The Sun.
London, England, 1852-11-04 00:00:00

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THE AUSTRALIAN:II4M'I*,
MELBOtfitY4o,42'

IEAAfER

••
_8 •• , Nov. 3.
By the Peninei4?\: ntat
..),,pany's steam-
ship Madrid, CaptitKakt...'4 e have received
intelligence of the arrival at Lisbon, on the 24th tilt.,
of the Australian Royal mail screw steam-ship Mel-
bourne, dismasted and looking badly. Several of the
passengers of this ill-starred ship, who could afford to
risk the loss of their passage money, have come home
in the Madrid.

The Melbourne, after being once:dismasted during
her passage from the Thames to Plymouth, which
caused a considerable delay at that port for the pur-
pose of refitting, and after having sustained some
damage in endeavouring to leave Hamoaze by a col-
Ii iun with two of her Majesty's vessels in that har-
bour, which necessitatcd a second detention for re-
h, ire, finsliy started from Plymouth on the 15th
with the Australian mails, a large number of pasaen-
gers, a valuable cargo, and specie to the value of
nearly 200,0001. sterling. What befell her shortly
after this inauspicious commencement of her employ-
ment in the Australian mail service will he gathered
irom the subjoined account, with which we have
been furnished by one of the passengers:—
"We left Plymouth on the afternoon of the Isth of
October, and, with a fine lair wind, ran at the rate of
0;',0 mi:es per day up to the 19th; on that day we had a
rather high spa on the side, which cauxed the ship to roll
rnuch. About 11 o'clock Captain Cox retired to his
cabin, having written his night orders and sent them to
the officer in charge of the watch. The night was fine,
knd a fresh breeze blowing. A little after 12 I felt the
ship give a sudden roll or jerk, arid soon heard a cry
luckily, few of the pas-
stehnagt
earlsl
,i,th.eeretotpinmadseteskw, eorre
gsoonmee; dreadful accident must
have cceurred.

" flurrying on deck, a sad scene presented itself;
.the
whole of the topmasts were overboard except the =ten
one, which was lying on the quarter-deck; the jibhoom
was gone, and, in fact, nothing standing but the three
lower masts and yards.
" The ship was rolling heavily and very much over on
the right side, owing, I suppose, to the wreck hanging
there, and which was thumping against the sides sadly.
As the day broko we discovered a sail, and our captain
ordered a signal to be made, and soon after two small
vessels bore towards us, and the captain asked them to
stand by us, which they did. Everybody was now em-
ployed cutting and clearing away the wreck, and about
the middle of the day, the 20th, it was got clear; but,
unluckily. the whole mass became entangled round the
screw. The engines, which up to now had been going,
then suddenly stopped, and then, indeed our situation
was very bad, as all the wreck being fast OR to the stern,
and at times beating against the rudder, made it almost
impossible to steer the ship.
,‘ An attempt was now made to raise tho screw, but
failed, and men were then sent with long knives and
hatchets lashed on poles to try and cut the wreck from
the screw. Some of the stuff was detached, but still a
considerable quantity was wound firmly round the screw.
" The captain now determined at every risk to try and
raise the screw, and after about 12 hours' excessive la-
bour, and with the assistance of a large number of the
passengers, it was got up high enough to cut away the
ropes from it, and about midnight of the 20th it was
clear.

" 'rho engines were now set on, and as the ship did not
leak we continued our voyage—the ship in a sad plight.
Our misfortunes were not yet over, as you will see, for
on the following day a leak was discovered in the mail
room. The bags were brought on deck, and many of
them were found to be soaked, and some of the parcels
also wet through. _

" The officer7m charge of the mails new sent for the
captain, and after some conversation we found the ship
turning round, and were soon informed that Commander
Phillimore had requested Captain Cox to return to
Lisbon to stop the leak.

" Wo at lasi got into the Tagus on the 24th, and glad
enongh were we to find ourselves once more at anchor.
What is to be our fate we hardly know, but we hear
b,%t notwithstanding our captain was requested to como
he ro to stop the leak we are not to go into dock. So
sa) •s the commander of the Inflexible, who, it appears,
has oonio power over our captain, in consequence of the
mails being on board. Be this as it may, we hope Cap-
will not leave this port without seeing his un-
ship put into proper order, considering the
tfoarintli Cna,
number o f souls, about 253 besides the valuable cargo he
has under his charge.

"And noN to another point. The state of the lower,
or passengers deck of this ship has been truly awful.
There has not been a dry bed from one end to the other;
there are a great many of the passengers very ill. A re-
presentation has been made to the captain on the sanitary
condition of the ship, but in her present crowded state
it is almost impossible to say how any improvement can
be made, unless the captain has the power to send one
fourth of the number back to their friends.

" Messrs. Charles Walton and Sons, of Gracechurch-
street, are the agents for the company, and this ship of
unfortunate celebrity."

Iu reference to the disasters which have fallen upon
the Melbourne, our Lisbon correspondent writes as tol-
lows :

" Nothing can be more distressing than the position of
' the unfortunate passengers of the Melbourne, or more
diffi,cuit than that of Captain Cox, who, having put into
this port in consequence of a leak, is now required by
the officer in charge of the mails to proceed upon his
voyage to Australia without docking his vessel to
examine the leak, which, being of so much consequence
when the vessel was rolling about in the ocean, is now
declared by Captain Wolrige, of her Majesty's steamer
Inflexible, to be nothing at all, because the Melbourne
makes little water whila at anchor, or even under
steam, in the placid waters of the Tague. In
A:ort, the officer in charge of the mails, who required
tLe Melbourne to put into Lisbon in consequence of the
1". k., which soaked bis mail bags, now orners her to sea
agao as soon as his cabin is dry; but in the face of the
officii, 1 survey made by the officers of this Arsenal, in
the presence of Lloyd's agent, declaring that the Mel-
bourne ITiust be unloaded or docked, it is fortunate for
the 253 p ussengers and crew that the probable forfeiture
of the insu ranee upon above 200,0001. of specie on board
(were the rders of Captain Wolrige and the officer in
charge of Oa mails to be followed) will prevent the
vessel again a ttempting her unlucky voyage until some-
thing has bee.o done to remedy her more dangerous
defects.

"I am told this Government has most handsomely
offered Captain C'ox the use of the Arsenal-dock, and
that the deposit of mud is now being cleared away from
its entrance to admit the Melbourne's draught of water,
so that sho will bo docked in the course of a few days,
and probably before her masts and rigging can be put in
proper repair. Thus no time will be lost with her
1 Majesty's mails, while some little care is taken of the
lives of her subjects.
" It seems incredible that this vessel should bare boon
ce,nt out from England upon such a voyage, and with a
[ nilinber of passengers so far exceeding all means of ac-
coin modation prepared for them. Many return
thoomdoe
by Ito present packet, and others would befifl
• 1 money, which steam companies are seldom. so if .they could afford to run the risk of for eitmgtheir
passel,•t
the increased into numereus
in-
clined oel refund; they have held almost daily meetings,
and split
per-
plexity oi' vessel ready for sea as well as
to do more than got his .
Captain Co, fwachteioanpsPears to have no power
voyage with such passen-
ill by him.
gers as reins .
he can, and yroceed upon his
„ I am aot, red on all sides that the rolling of the
M eb o
with a slightly agitated sea, is some-
thing awful,r o, n a
nvil,, Th
l'
that, it being impossible to have any of
l u
her lower ports open for ventilation, she is a much
N than she was a man-of-war, although
naval
e officers
boil, i
still
il
appear to consider her fit for
service."

THE " MELBOURNE. '
TO THE _VI:a-TOR OF THE OM
SlR,—Having just rkl for-
board the Melbourne steamer, bound for yd
I,ceived a letterfrosm
ward you a short extract ..--
,-1 ~ / went to bed about 10
a_nferyie,nd o n
" Oct. 18," says my frie,l", 1 in consequence
o'clock, but did not sleep so
ich was very considerable.
of the rolling of the ship,
''
'bd. 1 of the 19th, I heard ft
Between the hours of 12 an
Icompanied by a tremend-
ous terrific noice on deck, a.r ,
well as usus ,
1r of the passengers, and
deck, and groat npulab.,try—the whole together
A nay
on
beincgr crash
quite
13
ttahretl
ing. steward's
and hallooing, and
confu-
sion ensued, overhead
giving
unmist,‘Jtable indications of
all the sailors, were
running to and fro, galling
taken place. I thought I
something
of littlehsenrti°li9 use, and probabl Yin the way, con-
could
stampi ttg
could be -- About 4 o clock the captain was
„A opposite my berth, and I heard him say,
in the passab-, bring light,'which
sake a
, For mercies.
at no very soothing conclusion. 1 .turned out in
sequeptly I lay cull.
arrive
o dark, and found my boots full of water.. I was soon
On deck, the engine had just stopped, and I found we
had lost our fore main and mizen top-mastso the deck
was covered with ropes, sails, and spars. The wirews had
got entangled in part of the wreck tbat went overboard,
the engine would not work, and there we lay like a log
rolling and tossing on the water; the captain w3shed to
God it were daylight. When daylight came we .hoisted
a flag of distress, and soon descried a sail on our lar-
board, which bore down for us. The captain spoke tier
with his trumpet; I was standing by, and looked for her
name, which was the ' Reaper of Dundee.' Judge WY
feelings when I discovered this' and how my heart beat
l we
at the thought of ' Bonny Dundee.' I was in the
Atlantic in a disabled ship, and so homely a sighrWn:,:
calculated to awaken feelings of sympathy with o
native lend. We soon had another, 'the Alexander
Exeter;' they both stayed near as for two days, ua" of
got oar crew put right.
Sun-
t, and thought it
covered a leak in the after compartm
wene arrived on Sun-
" Ou Thursday, 21st, the captain told ns they had dis-
otcessary to steer for Lisbon, where
to remain another
(I,:y morning, and where we are likely
fortnight."
be glad.—l am, Sir, )ours ve y I
Should the information I hravousue.ynt, be of use, I shall

G. T.

72, St. Paul's, Nov. 3, 1852.

EXTRAORDINARY DIFCOVERY AT TUE WATERLOO.
STATION—Yesterday, while some carpenters were employed
in the rem. oval of some cupboards. in the apartment formerly
used as a cloakroom for Or depoait of luggage and travelling
gear, at the principal station of the South-Western ReilwaY,
in discovered in one of them a paper
boxan
it ordinary hat-box. Oa discover-
ing that emitted a most offensive stench it was resolved
thoef
theWatderhlnooe-nlands, theyof
to examine its contents. The box was! accordingly opened,
and was found to Ontain the hotly of a full-grown female
infest