The Sun.
London, England, 1853-07-02 00:00:00

WEST INDIA MAILS.

SOUTHAMPTON, JULY 1.
The royal mail steam-ship Magdalena, Captain Chap-
man, arrived here this morning, bringing the usual West
India and Gulf of Mexico mails, and her dates are, from
Vera Cruz June 4Port of Spain June 9
Tampico May 31iBarbadoes — 11
Havannah June 9'Grenada — 10
Nassau(Bahamas) 6',Carriacou — 10
Chagres — 6 St. Vincent — 10
Greytown (Mos- St. Lucia.. — 12
quito) —51 Martinique — 12
Carthagena — 10Guadaloupe — 12
Santa Martha May 221 Dominique ' 12
Puerto Cabello
Kingston , 10 Montserrat — 13
Jacmel — 12 Nevis — 13
San Juan — 15,St. Kitts — 13
Berbice - 8 Tortola — 14
Demerara.
Tobago — BLa Guayra .. 10
—.- - - - -

The Magdalena also brings mails from the west coast
of South America, received at Panama by the Pacific
mail steamer Lima, with dates from Valparaiso, May
15 ; Coquimbo, 16 ; Huasco, 16 ; Copiapo, 19 ; Cobija,
19 ; Iquique, 19 ; Arica, 20 ; Islay, 21; Callao, 26 ;
Payta, 29.
Among the 103 passengers by this steamer are Gene-
ral Bunbury and the Hon. Mr. Ellis, from Jamaica ;
Archbishop Scharfen and the Abbt Perrot, from St.
Thomas ; Senor Costello, Mexican Minister to London,
&c. The freight list includes specie value $995,357, or
say 200,0001. sterling, of which only a very small por-
tion is for account of the Mexican dividends. The freight
list also includes 320 serons cochineal, 152 serons indigo,
17 serons jalap, 39 chests cigars, 141 bales tobacco, 11
packages coffee, 29 bales sarsaparilla, 7 casks ginger,
packages quinine, 4 cases tortoiseshell, 10 cases suc-
cades, and a full general cargo.
The Magdalena left St. Thomas on the 16th ult., and
has made a run of little over 14 days to Southampton,
the mails being received here 12 hours before due. We
regret that the mortality on board has been very great
during the time the ship was lying at St. Thomas, and
also on the voyage, 18 cases of yellow fever having oc-
curred, of which 11 proved fatal. There have in all been
62 cases of fever and illness. Among the deaths by yel-
low fever is that of Lieut. Striven, R.N., the Admiralty
agent of the ship who was seized on the 16th and died
on the 20th ult. The remainder of the fatal cases, with
the exception of one, a passenger named Miss Rodgers,
were among the crew. The last death took place on
the 29th ult. Notwithstanding this fearful mortality,
Mr. Wiblin, the medical Superintendent of Quarantine,
granted partique to the ship, and the passengers and
cargo have been landed, the directions from the Go-
vernment authorities being, it is understood, not to
inflict quarantine cm vessels which have had no new
cases within six days previous to arrival in port. In
consequence of the raging of yellow fever in the West
Indies the officers of the Magdalena seem to dread the
idea of returning there. We are informed that the
Royal Mail Steam Company have recently allowed one
of their most experienced medical officers to quit the
service rather than allow him the assistance of a sick
nurse and a pound or two extra pay per month. The
directors seem to think that young and inexperienced
surgeons are sufficient for the "exigencies " of yellow
fever, whereas it would appear they are in duty bound
not only to obtain the services of those who are in some
measure habituated to the dread disease, but to provide
assistants and capable persons as nurses when necessary.
To show the necessity of this, we may remark, that Mr.
Symonds, the surgeon of the Magdalena, (who has been
most indefatigable in his duties) has not had one night's
rest since he left St. Thomas. The human constitution
can hardly stand such a strain as this for any length of
time, and the state of a crowded passenger steam-ship,
smitten with yellow fever and without a medical officer,
would be something frightful to contemplate. At Dr.
Symonds' suggestion, the sick on board the Magdalena
were placed in tents upon deck. Without this precau-
tion many cases of indisposition would doubtless have