MAY.
2.—An appalling loss of life was occasioned at Yarmouth by the fall of the Suspension Bridge, which had been the subject of so much litigation between Mr. Cory and the Yarmouth and Norwich Railway Company. A clown named Nelson, belonging to Cooke’s Equestrian Circus, had announced that he would perform the feat of sailing in a tub drawn by four geese from the old Draw Bridge to the Suspension Bridge. Thousands of persons assembled to witness the spectacle, and upon the bridge itself there were between 400 and 500. The bridge, which was the chief means of transit from the railway terminus to the town, and had been widened to admit of increased traffic by a footpath constructed on either side, was suspended from two piers. Just as the clown was entering the Bure, at ten minutes to six o’clock, there was a rush to the south side of the bridge, the suspension rods snapped, the chains gave way, and “the bridge fell on that side like the leaf of a table let down,” pouring the crowd upon it into the water. A terrible scene ensued. As many as possible were rescued and conveyed to the Vauxhall Gardens, but notwithstanding the efforts made by watermen in boats and upon the river banks, there was fearful loss of life. An inquest was opened at the Church Hall on the 3rd, when Mr. Cooke, the proprietor of the circus, intimated that he would at once withdraw his company from the town. The inquiry was adjourned from time to time, and at the last sitting Mr. James Walker, C.E., who had been sent down to examine into the cause of the disaster, reported: (1) the immediate cause of the accident was a defect in the welding of the bar which first gave way; (2) that the quality of the iron and the workmanship were defective, and the accident would not have happened had the work been properly examined at the time of construction; (3) the widening of the bridge appeared to have been made without sufficient
reference to its original strength and the weight which it had to support; and (4) that in the original construction of the bridge the casualty of a great load all on one side did not appear to have been contemplated. The jury returned a verdict in accordance with Mr. Walker’s conclusions. The number of dead bodies recovered was 77; some, however, were supposed to have been carried away by the current. Nearly all the sufferers were children or very young persons, but it was related as “a very extraordinary circumstance” that “Mr. Thomas Bowles, aged 84, who was on board the Royal George when she sank, and who is probably the only living survivor, should have been on the Suspension Bridge during the late accident. He was precipitated into the water, but was once more miraculously saved.”
3.—The Norfolk Yeomanry Cavalry assembled at East Dereham in stronger force than on any previous occasion, for eight days’ permanent duty.
—The last troop of the 4th Dragoons marched from Norwich Barracks, and were, on the same day, replaced by the 7th Hussars.
5.—Died at West Somerton, aged 74, “Mr. William Hales, father of nine children, whose united heights amount to 57 ft. 6 in., including the Norfolk giant and giantess.”
7.—The experiment was made at Norwich Theatre of still further reducing the prices of admission to 2s. 6d. for dress boxes, and to 1s. 6d. for the upper circle.
8.—Mr. Walter Morgan, aged 23, of the firm of Messrs. Morgan, of the King Street Brewery, Norwich, met with his death by falling into a vat of beer.
10.*—“A handbill has been published in Norwich showing that out of 1,664 persons who have had small-pox, 1,536 had not been vaccinated, and only 128 were vaccinated. Out of 506 who had escaped the disease altogether, only 84 had not been vaccinated, and 422 vaccinated. Of 141 who had died from small-pox, only four had been vaccinated, one a man 93 years old; the other three were suffering from teething or were otherwise ill when vaccinated.”
24.*—“The Hanworth Hall estate, comprising a mansion, cottages, and 1,465 acres of land, has been disposed of by private contract to Mr. William Howe Windham, of Felbrigg Park, for £65,000.”