10 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1800. 



words appear : " On this spot a 

 well was first made, and a house of 

 correction built, by Henry Wallis, 

 mayor of London, in 1282.*' 



11 til. This afternoon, as the 

 Chatham and Rochester coach came 

 out of the gateway of the inn-yard 

 of the Golden-Cross, Charing-Cross, 

 a young woman, sitting on the top, 

 threw her head back, to prevent 

 her from striking against the beam : 

 but, there being so much. luggage 

 on the roof of the coach as to hinder 

 her laying herself sufficiently back, 

 it caught her face, and tore the 

 flesh up her forehead in a dreadful 

 manner. She was conveyed to an 

 hospital, where she died on the 

 19th. A coroner's inquest was, on 

 the 22d, held at the Westminster- 

 Infirmary on the body of the above 

 young woman, who, it appears, was 

 only 19 years of age ; and brought 

 in their verdict, accidental death; 

 but, on account of apparent negli- 

 gence in the coachman, they fined 

 him five pounds. It appeared, 

 that the deceased had come to town 

 to visit a lying-in sister, and was 

 on her return to Chatham, when 

 the accident happened. 



12th. This morning, about two 

 o'clock, as the watchman was going 

 his rounds in Great Queen-street, 

 Lincoln's-inn Fields, he was alarm- 

 ed by a strong smell of burning oil 

 and pitch ; following the scent, he 

 came to the oil and colour shop, be- 

 longing to Mr. Bay nh am, the corner 

 of Drurv-lane and Great Queen- 

 street. The fire had not extended 

 beyond the shop ; but, soon after 

 he had sprung his rattle, and knock- 

 ed at the private door, the whole of 

 the lower premises were in flames. 

 It was not tUl after repeated knock- 

 ing, that he alarmed a gentleman 

 lodging in the first floor, who had 



no other alternative to preserve 

 his life than jumping out of the 

 window in his shirt; in this he suc- 

 ceeded, without any other accident 

 than a slight bruise. The rattles 

 of the watchmen, and the knocking 

 at the door, produced no eft'ect on 

 the sleepers ; the dread and horror, 

 which, in consequence, pervaded 

 the assembled multitude, can more 

 easily be felt than described ; for, 

 by this time, the fire had extended 

 from the shop to the second floor, 

 andthe flames werebursting through 

 the windows : for the effect, pro- 

 duced from the oil, pitch, and other 

 combustibles, so much exceeded the 

 conflagration of a common fire, as 

 to render all attempts to save any 

 one article useless. Lives only 

 were objects worthy of considera- 

 tion, and all hopes of saving them 

 were at one time given up. Sheets 

 of burning oil were thrown up to a 

 vast height, and, in falling, set 

 fire to every thing inflammable on 

 which they fell. The adjacent 

 chimnies were all on fire, but, 

 through the timely assistance of 

 buckets of water, no farther da- 

 mage was sustained. The engines 

 before this time had arrived, but 

 stUl a proper supply of water could 

 not be procured. Mr. Baynham 

 appearing, now relieved the minds 

 of the spectators from all farther ap- 

 prehension relative to the safety of 

 himself and family, they having had 

 just time to escape over the tops of 

 the houses unhurt. The conflagra- 

 tion became so great as to excite 

 an universal alarm throughout the 

 neighbourhood : most of the houses 

 being old, were as inflammable as 

 touchwood, and the inhabitants 

 knew not whether to bring out 

 their goods into the street, at the risk 

 of being plundered, or Jet them re- 



