THE DALE DIKE DISASTER.

As a matter of history, it is desirable that reference should be made to the
great disaster at Dale Dike, Bradfield, in 1864, practically the opening period
of this story. It occurred shortly after midnight on March 11th, much too late
to permit of any reference to it in the newspapers of the next day. What is said
here of the Telegraph's effort to supply the demand for news was quite certain
to be equally true of its contemporary. Mr. Leng wrote on the Monday morning
"our publishing office was literally besieged throughout Saturday and we
scarcely stopped our machines, the demand for news was insatiable. We were
always bringing out new editions, and our steam machinery was kept going till
close on midnight; even then we were utterly unable to overtake the demand. The
first alarm reached us about half past twelve on Saturday morning, when it was
found by our reporters that the river Don was in an extraordinary state of
flood, and it was obvious that some dreadful calamity had occurred." Twelve
columns of news of the flood were given in Monday's issue of the papers, with
twenty-five columns on the Tuesday, and on the latter day, Mr. Leng wrote: "the
dam was a mistake, or if it was not we should like to know what it was."  From
then onward, leading articles, strongly accusing the Water Company's bad work,
appeared almost daily until, on June 15th, there appeared the following, by Mr.
Leng, at a time when the Water Company's bill appeared before Parliament with
its twenty-five per cent. clauses. "The Company made a great dam at Dale Dike,
and how it made it we will not say. It is sufficient that the engineer thought
it would stand to the crack of doom, whereas it burst before it was out of his
hands.   Suffice it to say that the Government inspectors have found no less
than fourteen prominent defects. The Directors of the Company affect to wonder
why it gave way; the Government appear to wonder how it stood as long as it did.
 All that Sheffield knows is that this dam, condemned as defective in form, in
material, in mode of construction, and in location, was still incomplete, and
while the rails and trucks were still upon it the Directors, like boys pleased
with a new toy, resolved to fill it and so put the utmost pressure at the worst
possible time on their critically placed, defectively built green and unsettled
dam.  The Board might well say with Metternich, "after me the deluge." On April
29th, it was stated that subscriptions throughout the country amounted to
£52,751, that there had been 250 deaths; that 798 houses had been destroyed, and
4,357 flooded.  In March, 1865, at the last meeting of the Inundation
Commissioners, £455,164 was reported to have been claimed, and £276,821 awarded
by the Commissioners.