The anti-monopolist. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1874-1878, 1874-10-29
HAVOC IN LONDON.
Resu ts Of the Greatest GunPovVder
Explosion Ever KnOWn..N1iles Of
Houses in Ruin..WOFse than an
E0rthq uake.

Cincinnati Commercial writes under
date Of the 5th inst:
The crowds that have visited the sub
urb shattered by the great gunpowder
explosion in Regents park have been,
yesterday and to-day, enormous be.
You'd computation. | am informed
that the press of the curious on Satur-
day was equally great, and indeed that
hardly any work has been done in Lon
don for three days except that of the
workmen employed to repair injuries in
the damaged district. The underground
railways and the tramways have been
so full that there is hardly such a
thing as obtaining seat in any Of
them. The policemen hundred
strong-are still on watch to keep back
the throng from the workmen who
are engaged repairing the canal.
/ have found walk through
and around the region rather impress
sive. Entering the park on the south
ermost side, stopped for little while
at the residence of Mr.. w. S. Burton,
the great iron-monger, and
learned that that and that
ofhis neighbor. Sir Francis Goldschnied,
were the farthest in that neighborhood
which had any windows broken. They
are nearly half mile from the spot
where the explosion occurred, and
though their houses shook great deal.
only few panes of glass, however, were
broken, and these, oddly enough, on the
south sde-the side farthest from the
explosion. No pane on the side next
the canal was broken. Passing thence
to the North bridge, or what was once
that bridge, found the evidence Of the
terrific event recorded in torn and
twisted trees, and in the heavy
masses of stone, wood, iron rail-
ings, etc, which made up the de-
bris around the boats. The boats
which were linked on to the Tilbury
when it was destroyed are still there
one of them bearing still it's barrels of
petroeum-and the families of the
boatmen have come to reside on them.
The whole road stretching along in
front of the Geological garden has a
mass ofpeople standing like solid wall,
gazing as if under some fascination upon
the wild scene of the catastrophe. Oc-
~oasionally some ingenious person, wish
ing to get place to see, may rutfle the
crowd by reporting that tiger or boa
constructor has escaped from the gar
den, but the success Of such is slight,
and the crowd looks as if it would re-
quire another explosion to scatter it.
The whole northern verge Of the park
CrV f,,l m
which stand what until now might have
been called some Of the most graceful
residences in London. These houses
now have all their outer walls, gate.
ways, doors, windows, and pretty con-
servatorics quite shattered. For half IL
mile, instead Of glass one can see only
rough boardings. Unfortunately this
exterior destruction is not the worst Of
it. Within the houses the rooms are
wrecks. The most painful case is that
of Tounshend house, the residence Of
the distinguished Belgian artist, Alma
Tadema. This hous, has long been
known among the artistic fraternity as
the most beautifully decorated man.
sion in St. Johns Woodland some
would say in London. There were in
it rooms representing every selected
style of ornamentation-Pers Egyp-
tian, ArabesqGe. Pompeian. By the
aid of his friend Mr.. Morris, the artist
had built for himself and his accom-
plished young wife little palace of
art. But the treasures Of art and rirtu
in Tounshend house were, if
anything, more valuable than
its decorations. Valuable
cabinets, antique plaques, vases, pots,
quaint candelatraS designed by the
artist himself, priceless pictures, were
in every room. Fortunately, but three
of the pictures, the artist informs me,
were injured, two of his own and one by
his sister, and these he believes can be
repaired. Bat nearly all the costly old
china, vases, and other articles are
hcaped on the floor and in the garden
as il they had been pu!vcrized. The
dining-room alone has been left in any
thing like its old condition, and here |
found the artist and his wife and their
sister,-and the two lovely little girls
who, with windows smashed on their
beds, had escaped unhurt,-all cheerily
at work to try and clear little space to
live in amid the ruins. I'VE are so
happy that our children are safe, they
said. and that we are none of us hurt,
that we can hardly feel yet the tragedy
that is around US" Yet tragedy it is,
when man Of taste has for years been
surrounding himself and his family
with the ornaments that represent his
genius and culture, and finds them all
turned to ashes in one fatal moment
A little farther on l called to see
some friends who reside in the largest
mansion of the region, 'sThe Poplars."
This was nearly quarter of a mile
from the spot where the explosion oc.
CURED. The house is about five stories
high. A piece of the rock of which the
bridge was built-a piece about fifteen
inches long bv foot deep and wide
had been hurled into the air and fallen
upon the roof Of this house; it had
broken through the roof. then through
. ceiling. and fallen into the bed room
of young lady, just at the feet of an
other young lady, who had rushed into