The Sun.
London, England, 1852-01-08 00:00:00

EVENING, JANUARY B, 1852.

PLYMOUTH, TUESDAY.
The cause of the destruction of the Amazon is un-
known; she was under steam from the time of her de-
parture to the period of the accident. As is usual with
new machinery, water was kept almost continually play-
ing on the bearings of the engines. On account of the
beat of these bearings the ship was stopped off the Bill
of Portland on Friday night, between the hours of eight
and twelve, and about the same period on Saturday night
she was stopped for two hours and a half; however, the
necessity for the operation of wetting these parts was
decreasing, as the main centre bearings were getting
more suent and the engine altogether in better order.
John Shearing, an intelligent fireman, states that in
playing the water on the cranks a quantity fell on the
wood and felt of the boilers, and be conceives that these
substance?, when the water was dried from them, would
ignite the quicker for the operation, and hence the
accident.

The boats of the Amazon were fitted with iron cranes
or crutches on which their keels rested; these fittings
obstructed their clearance from the ship, and but for
this fatal arrangement the serious loss of life would have
been lessened. Captain Symonds ordered no one to get
into the boats. This order was obeyed until the people
saw the flames overpowering the ship. He was last scan
with the man at the wheel, ordering the helm to be put
up, so as to keep the ship before the wind. His last
words were—" It is all over with her." The officer of
the watch, Mr. Treweeko (second officer), was walking
the bridge when the accident was discovered. Mr.
Henry Roberts, chief officer, in his shirt only, was ac-
tively assisting the captain; he was last seen going
through the companion down to the main deck, and is
supposed to have perished there. Mr. Lewis (third
officer), Mr. Goodridgo (fourth officer), and the two
midshipmen, some of whose berths were forward, on the
port side of the main deck, were probably suffocated, as
were also the chief engineer, Mr. George Angus, and
Mr. Allen, superintending engineer under Mr. Seward,
as they were seen in the engine-room ten minutes before
the fire broke out going forward, there being no possi-
bility of their return through the flames. The second
engineer, Mr. William Angus, was on the spar deck,
between the funnel and the crank gratings, pulling oars,
and throwing them out of the way of the fire on
the deck near the boats. The two best boats
were stowed on the top of the sponsons,
where the flames prevented approach. After the
Amazon was put about she went at the rate of 12 or 13
knots, dead before the wind. One boat on the starboard-
side, the second cutter, was full of people when the wash
of the sea unhooked the foremast tackle; she held on by
the stern tackle, and her stem failing into the sea, all
except two were drowned in consequence of the ship's
speed. The pinnace was observed on the port side, tow-
ing by the fore tackle, behind the burning ship, and as
no one cut the towrope the miserable passengers, who
were all huddled together, were, ono after the other,
washed into the sea. The mail-boat, which was also full
of people, having shipped a quantity of water, went down
alongside.
The scene on deck is described as dreadful in the ex-
treme. When the flames had approached the after com-
panion, two male passengers came up from the saloon all
in flames, and running aft, fell on the deck. A tall
lady, supposed to be Mrs. Maclaren, entreated some one
to take care of her child, but she would not enter either
of the boats. Dineford, the quartermaster, placed one
lady passenger in a boat, but she, being extremely agi-
tated, got out again, and although Henry Williams and
another used some force and begged her to go in, she
persisted in remaining on board. The Stewardess, Mrs.
Scott, with her bonnet and shawl on, and something in
her hand, first asked Steer to put her into the dingy and
then left for a larger boat. At the time of leaving
some of those who yet lived were kneeling on the deck
praying to God for mercy, while others, almost in a
state of nudity, were running about screaming with
horror. _ _

The survivors escaped in the after starboard second
life-boat, in which was Mr. Neilson. One of her occu-
pants (Maylin), in leaving, pressed his foot through the
burning deck and injured it; two others (Williams and
Passmoro) had to climb the starboard paddle-box through
the flames and smoke. They succeeded after three at-
tempts, and then slid down hands and face over the
paddle-box into the boat; several went down by the
tackles. Two of the watch below (William and Foster)
had their hair burnt while coming on deck. When the
life-boat left there were sixteen on board; they heard
some ono showing in the water, and threw over a keg
and some oars. They endeavoured to approach, but a
sea carried the boat off. They then took Mr. Vincent,
Mr. Williamson Mr. Sisley, and two sailors from the
dingy, and, making her fast to the stern, towed after the
burning wreck, thinking to save more lives, but the
dingy having filled, they were obliged to cut her adrift,
and, fearing that they themselves should be swamped,
their boat's head was put to face the sea. Twelve oars
wore at work, the wind was increasing, and heavy
squalls coming on. They saw the ship's gig full of
people, shouting as if for assistance, and at the same
time descried a sail standing apparently to the south-
ward. The vessel appeared to pass between the
two boats, and after this the gig was not
seen ; whether she was swamped or was taken up
by the stranger is unknown. Tho strange vessel
came pretty close under the life-boat's stern, when all
shouted together, and thought they were answered on
board; she was a barque, under closeresfed topsails,
foresail, and foretopeaast staysail; her spanker was hang-
ing in the broils as if she was in the act of wearing.
Soon after her helm was put up, and she bore right down
towards the wreck, behind which she disappeared. The
masts of the steamer went over before four o'clock in
the morning, the foremast on the port, and the mainmast
on the starboard aide. One poor fellow appeared at the
jibboom end; the jib was cut loose, and was blowing
away. Her rnizenmast was still standing while she was in
flames from stem to stern. About five o'clock, when the
lifeboat was passing the ship in a leewardly direction,
the gunpowder in her two magazines aft exploded, and
in about twenty minutes, the mizen having gone by the
board, she made a heavy lurch and went down, her fun-
nels being red hot and still standing.
Those in the boat now pulled before the sea and wind,
thinking to make the French coast, which was, as they
thought, the nearest. Mr. Vincent's monkey jacket,
being mounted on as oar was their only sail, and the
boat was kept dry by baling her with his boots. At
half-past ten on Sunday morning they saw a brig, and
taking down the jacket, they hoisted handkerchiefs, fore
and att, for signals of distress; and at twelve o'clock, in
lat. 48 5 N., long. 5 30 W., they boarded theMarsden, of
London, Captain Evans, from Cardiff, with railway iron
for North Carolina. The brig took the boat in tow with
a new 7-inch hawser, but this having got chafed,it broke
at four P.X. on Monday during half a gale of wind, and
the boat was lost. On board this brig every humane
attention was exhibited, and after giving the shipwrecked
crew as much clothing and comfort as could be produced,
Captain Evans landed them safely at Plymouth, whence
they were cent to their homes by the Shipwrecked
Mariners' Society.
The Amaz ma is describ3d as having been a splendid
vessel; her machinery is also spoken of in high terms.
From the main deck up rho is said to have been built of
pine fit, which, when once ignited, speed:ly carried the
flames in all directions, and thus led the more quickly
to her destruction, and the fearful loss of life among her
passengers and crew.

SOUTHAMPTON, JAN. 7.
The sudden and appalling account of the total de-
struction by fire of the Royal Mail stcatn-ship Amazon
at the entrance of the Bay of Biscay, and the loss of the
majority of her passengers, officers, and crew, has
caused the most wide - spread sorrow in South-
ampton among the numerous persons having
friends or relatives on board the ill-fated ship. The
Amazon was commanded by Captain William Symons,
a gentleman of known and tried courage and abilities.
Re was only provisionally appointed to the Amazon
in consequence of the absence from England of
Captain Chapman, of the Tay, Who was destined to be
her permanent commander, the directors having intended
Captain Symons to assume the command of the new
steamer Oronoco, now in the Thames and nearly ready
to take her station on the main lino of the West India
mail service. Captain Symons has recently distinguished
himself by great bravery in the Isthmus of Panama,
where, by his intrepidity and coolness, he presented the
slaughter of a great number of American passengers by
the infuriated native!, and where, under a heavy fire of
musketry and cannon, he succeeded in conveying gold
dust to the value of upwards of 2,000,000 dolls. in the
boats of the Medway on board the United States' mail
steam-ship Cherokee; and, further, in rescuing the
passengers under circumstances of imminent danger, and
placing them safely on board the steamer. Just prior
to the sailing of the Amazon, Captain Symons received
the subjoined letter from the United States' Mail Steam-
ship Company, of New York, accompanied by a magni-
ficent silver speaking trumpet:—
" Office of the United States' Mail
"Steam Ship Company, New York, Nov. 4, 1851.
" To Captain Symons, commanding the Royal Mail
Packet Company's steam-ship Medway. _
_s
" Sir,—Captain Hindle, of the Cherokee, one of. th_td
p
company's steamers, has reported to us the prom ; au
efficient aid rendered by yourself and the officers uwn.cler
your command, in the recent affray at Chagres, by
ich
the mails, treasure, and passengers, were promptly
securely placed on board the Cherokee.
" I beg you to accept, in behalf of this coinPaa ra
coun rtesy, y
best acknowledgments for this high act of
humanity, and
characteristic alike of British honour
andefficers, and men.
honourable to your flag, yourself, y
66 Allow me also the pleasure otourtender you the ac-
companying speaking trumpet, to ;fight testimonial
charnctand a er ser-
the company's appreciation of
M. O. lageilittTof
Puour obedient servant
vices.—l am, with great respect, T,
BE S"
of the mails
the Admiralty
Lieutenant Brady, R.N.,
of the
Wilkin-
Amazon, was sent on board to take
Lieutenantcharge
at the last moment,
son, R.N., who wasprevented from embarking by a
in the place
sudden indisposition
!lad whose life has thus be
expense of that of Lieutenant
Brady, Brady, who is an
provi-
dentially preserved at the
officer well known and highly respected
that all the officers, engineers, and
here.
It may be added
were picked men, and were selected
for appointmentcrew of theAnisztoou
the new ship from their previously
known abilities and intelligence.
The value of the Amazon when ready for sea was
about 100,0001., and she is understood to have coat the
Royal Mail Steamt-packet Company fully that HUM WO
are informed tha she is not insured, and the loss will
consequently fall_entirely upon the insurance fund of the
company--a fund exclusively devoted from annual grants
derived from the profits of the company towards cahuel-
ties of shipwrecks and loss of their vessels. The value
of the specie, quicksilver, cargo, &c,, when added to the
value of the ship, will give a total loss of prcperty by
this melancholy occurrence of little less than 200,0001.
sterling..
The destruction oZ the Amazon following sa quickly
upon the stranding of the Demerara at Bristol will be
seriously detrimental to the interests of the company, as
tin OM of the fIYO new ships azo thaa withdrawn, leav-

ing only three—viz, the Orme°, Magdalena, and Pa-
, rana—with which to perform the direct mail service be-
, tween Southampton and the Isthmus of Panama, Se-
veral of the old ships will now have to be retained on
the main line till caller vessels to replece the missing
ships can be constructed, and in the meantime much in-
convenience will be experienced by the disorganization
into which the general mail service will neer esarily be
thrown by the non-employment of steamers of sufficient
power and speed with which to maintain the chain of com-
munication between this country and the West Indies,
Central America, the Gulf of Mexico, Pacific, &c. We
have no doubt the directors will make every effort to
remedy this state of things without delay, but a consi-
siderable time will elapse before so great a blow can be
recovered, and the traffic will necessarily suffer to some
extent by the competition of the New York route, which
is found to be more speedy for the transmission of mails,
passengers, and treasure tram the Pacific and some other
points, than can be provided by the old West India
packets, which are, when compared with other ocean
steamers, so deficient in speed.
The est India Mail Company has been the most un-
fortunate of all the great steam packet associations in
the loss of their steam ships. Since the establishment
of the company in 1841 no less than eight of their fleet
of steamers hove been destroyed by casualty on the sea.
We recapitulate their names—the Medina, wrecked on
the 12th of May, 1844, on a coral reef, near Turk's Is-
land; the Isis, on the Bth of October, 1842, sunk off Ber-
muda, having previously struck on a reef; the Solway,
wrecked off Corunne, on the Bth of April, 1843; the
Tweed, on the 12th of February, 1847, on the Ala-
cranes rocks, Gulf of Mexico; the Forth, likewise lost
on the same rocks on the 15th of January, 1849; the
Acteeen lost in 1844 in the Negrelles, near Cartha-
gene; and the new steamer Demerara, stranded in the
river Avon, near Bristol, not long since. The wrecks of
the Tweed and Solway were attended with peculiarly
distressing circumstances, involving the loss of nearly
120 lives; and in the case of the survivors of the Tweed
with an extent of hardship and suffering which has
rarely found a parallel in the records of disasters at sea.
The catalogue is closed by the burning of the Amazon
on Sunday morning last, and by the harrowing occur-
rences which it has been our painful duty to recount in
connexion with her destruction.
Great as the loss of the Amszen may be in a pecu-
niary point of view, and extensive as will be the incon-
venience arising from an interruption of the mail ser-
vice and the postponement of long-desired improvements
and accelerations in the transit which would have been
introduced into the working of this important line, these
considerations bear little comparison with the frightful
expenditure of human life which has attended the de-
struction of this stupendous vessel.
Among the passengers will be perceived the name of
Mr. Eliot Warburton, the well-known author, who was
deputed by the Atlantic and Pacific Junction Company
to come to a friendly understanding with the tribes of
Indians who inhabit the Isthmus of Darien. It was also
the intention of Mr. Warburton to make himself per-
fectly acquainted with every part of these districts, and
with whatever referred to their topography, climate, and
resources—an intention that has been frustrated by his
untimely and dreadful death. Another of the passengers
by the Amazon was one of the deputies to the Congress
of New Granada, who was returning to the seat of Go-
vernment in New Granada, as one of the commissioners
of the Atlantic and Pacific Junction Company, empowered
by them to negotiate for some modifications of the
very important concessions which were recently granted
by the Legislature of New Granada to the agents of
the company in reference to the construction of a ship
canal.

The wives, families, friends, and connexions of most
of the crew of the Anna3n reside in Southampton, and
the melancholy event has caused a deep gloom in the
town. Many of the officers, engineers, seamen, &c.,
have wives and families depending upon their exertions
for support; and to the loss of their husbands, sons, and
brothers, as the case may be, is added, in several cases,
the proximate loss of the means of subsistence. While
widows and orphans are mourning, the voice of charity
is making it self heard, and we have much pleasure in
stating that a subscription has already been commenced
here for their benefit, the Mayor of Southampton, Mr.
R. Andrews, heading the list of donations with the sum
of 10/. It is hoped that subscriptions will not be con-
fined to this town alone, but that contributions from
other parts of the kingdom will flow in when a com-
mittee has been formed. In the meantime the following
notice has been issued to the public by order of the
mayor:— _ _

'7 The total destruction of the West India mail steam-
ship Amezon by fire, with the melancholy loss of upwards
of 141 persons, who were on board when she left the port
of Southampton on Friday last, thereby leaving numer-
ous widows, orphans, and fatherless children perfectly
destitute, the mayor appeals to the gentry and inhabit-
ants of Southampton and its neighbourhood to assist him
in carrying out a general subscription, and invites them
to attend a public meeting to be held at the Guildhall, on
Monday next, the 12th inst., at 12 o'clock at noon, to
take such steps as may be deemed best for the relief of
the sufferers.
" By order of the Mayor,
" CHARLES E. DEACON, Town Clerk.
" Audit-house, Southampton, Jan. 7, 1852."