Washington sentinel. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1853-1856, 1856-01-24
From the New York Observer, Jan, IL.
CasunItttes for a Year


1t is not surprising that in these days of
travel, and of peril by land and by sea, the
chapter of accidents and casualties for the past
year should be long and sad. We have gathered
from reliable sources the facts and figures
which are appended, although it is highly
probable that the number of deaths by fatality
of travel is somewhat greater than is here
represented.
During the year 1855, the number Of railroad
accidents IN various parts of the country, result.
ing in losses of life or limb, was l42, by which
ll6persons we're killed, and $50 badly wounded.
More than GO employees of the railroad com
panies are included in this numberof the killed,
OF which 20 were engineers, and conductors.
The steamboat accidents have not been so
numerous, amounting to ~, but resulting in
l76 deaths, an increase of 60 over those caused
by rail.
The loss of property occasioned by destruc,
tive fires has been enormous, amounting to
more than $l3,000,000. This is the estimated
loss of about 200 extensive conAagratons; the
figures do not embrace the vast amount of
property destroyed by almost innumerable
smaller iresg
Disastrous as these results seem to be, they
are happily far less in magnitude than those of
the former year, 1854. During that year the
number ofthe killed was 10, and of the wounded
so greater than in the last year.
The steamboat accidents Of 1854 were 48,
diminished in 1855 to 27; the killed were 5S7
diminished to l76; the wounded 225, diminished
to l07
The number of fires in 1854 was 223, which
decreased by 80 in 1856 and the loss OF
property amounted to $20,000,000, which was
reduced to Sl3,OOO,OO0 during the last year.
The BRITISH MAYA compilation made
from the official Navy list, just published, shows
a number amounting to 456 ships and vessels
OF every denomination comprising the British
fleet. Of this force 30l ships and vessels are
in commission and employed in various ways,
as l3l gun line-ofbattle ships down to the |
| gun, mortar, or gumboat, and the steam yacht
mounting no armament at all. Ten years ago
we only had 233 vessels as grand total of all
class in commission, and nearly all those were
sailing vessels now the character of the SER
vice is SO thoroughly changed that nearly all are
steamers and such few sailing vessels as are
yet doing duty are being set aside as fast as
their terms of commission expires. Thus this
week we have that noble three-decker, the Nep-
tune, 100, Captain Hutton, laid up in ordinary,
to make room for the more modern steam bull
wark the marlborough Isl ana so the work
of change will progress, until sailing man-of
war will become as great novelty in the Bri-
fish fleet at sea as was the steamer at the time
of the |" venture" of the little Comet
1t is estimated that we may count upon
having this summer, available for the purpose
of war, 40 or more line-ot-battle ships and
heavy frigates of the right class, upwards of
20 corvettes and heavily armed sloops, and
upwards of 10 gun and mortar boats and
batteries. The Baltic alone, it is inferred, will
have fleet of nearly 250 remnants over steam,
and it is rumored that Sir Edmund Lyons will
be the grand Commander Chief. 1t will
strike the reader probably as curious that
whereas ut the close of hostiities in 1916,
there were 3,776 Lieutenants on the Navy list,
we have now, when in the midst of another
war, but a total of 1876; of this number
LIS are represented as on the active list
London Times.