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Leader (1850-1860), 31st May 1851, Edition Town of 1, Page 508

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      step . There were tail lamps and two side lamps on the train . All were red lamps . I turned back before I heard the train coming . When I heard it I held r » y lamp in such a way as any one coming from the tunnel might see it . The time between the stoppage of the train and the luggage-train coming up might be about five minutes . I asked the fireman— ' Is all right ? ' and I went and resumed my position . I held my lamp sideways , with the lighted part of the lamp towards the train that was coming . My signal could be seen up to the station immediately I put my foot on the step of the carriage . The luggage-train ought to have come twelve miles an hour , but it was ooming at a greater speed . It ought to have been half-an-hour behind us when the accident happened . The luggage-train was at about the bridge when I heard it coming , and I was about twenty yards from my own train . I got on the step of the last carriage and was knocked off , and was hurt in my foot and nose .

      I signalled the luggage-train , and I supposed it was slackening , and our driver was getting on as fast as he could . I could see the signal burning at the Clay-cross station . When I recovered the shook I got up , and assisted the engine-man , who was going on to Chesterfield . I was going to put on the signal , but some one had put it on . It was my duty to put it on , but I had not time to do so . I set off with the intention of turning on the signal-light , but Bir oply because the driver said ' AU right , ' I did not go on and turn on the light . I cannot say that either the passenger or goods trains blow their whistles at all the stations . I think the luggage-train came up to us in half the time they should have done , or less than that . The luggage-train , if it had kept its proper speed , would have been half-an-hour after him . I attribute the accident to the goods-train coming on us —with that and our stoppage . If we had stopped at Clay-cross to set down passengers , I believe the luggagetrain would have been upon us . "

      William Stretton was the driver of the goods tram , consisting of sixteen carriages and the guard ' s break . His time for starting was ten minutes past nine , but he followed out the passenger train and gave it the live minutes law at the junction . He drove on steadily behind the passenger train giving it the start of five minutes : — " When we got in sight of Clay-cross the signal was a caution ; we saw it before coming to Clay-cross . We ran steady through the tunnel , and found a white light at the other end ; we therefore put the steam on again , and went on . Before we saw anything else we had got under the bridge , past the Clay-cross station . There I saw four red lights—the guard ' s light and three tail lights—all at

      once . I reversed the engine and put the steam on the contrary way , calling to the fireman , and doing all I could to backen her ; that was just under the bridge . The pace he was bound to go , or allowed to go , between Derby and Chesterfield , was between twenty and thirty miles an hour . He did not see the passengers' train until he got to Clay-cross coming out of the tunnel ; he could not see the train between there and the station . He commenced slackening his pace in the tunnel , going from twelve to fourteen miles an hour . He thought it was half-past ten o ' clock . " He could tell the time by guesswork . He looked at his watch after the accident , and found himself a minute before his time : —

      " The guard did not make any complaint of my being before my time . If the semaphore light had been red instead of white I could have stopped in time to prevent the collision at the station . I saw the passenger train a mile before me at Belper , but never saw it again . I knew that the passenger train had to call at three stations . The guard ' s lamp was from the last carriage of his own train ; that was where I first saw it . If he had gone fifty yards further back towards my train I should have seen his lamp before I saw the passenger train ' s lamp . It is between 200 and 300 yards from the signal light to the place of the accident . From the light to the bridge was fifty yards . I saw nobody about . I attribute the accident to not seeing the danger signal soon enough . The first time I saw the tail lamps ( the danger signal ) I was 200

      yards oft " . It takes me a quarter of a mile to pull up . If the station signal had been turned on 1 should have seen it . The guard of the passenger train has told me that he thought he heard the train whistle , and he went back again . I asked him why he did not come back towards my train , and he said he asked the engineer how long he should bo , and he said he should be a quarter of an hour ; and he said , ' I had better ro back with the signal ; ' and he said , ' Yes , you had . ' He said lie went , hack and got about forty or fifty yards , and then he thought he heard the engine man whistle , and he went back again and thought it was all right . lie asked his engine driver whether it was ' All ri ght ., ' and the man said * Yes . ' He told me that at the time .

      No one was near at the time when he told me this . Thompson was not on the step at the time the collision took place . 1 saw him step off before we came into the passenger train . Nobody naked me whether a mail train was coining up . 1 don ' t know that I have been charged with negligenoo in coiiHPnumoe of this accident . My time at . Chesterfield is fifty-live minutes past ten . I wus not much before my lime there . 1 was at Cluy-crosa about half-past ten . " Stretton wnn contradicted by Sheldon juidThomnon , who were recalled . J . Sheldon said : — " Thompson did not say anything to me about my blowing my whistle . He said the reason he came back was hcoHUHO he heard Homo one say , " All right . ' lie did not tell me how far ho hadgono ; nor did 1 « sk him . I did not blow my whistle from the time the guurd left me till 1 started . "

      J . Thompson himself said : —¦ " When the luggage train run into me I wa » on tha step , and I did not run off . Stretton told me he Daw my

      signal when I wae on my step . I did not say anything to him about it . I did not tell him that I went baok because I heard a whistle blow . There was no whistle . After the accident , and after I was knocked off , I asked if he saw my signal ; he said he did when I was on the step . " George Shaw was the fireman on the goods train . He said" We got through the bridge beyond the Clay-crow station , and there I saw the red lights of the passenger train in front of us . One of them was being shaken . The person who shook the light appeared to be standing on or by the side of the carriage . I and the engineman cried out 'Drive on . ' I put on the break , and the driver reversed the engine , "

      Emanuel Marchant , guard of the goods tram , gave a very animated account of his share in the collision : — " After passing through Clay-cross tunnel I saw a white light shown by the man at the telegraph box , signifying ' All right . ' We then came under the bridge , and after just coming out of the bridge I saw four red lights . One was a square one . X put on my break and huns bv It as quick as I could ; but unfortunately I

      struck the other train . I was knocked down , but , getting tip , I fetched my fog signals . I turned my lamp on ihi timepiece , by which it was 10 . 25 . I then ran back to the Clay-cross station , and put on the red signal . That would stop any train coming from the south . I went on Jo the telegraph l > ox . As soon as I got to the stone bridge I halloed out . The man there gave me a red light , which showed me that he saw me . I then went to him and told him that we had run into something , and that I thought it was the train . "

      He said they were six minutes before their time . They left Derby 20 minutes after the usual time , and got to Clay-cross six minutes before the usual time ; they therefore gained 26 minutes . They were allowed to run 20 miles an hour . " I have gone with this train upwards of a dozen times , and on every occasion have been at Chesterfield before my time , and that for the purpose of getting our work done at that and the other stations . I sometimes

      inquire how long the passenger train has gone on before ; sometimes not . I was on this occasion outside the break , and saw the four lights and the square light , which denoted to me that it was a ' hand lamp , ' and I then applied my break . I saw no light waving about . The square light appeared fastened on the train . If I had seen a light at the bridge ( second from the tunnel ) as soon as we came to the first bridge we might have stopped our train , and the calamity might have been avoided . "

      The question as to whose duty it was to keep running time gave rise to a discrepancy . Stretton , the engineman , said it was not his duty , and Marchant , the guard , thought he was not responsible for it . Mr . Parker , superintendent of the working of the goods trains at I )« by , stated that the guard had no control over the speed of the trains ; and that the engine-driver was liable to a fine for over-running . The engine-driver ought to regulate the speed and not the guard . The time table is given to the driver , and also to the guard ; but the timepiece is only given to the guard . Witness had no opinion as to the absurdity of this arrangement .

      The inquest was continued on Monday . Ihe witnesses were still the servants of the company . J . Marsden , foreman of the engine shop at Leeds , thought the engine of the passenger train was in good working condition , and a similar breakage might happen to any engine . Mr . Kirtley , superintendent of the locomotive department of the Midland Kailway , entered into details respecting the management of the line , and corroborated the main facts advanced

      by the engine-drivers and the guard as to their duty . They rely on signals for safety j and that consequently if there had been a danger signal at Claycross it might have hindered the accident , by enabling the goods ongineman to stop his train , or materially to diminish the speed at which ho was running . After his inquiry he attributed the accident to the enginemiiii of the goods train not having a signal in sufficient time to stop . He declined to say who was to blame . That was for the jury to decide . Mr . JfreHtou thought that before the coroner summed up Home of the passengers should be examined ; Mr . Macaulay did not object , but wished to guard the company from any imputation of unfairness . The inquest was adjourned until Fri < lii 3 .

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      The Duke and Dtic-heiM de Nemours arrived at Laeken

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      508 3 C |> * ItraJrrt . [ Saturday ,

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      PERSONAL JNHWS AND GOSSIP . Fashionable society ia on the tiptoe of expectation rcHpeeting the approaching fancy druHu bull . JJt >» idttn the grand bull which the Queen will give , Countess Frances Witldegrave , and Lady Londonderry , in imitation , we presume , of her Majesty , will nl . so give fuiicy dreHM bulls in the course of the sc ; ihoii . There in a rumour afloat that the Queen has arranged her parties ho far into the summer in order that tuo aiintocracy may b <; detained in town , and not run uway from Prince Albcifw " fairy pulacc of labour : " so wo may expect along : ind brilliant London nennon .

      1 he Queen held « leveo at 8 t . James's Puluoe on Wedlmsduy afternoon . The Court was more numerously attended than any lovet ) for several years past . Her Majesty and Prince Albert arrived from Buckingham Palace esaortod by a detachment of the Life Guards , liofore the lovee the Earl of Scarborough had an nudlenco of the Queen in the Itoyal Closet , to deliver up the ribbon

      and badge of the Grand OroM of the Bath worn by the late General the Honourable Sir William Lumley . Colonel Codrington ( Coidstream Guards ) bad an au * dience also to deliver up the ribbon and badge qi the Grand Cross of the Bath worn by his father , the l&fe Admiral Sir Edward Codrington . The Queen , who waa attended , by the Duchess of Sutherland , the " Viscountess Jocelyfl , and the various Iorda-in ^ waitmjjr .,-wore a train of white watered silk ehene > , -with gold , and green , and silver . The train was trimmed with tulle and white gatin ribbons , and was ornamented with diamonds . The pettlrioti was of white satin and tullr , > ith satin ribbons to correspond . Her Majesty ?* hend-dre ** w »* formed of emerald * and diamonds . Some rich dresses of Eastern costuw * were worn by natives of the East attending the levee . The Queen gave a concert at Buckingham Palace on

      Wednesday evening , to which a party of upwards of tared hundred , comprising the Royal Family , foreign princes , the diplomatic corps , and a large circle of the principal nobility were invited . Among others present tvefe Alfred Tennyson and his wife , Samuel Rogers , and Dr . Whewelf . The nuptials of Lord Edward Fitzalan Howard ( Vic * Chamberlain of her Majesty ' s household and second son of the Duke and Duchess of Norfolk ) with Miss Talbot , niece of the Earl of Shrewsbury , will not take place until the close of the ensuing month or early ia July . For obvious reasons the solemnity will b * conducted at privately as possible , the olrole to be witnesses of the ceremony being strictly confined to the members of the respective families of the noble lord and his fair betrothed .

      —Standard . This day is the day appointed for the public celebration of h « r Majesty ' s birthday , when a drawing-room will be held at St . James ' s Palace , which , acoording to ftlt former precedents , will doubtless be the most numerous and brilliant reception of the season . In honour of the day , the principal Ministers of the Crown and great officers of state of the Ouepn ' s household wjll all give their state banquets to large parties , the guests being expected to appear in full uniform . The invitations to her Majesty ' s bal costume * have now for some time been issued . Several meetings have taken place during the week at the residence ? of several leaders of fashion and

      aristocracy , for the purpose of making the preliminary arrangements for the dances . All the authorities , botjjk literary and pictorial , have been consulted , and the greatest care and exertion have been made to produce in several circles a complete and characteristic ensemble . With respect to official dresses , the Herald's College are in possession of authentic records of dresses worn at the period , and which will therefore be easily reproduced . The materials for almost all the dresses willbe velvet and satin , ornamented with lace , and will of course give that Impetus to trade which was her Majesty ' s intention hi giving this elaborate fete . Among other trades , the perruquiers will be pressed into active service .

      The Earl and Countess of Arundel and Surrey gave an entertainment on Saturday to Cardinal Wiseman and a distinguished circle , including several eminent foreign divines of the Church of Home . The Countess subsequently had a soiree , the company numbering upwards of 100 of the 61 ite of English society professing the faiti of the Romish Church . The Earl of Derby , who had been for some time past in the metropolis , and returned last week to KnowBley Park , was seized on Sunday morning by a severe , and It

      was to be feared dangerous , illness , his life being for some time in imminent jeopardy from an apoplectic fit . Every means were resorted to ; surgical aid was promptly obtained from Liverpool , and the latest accounts report that his lordship has somewhat recovered . Lord Stanley wan telegraphed to London , and arrived in Liverpool by mail train on Monday morning , and proceeded to Knowsley . The Earl of Derby had been lately visitl g the Exhibition whilst in town , and it is not improbably may have overtasked his strength .

      Ihe date of Countess ( Frances ) Waldegrave ' s fan y dress-ball , to which we have before called attention , has not yet been fixed , and we presume it will not be given until after her Majesty ' s . We believe we are authorised in stating that the Marchioness of Londonderry intends giving ft grand fancy dress-ball , on an unusual scale of splendour , on an early date after her Majesty ' s . We have much pleasure in making these announcements , a * very many trades will thrive by a brisk " London season . " If , as there is every reason for believing , the example thus set by these noble ladies will be followed by many leading members of h » ut ton , there need be no further fears entertained aa to the length and brilliancy of the present Reason . —Standard .

      Last Saturday beinK the anniversary of her Majesty ' s birth-day , the band of the Itoyo . 1 Marines , from Portsmouth , attended at au early hour under the windows of the royal apartment * , and performed a serenade . The Queen received the folioitulloua of her illustrious relatives mid { jucBtH in the morning , on tha auspicious event , but the celebration of the birth-day wan purely of a privute and domestic character . The uttual meeting of the tenantry and employed on the estate , and the indulgence in old Englitsli gained and sports , Buoh an have been ouatonmry on the birth-days of Princo Albert , were not on this pe < mnjon carried into effect . A grund <)< Jjuuer printanier demichaud-froirl was given at Soyer'a SymnoHiuw , on Monday , by the Duoheas of ' Ik d turd , at which the Ouches ^ of Inverness , the Duchess of liuckiiiftluiiu and Chaiitlos , the Uowuger Countess of Morley , and a largo p « r | y of nobility and gentry were

      present ,. Cardinal Wiseman ' s portrait in full pontifluala has created a solution at tlitt Hoval Academy . What will people any when they get Mr . Philips ' * large picture of the Pope , Monviguor Talbot , the Patriarch of Juruaalem , » nd the Sacristan , which in now ou the way for London , having been completed by the artiat after four sittings grunted by his Holiness at the Vatican r

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), May 31, 1851, page 508, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1885/page/8/