Parker has a wife and
several children ; Wilson is also married, and came to work
at the foundry this morning, from Stockport. The others
are single men.
The Rev. John Thomas, curate of Burton Wood, arrived
at the foundry soon after the accident, and was present with
some of the sufferers in their last moments.

The engine boiler is constructed on the high pressure prin-
ciple, and works at a pressure varying from fifty to sixty
pounds to the square inch. At the time of the accident,
(according to the index) it was working at thirty-two pounds.
The exterior of the boiler remains perfectly sound, the injury
done being confined to the flue.
Prior to leaving Newton, our reporter was informed that
Price had breathed his last at a few minutes after one o'clock.

EDUCATION FOR SYRIA AND THE HOLY LAND.

Last evening a meeting was held at the Music Hall, Bold-
street, for the purpose ot hearing the stafeuients of a native
of Syria, with regard to the degraded condition of his coun-
try, their want of education, and their claims on the assist-
ance and benevolence of this country. ADAM HODGSON,
Esq., occupied the chair; and a number of the clergy of the
town were on the platform. The room was densely crowded.
chiefly by ladies, and there would be at least 1,000 persons
present. Assaad Yacoot• Kayat, the native ot Syria, who
was to address the meeting, was on the platform, dressed in
the picturesque costume of his country. lie is a man of
middle stature, slightly built, and of a pleasing and intelli-

gent expression of features.
The meeting was opened with an appropriate prayer by the
Rev. Richard Davies. After which .

The CHAllittlAN opened the business of the meeting liv

briefly statiog, that its object was to obtain funds to promote
the religious education of the inhabitants of Syria, and the
establishing a church in Palestine. If we reflected that it
was from that country that we originally borrowed the light
of the Gospel, end it we reflected on the injuries which this
country had itilllcted on Africet, we ought to endeavour to re-
pay the debt that we owed to that country ; and we might
hope, through the medium of Syria, to christianise •and
civilise the continent of Africa. He concluded with intro-

ducing to the meeting
Assn AD YACOOB liaYA7r, a native of Syria; who was re-
ceived with loud applause. He proceeded, at considerable
length, and in very tolerable English, to express the pleasure
he felt at seeing before him so large a meeting. He stated
that about 12 years ago be was in England, in the suite of
the Persian Princes, and learned English. On that visit he
was struck with the happiness, and riches, and power of Eng-
land, and he was induced to think about it. Afterwards meet-
ing at Constantinople with an American Presbyterian minis-
ter, he became converted to Christianty, and was convinced
from reading the Bible that to her Christianity alone did
England owe her pre-eminence amongst the nations of the
earth. The church of Antioch had formerly flourished in
spite of persecutions, and from her had England derived her
knowledge of Christ. The little church of Antioch, planted
by the Lord, had withstood all the persecutions of Caesar, of
the Jews, of the Heathen, of the Greeks—all was in vain,
and the church had flourished in the land. Whilst they ful-
filled their Christian duties they flourished. They had then
plenty of schools, and plenty of literature. Though they had
no press, their fathers wrote volumes in thousands, and homi-
lies in thousands. They then enjoyed the fruits of the earth
and the dews of heaven, as in England these bles.ings were
enjoyed; and so they flourished. What was granted to them
was not through their own means, but was given to them as
our blessed Lord had said, " He would bless those who blessed
Him, and honour those who honoured Him." They then had
cathedrals, and churches, and chariots, and horses, and sheep,
and cotton, and wool, and silk; they never asked any
other nation for help, because the Lord Jesus gave them
His blessing, and they needed it not. But the moment
they began to trust in their riches and to export their pro-
duce for gold, forgetting the Lord, then did He forsake them,
and millions of camels and horses and men under Mahomet
overrun their country, turned their churches into mosques,
and their fruitful land into a barren desert. Their schools
were destroyed, their books were burnt, and but for the kind.;
ness of God they could not have existed at that moment.
Formerly, " Tyre did build up herself a strong bold, and
heaped up silver as the dust;" but it was prophesied in the
Bible that where that city stood, there fishermen should
spread their nets. He had seen this, with his own eyes,
fulfilled. Where once Tyre in all its magnificence had
stood, he had seen a few miserable fishermen's huts, and had
counted eighteen nets drying on the rocks. Looking, at
these things, he was persuaded that if they sought the Lord
and served him as they had once done, he would make the
earth of his country heaven and every individual happy
—be would again bless the land and make it overflow with
milk and honey. But all this wanted a beginning; nothing
was done without an effort (cheers;) and therefore he had
determined to begin the work and devote himself to it. The
speaker then gave an instance of the ignorance and supersti-
tion of his countrymen by relating an anecdote of two officers
who were in attendance upon the Persian princes, while
passing from Constantinople to Bagdad. It was usual for
the second officer to precede them a few hours to prepare
for their reception. This man was a most enormous
glutton, one who eat things cooked or uncooked, sweet or
sour, ripe or unripe; and 'one day having stuffed himself
at a wedding feast while he was ill and was seized with
a cholic, the people crowded about him and the princes' phy-
sician way sent for. When the doctor arrived, he said he
could not give him better medicine than the blessed earth
from the blessed tomb of Humoola that died some hundred
years ago. So the doctor went to the tomb, gut a bag-full of
the earth, and brought back with him a sort of a stick with
which he opened the poor man's mouth and shoved the mould
into it; and so they were digging in the mould when the
prince arrived, and drove the crowd away, and gave his
officer a dose of jalap instead of the holy mould. He con-
cluded with detailing his plan of introducing religious in.
struction, which was to get instructed a number of females,

to teach the females in the Harems, and so gradually intro-
duce religious edncation into families; to get Syria❑ youths
taught in this country, who should be established afterwards
as teachers in Syria, and to get schools built In Syria. For
the only way to teach the population to value the truths of
Christianity was by education, to enable .them to appreciate
them. He concluded, after a strenuous appeal on behalf of
these objects.
The Rev. H. M'NEILK then rose, and was received with

much applause. He drew attetifiCm to the, prosperity of
Syria being co-existent with her Christianity ; and that when
her Christianity was made a secondary thing, her prosperity
was seen to decline. He called upon England to take warn-
ing from this example, that she fell not away from Christi-
anity, lest her glory, like the glory of Syria, should depart
front her. He alluded to an advertisement he bad seen in a
newspaper in the East, announcing a system of education
which was recommended in the paper to the inhabitants of
the eastern parts of England, the peculiar feature of which
was this,—" the entire absence of all superstition : the youth-
ful mind was not to he trained up in the fear of supernatural
beings, nor to offer up petitions to an unknown spirit, to alter
the course of nature; in order to suit the convenience of the
Petitioner." 'flint was, that there was to be no recognition

of oa If ever such a system of education as that recorn- '
mended were adopted in this country, and the word of God
removed front education, then would the sun of England set
indeed, and degradation deep and dreadful, misery that !night
be felt, would be her portion, for " God was a jealous God."
This appeal came front Syria, and by her example.was Eng-
land warned ; for when Syria hod held Christianity secon-
dary, the Lord had held secondary that country; and so
would' it tie with every laid. If the principle put forward in
that newspaper wet e to be checked, it could only he by in-
culcating the glorious principles of the religion of Jesus,
which their brother was asking them to do. It was by teach-
ing men that the gospel was the only source of morality ; by
guarding the population from snpposing that they could be
moral from a principle of their own, instead of by the prin-
ciple of God, as given to them; by guarding the population
against supposing that a plan of their own—a text of their
own—a society of their own—could obtain a moral character
which the word of God had failed to accomplish. This would
be leading the population into a course of crime ten times
more hostile to God than the poor wretched drunkard it
had rescued Let them take care how they elevated a
principle of man's formation ; let them take care how they
stepped in, between Him who sat on the throne, with a
plan that had more effect on a fellow creature than God's
own law. God commanded temperance and sobriety ;
God gave His holy spirit to make them love it. And was
it possible that what the Lord Jesus Christ had failed to do—
what the bible had failed to do, what the christian preacher
had failed to do, they should be able to accomplish by a se-
cret amongst themselves—a plan which fostered their own
pride rather than a prostration before the living God. He
was disgusted with the intemperance that abounded in the
land, but he entreated men to beware how they elevated
practical power over themselves exercised by themselves,
above the practical power of the Lord. He did not believe
that it was intended, but he did believe that the effect was
produced. He had read a long account of the effects pro-
duced in early life on one by intemperance—of its dreadful
effects upon himself and his family, and all his concerns, and
which he told as a boasting narrative of the excesses to which
his drunkenness carried him. His wife implored in vain, his
minister, his bible, his children implored him in vain, until
an act of his own, something he honoured more than his
children, his wife, his minister, his bible, and which he had
almost said he honoured more than his Gcd, had altered him.
What was this? A fresh revelation from heaven? No, but
an arrangement with a fellow creature. (Great cheering.)
He concluded with solemnly hoping that the Bible might be
honoured afresh, and that the travels and example of the
Syrian who had addressed them might not be a witness
against a headstrong nation.
A gentleman on the platform here rose and addressed the
chair. He stated that the advertisement alluded to was put•
forward by the Owenites, and not by the Tee-totallers, who
had nothing to do with it. . .
Mr. WNEILE rose to order, and said he had not stated
that it had any connection with the 'Fee-total Society.
A slight confusion resulted, but order was soon restored by
the Chairman, and the gentleman sat down.
A doxology was then sung, and a collection made at the
doors for the objects of the meeting, which we understand
amounted to a considerable sum.

ST. ANNE'S WARD.—An adjourned meeting of the mem-
bers of the Conservative Association in this ward was held at
the house of Mr. Holden, Richmond-row, yesterday evening.
The attendance was highly respectable and a spirit of har-
mony pervaded their consultations. Arrangements were
made for canvassing the ward, which promise at length to
reward the exertions of the Conservatives. We are exceed-
ingly happy to hear that Mr. Davies has consented to be put
in nomination for representing the interests of this ward in
the Town Council. A better man never stood forward in a
good cause, and we heartily wish him success.
THE LONDON TIMES.—By the politeness of Mr. Gaskill,
we received a copy of the London Times of yesterday, last
evening, by a quarter past eight o'clock. We understand
none of the other morning papers had made their appearance.
FILBERTS.—The crop of filberts this years has been very
abundant;. we perceive that Mr. Middlewood the fruiterer
announces a further reduction since his last quotation of
prices.—(See Adv.)
CHURCH OF• ENGLAND TRAC: AND BOOK SOCIETY.—
Our readers will perceive that a sermon will be preached
on behalf of this excellent society, to-morrow evening, at
St. Andrew's Church, by that eloquent minister, the Rev.
Hugh Stowell, A.M., of Manchester.
TALES AND SKETCHES, BY MRS. D. CLARKE.—GUY fair
townswoman, Mrs. Clarke, is about to publish a volume of
original tales and sketches, historical and domestic. Mrs.
Clarke possesses much vivacity of talent, combined with that
delicacy and style which so generally distinguishes female
writers. We hope this, her first venture before the public as
the authoress ota volume, though not her first essay in print,
will realise her expectations.
THE. GREAT MaGiciaN.—Mr. Anderson, the great magi-
cian of the north, is astonishing the natives with his tricks at
the Liver Theatre. We have heard much of him, and intend
as soon as leisure permits to pay him a visit and judge for

ourselves.
THE ARRANGEMENTS OF THE POLICE-OFFICE.—We have
frequently heard complaints from parties having to take out
summonses, being detained three or•four hours at the Police-
office before they can obtain them. At present the hours of
business terminating vary from twelve to four o'clock. If .a
person wanting a summons goes to the office after business is
over, he must go again next day. In_order, therefore, to be
in time, he is obliged to be there at twelve o'clock. By an
arrangement in the court all applications for summonses are
deferred till the prisoners are got through with, which is some-
times not till four o'cloCk, till which time the applicant is de-
tained, wasting the better part of a day, and .crowding the
Police-office. Surely, a better arrangement could be made
than this, and some hour fixed for applicants to know when
to he in attendance.
THE ROYAL Eit3NT.—We have been highly gratified by a
view, at Mr. Goadsby's, Bold-street, of Gra-nt's picture of
"The Royal Hoot," (which every hotly has heard of,) to.
getter with the beautiful engraving from it by Bromley.
There is a reality about►he whole thing that is not often met
with; hunting pictures we have in plenty, but then they re-
mind one of third or forth-rate acting in a. provincial theatre
—all is exaggerated or unnatural. But the case is different
with Mr. Grant's picture ; there is a vraisemblance about the
whole scene which forcibly arrests the attention ; we see on
canvas as in the field, the Duke of Beaufort and Lord
Chesterfield, Lord Wilton and Lord Errol, the Fitzclarences,
Cecil Forrester, George Wombwell, (leaving us in doubt
which have cost him most study, his curls or his boots,)
Horace Seymour, George Anson, Alfred Paget, and D'Orsay,
and last, but not in any sense of the word, least—Davis, the
royal huntsman. The human portraits are not fewer than
two and forty ; then come those of horses and hounds—and
of the former of these the most inexperienced eye will at once
see that they must be actual likenesses. Ascot Heath, too,
is a likeness, which its rich russet tint ; and the beautiful
background of plantation is another proof that Cloth is better
than fiction,