The Sun.
London, England, 1865-08-05 00:00:00

PRICE 4d.
S TAMPED sd.

The Loss of the Invercauld on a Desert
Island.

NARRATIVE OF THE MATE.
The following is the narrative of the mate of the Abe-
rdeen ship Invercauld, the loss of which on a desert island
has already been reported in our Columns. The mate,
who is one of the sole survivors, after thanking God that
he has been spared, and has an opportunity of writing his
wife again, says :

"I will give a slight detail of my troubles, and how I
have suffered from hunger, thirst, and cold. We lost the
Invercauld on the 10th May, 1864. The island we were
wrecked on is called the Auckland Island. It lies about
150 miles south of New Zealand. We were driven on it by
a severe gale of wind. There were 19 of us got on shore
out of 25, and we were on shore but a short time when
the ship went to pieces. She was driven in between two
very high cliffs. I sappose they were not less than 3,000
feet high.
"We stopped at this spot for five days, but all the provi-
sians driven in from the wreck was only about 21b. of bread
and as much of pork. lam glad to say, however, that there
was,a sort, of root.which we dug out of the ground, and
what with this and water we tried to satisfy our hunger
When we commenced to climb to the top of the cliffs, one
of the crew was unable to accompany us, and we found
that he died the day after. The rest succeeded in gaining
the top, but all very much exhausted. I myself was hardly
able to walk, and having no shoes, it was very uncomfort-
able, especially as there was frost and snow on the top.
"We began to • travel across the island, and five of
our men went after some wild pigs which we saw, and
I am glad to say they managed to catch one of them.
We travelled all that day, and about dark began to
light a fire for the night, and then had a little of the pig
which was caught. It was a very small one. We then
made up a good fire and lay down for the night ; but,
notwithstanding the fire, it was very cold. We started
next day, and travelled along with great difficulty.
We arrived that night on the other side of the island,
but not before another of our company had died of cold
and hunger. We here made a sort of shelter for our-
selves, and lived on the spot for twenty-one days on
nothing but roots and water. Seven of our company
went back to the wreck, but they never came back, and
we never saw anything more of them. Other four and
I made for the beach, with great difficulty, through the
thick bush ; and we were rejoiced to find plenty of shell-
fish. We sent one of our party back for the remainder,
sending a few of the shell-fish with him; and he found
two more had died the day after we left. The others came
along with him.
"We here made a sort of shelter for ourselves, and
began to look about the rocks for what we could get to
eat. We stopped here for six or seven days. A party
of five of us made for the next bay, where we found
traces of human beings, and the places they had lived
in. These we found very comfortable. There were also
plenty of shell-fish in this bay. One of our party went for
those we had parted from. We were now all getting very
weak. lam glad to say we now caught a seal, which was
of great service to us.
"We now began to make a sort of raft to carry two or
three of us, and about 20 days after we got another seal,
but between these times several of our party died of star-
vation. These were James Sansfield, George Liddlo, and
a few more whose names I cannot tell. The carpenter died
I think about Sept. or October. Little Johnnie and the
oldest apprentice were drowned at the time of the wreck.
Other two and I now commenced to go further along to-
wards the point of the island, and there we found another
seal and plenty of fish. Three of us lived for three weeks
on this point of the island, when one left to induce the
others to join us, but never returned, and some time after
the captain joined us, and we three were the sale survivors
of the 19.

"I never thought of getting off the island, and as I
wandered about the rocks looking for shell-fish, I often
thought of you and our dear little ones, while I was
frequently so faint with hunger that I was scarcely able
to walk. The seal meat was the only moat that did us
good. Sometimes they were plentitul, and sometimes it
would be throe or four weeks betwixt our times of catch-
ing them. We dried their skins, and made shoes and leg-
gings of them. We also made a small boat out of the seal-
skins. It carried two of us, and we used to go to the
other islands to seek for seals. There are two or three
islands close together with plenty of seals upon them, but
it was only on fine days that we could go in the same boat.
We now, however, built a boat of wood that carried all
three of us, and in it. we removed to another island where
there were quantities of rabbits, but could only get such
of them as had been killed by the hawks. We got on pretty
well here, having plenty to eat ; and here we built a house,
and endeavoured to make ourselves as comfortable as pos-
sible. In many parts of the islands there were human
traces, and the appearance of a good deal of work having
been done, and this encouraged us to look anxiously for
the coming of some whaler or sealer—but no ! At length,
on the 10th May, the Portuguese ship Julian from China to
Callao being very leaky made for the island, expecting to
find some means of getting repairs. We were taken on
board of her, and treated very kindly, and have now (25th
June) reached Callao in safety, &c."
The Aberdeen Free Press says:—" As indicated, twenty-
two lives were lost by the wreck of the Invercauld—six at
the time of striking, and 16 subsequently from starvation.
The saved were—Captain Dalgarno, Mr. Andrew Smith,
the mate, belonging to Aberdeen, and Thomas Holding,
seaman. Of those who were lost and died, five only be-
longed to Aberdeen, whose names are—Alexander Hen-
derson, carpenter, a married man, of very excellent cha-
racter, and who has left a wife and one child ; and four
boys, viz., Wm. Middleton, George Liddle, jas.Lancefield,
and John Wilson. The deaths of all these are mentioned
by Capt. Dalgarno. The rest of the crew had been shipped
at Melbourne, and none of them, it is believed, belonged
to Aberdeen." •

RECENT WILLS AND BEQUESTS.

(From the Illustrated London News.)

The will of Field-Marshal the Duke do Coigny, a peer
of France, who died in May last, at Paris, possessed of
property in England estimated at £lB,OOO, was proved in
London on the 18th ult:, by his relict, the Duchess de
Coigny, daughter of Sir Hew Dalrymple Hamilton, Bart.,
the sole executrix. To her ladyship he has bequeathed the
whole of his property, real and personal, so far as the law
of France permits him so to do. The will is in the French
language, and bears date the 21st of July, 1860, and is
translated into English.
The will of the Right Hon. John Constantine do Courcy,
Baron Kingsale, formerly of Lea Castle, Wolverley, but late
of Eaton-square, was proved in London, on the 15th ult.,
by his relict, the Right Hon. Adelaide de Courcy, Baroness
Kingsale, only daughter of J. P. Brown Westhead,
Esq., late M.P. for the city of York. Lord Kingsale suc-
ceeded to the title on the death of his father, in 1847 ;
married in 1855, and died at the age of 337 having executed
his will in 1864, leaving his estates, real and personal, to
his wife, the Baroness; absolutely, appointing her guardian
of the person and estate of his daughter. The deceased
nobleman ranked as premier Baron of Ireland. The crea-
tion of the English barony by tenure dates from the Con-
quest ; the Irish barony in 1181. The Barons Kingsale
have the ancient privilege, by Royal grant from King
John, of remaining covered in the presence of the British
Sovereign. The present Lord Forester's father had a
similar grant from Honry VIII.
The will of Sir David Davies, M.D., K.C.H., of 2,
Berkeley-street, Piccadilly, was proved in the London
Court, on the 2nd ult., by the executors and trustees,
Messrs. R. and S. H. Twining, bankers. The personalty
was sworn under £20,000. The testator was physician to
William IV. and the late Queen Dowager. His will is
dated 1857, and he died on the 2nd of May last, at Lucca,
Italy, at the age of 72. Sir David has devised his real
estates to his son Robert, of the Bengal Civil Service; and
leaves to his youngest son, the Rev. W. H. Davies, M.A.,
a legacy of £B,OOO. To his niece, Mrs. Jane Morgan, he
leaves a life-interest in £2,000, with reversion to his
gi anddaughter, Annie Davies, for her life, and afterwards
to her issue, and appoints his two sons residuary legatees.
The will of the wealthy Richard Thornton, of Old Swan
wharf, London-bridge, and of Cannon-hill, Merton, Surrey,
has now been proved in the principal registry. The follow-
ing are some of the main features :—The personalty in this
country was sworn under £2,800,000, as previously stated in
this journal. The executors and trustees appointed are his
nephews, Thomas Thornton and Richard Thornton West;
his sister, Mrs. Ellen Simpson, widow ; Richard Napoleon
Leo and Alfred Pulford, and they are the principal legatees.
Ho leaves to his nephew Thomas Thornton all his freehold
and leasehold estates, and to his nephew Richard Thornton
West he leaves £300,000, and appoints them residuary lega-
tees. To his sister, Mrs. Simpson, £lOO,OOO ; to Ellen, wife
of Alfredrulford, £300,000 for life, and then to her husband
and children; to Richard Napoleon Lee, £400,000; to Mar-
garet and Elizabeth Leo, each £lOO,OOO ; to his nieces,
Agnes Gibson and Ellen Thornton, each £30,000; to the
widow of his deceased nephew, Robert West, £20,000; to
his nephews Richard Thornton and Edmund Thornton
each £10,000; to his nephews William and Joseph Devy,
each £10,000; to his clerks Joseph Browne and John L.
Neall, each £20,000; to his nurse, £1,000; and to each of
his other servants, £5OO. To the Leathersellers' Com-
pany, £5,000; Christ's Hospital, £5,000; to Hethering-
ton's Charity for the Blind, £lO,OOO ; to the Schools at
Merton, £lO,OOO ; and to the poor of Merton, £l,OOO. To
the schools at Burton and Thornton, £10,000; and to the
poor of Merton, £5OO. To the twenty-four following in-
stitutions, each £2,000 :—namely, St. Thomas's, St. Guy's,
Bethlehem, St. Luke's, Orthopaedic, Magdalen, St. Mark's,
Incurables, Dreadnought, Consumption, Victoria Park ;
city of London Truss, Deaf and Dumb, Blind, Asylum for