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THE DYNAMITE OUTRAGE IN LONDON

THE SCOTLAND-YARD EXPLOSION

    The explosions in St. James's-square, combined with that at Scotland-yard, on Friday night, May 30, threw the West-End into a state of excitement such as probably has not been witnessed for many a year.
    LIKE THE REPORT OF A CANNON
sounded the last explosion, which threw Scotland-yard into consternation. It took place shortly after half-past nine o'clock. Inspector Grainger was on duty inside the police station itself, and Inspector Robson of the Criminal Investigation Department, was in charge of the detective offices. Two police officers were stationed outside the police station, and two reserve men were with Inspector Robson in the detective office. Another policeman was on duty just outside the urinal on the north-east side of the building standing in the centre of the yard, the greater part of which is used as offices by the Criminal Investigation Department. This had been looked upon as a likely place to be fired upon if the Fenians should decide on attacking the chief police office, and special care was taken in watching it. It is certain that it was here the explosion originated, for the whole front of this portion of the building up to the second floor was found by Inspector Grainger and his men, when alarmed by the noise and the screams of people who had been hurt as they ran round to the scene of the catastrophe, to have been blown out.
    THE CONSTABLE ON DUTY
near the spot was found to be severely injured, and had to be removed in a cab to Westminster Hospital. Just fronting this corner of the building stands a public-house with a wide frontage, known as
    THE RISING SUN
The whole of the frontage of that house was also wrecked. Two carriages had been standing waiting at this house. One of them had been completely destroyed, and the driver, who was standing by it, seriously injured. He was taken to the Charing-cross Hospital. The driver of the other vehicle, which also had a wheel wrenched off it, and fell side-ways on to the pavement, was, it was understood, seated on his box at the time, and blown right off it. He was also severely injured, and taken to Charing-cross Hospital, but his wounds, although serious, were not so bad as those of his fellow-coachman, he having apparently been less in the direction which the flying masonry took.
    THE COACHMEN'S INJURIES
were thus described at the hospital:- Arthur Preddy, coachman of Arlington-road, Brixton, severe scalp-wound and concussion; W. Mingay, coachman, 3, St. James's-street, Notting-hill-gate, bad scalp wounds, fracture of the bones of the fore arm adn ribs badly crushed" Other persons attended to and sent home were W. Jones, 23, Peter-street, Westminster; Geo. Weatherbog, 41, Spring-gardens; and Hy. Groves, of Little Scotland-yard.
    SCOTLAND-YARD OFFICIALS
    Naturally all the principal officers connected with Scotland-yard were quickly on the scene, together with a strong force of police from the A and E divisions to keep back the excited crowds that tried to get through, either from Whitehall or from the Thames Embankment entrance. Mr. Howard Vincent (retiring Chief of the Criminal Investigation Department), Mr. Cutbush, Chief Superintendent Williamson, Superintendent Dunlap, and many other well-known chiefs of the police force were seen anxiously walking about from office to office and conferring as to the outrage. The excitement was increased by the arrival of the news of the other explosion; and this, again, was greatly intensified by the arrival of sixteen packets of dynamite that had been found about 10.30 placed with a connecting fuse under
    THE NELSON MONUMENT
in Trafalgar-square. The dynamite was placed in a corner of the yard and carefully guarded by a number of constables. No information could be gathered to by whom it had been found; but it was understood that a constable of the A division had his notice drawn to something burning, which, on examining closer, he found to be a fuse. A very few more minutes, and it is probable that the crowds of people who were flocking towards Whitehall would have been startled and many of them killed by the fall of the column, there being little doubt that the quantity of explosive material was sufficient to destroy the base of the monument.
    THE SHOCK AT THE RISING SUN
    The Rising Sun Public-House is in the occupation of Mr. Duncan, has a frontage of some fifty feet and was fitted with large squares of plate glass. Every window in this structure was shattered to atoms by the concussion. In the bar, which occupies the whole of the front portion of the ground-floor, pots, glasses, jugs, plates, and bottles were hurled from their shelves to the floor; the mirrors lining the inner walls were cracked and broken up; the partitions of wood and glass in the outer bar were twisted and curled into most fantastic shapes; the gaseliers and brackets were snapped asunder, and their ornaments destroyed; such liquids as stood in open vessels were dashed on to the floor; the beer-engine was shifted from its position.
    MR. DUNCAN, THE PROPRIETOR
has been indisposed for some weeks, and at the time of the explosion he was in one of the front bedrooms with his wife. Mrs. Duncan was sitting near the window conversing with the invalid, when suddenly she was startled by a loud report, such as might have been caused by the discharge of a heavy piece of ordnance in the near vicinity. A second or two afterwards a still more terrific detonation took place, the glass through which Mrs. Duncan had been looking was shivered into fragments, the gas was extinguished, and the occupants of the apartment found themselves almost smothered in the debris caused by the fallign plaster and woodwork. Fortunately neither Mr. nor Mrs. Duncan sustained any injury beyond a few slight scratches, though the lady's nerves were naturally unstrung. In another bed-room two barmen were dressing. The scene here was very similar to that witnessed by the proprietor of the house, and here also no serious bodily injury resulted. Down stairs in the bar there were from fifteen to twenty persons.
    MISS COLLINS, THE BARMAID,
was at the end nearest to the spot where the explosion was most seriously felt talking to two gentlemen who were standing in the reserved compartment. She was stunned by the report, and was cut about the neck by the flying glass and splinters, but escaped without worse injuries. Her interlocutors fared worse - one of them was hurt badly enough to justify his removal to the hospital and the other was also severely cut and bruised. At the other extremity of the bar Master E. Duncan, the son of the landlord, was leaning on the counter talking to a fireman from the adjoining station, and in the public portion of the bar there were a number of the regular customers of the house.
    THE EXPLOSION AT THE JUNIOR CARLTON CLUB.
    The dynamitards made their attempt on the Junior Carlton Club at the rear of the building in St. James's-square. There was much activity going on in the club (the entrance to which is in Pall-mall) at the time, many of the members being at dinner; and the shock was such as to force the members from their seats and to capsize the tables and their contents in various directions. It is clear, beyond doubt, that dynamite was employed, and the explosive material must have been thrown down the area. The direction taken by the explosive force was through the kitchen in the basement, where the principal damage was occasioned. Many male and female servants were there at their ordinary work; and, although most of them escaped, several cases of personal injury occurred. A gentleman dining at the Army and Naval Club was startled by what appeared to him to be two pistol-shots, but, broken glass being forced into the room where he was sitting, soon convinced him otherwise.
    The square was soon in commotion; the horses attached to the cabs standing in the square became restive, and several ran away, and the scene behind Pall-mall was of an alarming character. Superintendent Palmer, attached to the district depot of the Metropolitan Fire Brigade, distinctly heart the reports of the explosion in his office, Victora-street, and he was soon in readiness with an engine to start on the "call" reaching him. On his arrival at the Club the first excitement attending the explosion was over. There had been no fire, and the engines were not brought into action. Superintendent Palmer, however, made a minute survey of the place, which he pronounced safe as far as fire was concerned; and subsequently the officer named accompanied
    THE DUKE OF EDINBURGH
who appeared to take great interest in the occurrence, over the building. There were no arrests made on the Friday night; but it is said that "a cabman saw a man, just before the first report was heard, apparently lighting a pipe in front of the club and then run away." It is remarkable that at the cabmen's shelter opposite the scene of the explosion not a window was broken; and the keeper of the shelter asserts that a cab was driven rapidly past the shelter at the time but he could not stop the driver. The kitchen displayed a great amount of wreckage; a portion of the pavement and an iron grating in front of the club were blown up; the glass was shattered in the upper part of the building, and on all sides of the square the windows evinced proof of the force of the explosion. The
    OFFICIAL REPORT OF THE DAMAGE
set forth - back windows of the Junior Carlton Club blown in by explosion; doors and wine cellar in basement severely damaged; iron stairs to ditto destroyed; and severe damage to other parts of the place." Superintendent Dunlap was present with a large body of police, under whose protection the precise local of the explosion will remain untouched pending the official inspection of Colonel [missing, ed.]
    THE NAMES OF THOSE INJURED
were:- Emily Vargus, incised wound in shoulder; Emily Horsefield, contused arm; Eliza Wood, contusion of legs; Emma Mason, incised wound on shoulder; and Caroline Hosier, lacerated wound in face.
                                        *   *   *   *   *
    As usual, when outrages of this foul description and discoveries of dynamite have taken place, many false rumours were afloat of explosions at public buildings other than those mentioned. It was stated that the Wellington Barracks, St. James's Park, had been blown up, but there was no foundation for the rumour. It was also rumoured that an explosion had taken place at Paddington, but on investigation this also proved to be untrue.

Penny Illustrated Paper, June 7, 1884