The Express.
London, England, 1853-07-15 00:00:00

THE PENINSULAR MAIL.

SOUTHAMPTON, TIMRSDAT Evaritiro.
The Iberia has arrived at this port with Penin-
sular mails, having left Lisbon on the 9th.
The Iberia spoke the Great Western on the 12th,
37 hours from Southampton. Her Majesty's ship
Antelope was at Gibraltar.
The Peninsular and Oriental Company's steamer
Cadiz arrived at Gibraltar on the 3tk.
The Madrid arrived at Vigo on the 11th, and was
stated to be leaky.

FATAL RAILWAY ACCIDEXT.—A labourer em-
ployed by the South Devon Railway Company was killed
by the up-train from Torquay, on Tuesoay afternoon. Ile
had been working on the Kingskerawell branch, which was
opened for traffic last week, and very foolishly walked on
the hoc to expedite his journey home to Newton Abbot.
Being an old man of seventy, it seems that he was not able
to walk sufficiently fast to get off the line before the train
came up, hod being also deaf, he did not hear the approach
of the train, although the whistle was bounded very loudly.
The old man was kneekeii down, and the train passing
over his body killed him instantaneously.

LOSS OF THE CONDOR.

Among the passengers by the Brazilian mail
packet Tay, which arrived at Southampton on Wednesday,
were fifteen Aurralians, passengen from Melbourne in the
ship Condor, which was ►urnt at sea. The Condor left

Melbourne on the Ilth of April la►t, about the same time
that the Chosen mail steamer left that port. The Condor
was a fine ship of about 900 tons ; burden she had about
60 passengers, a quantity of Australian produce, such as
w001,&e., end 22,060 ounces of gold. She left short-hauded,
and was short also of boats, still the crew worked the ship
well, and there was every prospect of a rapid voyage. After
doubling Cape Horn, and just as she was about to cross the
line, the wool on board of her caught fire from spontaneous
combustion, and the fire could not be kept under. At this
time the Condor had not met a ship for seven days. There
were about 100 souls on board, and only 2 boats. Destruc-
tion for the majority of the crew or passes,
gen appeared inevitable. The fire broke out at
about e!even o'clock in the forenoon ; and although
no ship had been hailed or seen for a week, at
dusk on the day of the fire • ship hove in sight, and bore
down upon the Condor, which preyed to bb a French ves-
sel. The weather was squally, but fortunately not very
tempestuous. The Frenchman kept company with the
burning ship, but sent 09 bolt alongside to assist the escape
from the latter. At midnight the whole of the passeng. rs
and crew had left the Condor in the boats of the latter with
clothes sufficient to stand upright io, and hrd got on board
the French vessel. The T 2,000 ounces of gold was also
saved. The captain of the Condor was the last to leave his
ship, and in • few minutes after he had left her mast and
rigging caught fire. The Fn nch captain put into Pernam-
buco, and claimed above 20,0001. salvage money. The gold
was at Pernambuco whi II the Tay lett,and the captain of the
Condor was about getting a ship to bring it to England.
The cause of the wool catching fire on board the Condor

was owing to the carelessness in pecking it in Melbourne.
It was puked damp and not sallziently pressed. It is
expected that fearful disasters will arise from such careless-
ness. The Tay bretarht home passengers saved from no
less than tiro shipwrecked vessels. One of the latter we..
almost

dashed to pieces by heavy seas elf Cape Horn, and
with difficulty made the Falkland Islands.
One of the Condor's passengers, who came home in the
Tay, was aMr. lhdgood, a Dursetahire man. He has been
nine years in Melbourne, and has been a hotel keeper and
gold speculator. 110 offered 8,000/. in Melbourne for the
monster Ballarat nugget now exhibiting in London, and he
bought for 1,9001. the 3211 i nugget which was found close to
where the monster was dug out. Mr. Bedgood has this
nugget with hint, together with some smaller ones, in all
about Nibs. weight of gold. The 321 b. nugget was shown
in Southampton yesterday. It was slightly veined with
quartz. Mr. Bedgood looked the picture of a rough Aua
tralian. He appeared yesterday at Southampton, with a
wide-awake bat, a black bushy beard, a breutpin
the head of which was formed of a small unshaped nugget
just as it came from the diggings, a heavy life preserver

on his wrist, tipped with gold, and an old carpet bag fas-
tened with a black leathern strap, which contained
ap-
parently a half-dosen stones, but in reality 5,0001. worth of
gold. He bought 4,000 ounces of gold bt fore he left Mel-
bourne for 31. 17s. 3d. an ounce. The nuggets he had with
him as personal baggsge. The rest formed a portion of
the cargo left at Pernambuco. He will lose about 2,000/.
by the lire in salvage money and steam-packet fares for his
family. Owing to his coming home in the same ship with
his gold, he had not unwed the latter, and consequently
he was obliged to pay the salvage himself.