The Sun.
London, England, 1853-08-01 00:00:00

WEST INDIA MAILS.

- • ' • SOUTHAMPTON; 'JULY 31.
The royal mail steam=ship-La Pinta, Captaiii.C'i
Weller, arrived here at an early. hour this morn
ing bringing the usual West India and Gulf of
Mexico. mails, in charge of Lieutenant Chatterton,
R.N„ Admiralty agent. Her dates are :
Vera Cruz July stßarbadoes July 12
Tampico — '1 Grenada • 11
Havannah lolCarriacou
11

Nassau (Bahama) 7 St. Vincent. - 11
Puerto Cabello.... 9 St. Lucia....., — 13
Santa Martha June 22 Martinique — 13
Greytown
Carthagena. — 11 Dominique l3
C
Jamaica — 11 Montserrat l4
Jacmel- — 13 Nevis
14
Porto Rico —161 St. Kitts l4
Berbice
Demerara
Tobago — 10 St. Thomas --, 17
Trinidad — 10!
La Plata also brings mails from the west coast of
South America, received at Panama by the Pacific
Steam Navigation Company's ship Bogota, which
vessel had on freight specie value $140,404 for
transmission to England, and dates from Valpa.
raiso 15t1i, Coquimbo 16th, Copiapo 17th, Cobija,
19th, Iquique 19th, Arica 20th, Islay 21st, Pisco
23d, Callao- 26th-and- -Payta 29th of. June ;
Pa-
manias July 7. , • A
Amflng the 73 passenger brought' by La Plata,
are Commander Reid, R.N., from Jamaica ; Cap-
tain Woolley, of the Royal Mail Steam Company's
ship Parana, invalided from St. Thomas. This gen-
tleman took out the mails from Southampton of
the 2d of July in the Parana, and returns to Eng-
land after a voyage to the West Indies and back of
only 28i days. Also Captain Studdart, 16th Regi-
ment, from Jamaica ; Mr. Byhan, President of
Antigua ; and Commander Rolle, from the Pacific,
with despatches for the French Government.
The freight list comprises specie from Vera Cruz,
value 73,591 dols. ; from Tampico, 15,684 dols. ;
and for account of the Mexican dividends, 15,655
dols. ; from the Pacific ports, 173,065 dols. ; from
California, 262, 097d015. ; from Carthagena, 38,749
dole. ; from Jamaica, 2,500 dols. ; and from other
parts of the West Indies, 15,305 dols. ; the total
value being 701,576 dols., or say 140,316 Z. ster-
ling, of which 613,500 dols. is in silver and 88,076
dols. in gold. The cargo consist of plata pina,
value 2,2551. sterling, 241 serons cochineal, six
serons indigo, 10 serons jalap, 212 serous bark, 66
cases cigars, 156 bales tobacco, 15 casks coffee, 36
bales sarsaparilla, seven live turtle, three cases
tortoiseshell, six cases succades, 12 packages copper
ore, and 80 packages sundries.
During the stay at St. Thomas La Plata lost four
men by yellow fever, and eight other were left at
the hospital. On the voyage home several cases of
bilious fever occurred, which were successfully
treated. The sixth engineer died of yellow fever
two days after leaving St. Thomas. Mr. Scott, the
surgeon of the ship, had a very severe attack of the
fever, and was in a precarious state at the date of
departure, but has since recoved. His medical
duties on board on the homeward passage were per-
formed by Dr. Baillie, of Demerara, a passenger.
The ship, immediately on arrival, was granted pra-
tique by Mr. Wiblin, the Inspector of Quarantine.
Although La Plata left St. Thomas one day after
the stipulated time, she has arrived at Southamp-
ton nearly 36 hours before due, and merchants in
London and the manufacturing districts will have
one clear day allowed them for replying to their
correspondence by the outward mails of the 2d inst.
by the Orinoco. A whole month is thus saved in
regard to return mails for the Gulf of Mexico,
while a fortnight is economised in the course of
post between this country and the West India
Islands, the Pacific, and Spanish Main. _

From the Gulf of Mexico there is no news of im-

portance. An attempt of General Santa Anna to
incorporate the militia and military into one force
had been resisted by the military authorities at Tam-
pico. The United States' steamer Vixen was lying
off Tampico Bar. Strenuous efforts to place the
army in a more efficient state were being made,
and several foreign officers had joined the Mexican
service,

The Barbadoes Globe of the 11th of July con-
tains the following :
"A good deal of excitement has prevailed in this
and the neighbouring colonies by the intelligence which
has reached us by the present and preceding packets as
to the intentions of the Government with regard to
the withdrawal of troops from the West Indies, and the
reduction of the Ordnance and Commissariat estab
lishments in many of the islands. The extent to
which they are to be carried has not been communi-
cated in any authentic shape, but frOm what has trans-
pired we fear that although Barbadoes will not be
a great sufferer, some of the islands will be sorely put
about in their present distressed circumstances, to pro-
vide the necessary establishments for their own protec-
tion, and will feel the loss of the expenditure to which
the proposed arrangements will lead."
The St. Vincent's Royal Gazette, of June 23,
gives the subjoined on the agricultural state of
that colony :
" Rain has fallen daily since our last ; this retards the
making of sugar, and will, we fear, injure the present
crop, however it may benefit the coming one. We have
been assured by experienced planters that the crop on
the ground exceeds that of last year, but the difficulty
of taking it off will reduce the quantity. Shipping will
be wanted shortly. At present there are but two ships
in harbour—the Glenelg and the Louisa—and they are
nearly loaded. The Hornby is expected."
The Antigua papers state that in that island the
yellow fever was very destructive. Among the
deaths recorded by this mail is that of Wm. Byam,
son of the Hon. Wm. Byam, President of the
Council of the island. The total number of white
persons seized with the disease up to the last date
was 124, of whom 29 died, while 33 coloured per-
sons had. been seized, of whom 4 died, showing a
total of 157 cases and 33 deaths. The Governor
left on the 13th for St. Kitts, his health being still
much impaired.
In Grenada occasional showers had fallen, but
the weather was excessively warm. The crop would

be finally taken off in a fortnight.
At Carriacou the weather had not been very
favourable for agriculture. The cane cultivation
still looked green, but there was no growth. The
successions of bad seasons had induced the settlers
to cultivate cotton more extensively. The island
was healthy.
Her Majesty's ship Imaum was at Port Royal,
Jamaica ' • the Buzzard and Bermuda cruizing on
the coast of Cuba for the suppression of the slave
trade ; the Espiegle in the Spanish Main ; the
Megmra transferring troops from Jamaica, Hondu-
ras and the Bahamas ; the Daring was in the Gulf
of Mexico. We regret to say that intelligence has
been received by this mail of the upsetting of one
of the Daring's boats on the bar of Tampico, when
two officers and five men were drowned. The Ca-

lypso had sailed from Barbadoes for the coast of
.Venezuela. Her departure is thus announced in
the Barbadoes Globe of the 11th of July :

"Her Majesty's ship Calypso left Carlisle Bay on
Thursday for La Guayra, to give to the British residents
at Caraccas the protection they may require in the pre-
sent disturbed state of Venezula. This step is taken in
consequence, we believe, of a requisition which was ad-
,atoyabo t t
officer on this station. When the Calypso has performed
dreased by le acting Consul-General
a: t:helelfsclenfil\,orienxaivcaol.
the service which may be required of her at Carccas, she
proceeds to Halifax for the hurricane season."
'the Royal mail steamer Parana,u witTtoabdinlatelyaise.jaafinloddr
out-
ward mails of the 2d of July, reached St. Thomar
at 3 p.m. on the 17th; the Clyde, which left South-
ampton on the 25th of June, arrived at the same
saor New York, where
lengthened b:thale bow ;
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mails from the was to leave St.
the Eagle and Esk
't
St. Thomas. The
Thomas with the. next

FLOGGING IN THE ARMY.—One of those disgusting
scenes which are so degrading to the British army took
place on Saturday, at thePortman-street Barracks, in the
presence of Colonel Angerstein and other officers belong-
ing to the second battalion of Grenadier Guards. From
information gleaned by the reporter from one who wit-
nessed the revolting spectacle, it appears that a private
soldier of the name of Lancaster, a fine young man, 20
years of age, spoke disrespectfully to one of the lance
corporals, who reported him to the commanding officer.
Lancaster was subsequently tried by a court-martial,
and was sentenced to a term of punishment which he
considered greater in proportion than the offence he had
committed. He was just being removed from the court
when he encountered his prosecutor, and, while labour-
ing under considerable excitement, Lancaster struck him
a blow, and felled him to the ground. For this offence
he was further sentenced to receive 50 lashes on his bare
back, and, in addition, to be imprisoned in the House of
Correction for four months. The first part of the sen-
tence was carried into effect on Saturday, in the mess-
kitchen of the barracks, where the halberds were fixed,
and, on the unfortunate culprit being firmly tied thereto,
he received the first.4o lashes from two drummers, each
giving him 20. A third drummer was then called in,
and administered the final dose. On being released,
Lancaster called out as loud as he could, "Bravo ! I
have stood it like a man." His great-coat was then
thrown over his bleeding bock, and he was marched off
to the hospital to have his back healed.—Dispatck.
Nux VOMICA.—A correspondent in the Lancet states
that in 1840 only 5501 b. of this poisonous and intensely
bitter drug were imported into England, whereas in
1852 nearly as many tons reached our market. He
_ wishes to know the cause of this increased consumption.