A SHIPWRECK ON THE COAST OF AFRICA.—HORRIBLE RECITAL.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume VI, Issue 508, 15 June 1850, Page 4

A SHIPWRECK ON THE COAST OF AFRICA.— HORRIBLE RECITAL.

The Messager dv Midi, of the 30th October, relates the following account of the shipwreck of the brig La Lucie, of Agde, on the -coast of Africa. The narrator is one of the three men whe were the heroes of this lamentable story : — "On the 27th of June last the new polacca brig Lucie, of 215 tons burthen, and manned by a crew of eight persons, including the captain, M. Y. Lavialle, left the port of Algiers in ballast, with beautiful weather, bound for Corea and Gambia, where a cargo of arachides awaited it, destined for Marseilles. On the 13th, at ten o'clock, p.m., the weather was dreadful { the sea threatened to swallow up the vessel, and a tremendous leak was soon sprung. Several manoeuvres to -caulk the seams were tried in vain ; the two boats used in these operations were hurled against the side of the brig, and several of the crew narrowly escaped drowning. Exhausted by fatigue, they resolved to await the dawn. When daylight appeared, however, it only served to show the panic- struck mariners the fearful position in which they were placed. The Lucie was wrecked on the t:oast of the great desert of Sahara, which was the very antipodes of its course. The ~«ea still raged with the utmost fury. Various manttuvres were tried, but without success. It was necessary to renounce them, and to resort to other measures. Each man then made a parcel of his clothes ; a sail served for the preservation of a small ' quantity of provisions ; the mainmast was cut down, and on this frail piece of wood eight men, variously laden, reached the shore, not without having experienced the most cruel sufferings. Having landed, the mariners raised a tent with the sail, and reposed from their long fatigues until the* morning of the Isth of July, when they began their march along 'the coast, towards St. Louis of Senegal, more than 100 leagues distant from the site of their shipwreck. They were dejected and depressed in spirits, and tears filled their eyes. On the evening of the third day's march their scanty supply of water failed them, and it was then resolved (horrible to relate) that their common urine should be collected in a glass bottle, and this was for four days their only beverage. But the fifth day the bottle received nought but blood, and salt water supplied the place of urine. Eight days had already elapsed since these unhappy wretches had bid adieu to the Lucie. In this arid country, the soil of which was burning sand, no vestige of humanity had yet appeared to rekindle hope in their hearts. The captain, however, still uttered expressions of encouragement and consolation. On the morning of the ninth day Cape Blanco presented itself, and the travellers descried the Moors, who by signs gave them to understand that they were near a habitation where they would be favourably received. 'Courage,' cried our sailors, who directed their steps towards the spot. , They soon reached a wretched cabin, whence a Moor emerged, and, with loud vociferations, laid hands on the small quantity of provisions that still remained to them. The eight sailors allowed themselves to be robbed without resistance. Hope had given way to despair. They resumed their toilsome march, and soon afterwards were assailed by a band of Moors, who stripped them of everything. " This Arab band drew a circle around them, and conducted them as prisoners, amidst shouts and the most unintelligible bowlings to a neighbouring settlement. Having reached this spot in a dying state, the unfortunate prisoners were ordered to kneel. They did so, and the infant Moors, excited by their mothers, cast whole handfulls of sand into their eyes, which increased the existing irritation. A vehement discussion next arose, and a council of savages was convened to decide the fate of the captives. The women were more ferocious than the men, and insisted on the sentence of death, which was brutally pronounced by the council. Towards night it was decided, by drawing straws, to whom the victims shou'd be surrendered. Meanwhile, however, the tender sex retired ; and the male Moors, having scourged the naked mariners to the very verge of death, made signs to them to escape by flight. The prisoners offered up a momentary prayer to Almighty God, 'and then, staff in hand, resumed their journey without knowing whither to £o. After a toilsome journey during the whole night, our fugitives found themselves at sunrise, on the sea shore ; exhausted by hunger, fatigue, and sickness, the eight unfortunates fell upon the sand and went to sleep. On awaking, the captain, Lavialle, and three of the seamen/ detached themselves from their companions on a journey of exploration, to discover a less dangerous route. Alasi <he consequences of this courageous resolve were disastrous, for the four men never reappeared.. Two hours after their

departure the four remaining seamen saw that they were pursued by the Moors ; they concealtd themselves, but in vain. They were dragged from their lurking place, and again most dreadfully maltieated, the fair sex, as before, displaying by far the greatest ferocity. The only habiliments that remained on them, their shirts, were taken from them ; they were stripped stark naked, mercilessly bastinadoed, and abandoned to their fate. "At nightfall a fearful tempest made the aspect of affairs worse ; the fiery wind was suffocating, and one. of the sailors perished, whilst <his companions passed the night literally buried in sand. At daybreak the survivors resolved to return to the site of the wreck, in the hope of finding some nourishment on board the vessel. " After four days' march they found the articles of dress which they had scattered along the road on the day when they had abandoned the Lucie, and so reclothed their weary and bruised limbs. Another of the seamen died on the route, but on the fifth day the remainder reached the site of the shipwreck. The two surviving seamen went on board, but, alas ! the natives had anticipated them, and plundered the brig of every article. They had now struggled against famine and fatigue for ten days, and resolved to await death — that blessed benefactor of unfortunate man. Jn the interim, however, a white spot was descried in the distance ; it proved to be a vessel in full sail. A signal was hoisted by the two seamen, and at length, after much delay, the captain (fearing that it was a mere stratagem of the Moors to decoy him into their hands), sent a shallop ashore, and rescued the dying wretches. The vessel proved to be the Spanish ship Adam, commanded by Captain Francisco Devega, and employed in the fishing trade on the coast. The gallant Devega, having heard the recital of the rescued ones, made every effort for the space of a month to discover the men who had* been lost ashore, but in vain. On the fourth day the Adam cast anchor off the Canary Isles, and towards the middle of September the unfortunate Frenchmen were despatched to Cadiz in a Spanish Government steamer, whence they took passages to Marseilles. They arrived at the latter port on the 12th of October, and embraced their families with tears of thankfulness and joy. It is hoped that the French Government will make a fitting acknowledgement to the gallant Captain Devega for his noble conduct."