The Sun.
London, England, 1864-03-21 00:00:00

RE H. W. CHURCH.

This bankrupt was a clerk to a brewer, and he was sen-
tenced a short time since by the Court to be imprisoned for
offences under the Bankrupt Law, but against which deci-
sion he had appealed, but the case had not been argued. His
Hcnour was now asked co withhold the commitment until
after the 12th April, the next appeal day.
The application was granted.
RE MJLL.

This bankrupt was described as of Old Broad-street, silk
broker, and this was a meeting for last examination and
discharge.
The debts amount to £9,2o4,unsecured ; £36,749, secured;
good debts, £629; property, £1,268; ditto in hands of
creditors, £38,563; deficiency, £5,568.
An adjournment for six weeks was taken by consent,

Fire and Loss of Life.

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On Saturday morning, at a few minutes before 6
o'clock, a fire broke out it the premises belonging
to Mr. H. Heath, hatter, 393, Oxford-street. The
Royal Society's fire escapes, the engines of the
London Brigade, and a powerful land steamer,
quickly attended; but the flames could not be ex-
tinguished until the whole of the floors of the fac-
tory were burned out. Tie origin of the fire is at
present unknown. Mr. Heath was partially insured
in the Royal Exchange Fite-office, and the build-
ing was insured in the Westminster Fire-office.
Another fire broke tut in the premises
belonging to Mr. Martin, an oil and colour
man, carrying on business at the angle of Middle
Searle-place and Searle-place, a narrow thorough-
fare leading into or near ?feet-street. The premises
were four floors high, ani owing to the quantity of
inflammable articles the• contained, the fire rapidly
spread. Messengers were at once despatched for
the aid of the Royal Seciety's escapes and engines,
and in the course of a few minutes Tapsell
arrived with the St. Clement Danes escape, and
by raising his ladders succeeded in rescuing one
person from the adjoining house, which was also on
fire. Hu applied the portable ladders and also the
jumping-sheet, but he was too late to render any
assistance to the persons in the oil warehouse. The
inmates, in order to escape being burnt to death,
hastened to the third floor, but instead of ()losing the
doors and waiting till the escape ladders arrived,
they made an attempt to jamp out of the windows.
One woman fell upon her head. She was picked up
alive and removed to King's College Hospital, but
she died immediately after her admission. Two
others jumped from the same floor, and they are re-
ported to be seriously injured, It is believed that
they were removed to the houses of some of the
neighbours. By half.past ten o'clock, two hours
after the commencement of the fire, it was nearly
extinguished, but not until the premises in which
the outbreak began were all but destroyed.

A Ghost Story and the late Murder at Sea

by a Gree4 Sailor,

A strange story is told in connection with the
report of the murder at sea on board of the barque
Pontiac, of Liverpool, by Jean Moyatos, a Greek
sailor, now in custody in
Edinburgh. It may be
remembered that on the 13th October last, five
days after the Pontiac left Callao, Jean Moyatos
murdered one of his fellow seamen, and stabbed
another in such a dangerous manner that his life
was despaired of. Two nights before the fatal
occurrence, the mate of the Pontiac was standing
near the man at the helm, no other person being on
the quarter-deck at the time,
when the latter in
great terror called out, " What is that near the
cabin door ?" Tb.e mate replied that he saw no-
thing, and looked about to see if anyone was near,
but he failed to discover any person, The steersman
t hen, much terrified, said the figure he saw was that
of a strange-looking man, of ghostly appearance,
and almost immediately afterwards exclaimed,
" There he is again, standing at the captain's win-
dow !" The mate, though in view of the captain's
window, saw no figure near it, nor at any
other part of the quarter-deck, though he looked
round and round. Next day the report went from
one to the other that a ghost was on board, which
filled some of the sailors with alarm, while others
made a jest of it, Next night, a boy (a stowaway)
was so dreadfully alarmed in his bunk by something.
he saw or felt (we do not know which), that he
cried out so loudly as to waken all the seamen in
bed. The boy was sure it was the ghost seen the
previous night that had frightened him ; and others
of more mature years were inclined to think so too.
Perhaps more than one half of those on board be-
lieved that something supernatural was on board
and that some calamity was about to happen. But
there were two on board who did not believe the
ghost stories, and these were the men who was
murdered and his companion who was stabbed. The
former joked with the boy about the ghost, and said
he would have his knife well sharpened and ready
for the ghost if it appeared the next night'. He
would give it a stab and " chuck"it overboard. The
latter j Aned in the joke, saying he also would
help "to do" for the ghost, and others said they
would have letters ready for the ghost to carry to
their friends in the other world. Jean Moyatos
overheard what was slid as to stabbing and throw-
ing overboard, and in consequence of his imperfect
knowledge of the English language, and having
previously supposed there was a combination against
him, thought the threats were made against him,
and therefore resolved to protect himself. A few
hours after the jesting we have briefly explained
took place, he stabbed the two men who principally
carried on the jest, with the fatal result known. The
murder,
as might be expected, filled everyone on
board with horror, and the terror of the sailora who
believed there was a ghost on board was overwhelm-
ing. At night, whether in bed or on watch on
deck, they had great dread, which was heightened
by reports that strange noises were heard below.
Not even at the end of the voyage had the fear been
overcome,
for after the ship was moored in the docks
two of the crew who had agreed to sleep on board
became so frightened after their compinione were
paid off that they refused to remain in the vessel at
night.—Seaman,