The Sun.
London, England, 1862-04-09 00:00:00

TO TUE RIGHT HONOURABLE THE LoRDS Or rmvy COUNCIL

FOR TRADE.

My Lords,—ln pursuance of your directions con-
veyed to me through Mr. William Pugh Gardner,
collector of customs for the port of Dublin, I pro-
ceeded to hold an official inquiry into the circum-
stances attending the abandonment of the barque
Sultan, on the morning of the 9th March last,
within about 300 miles of the Irish coast, in lat. 48
20, long. 16 36, having been assisted therein by
Captain Loftus Robinson, R.N., as nautical assessor.
The inquiry was conducted on behalf of your lord-
ships' honourable board by Mr. 011)owd ; the mas-
ter, J. W. Steele, not having had any professional
adviser. Several witnesses, a copy of whose evi-
dence is herewith transmitted, were examined in
the course of the investigation, and as the result
thereof I find and beg leave to report :—That the
Sultan sailed from Guyachan, in Bolivia, South
America, on the 19th of Otober, laden with guano,
and on the 23d arrived at Arica for fresh water,
and having obtained a supply thereof proceeded
thence on her homeward voyage for Liverpool on
the 29th of the same month. The voyage was
prosperous, and the weather pretty fair, till
after she had rounded Cape Horn, when it became
unsettled and squally, and on the night of the 6th
of January, erroneously described, as appears by the
log-book, by the several witnesses, as the night of
tho 6th, a violent squall suddenly struck the chip
with such overwhelming force as nearly to throw
her on her beam-ends, straining her so seriously that
she immediately began to make a considerable quan-
tity of water. With reference to this squall, it
appears that all necessary measures had been taken
to guard against it, and although its advent was not
indicated by lightning nor by any warning, save a
darkness or thickening to windward, yet the know-
ledge of his being then is a squally latitude had
induced the master to rigidly enforce the precaution
amongst others of always having hands by the top-
sail, or topgallant haulyards, as the case might be.
I therefore exonerate him from all culpability on
'account of the disaster on the sth of January. I
Shall now pass over the period from the 6th of Jan.
to the morning of the 9th of March, with only one
remark relative to the pumps, which appear not to
have been not only constantly worked with zealous
perseverance by the crew, but were rendered fur-
ther serviceable by a very ingenious machine con-
structed by the master and carpenter, which afforded
from time to time the most opportune and efficient
aid, and likewise evinced the great anxiety felt by
the master for the safety of his ship. On the morn-
ing of the 9th of March the Sultan was abandoned,
and, taking into account all the circumstances of the
case—the crew worn out and exhausted, their num-
ber diminished by sickness, the ship gradually set-
tling down, and the pumps refusing to suck, with
three feet of water in the hold, and the cargo satu-
rated with water to a depth not ascertainable, it
having been over the surface of some parts of the
cargo, I consider that the master, instead of in-
curring censure for the abandonment, would
have been open to the greatest reprehension
for a glaring tisk of human life had he
declined to avail himself of the means of rescue
so providentially afforded by the American
barque T. B. Bartram. As regards the master
of this barque, Mr. Harford Nicholls, I trust my
lords will not consider me out of place in here
alluding to his most humane and praiseworthy
conduct. lie 4a9 on his voyage from New York to
Dublin with a cargo of corn, and on the evening of
the Bth of March, having descried a Bug of distress
from the Sultan, he immediately bore down on her,
apply.) her, and, at the request of the master, he
stayed his course, and cheerfully consented to stand
by, and did stand by, the distressad ship all night.
On the following morning he again approached
tho sinking vessel, when he most kindly received
her master and crew on board his ship, and having
considerately supplied their wants, and ministered
to their comforts in every way, safely landed them
them at Kingstown on the 14th ult. I could not
venture to add anything in the way of comment or
eulogy to the simple narrative of 2uch conduct, and
I am perfectly satisfied it will be fully appreciated
by your lordships.—l have, &c,,
3. W. O'DoNNELL.
I concur, LOFTUS ROBINSON.
Dublin Local Marine Board, Custom-house,
Dublin, April 20