12 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1814. 



all directions, and in greatly in- 

 creased numbers. The ice, how- 

 ever, from its roughness and ine- 

 qualities, is totally unfit for amuse- 

 ment, though we observed several 

 booths erected upon it for the sale 

 of small wares ; but the publicans 

 and spirit dealers were most in the 

 receipt of custom. The whole of 

 the river opposite Queenhithe was 

 completely frozen over ; and in 

 some parts the ice was several 

 feet thick, while in others it was 

 dangerous to venture upon ; not- 

 withstanding which, crowds of 

 foot-passengers crossed backwards 

 and forwards throughout the whole 

 of the day. We did not hear of 

 any lives being lost ; but many 

 who ventured too far towards 

 Blackfriars bridge were partially 

 immersed in the water by the ice 

 giving way. Two coopers were 

 with difficulty saved. 



5. The ice in the river Tyne, 

 which had been so long frozen 

 over both above and below New- 

 castle-bridge, gave way to the 

 genial thaw, which commenced 

 on the 4th, and no damage was 

 sustained by the shipping in the 

 river, notwithstanding the im- 

 mense thickness of the ice. It 

 will be a memorable circumstance 

 in the local history of the country, 

 that so large and rapid a river 

 should have been frozen to the 

 thickness of twenty inches ; and 

 the Antiquarian Society of New- 

 castle have recorded the event on 

 vellum, as a document to be re- 

 ferred to. 



7. State of the river Thames. 

 — ^The ice between Blackfriars and 

 London bridges gave way yester- 

 day, in consequence of the high 

 tides. On Saturday thousands of 

 people walked on the ice from one 



bridge to the other, notwithstand- 

 ing there were evident signs of its 

 speedily breaking up; and even 

 early yesterday morning some fool- 

 hardy persons passed over from 

 Bank-side to Queenhithe. About 

 an hour after this, the whole mass 

 gave way, and swept with a tre- 

 mendous range through the noble 

 arches of Blackfriars-bridge, car- 

 rying along with it all within its 

 course, including about forty 

 barges. The new erections for 

 the Strand-bridge impeded its pro- 

 gress, and a vast quantity of the 

 ice was there collected, but the 

 strong current on the Somerset- 

 house side carried every thing be- 

 fore it, and the passage of the 

 river became at last free. Num- 

 bers of boats were then busily em- 

 ployed, saving rafts of timber, and 

 towing the drifted barges to the 

 shore. We have heard, that some 

 persons who had the foil}' to re- 

 main on the ice to a very late 

 hour on Saturday night, either lost 

 their lives, or were in great jeo- 

 pardy. They had remained ca- 

 rousing in the tents till midnight, 

 and were suddenly alarmed by the 

 parting of the apparently solid 

 mass on which they stood. Being 

 unable to reach the shore, they 

 contrived to get into two barges 

 which had been stationary, but 

 which were now borne upward by 

 the tide, and which of course 

 were quite unmanageable. One of 

 these barges safely cleared Black- 

 friars-bridge, the other struck 

 against a pier, where it remained 

 fast ; luckily, however, there were 

 some spectators of the dismal si- 

 tuation of the persons on board, 

 and having procured ropes, con- 

 trived to haul them up in safety. 

 A melancholy accident hap- 



