The Express.
London, England, 1861-11-13 00:00:00

SHIPWRECK AND LCAS OF LIVE&

The heavy gales which prevailed last week were
renewed with great severity on Sunday night and Monday,
and in the Channel the weather was awfully stormy, with
tremendous seas running. The most conspicuous disaster
as yet reported (writes oar Liverpool correspondent yester-
day) is the foundering about eight miles north of the Bell
Buoy of the barque Prompt, Captain Whittle, bound from
Rangoon rid Akyab to Liverpool (laden with rice and other
cargo), and the loss of fifteen lives. The official despatch on
the subject posted at the Underwriters' Rooms, Liverpool, is
as follows :

" The Prompt (Whittle), from Rangoon, bound to Liver-
pool, foundered eight miles N.E. of the Bell Buoy at 4 p.m.
yesterday, in eight fathoms of water."
It is feared that the vessel was carrying too much sail, and
that being struck by a tremendous sea she was thrown upon
her beam ends and went down almost immediately. Fifteen
of the crew perished, and the remainder, consisting of the
captain, mate, pilot, and boy, were rescued by the steam-tag
Brother Jonathan, and landed in Liverpool this afternoon
The gale was raging furiously at the time, and it was not
without groat difficulty and danger that the men were
picked up. The Prompt was • vessel of 767 tons burden, was
built at Quebec in 1853, and bad • large quantity of cotton
on board in addition to the rice and other cargo.
Captain Whittle (with whom our correspondent bad as
interview yesterday afternoon) made the following statement :
—" We left Rangoon on the 15th June, with a cargo of
rice, and on the 6th November we left Queenstown (where
we called for orders), for Liverpool. Our crew consisted
of eighteen men and boys, and one of the crew, Nicholas
Johns, was left at Queenstown unwell. We took on
board Shaw, of No. 3 pilot boat, at Point Lynes, on Sun-
day. We ran up to the north-west light-ship on Monday
morning, intending, if passible, to enter the port when the
tide answered. The wind at this time was blowing very
fresh from W. by S., with thick weather. We tried to
work off the ship to the N., with close-reefed topsails, so
uto deer the banks. At about noon, and while about
ten miles distant from the Bell Buoy, a heavy beam-sea
struck the Teasel and at once disabled her. By the pilot's
advice we out away the mixes mast to ease the ship.
About 3 o'clock, when the vessel was on the point of founder-
itig, the steam tug Brother Jonathan hove up and tried to
take us in tow. She threw us a hawser line, and seeing the
ship was likely to settle down forward, five of the men tied
themselves to it. The rope, however, got entangled in the
cat-head, and though one of the men got on board the
'teenier, the other four went down with the ship, which
soon After went over on her beam-ends, settling down for
some time previously at the bow. At this time I
was in the cabin with the steward, and he was
trying to put on a life bolt, when the sea broke in
upon us. He was drowned in the companion way.
I managed to work my way up by the hold on the wheel
house. From there I was washed into the sea with John
Murphy, the first mate, and a little boy named George Murray
(who could not swim). While in the sea the wheelhouse
broke from the ship with a fearful noise, and with great
difficulty we managed to reach it. The sea capsized the
wheelhouse several times, but by obeying my directions
Murray always managed to bold on, while I and Murphy
swam about at intervals. The ship drifted to leeward, and
soon foundered. I don't know what became of the other
men, for all the boats were smashed, and the cargo shifted.
while the sea was fearfully high. At last the crew of the
Brother Jonathan threw life buoys to us, and hauled us on
board completely exhausted. Nothing could surpass the
kindness of the captain and crew of the steamer, who lent
us dry clothes, and gave us hot coffee and other fool."
The following are the name@ of; the sav:d and drowaed—
Saved—Captain John Whittle, Murphy, Ist mate, George
Murray, apprentice, and Shaw, pilot. Drowncd—Kelsick
Wood (of Maryport), 2nd mate, Robert Mackenzie, carpen-
ter, John W. Hall, steward, Goo Vigilant, cook, Thomas
Swainson, Hugh Letherick, Simon Reyes, Wm. Gill, John
Fenson, Thomas Jenkins, and George Nicholson, able sea-
men. Apprentices, Chula Edward Prosser, John Mac-
kechny, and Wm. NeilL
The Prompt was owned by Messrs. E. Whittle and Co.,
of Liverpool, and was thoroughly refitted when last io port
She was fully insured. and the canto of about 950 tons of
rice was consigned to Messrs. Sinclair, of Belfast.
Another sad oacurrence was also reported yesterday, but
fortunately unattended with loss of life, although the crew
underwent much suffering from cold and exhaustion. It
appears that the schooner Young Gipsey, from Newport to
Liverpool, with • cargo of bar iron, was caught in the gale
on Miiuday, while off the port. For several hours the
vessel was knocked about in the most lamentable
manner, the sea making • clean sweep over her,
carrying all movables overboard, soil it was with the
utmost difficulty that the crew could keep themselves
secure. Ultimately, however, the vessel became unma-
nageable, and sunk when off Ith)L The schoonet's boats
had been washal away long Mons, and the only hope of
succour for the crew lay in the rigging, which they, after
much difficulty, succeeded in ginning. While here, the sea
continued to make a clear breech over them, and
with the utmost "determination and love of life," as
one of the poor fellows not inappropriately termed it,
they clung to their precarious support, in the hopes thst
daylight would discover their position to some vessels near.
Their hopes were fortunately not destined to be disappointal
feria an early hour they observed a boat m king towards
them, and after some tame had elapsed they made her out
to be the Point of Ayr lifeboat. coming to their rescue. At
10 o'clock the beat reached them, and in a few minutes after
the poor fellows, seven in number, were safe.