The Sun.
London, England, 1867-05-09 00:00:00

Stranding of the Ship Wnirlwind.

OFFICIAL REPORT.
To the Lords of the Committee of Privy Council

for Trade.
"My Lords,—ln
pursuance of your directions,
wehave held
an official investigation into the
stranding of the ship Whirlwind, which occurred
on the night of the 14th of February last. In this
inquiry we have been assisted by Captains Harris
and Shwave theiu.bor honour
neil ' , as nautical assessors, and we
nowto report that the Whirlwind,
a ship of 868 tons, built at Dundee in the year
1854, sailed from the Clyde on February 14, at
8.30 a.m., bound to India, with a general cargo.
She was manned by a crew of 24 hands, all told,
and was under the command of Mr. James Gar-
dyne, who holds a certificate of competency. At
7.30 p.m. they took a departure from the Corse-
well Light, bearing N.E. by E., six miles distant.
The wind at this time was from the southward and
eastward, and the ship stood to the south and
westward till 10 p.m., when the Copeland Light
bore N.N.W., distance from five to six miles.
From this position they tacked to the eastward,
and stood across the channel for the Scotch
land, heading about E. by N. Between
10 and 11.30 the . ship broke off to the
northward and eastward, and, the weather being
hazy, they suddenly discovered land. The helm
was immediately put down, but before the ship
could come round she took the ground, and did
herself considerable injury. The master put back
for the Clyde, and the ship having been repaired is
now ready for sea. In commenting upon this
casualty, we have only to observe that the master is
represented as being a good and very experienced
seamen. This was his first voyage in the Whirl-
wind, and it would appear that in tacking towards
the Scotch coast he did not make a sufficient allow-
ance for the rate at which the ebb tide was run-
ning. This, acting upon a clipper ship, put him
considerably ahead of his calculation, and the foggy
state of the atmosphere hanging about the land pre-
vented him seeing the coast till close upon it.
Soundings extend so short a distance from the laud
that they would probably have given him no warn-
ing of danger. Taking Mr. Gardyne's long service
into consideration, and the absence hitherto of any
accident, toscA,6,.. witL—tlue_high character given by
the owners and others, the Court thought a caution
would meet the merits of the case, and returned the
master his certificate.--We have, &c.,
WILLIAM M'LEAN, Jun., j.p.
JOHN J. Timm, J.-P-7 _ magistrates.

We concur---

HY. HARRIS,
THOS. A. SWINBORNE, NaIItiCaIASSCSS3TS.
Glasgow, April 24, 1867.

ETIDIOLOGICAL SOCIETY.

evening—Mr. J. Crawfurd, the president,
1
An ordinary meeting of this society was held on
iTnutel
which three papers were read. The
first was by Mr. Cullen, on ".The Indians of the
Isthmus of Darien," whose physical characters,
manners, and habits he described at considerable
length. These Indians are one of the tribes of the
Tuesday
edacyhair—at
red men in America, and they are not distinguished
by any remarkable
from others peculiarity. Hav-
ing come much in contact with Europeans they are
accustomed to fire-arms and are good marksmen,
but their most common weapons are small poisoned
arrows, which are propelled through blow
pipes
with great accuracy to a distance of 100 yards.
The animals struck by these arrows fell down ap-
parently dead within a few minutes, but it has been
ascertained that the effects of the poison may be
counteracted by a copious administration of ammo-
nia. These Indians will not part with any of the
gold dust they collect from the river beds, nor will
they sell any of the products of their country for
money, but will only barter them . for other goods.
Vegetable ivory is one of the products they dispose
of, and, from the abundance of the India-rubber tree
in that region, Mr. Cullen suggested that an im-
portant trade in that article might be carried on
with these Indians.

The second paper, " On the Civilisation of the
" withw a general view of
aS read by Mr. Jon
A.theirFir st\la
Hjaltelin,n e rs
a Icelandic
annCadtoiClvoetinsisot
first
I 1:8, settled in Iceland, in the
middle 1 celaud. He stated that
when th
of Norwegians
ninthw
egians
century, they found there the
e
remains of some previous settlers from Iceland. He
conceived that the first Icelandic colonists were
driven to that coast as a place of. refuge, and they
settled there under various chiefs, adopting to a
great extent the laws and customs then pre-
vailing in Scandinavia, which, owing to
their isolated condition, were continued to
a much later period than in more civilised countries.
Many of these laws and practices of the early set-
ters on that northern coast were described by Mr.
Hjaltelin, which were curious as exemplifying the
adaptation of the rude state of civilisation,existing
in early times in Europe to the circumstances of an
Arctic climate, and continued to a comparatively
recent period. He did not touch on the present con-
dition of Iceland until stimulated to do so by some
disparaging observations of Sir A. Dillon, who had
visited that country and spoke of it as a sterile place
of residence, without vegetation, and where life is
supported with great endurance. Even a native of
Iceland can see beauties in the land of his birth, and
Mr. Hjaltelin defended his country from these at-
tacks. Ile said that for nearly five mouths of the
year the climate is very pleasant, that he never suf-
fered more from cold there than he had done during
the last winter in
England, and that even in Febru-
ary and March it was not unusual for the inhabi-
tants to bathe in the sea. With respect to vegetation
and to the assertion that
potatoes do not grow larger
than marbles, he stated that there were larger pota-
toes in Iceland than any he had seen in this country.
The third
paper, entitled 6, Further Remarks on
the Ethnology of the Chinese," was read by Dr.
Lamprey. The first portion of it related to the pre-
valence of eye diSease in China, which Dr. Lamprey
attributed to the peculiar conformation of the eyes
of that people. He stated that, in
consequence of
the small size of their eyes, it was found very thin-
cult to perform any operations for the cure of oph-
thalmia, especially operations for cataract. In the
second part of the paper Dr. Lamprey advanced
some speculations respecting a supposed similarity
between the Chinese and the African negroes. Dr.
Lockhart, who had practised in China with Dr.
LanTrey, and spoke of the great benefits that gen-

tleman had conferred on the Chinese, differed from
him on both points. He did not think there was a
greater prevalence of eye disease in China than
there was in Egypt or India, or even in Europe,
and he dissented altogether from the supposed
affinity of the Chinese and the Africa negro. Mr.
Crawfurd also expressed himself strongly against any
such supposed affinity. With the exception of some
approximation to similarity of colour, there were no
two races, he said, more distinct in physical quali-
ties, and their languages were essentially different.
After some remarks from Dr. Donovan the meeting
adjourned to the 21st inst.

THE PUBLIC HEA L

(From the Regi4trar-Generur3 Return.)

In the week that ended on Saturday, May 4,
the births registered iu London and 12 odier large
town 3 of the United Kingdom were 4,929 ; the
deaths registered, 2,737. The annual rate of mor;
tality was 23 per 1,000 persons living.
In London the births of 1,193 boys and 1,188
girls, in all 2,381 children, were registered in the
week. In thecorresponding weeks of 10 years 1857-
66, the average number, corrected for increase of
population, is 2,106.
The deaths registered in London during the week
were 1,237. It was the 18th week of the year, and
the average number of deaths for the week is,
with a correction for increase of population, 1,373.
The deaths in the present return are less by 136
than the estimated number.

The deaths from zymotic diseases last week were
207, the corrected average number being 313: 26
deaths occurred from smallpox, 10 from measles, 19
from scarlatina, 13 from diphtheria, 36 from whoop-
ing cough, 36 from typhus, and 15 from diarrhcea.
One hundred and sixty-eight deaths were caused
by phthisis, 107 by bronchitis, 58 by pneumonia,
and 55 by heart diseas3. Marylebone, Rectory—At
the workhouse, on April 27, a spinster, aged 66
years, " effusion of serum on brain, accelerated by
want." (Inquest.) Hackney--At East London
Union Workhouse, Homerton, oa the 2d of May, a
female, aged 62 years, " exhaustion from want."
Bethnal-green, Town. —Found dead at 4, Sherwood-
plice, ou the 26th of April, the daughter of a shoe-
maker, aged 9 weeks, " congestion of brain through
exhaustion from want of proper nourishment, the
vitiated atmosphere and overcrowding of the house
in which she lived." Post mortem. (Inquest.)

The deaths of ten persons who were killed by
horses or carriages in the streets were registered :
A carrier, age 19 years, crushed by the pole of a van.
Died on the 29th of April in University College
Hospital. Post mortem. (Inquest.) A weaver,
aged 56 years, run over ; died on the 24th of April
in Brown's-lane, Spitalfields. The son of a leather
dresser, aged 6 years, run over by a cart in the Ber-
mondsey New-road ; died on the 9th of April in
Guy's Hospital. (Inquest) A van driver, aged 58
years, injury to foot from van wheel in Southwark-
street ; died on the 14th of April in Guy's Hospital.
(Inquest.) A carman, aged 63 years, injuries from
a cart tilting on him at Blackheath ; died on the
24th of April in Guy's Hospital. Post mortem.
(Inquest.) An omnibus driver, aged 62 years, fell
from an omnibus ; died on the 15th of April in St.
Thomas's Hospital. (Inquest.) The son of a la-
bourer aged 8 year!, kicked by a horse ; died on the
29th of April at 4, Charter's-cottages, Clapham.
Post mortem. (Inquest.) A labourer, aged 78 years,
fell from a cart; died on the 23d April at 2, Miles-
villas, Hyde-grove, Battersea. (Inquest.) The
daughter of a labourer, aged 1 year, run over ; died
on 24th of April, at Fairy's-buildings, Deptford.
(Inquest.) A baker, aged 38 years, thrown from
a cart ; died -on the 30th of April, in Evelyn-street,
Deptford. (Inquest.)
The annual rate of mortality last week was 21 per
1,000 in London, 24 in Edinburgh, and 24
in Dublin, 19 in Bristol, 19 in Birmingham,
26 in Liverpool, 27 in Manchester, 26 in Sal-
ford, 25 in Sheffield, 26 in Leeds, 22 in Hull, 28
in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and 31 in Glasgow. The
rate in Vienna was 36 per 1,000 during the week
ending the 27th lust , when the mean temperature
was 8.7 deg. Fahrenheit lower than in the same
week in London, where, the rate was 22.
At the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, the mean
height of the barometer in the week was 29.779 in.
The barometrical reading increased, from 29.41 in.
at the beginning of the week to 30.00 in. on Fri-
day, May 3. The mean temperature of the air
in the week was 51.5 deg., which is 1.7 deg. above
the average of the same week in 50 years (as de-
termined by Mr. Glaisher). The highest day
temperature was 68.4 deg. on Friday, May 3.
The lowest night temperature was 35.3 deg. on
Sunday, April 28. The entire range of temperature
in the week was, therefore, 33.1 deg. The mean
of the highest temperatures of the water of the
Thames was 52.5 deg. ; that of the lowest was 49 6
deg. The difference between the mean dew-point
temperature and air temperature was 8.8 deg.
The mean degree of humidity of the air was 73,
complete saturation being represented by 100.
Rain fell to the amount of 0.22 in., of which 0.19
in. fell on Tuesday, April 30 ; on the same day
distant thunder was heard in the smith several dines
between 3.5 p.m. and 3.20 p.m. The general direc-
tion of the wind during the week was variable.
According to a return furnished by the engineer of
the Metropolitan Board of Works, the average daily
quantity of sewage pumped into the river Thames
at the Southern Oatfall Works, Crossness, was
45,136,124 gallons, or 205,074 cubic metres, equi-
valent to about as many tons by weight.
Loch Latrine water is an instance of the purest
water in actual use in a great city; in 100,000 parts
there are only three parts of extraneous stuff ; ex-
cept this all is water.

The London waters of April contained, accord-
ing to Dr. Frankland's analysis, in 100,000
tons about 29 tons of extrancouS matters
of various kinds ; the proportions ranging from
26 tons (New River) to 40 tons (Kent). The East
London, New River, and West Middlesex were the
softest, the Kent was the hardest, the other waters
were intermediate. The proportion of carbon and
nitrogen was equivalent to that supplied by quan-
tities of sewage ranging from 1,945 to 3,155 tms
in every 100,000 tons of water. The Kent water is
altogether the worst sample of the eight. It is
gratifying to learn that, as far as chemistry can
determine, the original sewage contamination had
been converted before delivery in the April waters
into comparatively innocuous compounds.