The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1868-03-28 00:00:00

SHOCKING SUFFERINGS OF A SHIP-

-WRECKED CREW.

A communication from Saint Denis, ltChnion, dated the
ISlh of February, in the Paris Cost ot loons( has the follow-
ing :
A shipwreck which has lately taken place on these
shores revives the recollection of the drama of the
Ali•duse raft. The Saint Paul, Captain Heurtin, left
Calcutta for Marseilles the 20th of November last,
and was lost on the reefs of the Isle of Saint Brandon.
Having no means of saving the ship the crew took to
the long-boat and cutter, to endeavour to gain the
nearest land. The latter, containing four men, soon
disappeared, whilst the former continued its voyage
towards Madagascar. Nine days after abandoning
the vessel the men had no more provisions, and suf-
fered cruelly from hunger and thirst. The captain
succumbed to fatigue and privation. The mate proposed
that they should all drown themselves together; that
suggestion was rejected, and the decision was come to
to draw lots as to which of them should be killed and
serve as food to the others. The victim was designated
and underwent his fate with resignation. Three days
after this horrible sacrifice, on the 6th of January, the
boat touched at. Mohambo, Madagascar, and there these
poor people, more dead than alive, were kindly re-
ceived by the inhabitants, who, after furnishing
food and clothing, sent them to Tainatave, to the
French consul. They arrived there on the 3rd
February, in a deplorable state, and were at ones
placed in the military hospital. An inquiry has been
opened on this unhappy affair.

THE DUKE OF EDINBURGH IN
NEW SOUTH WALES.
The correspondent of The Tinto at Sydney gives an
account of the reception of the Ibike of Edinburgh m
New South Wales. A steam fleet of twenty-four
splendid vessels went out in two lines, on the morning
of the 21st of January, to meet the Galatea. They
found her standing in about five miles from the Heads,
and awaiting the "welcome" which each one signalled
as it passed. The heads of the two lines, when they
had gone far enough to allow the last vessels to pay
their respects, wheeled round in opposite directions 1
and returned to the side of the Galatea, which then
steamed on through the harbour to her anchorage off
Lady Macquarie'is Chair, with this brilliant and
orderly following. Although the ram descended in
torrents all the morning, the headlamin and coigns of
vantage were thronged with people. The harbour was
alive with shipping, and boats, and people ; and
although the rain fell heavily again at night, the har-
bour illumination was not quenched, and coloured
fires, electric lights, curious serpentine devices, and
fireworksof all sorts were exhibited. The public landing
of the Duke occurred on Wednesday, the 22nd, at the
Circular quay, under a very imposing triumphal arch,
and a not very propitious sky. He was met by the
authorities, the reception committee, the governor and
his ministry, the mayor and his loyal address, and
having passed through these several passages in the
day's proceedings, he took his seat in the carriage,
and was the observed of all observers through the
streets of the city. This royal progress lasted about
an hour and a half, and was not checked by any
address till on turning into the gates of Government
house some thousand of Sunday-school children, who
got drenched to the skin in getting there, requested
the favour of being allowed to attest the sweetness of
their voices by singing a verse of the National An-
them, and their special welcome to the Prince by giving
a hearty shout for him. No day could have been more
unfortunate. Heavy storms of rain came down at
short intervals. Equally unfortunate was the weather
for the city illuminations at night ; but the city was
nevertheless lit up from centre to suburb, and the en-
tire population turned out to witness the scene. Then
there occurred the presentation of addresses on Thurs-
day (i3rd), and the levee, which was thickly attended.
On Friday a review in the Doniain, anel on Satur-
day a dramatic performance in the University Hall by
the gewnamen. Sydney had then, under the direction of
Dr. Bedham, tha honour of playing the first Latin
play ever produced, it is said, south of the 'Line.
The plays, in Latin and French, were the " Phormio,"
of To ence, and Moliiire's mirthful comedy of
" Monsieur de Pourceaugnac." Ihe performance was I
exceedingly. spirited and exact. Out Saturday the
Prince attended the races. Mondav, the 27th, was the
eighteenth anniversary of thefointjation of the colony,
and a public holiday. The great event was
a regatta for heavy stakes on the waters of Port
Jackson. On Tuesday it was arranged that the
children of the Church of England Sunday-schools
were to present Prince Alfred with a Bible and
Prayer-book in St. Andrew's Cathedral. But the
clergy ordered it otherwise; they and their friends
took possession of the building, to avoid the rain, and
admitted a small deputation from the little ones, who
were left to shift in the wet outside, to present their

gift. On Wednesday, January 29, the Duke opened
the Horticultural Fete. This was the last incident in
the programme prior to the departure of the mail.

Her Most Gracious Majesty, we do not hesitate to
may it, never did a more wise or more popular thing
than when she placed her brave son on the quarter-
deck of one of her vessels, or issued a more judicious
or acceptable mandate than when she sent him across
the water to visit her loyal subjects in Australia
(remarks the Swine., Morning Herald). That his
royal highness should have thus been welcome to the
younger colonies in this part of the world, as the
embodiment of traditional ideas to which we all
tenaciously adhere, was, in truth, a matter of course ;
that they should have ated his royal highness with a
will, and even have occasionally bored him by the
somewhat intrusive liveliness of their courtesies, was no
more than might have been anticipated; but that his ar-
rival here should have been long and eagerly expected,
and all due preparatims have been made to do him
honour, wassomething that could not failof becoming an
accomplished fact, in this, the mother colony of all the
Australias, in which society has, of necessity, been
longer constituted than in the rest, a depth of loyal
devotion has naturally existed, ready to flow upwards
on any such occasion.. In the vast and unrivalled
harbour of this city (the only real entrepdt of the
Western Pacific), in our magnificent steam fleet,, and
in the unquestioned possession of arsenals and oock-
yants, such as can only be effectually established by
the presence of peculiar local advantages, the chief
port of New South Wales seems particularly adapted
to be the chief welcomer of the Queen's sailor son,
the captain of the Galatea ; and it must be a matter
of pride to old colonists, and to all who are heartily
identified with the interests of New South Wales, that
! we on 21st January brought in our visitor from the
Pacific with a retinue that was both appropriate and
worthy of the event. We think we have shown the
Prince, in a perfectly unexceptional manner, that he
is indeed right welcome amongst us.