Untitled

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 16, Issue 875, 24 November 1870, Page 2

A late telegram via Suez states that an oil f-pring 19 said to have been discovered near London. The Governor has cancelled the commission held by Lieut. Adam Jackson, No. 1 Company, Thames Rifle Rangers Volunteers, for absence from parade, under the provisions of clause 21, Volunteer Regulations. A notice in the New Zealand Gazette states that the sum of money available fqr distribution in Otago out of the £50,000 grant to road boards, under the Payment to Provinces Act, is £14,000,,, and notice is given that the Governor in Council has approved of its being distributed amongst the road boards of the Province in the same proportion as any sum appropriated by Provincial Ordinance shall be divided amongst the same boards. A correspondent of the Landp.n Times xnen* tions that the wild boars and wolves whp have taken refuge \n the Ardennes are said to. have been driven thore from the forests near the German and French border by disgust at the amount of musketry and artillery firing that hus been lately going on at YV'oerth, Saarand oth,sr places in she vanity.

fcOSS OF HER MAJESTY'S SHIP CAPTAIN AND FIVE HUNDEEp LIVES. We extract the following from our London fries, under date, Sept. 17:—« Full details have now been received of this great misfortune. It occurred about 12.15 a.ra. on the 7th Sept., the ship at that time being under double reefed fore and main topsails on the port tack, close hauled, with the wind about N.W., and very squally, with rain and heavy sea. About midnight the ship was felt making a very heavy roil to starboard, and before she had time to recover, a heavy sea struck her and threw her on her beam ends. She then turned bottom upwards, and eventually sunk, going down stern first. From the time she fell on her beam ends to the time of sinking, was about ten minutes. Captain Bargoyne and a few of the crew swam to the steam pinnace, which was floating bottom up shortly afterwards; the second launch passed close to the pinnace, and Mr May, the gunner, and two men succeeded in getting on board, but Captain Burgoyne failed iu the attempt. After various unsuccessful attempts to 3ave him and others, they were so nearly sv/amped that they found themselves forced to bear up, or the launch must have gone from under them. At this time there were about nineteen persons in the launch, but one man was washed out of the boat by her shipping a heavy sea, which tilled - her. There was no sail in the boat, and only nine oars. Mr May knew that the land was dead to leeward of the sHp, and at daybreak they sighted Cape Finisterre. At last the weather moderated, and they were able to land at Finisterre about noon on the 7th.

The following account is from others of the survivors, who say : While the middle watch was being numbered at midnight on the 6th Sept., the captain called the gunner's mate and told him to take a careful hand with him and cover up the turrets. While endeavoring to lift a grating so as to perform this order, the ship was thrown on her beam ends by a squall. The gunner's mate, who was to leeward at the time, held ou to the grating. While holding" on, the first and second launch and galley (which were both stowed inside the first launch) were washed over him, the bottom of the first launch bruising bis back. He says that he went over with the ship ; as soon as he came to the surface he saw the launches about fifteen yards off, and in about a dozen strokes he got on board, where he found two men who had jumped into the boats while the ship was going down. With their united assistance they succeeded in hauling in twelve other men. They then separated the launches—that is to say, the first launch got full of water and sank from under the second launch, in which latter the men were. On getting out a steer-oar they succeeded in passing close to the steam pinnace, which was floating bottom up, with Captain Burgoyne, James May (gunner), and five men. on it. While passing, the gunner jumped into the launch, at the same time asking the Captain to jump, as it was his only chance. He believes the captain jumped but missed the boat. Three other men also jumped, and succeeded in getting aboard, making a total of nineteen souls in the second iaunch When alongside the pinnace, one of the men offered the captain an oar, but he declined, saying, '* For God's sake, men, keep your oars, you will want thepi." They were then swept away, and lost sight of the pinnace. They endeavored to return to the pinnace, and threw overboard the galley (which was stowed inside the second launch), so as to save the captaiu and two other men who were left on it, but could not in consequence of a very heavy sea which prevented them from, making any headway. While attempting this, George Meyers, who was in the launch, said, " I think we are ajl right now." The words were scarcely uttered when a heavy sea struck the boat and washed him overboard, so after a short .consultation they bore away for the land, which' they knew was under their lee, at the same time, lightening the boat by throwing overboard the stay tackles, masts, &c, retaining only the oars. The boat all this time was up to the thwarts ia water. Luckily, one of the boat's crew (Da'vid Dry burgh) happened to be in the boat, and accordingly where to find everything, so that they were able to rig the pump, and with others baling with their caps, succeeded in baling her out. At 3.3 Q a.m. they sa.W

Corcubion Bay, inside Cape Finisterre, at noon on the 7th, having been twelve hours in the boat, aud were taken on board the Monarch at two p.m. of the 9th, sailing for England the same even* ing in H.ftl.S. Volage. Shortly before the ship went over the captain was on the bridge endeavoring, with the watch, to round in the topsail yards, but he could not. He then gave the order to let go the lee topsail sheets (the halliards having been previously let go). Before this order could be obeyed the ship was over on her beam ends, with the water pouring down her funnel, which was not sufficient to drown the shrieks of the stokers. She then turned bottom up, and sank, stern first, in less than five minutes. The report when she sank is described as resembling a tremendous explosion. Not a soul could get up from below a 3 the whole thiug occurred in an instant. AH the men saved belonged to the watch on deck. Shortly after she sank, a ship, supposed to be the Inconstant or the Beljerophon, passed close over the place, but they did not see the boat, or even miss the ship until Admiral Milne, about two hours after the accident, signalled to the fleet to count the ships ; they accordingly did so, and signalled back ten, and there ought to have been eleven. The next day the fleet found two boat's yards, spars, aud gratings secured to a boat's bowsprit; they found a silk handkerchief used by one of the survivors to fasten himself to the spar, but who, on seeing the launch, freed himself and swam / to the boat. The gunner's escape was mo&t miraculous ; he was awoke by some marines making a noise outside his cabin, and noticing that the ship was knocking about, he dressed, and went on deck to examine the guns and see if they were properly secured. On going up into the after turret the ship went over, and he jumped out of the turret into the water, swam to the pinnace, and was rescued by the launch. A mizen-top man, as the ship capsized, got on to the weather netting and actually walked along" the ship's side as she went over, and finally along her bottom as she turned bottom up. He distinctly remembers placing his foot on a Kingston valve. At the time the ship capsized, she was under double-reefed fore and main topsails and fore-top-mast skysail close hauled, the yards being braced very sharp up, The general opinion is that the ship was too heavily sparred." All the survivors agree that they felt full confidence as to the ship's sea-going qualities, aud no apprehensions were entertained. The Captain was built with a very large forecastle, and a similar compartment aft, and this Mr Reed has always condemned as depriving turret ships of their primary and supreme advantage— of providing an all rouud lire, and more especially a head fire, These two compartments are joined by a hurricane deck running over the turrets, leaving a pefectly open space only occupied by the turrets and funnel casing. It was also his opinion that she was too heavily masted. Captain QowperP. Coles, Q. 8., the designer of the ill fated ship, perished on board her,

A meeting of naval officers has been held at the Royal £Javal College, Portsmouth, for the purpose of formiug a fund for the relief of the widows, orphans, and relatives of the officers, seamen, marines, stokers, &c, lost ou the occasion detailed above.