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Leader (1850-1860), 11th September 1852, Edition Town of 2, Page 866, Untitled Article

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      Untitled Article

      PEEL'S BIRTH-PLACE . Stu Hobebt Peel was born at Chamber Hall , near Bury , a comparatively lowly cottage . Bury has not forgotten her mighty son . Beside electing Mr . Frederick Peel to renresent her in Parliament , she has set up a statue to the memory of his father in her market-place . On Wednesday a vast assembly , among whom were Mr . Frederick Peel and Mr . Lawrence and Dr . Peel , brothers of the late Sir Kobert , inaugurated the statue , the multitude and the authorities marching on to the ground in grand procession , preceded b y a military band . Afterwards banquets were given in the Town Hall and at the Albion Inn . The statue is 10 feet high , and the attitude easy but commanding . The statesman is represented standing , with his left hand resting upon his side , the right hand slightly raised and extended , the chest well thrown out , and the uncovered head , though erect , is natural and life-like . Tlie attire is that so generally worn by Sir Robert , and the sculptor , Mr . E . H . Bailey , R . A ., has succeeded in placing the open surtout in a manner exceedingly characteristic of the late statesman ' s mode of wearing that article of his dress . The features were pronounced by most of those who should be able to form a judgment to be good and truthful . As a whole , the figure appears rather massive in breadth , but it is undoubtedly a noble monument ; and placed as it is in the centre of the town , which was Sir Robert Peel ' s birth-place , it will possess greater interest , perhaps , than most of the statues that have been erected . The

      money paid to the artist is 2 , 500 ? . The figure rests upon a piece of rock-work in bronze , 18 inches high , placed upon a square pedestal of Aberdeen grey granite , 12 feet high . In front of the pedestal the four letters composing the name " Peel" stand out in granite , and are surmounted by the arms of the family . On the two sides of the pedestal are bronze bas reliefs , one representing ' ' Commerce , " the other " Navigation ; " and at the back is an inscription , giving the memorable words used by Sir Robert when moving the repeal of the Corn Laws : "It may be that I shall leave a name sometimes remembered with expressions of good will in the abodes of those whose lot it is to labour , and to earn their daily bread by the sweat of their brow , when they shall recruit their exhausted strength with abundant and untaxed food , the sweeter because it is no longer leavened by a sense of injustice . "

      Untitled Article

      DESTRUCTIVE STORM . Many parts of Herefordshire , Shropshire , and Worcestershire , have been ravaged by a terrific tempest of thunder and lightning , accompanied by a great fell of rain . It is decidedly the most notable catastrophe which has happened this year from similar causes . The storm began between four and five o'clock on Saturday evening , and continued until daylight ori Sunday . During that interval the rain occasionally poured down a perfect torrent , with some intervals of calm , but for nearly twelve hours the thunder and lightning were incessant . The thunder roared without intermission , and the flashes of lightning were of the most vivid

      and awful character , lighting up with the distinctness of noonday every object , which in another instant was enveloped in the deepest night . On Saturday evening the Severn was a pellucid stream , and no higher than the low summer level ; but daylight on Sunday morning disclosed the most fearful havoc ; the river had overflowed its banks , and its surface was covered with trees , cattle , furniture , and crops . At Worcester there was not much damage done beyond the flooding of houses , fields , and gardens . A quantity of grocery

      articles which had been left upon the quay on Saturday night , were either carried away or destroyed . The greatest dunnage , however , appears to have been committed in the valley of the river Teme , which runs from Herefordshire and Shropshire , and falls into the Severn about two miles below Worcester . Upon this river and its tributaries , Laughern and Leigh-brook , the destruction of property has ' been awful . A gie . it majority of the bridges upon these- streams have been either carried uway , or must fall on the subsidence of tin' water The rise of water in the Teme was one of

      the most rapid and the highest not only within the memory of man , but of tradition . Its eilecls ton the village of l ' owick , the lowest parish upon the river before its confluence with the Severn , were fearful . At this place an island is formed by the deviation of the utraim , for the purpose of supplying the corn and china mills at this place . The water rushed across the inland , flooding the hulf dozen houses here placed , and rising nix inches above the second floor of the grist-mill , in the- occupation of Mr . JIadley . . lust below these mills are two stone bridges over the Tunic ; one of these is

      built at u considerable elevation above the banks of the river , with a corresponding embankment on either Hide to lead the road to the bridge . This embankment , which in the highest floods had never before been reached , was flooded up to the village of I ' owiek . The lioiiHCH were inundated , and furniture was floating about all Sunday . To give an idea of the rapidity of the rise of water , it- may be Ht . ated that thu miller at I ' owick left the mill at u quarter past eight on Saturday evening , and although the tempest had been heavy but little rain had fallen , and the river hud not risen ait ull . it being dead low water then , and he never dromi » fc

      of a flood . However , at ten o ' clock , less than two hours after , as the storm still continued , he thought he would have a look to see whether the river was rising , when , to his unspeakable astonishment , he found it over the road and a yard up the first floor of the mill , and by midnight it is supposed it reached its height . In consequence of the suddenness of the rise the damage done to live stock and to the meal and grain at the mills on the Teine and brooks is incalculable . The number of

      sheep washed away in the parish of Powick alone is estimated at 2000 , but it is impossible as yet to ascertain the extent of the damage , as the water is still out . There were a great many sheep depasturing on Powickham , belonging principally to the poor villagers ; these are all swept away . Mr . Herbert has lost about 100 ; Mr . Badgery , of Wick , 170 ; Mr . Essex , 40 ; Mr . Pullen , 30 ; and many others . On Sunday the carcases were strewn about in all directions , stuck in the

      hedges , and numbers of men were going about in boats and with carts gathering them . Many were sold at 2 d . per pound . The loss to the millers is very great . Messrs . Richard and William Hadley have suffered severe loss by the spoiling of their meal at Powickmills , but it does not appear as yet that the mills Lave sustained damage . At Laughern-mill , too , the property of Mr . Hadley , the mill was between three and four feet under water , and a great deal of flour and wheat spoiled . At Henwick-mill , the occupier , Mr . Smith , had 11 pigs swept away , and the pigsty in which they were with them , and a great quantity of

      meal spoiled . At this spot two men were returning home , and were overtaken by the flood , and obliged to swim for their lives ; they luckily reached a tree , in which they were obliged to remain till daylight , when they were rescued . The Henwick gatekeeper states that three drunken farmers passed through his gate at midnight , and that one of their hats was found floating in the flood next morning . At Down Leigh-brook the water appears to have rushed with great violence and blown up the bridges in a similar manner . It is reported that there was a waterspout at Knightwick , and that a man and child , or a

      woman and child , have been swept away by it . The Leominster mail was obliged to go over Broad Heath to get on its route on Sunday . At Malvern the storm was awful , and a great deal of damage has been done by the flooding of the houses . When we consider the vast quantity of sheep that are at this time of year depastured all down the river , it is awful to think of the destruction there must have been . The general character of the lightning to those who were in doors appeared like' sheet-lightning , but to those who had the temerity to witness the ' phenomenon , it Was forked in every diversified form , always attended with awfnl peals of thunder . The horses of a coach between Worcester and Birmingham were alarmed by the lightning

      and ran away , coming in collision with a wagon , whereb y Hemming , the driver , was killed , and several passengers were injured . At Malvern Link a horse and gig were overturned , but the occupants were not seriously injured . The water is represented as having come down the Teme with " a head" similar in appearance to the " bore , " the tidal phenomenon observed on the lower part of the Severn at the spring and autumn equinoxes . At Bridges stone-mill , on the Leigh-brook , the bridge was blown up , and a cottage below it was swept away , the furniture strewn about the fields , and a poor woman , its occupant , drowned . Many of the hop-yards , with their crops , have been destroyed by the floods .

      There was not much rain at Gloucester city ; but the Severn , on Sunday , rose " half-bankftil" in an hour , and trees , crops , and furniture- wore floating in the current .

      Untitled Article

      THK SHOTTISHAM " MIRACLE . " Is Elizabeth Squirrell an impostor ? "That in the question , " as the French journalists used to say , when there were French journals . We continue the recital in order of time . Four documents aro before us : the first from Mrs . Squirrell , enclosing " a statement" by her daughter ; the third from lh \ Matcham ; the fourth from the " Watch Committee . " Mrs . Squirrell asks the editor of tho Ipswich l&rj > ress to insert her hitter , as she feels- it her duty , in justice to herself und the public , to contradict Home false ro ]> ortH published by the jouriiuln . Mrs . Squirrell continues" 1 . It in stilted that I have received from visitors to my Iiouho iii charity u « tim of money amounting to 800 / . I utterly deny the Ktutornont . 1 huvo not received in all ( during the nllliction of my duughter ) from Ihn public to the amount of 7 / . in charity or uh iv prouont . Let all the visitors combine together in one body , and prove it if they can . I « lo nol , Hay thin to reflect upon nny one , but airnply for truth's miko . I acknowledge thut there lire porHoiiH who luive been to Homo conHiderublo expense to bring the cuho olotir before the public , to whom 1 ehrtll over owe u

      debt of gratitude for their kindness , but this did not come into my pocket , nor did I desire it . TOme « 2 . It is Bteted that the ringing of the glass , or turnbier , is caused b y the sweep of the angel ' s wine . Surh an expression as that I never heard escape her lips " 3 . It is also said that the girl had an open p ' arasoL which she often screened herself under . She has a W * sol , which she did use for that purpose previous to the setting , of the watch , which she at once declined ushic , This the watchers can certify . Sr " 4 . It is also stated that a harmonicon was placed closeto the tumbler , which by some means caused it to ring but how is it that the tumbler did not cease to ring at ' a , time when the harmonicon was at Ipswich to be repaired ? Marvellous indeed would it be if there were that unity subsisting between the harmonicon and glass that the harmonicon should cause the glass to ring when at a distance of fourteen miles from it . "

      So far Mrs . Squirrell ; her daughter ' s statement ? contains sentences we cannot print ; but without using ; the plain language she employs , we shall be able to > convey her meaning . As a specimen of her remarks on her own case , take the following : — " Sir , with your kind permission , I will insert the following in your chronicle of passing events as a lover of j ustice and of those who , before setting the final seal to acase which admits of no compromise , adduce fair proofs to substantiate their evidence against it . In consequence of external privations I am not in possession of all the editorial details as given ui the several journals of the county but enough has been communicated to make me fuuy

      aware of the position in which I stand ; and if my case is marvellous , most marvellous and unsystematic has been its treatment , for had calm reflection and prudent discretion been used from the moment that suspicion was aroused , I should not now breathe in an atmosphere of calumny , but as the want of this has awakened a fearful excitement in the public mind , and given the case much unguarded publicity , it is our duty while defending ourselves to inscribe on the pillars of that defence satisfactory information . Before going further , I would say that I am not a mad-brain enthusiast , nor has the mystic pall of fanaticism ever covered my case ; on the contrary , nothing has been manifested but must tend to confirm the close

      existing union of the visible with the invisible world , for every chord of our life vibrates in eternity , and every seed is a germ of immortality . Notwithstanding the many conflicting reports of this tumult , not one fact obviously clear has been cited sufficient to brand me with imposture ,, for gross misrepresentations have enshrouded it in a kind of mystery , and wearing no tangible form , it is difficult for the public to conceive of the truth in its primitive form . " The essence of her statement consists in an explanation of the discovery of the napkins . She admits that ; they were found concealed under the side of her bed ,. " most undoubtedly placed there by me in moments of embarrassment , and unintentionally forgotten . " But at the same time she asserts that she has been exempt *

      from the ordinary operation of physical laws for twemfcyfour weeks . "It stings my heart to the very core , " she says , "to bo thus openly degraded—degraded to the full extent , swelling into a prodigious badge of dishonour that which has , unfortunately , remained unnoticed by me ; for none whoknow me would believe me so devoid of decency as to allow anything of the kind to remain under me if memory AawK not failed . But those who possess any feeling must bo awaro how often circumstances like these have

      unguardedly become incidental to a long and painful afthenon ; but woe to those who fall beneath the scrutiny of hearts * aa hard as the nether niillstoue , for if thoy ever rise it is by tho beautiful simplicity of truth , whoso genial rays never fail to disperse all mischief-boding rays . My conversation with tho nurses on the night of nay examination is , I find ,, adduced as an evidence that I can hear ; but aa I have a . distinct remembrance of all that passed between us , I am prepared for any attack on that head . It is therefore useless for them to fabricate any more falsehoods , as they have alreudy given evidence of swerving from truth . "

      We next extract a portion of Dr . Matcham ' s letter to the Express : — " I have been anxiously waiting for tho last week to witnenH tho ' report of tho committee' who havo inquired into the Shottisham case . Such report has not , hawtrCT . as yet , for very substantial reasons , made its appo » m ' Tho public are promised , on the faith of gontlemon , that it ahull appear ' next week . ' What the contents of tlmt ' report' may bo time will show . [ We hero omit somo observations of the writer which reflect on Messrs . Webl >

      and Wliitby . ] If I really thought tho public hud any confidence in tho statements of tho two nurBon , I would proceed to hIjow how utterly at vuriunco their UHBortionH Iiuvo boon to tho truth . I may mention thut I had u porHO " nul interview with them , and in tho prosonco of u wit '"** they positively declared that Elizabeth Squirroll said , wh <>»> tho discovery was made , ' that the devil must hav « p 11 "" them there . ' 1 mentioned this to Elizabeth Squirrel ! y <« - torday , and I shall never forget the virtuous mditfimtio ^ Hho displayed at this gro « H libel . Ah hIio intends roply 11 !^ to Hinno of tho most outrageous HtatementH herself , I wi not troHptiHB on your valuable space ; but I inuHt way , iii »" what 1 have heard , I cannot believe any fltutomuntu inu < l «"

      by the nurses . , " A Hontoneo copied from the Journal was yesterday communicated to Elizabeth Squirrell by Mr . lltir ?'"' f ' fanner , which , together with her reply , J enclose : — . editor or eorronjiondent of the Journal terinn yourw i " " ravings of a disoaood Hpirit . " She immediately burst Jin a loud laugh , und then exclaimed , 'it ih ruthor puru < Ji «¦ - cut ; I thought in the Hpirit there wa « no combina tion . < v matter . Their heartH are better thiui thoir boudH ; " »<\ y uro not uaocl to writing on such nubjocts . though * w

      Untitled Article

      866 THE LEADE R . •; , ¦ [ Saturday ,

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), Sept. 11, 1852, page 866, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1951/page/6/