The Express.
London, England, 1852-04-07 00:00:00

CAPE OF GOOD HOPE.

LOSS OF THE BIRKENHEAD TROOP
SHIP-ABOUT 450 PERSONS MISSING.

A portion of the following appeared in ear columns
yesterday:
The General Screw Steam Shipping Companrs
vessel, the Propontis, Capt. Glover, arrived at Ply-
mouth on Tuesday morning, at 3 o'clock, having had
a splendid run of little more than 31 days from the
Cape of Good Hope.
The Propontis on her outward voyage left Ply-
mouth Jan. 16; arrived St. Vincent, Jan. 27 ; sailed,
Jan. 28; arrived Sierra Leone, Feb. 2; sailed, 3rd;
arrived Cape, February 25 ; sailed March 3;
arrived Sierra Leone, March 19 ; sailed the
same day ; arrived Saint Vincent, March 24;
sailed March 26 ; arrived at Plymouth, the &h.
In Simon's Bay, March 3: her Majesty's ships
Castor, Amazon, Rhadamanthus, Seringapatam.
March 19, Sierra Leone : her Majesty's ships
Scalark, Wasp, and Myrmidon. Her Majesty's ship
Hydra arrived at Sierra Leone, with General Cath-
cart, Feb. 23, and sailed March 2. The Cape mail
steam vessel Harbinger arrived March 2, and sailed
the same day. The Portuguese packet Infanta de
Suez arrived Feb. 11, and sailed 24th. March 26,
in I'orto Grande; Dantzic barque, Emma Rays; St.
Vincent, Swedish brig; Active, American whaler;'
President, English schooner Mentor, and a Greek
brig. March 26, 95 miles N.N.E. of Point Antonio,
spoke the Belle of ‘Vhitchaven.
The l'ropontis brings a full general cargo and a
heavy mail, the latter in charge of Commander von
Donnop, R.N. She also brings the following pea-
'tenger, from the Cape of Good Hope: Messrs. Man-
deville, Iliddingle, Howell, Simpson, and Freshfield,
It.N. (late clerk of the Birkenhead); Mr. Davies,
wife, and child, from Sierra Leone; Capt. Crozier,
R.N., Capt. Dyer, Mr. Sanders, R.N., I. Borelli,
and Assuitant Commissary General Le Mesurier,
from Sierra Leone.

The Propontis brings the distressing intelligence of
the loss of the Birkenhead troop-ship, on the 20th
February, near Simon's Bay ; 446 persons are
missing.
The following report, which has been addressed
to the Commandant of Cape Tuwn by Capt. Wright,
of the 91st Regiment, one of the survivors on the
late mournful occasion, appears in a supplement to
the Care Torn Mod of the 3rd March, and fur-
nishes the details of this harrowing occurrence :

Simon's Bay, Match 1, 1862.
Sir,—lt is with feeling, of the deepest regret that I have
to announce to you the loss of her Majesty's 'teaser Birk-
enhead, which took place on a reek about 2i or 3 miles off
Point Danger, at 2 a.m., 28th February.
The Sea was smooth at the time, and the vessel was
steaming at the rate of 81 knots en hour. She struck the
rock, and it penetrated through her bottom, just aft '
of the foremast. The rush of water was so great
that there is no doubt that most of the mu in
the lower troop deck were drowned in their hammocks.
The rest of the men and all the officers appeared
on Beek, when Major Seaton called all the officers
about him, and impressed upon them the necessity of pre-
serving order and silence amongst the meu. He directed
me to take, and have executed, whatever orders the wee-
mender might give me. Sixty men were immediately put
on to the chain pumps, on the lower after deck, and said of
in three reliefs; sixty men were put on to tbe WAIN of
the paddle-box boats ; and the remainder of the Ms were
brought on to the poop, so as to case the fore pert of the
ship. She was at this time rolling heavily. The summea-
der ordered the horses to be pitched out of the port pm-
way, and the cutter to be got ready for the WONG
and children, who had all been collected under the
poop awning. As soon as the hones were pet over
the side, the women and children were pissed into
the cutter, and under the charge of Mr. Richards, mas-
ter's assistant, the boat then stood off about a hundred
and fifty yards. Just after they were out of the ship
the entire how broke off at the foremast, the bow-
sprit going up in the air towards the foretomnast, and the
funnel want over the side, carrying away the starboard
paddle-box and boat. The other paddle-box boat capsized
when being lowered. The large boat in the centre of the
shifmeld net he got at.
It wee about twelve or fifteen minutes after she struck
that the bow broke off. The men then all went up on the 1
the peep, end in about five minutes more the Tweed broke
la M. womanise, just abaft the engine-room, widths sten '
pert
pa lately filled and went down. A few men
of just before she did so, but the greater member ,
remained to the last, and m dial every Miser Misusing to
the beeps. All the men I pet en le the Oahe, I her were
crushed when the funnel fell; sad the Mend Aims below
at the pimps meld set, I think, have masked the deck be-1
fees the newt bribe up and went doers. The survivors
clang, some to the /igen of the sr damask paMed whisk
won out of the water • soma Mimeo pet Mil of ftssing pies
of wood. I think there mime have hues &Mat ON sa the
drift wood. I was on • temp pine elseg with Ise Ohre%
end we picked op aim or tea mina. The well seselei the
wood in the direction el Pelee Dow. As mss as It get
is the weeds aid breakers, lhaling that it would ast support
all that were ea it, 1 Y~mil eft end swam as share {sad
whoa Me eases, and elm these that wale is the ether
plisses of weed, reached the Aim we pomaded bee the
esonitry. to try to find a hohltatis• 0 any sort where we
meld obtain shelter. Many of the men were naked, sad
almost all without shoes. Owing to the eeuntry Wog
severed with thick thorny Imams oar p was slow ;
bat after walking till akat i p.m., masked
Iseit about 12, we serahi whine • agon we vat-
:=llarl the driver of it Meseta us to a small bay,
se' a hut of a fisbermem. The bay is celled
Illeollnies Com. We arrived the Ghent seams; and as
lb, essa bed nothing to cat, I meat ea M • thrmkonee,
ahem *hi se nine mike front *IOW% sad seat back pre-
Aims Ore that day. The ama =wry I met another
• perrisions and Or Mmale Intalieell up to a farm
M Cap Soils', beet twelve se *Weft lam up the
eseistry. Lieutemmt Okardot, of this Mid, and Corset
lead, of the 12th lamas, asessumelei this party, which
resinatd Se el mom lailmlies Maim
I this woe dews Is *• as ask eat daring Friday,
eatraday, sad laaday, I ermirdliSareas fir More
then twenty mike, in the Me enelabs OM mss who
might have drifted in. I VIII the NM
of a whale•beet *het is swybpsi as Dyer's biessil.
I get them table lha bee astilia Op arsesd, whir I
west elm the shwa Thu eisuriell es as east Yam=
thick, and of Immo, WOO l immill her
most of the drift weed. the bat OW uj .
birwriet Coww
sows, and I also howl Wm they wee A tea
exhausted, two of them bedViela the VIM 011 Mom
wer
e all right dr NW . ismipt •Aw bedew It
wee 86 hours, ea liwadrip Arm% ishwt I blibe easet,l
Mass the wreck MI tab* plent awl se I had
easadoed every pert ef the usle MA rib es* thilir.
hen mar to Dyer's laird, I ems faddy aemet *ea whoa I
lob there was not a living seal ai the err ref those that
bed hen is beard the iesi Wheatmeal.
the Oatenday, I art les illeeltay, the evil
Cammbeismer of Calsiai, red she Field -Cram
Villiere. The farms tom me that he bed rased
the ars elte had buss at Captain Emir la hi
'belted by him, he basin • shwe at his his a. FerM lei.
dire imbed dribs era lis. limasi, ilhe i&
secret, Ned erynek4 easempared by • pry ernesall
deans by Mr. Villiers, war elm the sear, se re
point that rum out to Dyer's Wm" rtiall the Wise that
were met with was brined. The. tem not , low
ever, and I egad to say it add be may ietwmmt i be.
leiv• of the hewn pt t• the alms wait were emit
brattghtm me ewe dire apmig ewe la Ns. r
the Mb Laren,
_awl tha Owl * Ns& area se
the Nth, Dr. wig ed Wet. Dee* of the Mod. I
headed the Mews over S. M. Mackay, owl be is as sued
them se t• see hem a ea they may be sell, sad that I
may mese* We the
Os she 15th ref
ijither Majwty's ship Rhada-
menthes ems era of 'a Cove ; so I west down
there, sad hod that Oast. Demo, the commender of the
Castor Ibis% led bads& sad gems ap to Owt fares, to
order the MB own le the Onet se as is midis* in the
Mame te he memeyei la lbws s Day. Oa Ilem‘y, when
I we dews ea the wry the bid reset rid me lisOt a
pert where he and hie NM had Wee, a by balks were
washed up and buried; else a few home, whisk wen
broken ia pieces, and the raters strewed about the
sushi, I then oared M bre tot any more were living, and
come dais is • die Cove to jobs the other men. We arrived
them at ahem 6 p.m.
The oilier and regularity that prevailed ea been.,
from the time the ship struck till she tray
far sosseded anything that I thee.* seri liedi=by.
the hut dissiplme ; and it is the mat te be wondered et,
seeing that most of the soldiers wow bat a aid time is the
maim Bury one did as he tree dleseled, mad dare ass
pa • awana or a ery earmot them aril the vowel made
her OW prime. I oweid net sum say Isidieliked einem
wise did mere than usiedier. Al reured thole ewers, sad
had them carried oat, as if the mis wen embattle', Iss•
smog of ping to the bottom; thee was err tide diihreese,
that I waver saw any emberhatlea sewhersd id* se little
noise or confusion.
" 1 'Won a list of them embehed, Mriagebbiai them
Med. 1 think it is sunset, essmt me mea of the Est,
whose name I cannot Ind eat. The ealy mom I bed of
asscralaing the name ef the ma of the dillereat drafts,
was by getting them beet their eseemise, who sr saved.
You will meo by the list easieeed OM the lam meantr to
nine officers sad Ma mesa, besides *see of the crew; the
total number embarked Mks Mesa Misses end 476 men
far officer and sightless noes were stlemiliched in Bimee's
I.) am happy to say that all the wawa and children
were put safely on booed a 'charmer, that wee about seven
miles off when the steamer was wrecked. Tile vessel re-
turned to the wreck at about 3p.m., and took of aet SO
men that were clingirm to ::eit„%glai and the, peateeded
to Simon'. Bay. One of bail% via thesamme.
surgeon of the yard MI Ma, WWI 4 and mass
about 15 miles from the wreck. Had the bra somind
about the wreck, or returned after landing 11121110111•10
surgeon on Danger Point, about which there was no dia.
culty, I am quite reddest that nearly
_nary masa of