The Express.
London, England, 1866-01-17 00:00:00

TO THE EDITOR OF TEE EXPRESS..

from the
westward bad leen blowing nearly all Say, c rasing some 60
vessels of all kinds to run into Torbay for shelter. The
night set in pitch dark, snowing, and the wind, shifting to
the B.E. at about 10 or 11, blew in heavy squalls, increas-
ing in violence, with • tremendous sea. As the night wore
on the gale shifted more to the N.F., the sea inereadag,
with the wind at times nearly a hurricane, and snowing
and sleeting all the time. When morning broke, each •
scene of disaster w before witnessed in Torbay.
Out of about 60 Teasels which had been riding in security
the night before, 42 bad either parted their cables or had
been driven on shore, and were mostly wrecks, strewing
the coast from within • mile inside Bern' Head nearly to
Paington. The scene outside the pier at Britham baffles
description. About 15 or 16 vessels hail heou driven against
the pier, end were literally smashed to matches. The
larger ships, of which there were four or five grinding the
smaller ones against the wall of the per, the whole wreck
wedged together like a puzzle • here a poi t of a bow,
there a fragment of a stern, jammed up with
spars, sails, cargo, planks, timber, all in one
mass, steady enough in the course of the afternoon, when
the sew went down, for people to walk upon. The masts
of some still sticking up, out of all the confused wreck
and banging over the pier a tangled net of sails, yenta,
and ropes, but which enabled many lives to be saved, as
the crews could and did get aloft cud drop on to the pier
from the yards. A large !cirque, on oboes at the entrance
of the small harbour. lay bilged with the sea breaking
over her, the entrance to the harbour itself choked up
with craft of all sizes, much damaged, that had tried to
ran it. From the pier to the westward every little cove
and rocky point was strewed with wreck torn to pieces by
the fury of the sea, io a most extraordinary way, one
with her bow wreathed off from her aftzi body, which
was lying nearly keel up. with her bow across it and
long strips of planking flapping about in the wind like
paper. At Breadsands several more vessels ware lying
in various states of wreck sod destruction, one a barque
apparently parted amidships. Here the coestgututl,
under Commander Holder, were actively employed in
rescuing men from the stranded veiacle end doing their
utmost, aided by sonic hundreds of eavvice, labourers,
&c.' directed by the skill and encouraged by the example
of Captain Holder to his men to save life. Several
vowels have foundered at their anchors and the
loss of life and property Ilea been, it is feared,
very great. Many of thole fine cutters, the Brix.
hem trawlers, have been lost, mid thus many
families dependent upon the eiertioue of some of the
finest of our seamen have been ruined. Below is appended
a statement of the objects for which the charity and money
of that generous English public which is rarely, if ever,
appealed to io vain in cases of real distrait, and which is
now earnestly implored.—l am. &c., A RESIDENT.

SHIPWRECKED FUND.
Rock House, Brixham, Jau.ls.
sbould be obliged by y.iir kindly giving
publicity to the following statement, as I am anxious that
people should know what feuds es require in our present
distress. We want money —l. For the payment of food
and clothing already supplied. 2 For the re.imbureement
to the Shipwrecked Mariners' Society of what it has already
made itself responsible for in clothing and ra.lway paws
to all parte of England, Scotland, sod Wales of nearly 150
sailors, and also for the provision it will have to make for
the widows and orphans of its members who have
ben drowned—a sum so considinible that unless
that society is largely assisted it will be linable to cope
with the disasters here, to say nothing of what
sums of money will be required by it to meet similar
distress by the same gale at other p irta of the coasts.
3. To provide for the widows of four of our own poor
fishermen, three of whom are left with families of young
children. For these I specially plead, se three out of the
four drowoed were meml en of the Mission School, and
were steady and industrious men. I earnestly hope that
the amount subscribed will be sufficient for us to lay by a
sum of money which will enable us to give them a pound
or two a year for each child until it attains a certain age.
I shall be happy to receive any subscriptions for either of
the purposes mentioned above, and to pay them over to the
general fund, or to apply them io any way that the donors
may direct.—l am, ttc. .
JOHN R. NANKIVELf

Cbaplaietoibe Torbay Minion to Seamen.

--- ---
THE BETHNAL-GREEN WOHICHOUSC. —Mr. Farnall
yesterday, after the inquiry at the workhouse, left the
board.room, a most sumptuously furniabid apartment, and
proceeded over part of tie home itself. Be visited the
wards 28 and 20, cue only of which was ttted up with a
[trephine, and neither with Fos. All the wards visited were
toned to be well ventilated. but the sick wards cannot com-
pare, in either space or comfort, with the wards of the Lou.
doe hospitals, established and maintained by private charity.
The mewl ward, were visited, and it is right to mention
that the certified acoommodatioe was goad and dear, and
that for women superior to the general run of such pieces.
By a look into the csauste bath-room, which in the case of
the amn's wards is detached from the sleeping-place, the
fact was detested that the bathers bad either to dram ow
leering the bath or to walk acmes a paved place to their
beds. lbe oommiwrieser requested that this should be ir•
Moody remedied. The wanes'. bathierroom aid *repay
room wiejoin, and the female casual has only to walk same
boards. In mute of the wards many children were seen,
for this parish is este of those which will not adopt the
munikot system easounged by the Poor-law Board of
sada( the children altogether from the workbouse.
sod kluging them up spat from the workhouse sesocia-
taw. It this plea wore adopted bers. the emersimioser
remarked, room would be directly found for all wheat it was
nooosnary to kiog into the workhouse.