The Sun.
London, England, 1841-12-06 00:00:00

MORNING SUN

WEST INDIES.

Her Majesty's packet, Sheldrake, Mr. Williams, Mas-
ter, R.N., commanding, (Lieutenant Morgan, who went
out in charge, having died soon after leaving St. Thomas,
on her passage homewards) arrived at Falmouth on
Wednesday night. She left Barbadoes on October 12,
St. Lucie and Martinique on the 13th, Dominique and
Guadaloupe 14th, Antigua 15th, Montserrat, Nevis, and
St. Kitt's 17th, Tortola 19th, and St. Thomas Nov. 6.
The Firefly steamer brought up her Windward Island
mails; and the Tartarus, those from Jamaica. The crews
of her Majesty's ships had for the most part been exceed-
ingly unhealthy. At Jamaica, on Nov. 1, were the Mag-
nificent, Racehorse, Electra, Comus, Vestal, Fair Rosa-
mond, and Pickle. The Sappho conveyed the Pandora's La
Guayra mail from Barbadoes, some of the steamers hav-
ing been thrown out of the line ; one, the Flamer, being
obliged to sail for Guadeloupe, being short of fuel, with-
out touching at Trinidad. The English schooner, Maid
of Erin, Incledon, had arrived at St. Lucie, and reported
having been boarded by a piratical hermaphrodite brig
north of that island, when she was plundered of provi-
sions, water, and money. The Sheldrake's passengers
were, Lieut. Wingrove, R.N., Mr. Symes, surgeon, R.N.,
Mr. Reep, purser, R.N., Capt. Fuller, 59th Regiment,
and lady, Mr. Reed, Mr. Illidge, and Miss Goldsmith.
The Crane, which followed her, having arrived on Mon-
day, her advices have, for novelty, all been enticirated.
Freight, 6,0001. A small mail of about 450 letters was
sent on shore at Falmouth on Wednesday, ex the M.
Wilhelmina, from Rio de Jaieiro of October 6. The
packet Pigeon arrived there on that day from England.
(From the Barbadoes Papers.)
We regret to understand that his Excellency the Go-
vernor is by no means in that state of health which could
be desired, and that it is not unlikely that he will be
obliged to leave this island shortly for England.
WEST INDIA CROPS.—Notwithstanding the continued
cry of dry weather, the harvest in the little island of
Barbadoes has proved anything but unproductive. From
the returns published by the Barbadian, it would appear
that of the whole crop, 16,781 hhds. 1,450 tierces and
995 barrels have been exported, equal to nearly 18,000
hhds., and from which " adding the quantity of sugar
consumed in the island (continues the same paper), and
the great consumption of the canes which have been
' sucked,' we may say the crop has exceeded 20,000
hhds." A pretty good harvest this, size and seasons
considered. Will Jamaica ship forty thousand ? We
doubt it ; and yet she has shipped three times that ;
and with equal cultivation may do so again, and more.
In Tobago also the sugar crop is still very deficient ;
that of 1841 being only 2,460 Mids. 225 tierces, and 222
brls., against upwards of 4,000 hhds. of the year preced-
ing. We have not seen the returns from the other
islands, but when we do we shall report accordingly.
The town of St. John, Antigua, seems to be a very
unfortunate and almost fated place. In addition to the
late ravages by fire, which occurred only a few months
ago, another most atrocious attempt to produce a catas-
trophe of a similar nature has just been providentially
discovered in time to prevent the full development of
the incendiary's designs. The following is the descrip-
of the occurrence by the Antigua Gazette :
" On Monday night, at a few minutes to eleven, the
springing of police rattles intimated the occurrence
1 of a conflagration in the town, which induced us to go out
for the purpose of ascertaining the locality of the fire.
Upon looking around without discovering either flames or
their reflection, we were induced to conclude that the
fire had been got under, which we soon found had been
accomplished. Finding the fire in question had com-
menced in the dwelling-house of Mr. Peter P. Walter, in
Long-street, we repaired to the spot and found a full
exemplification of the more than murderous malignity of
the incendiary or incendiaries, whose demoniac attempt
to send a whole family, consisting of twelve immortal
souls, into eternity without one moment's preparation, had
been so providentially averted by a timely discovery of a
plot which, we are persuaded, had its origin in the
hellish feeling of revenge. The plot was laid by depo-
siting two burning brands between a sofa and the wainscot
of NI r. Walter's sitting-room—and, as if determined to
glut his vengeance by a human sacrifice, the miscreant
incendiary, not satisfied with setting fire to the sofa al-
luded to, deposited in the same room—within the space
of twelve feet from the burning sofa, in a closet or cup-
board, four other burning brands and a parcel of deal
shavings—the more effectually to accomplish his diabo-
lical purpose. The discovery of the flames is attributable
to the circumstance of the rapid ignition which took
place in the sofa, on account of the inflammable materials
of which it was composed. It is supposed that the flames
would have reached the upper floor but for the great age
of the straw contained in the sofa—a family piece of fur-
niture of upwards of 40 years standing.
" His Excellency the Lieutenant-Governor adminis-
tering the General Government, as soon as he learnt the
particulars of the above incendiarism, appointed a Board
of Magistrates to investigate the circumstances connected
with the fire—but we are sorry to say that the Magis-
trates were not able to elicit any evidence calculated to
lead to a discovery of the incendiary."

ANTI-CORN-LAW.