The Sun.
London, England, 1839-12-16 00:00:00

TEXAS.

(From the New York Courier and Enquirer).
By the steamer Columbia, the editors of the New
Orleans Bulletin have received dates to the Bth
from Galveston, and to the 4th from Houston. The
yellow fever had committed frightful ravages in the towns
above-mentioned ; in consequence, many of the citizens
had fled into the country. The shipping at Galveston
experienced serious injury from a heavy gale of wind
that occurred on the sth instant.

The storm lasted during three days. Its violence was
so great as to drive ashore all the vessels in port, includ-
ing three steam-boats. Emigrants were pouring into
Texas in large numbers. Arrivals at Galveston, from
New York, recently, had brought upwards of one hun-
dred families of German settlers, who intend to locate
in a colony somewhere in the upper country. A still
larger emigration is expected from England the ensuing
winter• and spring. A dinner was given to President
Lamar on his arrival at Austin, the new seat of Go-
vernment.

His reception there was spoken of as quite flatter-
ing. A new town has recently been laid out on Ar-
kansas Day. The Texas Sentinel is the title of a new
paper to be established at Austin. No Indian disturb-
ances had occurred for a considerable length of time.
A company of men were recently despatched from Gal-
veston to Austin, to be stationed at some remote out-
posts on the Indian border ; and measures were in
progress to secure an adequate defence for all the ex-
posed points on the frontier.

WRECK OF THE SCOTIA.

NARRATED BY DR, MADDER, ONE OF THE PASSENGERS

BY THE ROSCHIS.

Fifth of December, p.m., fell in with the wreck of the
Scotia, bound trona Quebec to Glasgow, burden 600
tons, loaded with timber, water-logged, in latitude 46,
longitude 32 30. On seeing signals of distress flying,
we altered our course and bore down on her, and on the
Roscius approaching approaching her, Captain Collins
hailed her : the answer was, " We are water-logged—
seventeen feet water in her hold !" The prompt reply
of Captain Collins was," If you want to come on board
put out your boats." A cheer from the people of the
sinking vessel followed ; such a cry as men in desperate
circumstances alone could utter, and that thrilling cry
went up as the simultaneous shout of men in the ex-
tremest peril suddenly restored to life and hope, and in-
stantly every hat and cap was seen waving on the
crowded poop.
An effort was now made to approach us, but the
water-logged vessel was utterly unmanageable—she
pitched heavily, as if she would have gone down head-
long, the seas swept over her, and as she rose poured
through her broken ports. Her mizentop mast, and
fore and maintop gallant masts had been cut away to
ease her, and the poop deck where the crew were con-
gregated seemed the only place of safety left them.
In attempting to near us she came staggering down
on us, and we were compelled to make sail to get out of
her way. The sea was very heavy—we again lay to,
and were then about a mile from the Scotia. Night
came on, and no boats were seen—the unfortunate Sco-
tia was then lost sight of altogether. About six o'clock
Captain Collins hoisted a lanthern, and the light was
immediately answered by the Scotia ; it was the opi-
nion of Captain Collins that one of their boats had put
off and had been swamped in attempting to reach us,
and that the survivors had determined to wait till
morning before another attempt was made. It
seemed, indeed, doubtful in the extreme if any small
boat could live in such a sea. It is impossible suffi-
ciently to commend the conduct of Captain Collins, his
anxiety to reach Liverpool before the steamer which
was to have sailed six days after us made every moment
of importance, we bad moreover 70 steerage passengers
and 21 in the cabin, and to forego taking advantage of
a fair wind, and to lay to for a night in a heavy sea,
with every appearance of a heavy gale, was a determi-
nation which I greatly fear many a master of a ship
would have found great difficulty in coining to. Capt.
Collins, however, made this resolution promptly, and
without any expression of impatience at the detention it
occasioned. His only observation was "We must stay
by the poor devils at all events till morning—we can't

leave them to perish there, d—n it." May we not hope
when " the accusing spirit flew up to Heaven's chan-
cery with the oath, and blushed as he gave it in, the
recording angel as he wrote it down, dropped a tear
upon the word, and blotted it out for ever."
At seven p.m. cheering was heard in the direction of
the Scotia ; the people, we supposed, had taken to the
boats, and had then left the sinking vessel. In the
course of an hour, or rather less, the long-beat of the
Scotia, filled with men, was on our lee quarter. By
the admirable arrangements which were then made
by Captain Collins for rescuing them, the men were
taken on board without the least accident. This boat
brought 18 ; the Captain and five men had still re-
mained on board, and were preparing to put off in the
jolly boat. No little anxiety was felt for the safety of this
small boat ; in the course of half an hour however she

was seen, and with two oars only she gained the Roscius,
and the Captain and his five men were soon taken on board.
To the credit of the poor master of the Scotia, be
it observed, that he, Captain Jeans, was the last man
to leave the sinking ship. The anxiety expressed by
the men who came in the first boat for the safety of
their Captain ; and, indeed, the terms in which the
whole of his people, then and subsequently spoke of
Captain Jeans, showed how highly he was respected
and esteemed by his crew, and if he had not been so,
he would probably not have kept his ship afloat so long
as he had done. Nor was the anxiety of Captain
Jeans for the safety of his crew, less manifest ; the first
question he asked on coming on board the Roscius was,
" Are all my people safe ?" The captain and crew were
all Scotch, and their conduct throughout reflected no
discredit on their country.
When they came on board they were worn out with
continual exertion. The men had been night and day at
the pumps since the previous Tuesday, but, exhausted
as they were, they immediately turned to, and with
one accord went on deck and did duty with our crew ;
and no sooner were the boats cast adrift, than there
was ample occasion far their services—a violent gale
from the north-east set in, which must rendered it
utterly impossible for the people to have taken to their
boats, and the violence c.f which on the following day
must have been inevitably fatal, for it 'would *lave been
impossible to have kept the pumps going and the sea
already, even before the gale from the north-east set in,
was making a clear breach over her, and threatening
to carry away her poop-cabin, the last place of refuge
left the poor people of the Scotia, except the top,
where they had already stowed water and provisions, in
the momentary expectation of being compelled to aban-
don the deck—and thus providentially were twenty-four
human beings preserved from a watery grave.

LETTER FROM THE MASTER OF THE SCOTIA TO
CAPTAIN COLLINS.

Liverpool, Dec., 1839.
Sir,—On behalf of myself and crew, I beg leave to
express to you the heartfelt gratitude we feel for the
assistance you rendered to us when, on the sth instant,
the vessel I commanded, the Scotia, bound from Que-
bec to Greenock, being waterlogged, and myself and my
people worn out with continual exertion (and still, un-
fortun: tely, unable to keep her free), you promptly con-
sented to take us off, and thereby rescued us from cer-
tain death. For all the kindness and generous treat-
ment we have sub!equently received from you, we thank
you from our hearts, and in the prayers of ourselves and
families you never can be forgotten.
I am, Sir, most gratefully yours,
To Captain John Collins, JOHN JEANS.
Packet ship Roscius, of New York.

Every country Paper almost which reaches us is
full of the
agitation which is preparing on the
Corn-laws.
This is as it should be. Let no other
topic be suffered to interfere with the abolition of
those laws : so will the Legislature be convinced
that at length the sufferings of the people have
made them dreadfully in earnest, and the righteous-
ness of their cause will ensure them complete success.
At Manchester the Guardian says there is to
be a public meeting, which, last year, owing to the
success of the Tories in working on the Char-
tists, could scarcely be held, but which this
yearrit]m will,il n t we.
The labouring classes are at length,
tie to Lila ifijury CIR.)
asutlert presume, be most numerous and
sutler from
the Coo Pren ia
Corn-laws,
.')u
s, iancrltto the duty of agitating for the