The Middlebury register and Addison County journal. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1883-1885, 1883-03-23
A STARTLING EXPLOSION.
Attempt to Blow Up English Government MT
Onces With Dynamite.


The utmost CONSERVATION was created IN
London by an attempt to blow up the Eng
fish local government board Offices near the
houses of parliament One account of the
occurrence says:
Every part of Westminster the abbey, the
houses of parliament, the great structures of
the public Offices, the clubs and dwelling
houses were violently shaken tonight BY Il
tremendous explosion. At o clCcl P. NJ.
precisely a great defamation was heard,
followed by the crash of glass falling
from thousands of windows. A deliberate
attempt has cen made to blow up part Of
the government Offices, the part occupied by
Sir Charles Dixie and the local GOV eminent
board, in the immense building bounded by
| Parliament street, Downing street, Charles
street and St. James park. The apartments
in question front on Charles street and are
almost level with the pavement. The walls
are of great thickness, ana of solid masonry,
and the wind )ws Ir1tected by massive stone
baustrade. Opposite, fifty yards away, Is the
King street police station Fifty feet away
a sentry guards the Parliament street front
Charles street is dark and unfrequented at
night, which partly explains the extraordi-
nary fact that no lives We're lost. The dy-
Mantle was placed on the windows sill inside
the balustrade, where the fuse when burning
would be concealed from the view of any one
| passing.
The force of the explosion was terrific.
| The great stone balustrade was obliterated,
| tie massive masC nry rent to fragments, and
| the pavement shattered and ground to
pow der. wooden structure opposite was
| blown into splinters, and Il mass of stone
was driven through the wall of the house
beyond it.
Inside the offices there remained nothing
but splintered wood, broken plaster, walls
burst asunder-an indescribabe scene of de
struction. The street was completely covered
with the fragments of broken plate glass
blown bodily out and shattered to atoms.
The doors of the King street police station
were burst in by the blast of air, ana the de-
| taChmeht present was Pc 'trated. Broken
timbers and masses of stone were sent lying
| into King street. People crossing al Parlia-
ment street were Knocked down. hanson
and horse We're flung across the sidewalk
against the front of the Whitehall club, in
which the great plate glass windows were
| driven in shower into the rooms.
Everywhere the great. st CONSERVATION
| prevailed. People poured out of their houses,
| the broken glass cracking under their feet.
! In the house of commons the alarm was gen.
| eIal Many members left Immediately, the
lobby Was emrtled, ana people rushed out OF
| We minister hall.
Some two hundred police and detach-
ment of the fire brigade took possession of
| Charles street and drew a Gordon around the
building, which 10 one but members of par
pass. As the alarm spread thousands
Hooked from all arts toward Westminstt r
and the most intense excitement prevailed,
the report rapidly "a ming currency that the
house of commons had been blown up.
No one to- night pretends 10 explain the
motive or purpose of the act. 1t is ascribed
to the Irish lnvincbies, as matter of
! course. and Is described as part of a Fenian
| plot, threat and a waning to the govern
ment. One thing only Is certain--it was deed
| of frightful recklessness and atroCity. AMI
only an ine1plicable good fortune prevented
| il from being attended with the most serious
| fatality.
Several attempts have also been made to
blow up the building oCcul led by the Lon
don Times. That aper made the following
statement: IAN explosion at our office oc-
cured at l:45 o'clock ON " Wednesday evening,
, but the falling of The canister prevented any
serious damage. There is reason to believe
that two attempts of this kind were made by
| the same miscreants."