Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-10-09 00:00:00

THE NORTHERN LTINIES.---LIVERPOOL; FRIOAY, OCTOBER o, 1857.

WRECK OF THE CLIPPER SHIP BEA BELLE.

LOSS OF LIFE.

The following Pi a copy of a letter received from Bombay, dated
July 9. The writer, Captain 0' who was on. board the ill-fated.
vev.,el, thus describes the wreclt:

" We left Bombay, for Canton, on the 17th May, and for the first few
days hal fine we .ther. Notwithstanding the monsoon was blowing.,
we matte good progress, the ship being a fine railer, having beaten
everythlng out from Liverpool on her last voyage, making the pa sage
in 98 days. _

"On the fourth day out from Bombay at noon in lat. 9 N., lon. 92
E., the weather came on thick, with a Blight r;rizzling r.lo. the ship
at the time being under a heavy press of-canvas. We took in sa I,
and lay-to for four hours, during which Urns a steamer passed, having
troops on board. About six o'clock it cleaved up, the wind fre'hened,
and we went bowling along at a to'erable spsed. Through the night
the wind increased, coming now and then in awfal gusts.
"Neat morning, the 22nd, bro,e gloomily enough, a strong win 1
and a heavy sea at times breaking, and waling every movable thing
off he deck. Captain Stanley now ordered all sail to be taken in,
with the exception of the Jib an 1 foresail. However, this had no
effect, and the ship continued to lab )ur heavily in a tromealon4 sea,
the spray often ascending as far as the cross-trees. About four o'clock
the mizenmast went by the board—the wind blowing a perfect
hur leans at the time—and one of the block's coming down s,rnek
the captain and broke his arm, and otherwise crashed him dreadtn ly.
The command new devolved on Mr. W. J. Grant, the first oflic-r, a
youth ahout 21 or 22 rars of age, who, until the vessel went down,
gave hit orilers with all .he skill an 1 coo'ness of an ezperienied
navigator and daring seaman. Night again cane on, and with it the
same dreadful weather.

"Neat morning; about four o'clock, I hard the awful cry
' Sprang a leak!' The pumps were sou. Acid and four feet of water
fount The pumps went to wor , but the leak co 'tinned to i acrease.
Our th'inghts were now turned towards oar own p?ra mai safety.
There were four boats on bonrd, bat two were stove when the wizen
mat went. Everything Was now being got randy. The chief
officer gave orders Ocut away the fore ant ma'n masts. I could hear
the encouraging Words of this young man—as he called out, ' Cat
away my hearties; cut away'—high 11.3C.V3 the storm. Still prepa a•
t on west on for 'ower'ng the long boat, and jaart as it was visa; ov
the side, away went the foremast with an awful crash striking fa ir
into my very soul—and, alas, with it, elev:n of tine crew. The next
,monaont the mainmast went overboard, and not a standing spar was
in the' hip... Thelon; boat was now launched safely, into which got
the disabled captain, Wss Flinders, a passenger, eight seamen, and
myselr, with a stock of provisions. The oth3r boat was laumhad and
Mrs. liarrop and Miss Harrop (wife and danlhter of J. Harrop,
of Canton`, seven seamen, the apprentice; and the, first, second, and,
third o Mcers got into it, and left the ship in com?any of the boat I
was in. Ten minutes afterwards the Sea Be'le went down.

We pirted company during the night with Mr. Grant's boat,
and next morning could s'e nothing of it. In the afternoon we were
picked tip by th 3 J 49.10 Marro, from Glasgow t) Bomb ty, ay.d
Captain ,tewart lay to for six hoira, hoping to see s tmathing of the
missing boat, hit to no me. •

" Next day one of the seamen saw a box floating past ; a be t wa s
lowered an i picked it ap. Oa the l'd, engrave lon a brass plate, was
the name W. J. Grant, Liverpool.' Captain .'tatol.y o?eaod it, ES it
belonged to his mate, who was related to him, in tile prashice of
Ciptain ftewart and myself. It contained a good .ma'iy shirts,
flannels, and handkerchiefs, some stocAngs, a considerab;e
,sum
of money, a gold watch and chain, a handsome miniature of a young
ladit, some books, and several letters, too ea .rel to be re d by a. y but
the owner, ald a pair of Colt's revolvers. It is probible this vas
dropped overboard durlnts the excitement of leavi^g the bli;p Hopes
are entertained that the boat was plekod u? daring. the nig'it by some
vessels which mast have louse', as we saw several the next day. I.
shicirely hopiesach has been the case.
. .

"After bting treated wall by tha mister and oAcers of, the Jo sie.
Munrr., we. arrived here 01 the pad Jane, and I grasp the: first
oppertnnity of lett4a; yon know the sal. details of the wreck of this
fine ship. Up to the time 1 wilt° no tidings of the missin;
[The mate was the oldest sea of alr. P. G:alt, cart owner, of this
town.]

The Sea B3lle bonged to Theobald Lewa,,Esq.„aad was 1;500 t ins
register.

THE SCREW PROPELLER OF CAPT. WILMA M 5.

All persons acqaainted with steam navig ton are aware that the
screw propeller has not yet attained the perfection of which the ab'esC
marine engineers coaeider it capab:e. During the late meeting of
the Beeitish Association, Mr. John ecott Russell, when describing the
arrangements of the Great Eastern. remark- d at come length on the
dr iwbaeles of the screw in its present form, and alluded to carious
modifications which have, been proposed with the view of entered
d facts in the working of -the ordinary propeller. The result of his
observation was that the screw was yet to be devised which
deserve to be regarded al. the ultimatum of effie erscy—and several
other autteeities on he, au' j set then presents corroborated the state.
ment. This fact will prepare the ro idea for fixing his attention
brie fly en the character, of the &lenge in thefoe-n and action of the
screw prepell r invented by Captain Williams of the City of Dahlia
steam Packet Company's chip Windsor. We 81.11 attempt a shoFt
notice of his screw, which has been patented, and is now in use for
the propulsion of several first-class steam-ships belonging to' various
Irish and English proprietors. Captain Williams's propeller' is cen-
struetel so as to present two prepel lug surfaces on the one face
different from each other. In other words, be ten on his shift
an outer and inner propeller; the inner occupying a third-of the
'diameter of the screw, and being conical in form. Thls inner
surface pieutarly adaptd (non-nautical p3r s ins must
take for granted that the results are as described on the
authority Of the cepta'ns of the vessels who eM.:loy this new kind
of screw) for urging the ship forward at a high rateeotspeed when
she encometers head wind's:anti heavy Sees,' or when she in being
started-that is to say, Captain' William's screw keeps up the rate
of speed wider con li io os Which the ordinary propellor i. not -
Calculated to meet: In head-winds and heavy seas ,the se eel of th 6
-iere'v in general use fells to et great -degree i h consignence of the.,!
defect, in the formation of the blade which the patina. Screw
remedies. In like manner Captaitit-Wililarres proeeller ii fitted foi*
a high speed in calm weather.,- 'the inner erOpeller. is 'so m sde as
to preie- t the great choking or friction. which occurs in the ceU:re
of the ordinary screw. Its feria merely allows the water t
pass free, thereby preventing any choking or friction In
the centre. There is, consequently, no rush of ba k water
from
,Its course pitch in the centre, a-id striking against.
.the rudder, which has all' cases a to odency to tarn the
vessel round wh n reversing, a de'ect fare 'c h omen to he
ordinary screw. When the ship is star ing, or is, retarded.
by heavy heed winds aid - seas, the patent scrow inner
prepelier propels equ Ito the •onter,- inste id-of produding fric ion,
which in the main fault of the ordinary acre;. • In the petont era-,
peller the blades'are circular and revolve in a circn'ae direetioa. The
610 t of this is by carrying the propelling- surface 7to the,,extreme
edge to increase the vel„ciry and retain, the ship beeter;neder corn.
mend.. The blades o;:c-spying two- thirst of the entire tiiamater of the
propeller:, act on the pr:nelple two '.oe thr. e in.liaed-plenes with
the ne essary cent to make tliir parti prop l equally.. By this
plan tee prop:ening surfsee it le s liabl3 than in the ordina y screw to
be threwn'out the w.,tr jpen rough sea, or infl lenzed by the well
kno vu miss; which, in screw steamers, so frequently result in the
su tden breaking :down .of -the p 11,4133, and si idler accidents.. in
th :se points the patent.sciew ItAi been submitted to the severest tests
by experienced eel:ue-niers, wit,, without an exception, bear out the
stateme it that this screw secures greater steadiness of motion and
a big'ier rate o: seeed, with a less consumption cealiand less la-
bil.ty to accident. Upon tie lowest cal euletiee the Invention possesses
' one-fourth more propelling surface -than ,e 1 ordinary screw of the
s me diameter, and does not reluies a large aPerture. Another most

important feature in the new propeller is that it ancociapl shea a
re lucti ma in th nUnfier Of, revoltititint of the engines, producing, as
a necessary conseluence, a saving of -fail and a litalinution of wsar
and tarof at least per cant:,' with increased speed to 'the-vessel.
There is, of course, a saving in oil and tallow. Captain
inven!ion 4, as been ;fitted to live steam-ships, the property of
Belfast and Liverpool compinie,, and is lasing prepared for o hers.
ihe vessels in which it ;is used ara the .Semaphore,, Standard
De'p itch, Times, and :fir wins. The direct:6h ef,ttie companies which
have employed' Capt.Williams's screw bear die highe t testimony ti it+
efficiency in • the points abova-mentioned. We select one of their
certificates by way of example :

" Belfast Steam-sh'p.Company's Offi 2e, Belfast,

29th May, 1957.
" Having bees induced to try Captain Wm. Wildams's p-cpeller
on our e.S. Semaphote, in order to endeavour to secure the detects
evistin; in thi former propellers made by the bui'cLsrs of the ship in
Glatgow, we have the pleasare of iestifying that. the result has bees
very sucecsrful. The engines of the Semaphbre are direct acting
45. inch cylinders, and 30 inches stroke, With the. former prop Her
the engines ran Off at 73 to 75 revelutlon; per minute,csusing a great.
tremor all over thd ship, and cOusu'xii,g too much • We have
now had a trial of three months of -Capt,in prope ter, and
the result shows a saving of fully three tons of coal on a voyaAe *from
Liverpool to Belfast and back. 1-he engines are brought down by it
to G.i r vclutions per minute, without reducing the speed of the ship,
and theStremor ei tirely cured..

.• By orders of the Dirictore of the BelNst Steam-ship Company,
"GEORGE WIEAR, Secretary."

That the yes alts are the same on the other steamers to which the
br,pell,r has bean applied is testified by the captains of the vessels
and the managers of the companies. We hive the bsrt lesson for
believing, therefore, on the evidence of technical men,sthat Captain
Wi liams's propeller remedies several of the leading faults of the
ordinary screw, and is a desideratum in steam navigation. Its more
extensive use can only be a question of time. A saving of expense in
vr.irking vessels is rot the only merit of Captain Wdliami's screw.
By dim' uish ng wear and tear the frequent necessity of rep irs is
preve ,ted. Eng.neers and vhipburders, though having an obvious
interest in the eilleiezcy
.of t a vessels they build, have no such
interest in the cc rnoiny of their mai itenance ; and it is shipowners
themselves, therefore, who have the most immedia'e interest in the
sp.dication of a propeller, which, while increasieg the speed of their
vessels to a large extent, will enable them to be worked under
average circumstances at consideran:y less ex, ease.—Dublin Evening
I Packet.

At LEWIS & OM?A NY'S, Ranelsgh-street,
BOYS are CLOTHED from the Ages of Six to Twenty Years.