The Sun.
London, England, 1866-12-26 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, WEDNESOAY EVENING, DECEMBER 26, 1866.

SHARE MARKETS.—This day.

I Closing Business
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POLICE INTELLIGENCE.--This Day.

MARLBOROII-GII-STREET.

OUTRAGEOUS ASSAULT BY FOREIGNERS.— Charles Turen,
waiter, and Rudolph Stauffer, cook, at Epitaux's Restau-
rant, Pall Mall, were charged before Mr. Tyrwhitt with
assaulting Win. Hams, a cab driver, badge 10,402 ; and
Turen was further charged with assaulting Augustus
Giovanelli, a cab driver, badge 14,475.

Wm. Hams said that on the previous night he brought
the prisoner from the Borough to the end of the Hay-
market, and on asking for his fare Stauffer seized him by
the whiskers, and pushed him down and trampled and
jumped on him, and Turen violently kicked him, and but
for assistance coming he believe'd ho would have been
killed.

Augustus Giovanelli said that he saw the prisoner kick-
ing the last witness, and bumping his head on the pave-
ment. Ho went up and told them that it was scandalous
to beat a man in such a way, when the prisoner let go of
Hams and turned upon him (witness), Turon seizing him
by the throat with one hand, and catching hold of his
hair and forcing his head back with the other. He at last
got away, and went behind a cab so that the prisoner
should nut see him, when they camp after him and kicked
him violently, and Turen seized him by the comforter ha
was weaving so tightly that he was nearly choked. He
called to the bystanders to release him, and at last a
female came out of Epitaux's and unfastened his comforter,
and he was thus able to get away from Turen. The
prisoners then got him down, and again ill-used him. He
believed if he had not interfered on behalf of Hams that
that Hams would have been killed.

Mr. John Eisen, of Chester-street, Kennington, and a
gentleman residing in the Brompton-road, both spoke of
the prisoner's conduct as being of the most violent
description, stating it as his belief that if the bystanders
had not interfered Hams would have been killed.
Stauffer said that he offered Hams his fare and he would
not take it. . .
Rime said that was not true.

Turea said that Giovanelli attacked him first.

Giovanplli said that he had done nothing of the kind.
He merely said " Don't abuse the poor old man," and then
the prisoners attacked .him.

Dixon, 226 C, proved taking the prisoners who were
drunk into custody. - •
The only answer the prisoners made to . the charge was
that they Bid been drinking.
Mr. Tyrwhitt committed the prisoners for two months'
each with hard labour, remarking that such assaults would
never be passed over.

A NIGHT CAB-lionsE.--Alfred Sim; cab proprietor of
Savoy-wharf, Strand, appeared to answer the Complaint
of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to
Animals, of causing a horse to be tortured by being worked
while in an unfit state.

On a former day, a man in the defendant's employ was
fined 20s. for driving a horse which was in a most
wretched condition, having several sores on it, and which
it appeared was only brought out at night time.
. .

Sell, officer of the Society, said that, on asking the de-
fendant why he worked the horse, he said he knew it was
lame, but that he only worked it occasionally.
The defendant handed up a card showing that he had
the horse killed.

Mr. Tyrwhitt said that, having seen the condition of
She horse, he considered it a bad case, and fined the de-
!endant 20s. and costs.

THAMES.

A VIOLENT AND UNDUTIFUL Sox.—Dennis Lyons, a
young man, barman and manager in the service of Mrs.
Bridget Lyons, his mother, who is the landlady of the
George and Vulture public-house, Wapping-wall, Lower
Shadwen, was brought before Mr. Partridge, charged
with being drunk and disorderly, assaulting his mother,
and kicking two police constables.

Mrs. Lyons, a widow, said she did not wish to press the
charge against her son, who was tipsy when he struck
her, and was very sorry for what he had done.
Mr. Partridge asked the complainant where her son had
struck her, to which she replied, " On the head," and that
he wanted to take the liquor out of the bar to treat his
friends. She would not allow him to do so, and pushed
him out of the bar. He was then very violent, and struck
her. She begged to withdraw the charge.
Police-constable No. 847 K said he was called upon at a
quarter-past five o'clock on Christmas morning to take the
prisoner into custody. The prisoner was drunk and threat-
ened to kill his mother. He requested the prisoner to leave
the house and come with him. The prisoner refused to do
so, and said, " You are not the man to take me." The
prisoner made use of many threats and bad language, and
called for a knife. He seized the prisoner, who said, "I'll
see whether you will take me out or not," and kicked him
on the lower part of the stomach. He called a Thames
police-constable to his aid, and the prisoner struck the
policeman in the lower part of his body and hurt him very
much.

The prisoner said he was very sorry for what he done-
He had never been placed in such a position before, and
would take care this did not happen again.
Mr. Partridge said the prisoner had conducted himself
in a very. disgraceful manner, and he did not wonder at his
striking the policeman after tho brutal assault on his
mother. He was almost disposed to send the prisoner to
gaol without the option of paying a fine, but as the peni-.
tonne of the youth appeared to be sincere he should inflict
a fine of 40s. for the assault on the two police constables.
Mrs. Lyons paid the fine and liberated her son, who
spent his Christmas-day in a police cell.

The Burning of H. M. Steamer Berenice.

(From the Bombay Times.)

His Excellency the Governor's steam yacht May
Frere, under the command of Lieut. Arnott, arrived
iu Bombay harbour on Nov. 24, from Bassadore,
with the officers and crew of the steamer Berenice,
which was burned in the Persian Gulf on Oct. 31.
By arrival of the May Frere, which made one of the
quickest passages from Kurrachee on record, we have
obtained details of the destruction of the above-
named vessel, of which until now only telegraph
intimation has been received.
It appears that the Berenice left Bushire under
the command of Lieut. Dawes on Oct. 29, for the
southern part of the Persian Gulf, having on board
Lieut.-Col. L. Pelly, the Political Resident of the
Gulf, Mr. Hojel, the Assistant Resident, a party of
the 21st Native Infantry, and the usual complement
of officers and men, amounting in all to 178 persons.
Early on the morning of Oct. 31, when the Bere-
nice was between Sheik Shaaib Island and Hinde-
rabi, smoke was observed issuing from the small
hatch in the after part of the vessel which communi-
cated with the orlop deck. The circumstance was
immediatly reported to the captain, and he at once
adopted measures to ascertain its cause. The after-
hatch was raised, and a dense volume of stifling
smoke arose through the opening, nearly choking
those who stood around, and as the orlop was seen
to be full of smoke it was thought to be useless to
attempt going below to put out the fire. Mr. King,
the third officer, however, did descend to the orlop
to try to ascertain the position and extent of the
fire, but was pulled out nearly stifled. He reported
that he saw no flames, but thought that two llin.
coir hawsers, which were coiled away on the star-
board side of the orlop, were on fire ; and as the
pungent choking fumes of the smoke seemed to con-
firm this belief, the hose of the ship's donkey engine,
which had been brought aft, was directed to the spot
where the hawsers were coiled, and fire parties were
told off to work it and to throw water over the burn-
ing mass. By this time the smoke was rolling up
the hatchway in dense volumes, and owing to its
suffocating character it prevented any close ap-
proach to the scene of the fire. The after ports were
lowered to prevent draught ; but as no person could
go below to secure them inside, it was impossible to
prevent the entrance of the air, more especially as
it was found:necessary to keep the large ports open
in order that the sailors employed in trying to sub-
due the fire might have a supply of fresh air. By
some accident the first length of hose burst as it was
being attached to the engine, and was thus rendered
useless. Another was obtained ; but, although it
would fit the nozzle of the engine, it would not fit
the deck screw, so that the engine could at first ren-
der no service. Proper hose, however, was at length
fitted, and the engine got to work, but it was then
of comparatively little use. Orders were given to
flood the main deck, and strong parties of men were
furnished with buckets to throw water, and thus try
to put out the fire by another method. This work
they performed very quickly, and in half an hour
the port side of the main deck was flooded knee-
deep. The gunroom deck was then flooded in two
places, which were thought to be above the hawsers,
and water was thrown in a constant stream upon
the hawsers themselves as well as down the orlop
batch outside the main. deck. The parties of men
engaged in this work were under the command of
Mr. Fisher, the first officer, and Mr. King the third
officer; Mr. Norris, the second officer, remaining on
the bridge to direct the steering of the ship.
During the time the fire was raging, Mr. Young, the
gunner, with a party of quartermasters, cleared the maga-
zine of its contents. All the cases of gunpowder, amount-
ing to about 2,000 rounds, were brought up on deck and
thrown overboard—a work which was performed in less
than half an hour.
Shortly after the fire was discovered, the engines were
stopped, so as to cause a less draught on board the burning
vessel ; but as the smoke became more dense than ever,
Lieut. Dawes gave orders for the boats to be launched and
dropped astern. This was accordingly done, and a quan-
tity of provisions placed in the first cutter for the use of
the crews. Mrs. Shemmings, the wife of the chief engi-
neer; Mrs. Rozario, the wife of the agent at Bassadose ;
three children and three ayahs, were placed in the lifeboat,
which was also ordered to drop astern.
When the fire first broke out the wind was blowing off
shore, so that the Berenice could not be headed for the
land, as the quartermasters could not see, and could scarcely
breathe in the dense clouds of smoke which were blown
over them ; but in the course of half an hour the wind
changed to seaward, and the ship was headed for the land.
This change, of course, prevented the fire parties remain-
ing on the main deck in consequence of the smoke, so the
♦essel was kept broadside to the wind for a time, and then
again headed for the shore. It was necessary to proceed
very slowly, however, as by going fast the suction-pipe of
the hose was prevented from working.
About eight o'clock in the morning, two hours after the
fire was discovered, the smoke became much loss dense ; the
volume issuing through the hatch diminished until nothing
but steam came up, and the fire parties were able to get into
the saloon with hose and buckets. Hopes were for a time
entertained that the fire had been extinguished, when sud-
denly a dull explosion was heard below and a jot of flame
shot up through the skylight of the upper deck. In a very
short space of time the smoke increased, a volume of flames
rushed up through the skylight, and it was seen that all
hope of saving the vessel was at an end. Orders were then
issued for the men to take to the boats, and the abandon-
ment of the vessel commenced. The boats were hauled up
to the gangways and under the bows ; and the ship's com-
pany—except some of the firemen and a party of the 21st
Native Infantry, who were on deck—went on board in a
most orderly manner. Some excuse may be found for the
firemen, as they had been kept below in the engine-room
until the last moment, and on coming on dock they because
panic-stricken at seeing the great rush of flames, and
scrambled into the boats as fast as possible. As soon as the
crew had got on board, the boats pulled off to a distance
from the burning ship, except the largest gig,which was to
carry the captain and officers. Before leaving they went
round the lower and upper decks as far as they could get,
to see that no one had been loft behind; but as the fire by
this time was making great progress, Lieutenant Dawes
sent his officers into the gig, and went aft alone as far as
the funnel. At that time the whole of the after part of the
ship was in a blaze, so much so that from the spot where
ho stood ho could not see the wheel. Me thou went into
the boat, and in about half an hour after leaving the flames
had spread on all sides, and the ship was a burning mass
from stem to stern.
The boats, six in number, and containing 178 persons,
then steered for land, and shortly after sunset the whole
company landed in safety at the village of Luz, on Sheik
Shaaib Island. On the following day, Nov. 1, Lieutenan
Dawes procured a native vessel, and took them all to Nak

hila, where they obtained some provisions and clothing.
At that place the boats were loft in charge of the second
officer and a party of men, and on the 4th inst., the majo-
rity of the party went to Lingah. From that place the first
officer was sent with telegrams to Mussendom, and on the
6th inst. the others arrived at Bassadore, where an addi-
tional supply of clothing, &c., was procured. The tele-
gram reporting the disaster was received in Bombay on the
7th November, and Capt. Robinson, the superintendent
of marine, with most commendable promptitude, de-
spatched the steamer May Frere to Lieut. Dawes' assist-
ance, with a plentiful supply of such stores as the crew
were likely to want. The May Prere arrived at Bassadore
on the 16th, embarked the officers and crew, and on the
following day loft for Bombay.
The origin of the fire is merely a matter of conjecture.
Under the hatch in the after-hold some bales of hemp
which were used by the engineers, some coal baskets, and
some iron casks containing oil, had been stowed a short
time before the fire was discovered, and it is believed that
the fire broke out there. It must have spread with won-
derful rapidity, as Lieut. Dawes was in and out of the
after cabin several times between two and six o'clock on
the morning of tho 31st October, yet perceived no indica-
tions of fire. Ouo of the officers, it is said, observed that
the place near where the flames subsequently burst forth

- -
was very hot shortly before six o'clock, but nothing oc-
curred to excite suspicion until the smoke was seen coin-

rig up the hatch.

We are glad to learn that all the officers, warrant officers,
and European seamen greatly distinguished themselves on
this trying occasion. Mr. Fisher, the first officer, who was
on the sick list with fever, remained with the fire party all
the time they wore engaged, except when superintending
the hoisting out of the cutter, and continued fur a long
time in the stifling smoke which issued from the hatch
pointing the hose of the fire engine. Mr. Norris, the
second officer, and Mr. King, the third officer, rendered
most efficient service. Mr. Shemmin7s, the chief engineer,
remained in the angine-room along with the junior engi -
neers until the time when, all hope of saving the ship
being lost, the order was passed to him to blow off the
stcain and come on deck. It is most satisfactory to know
that nut a single life was lost—a result which is doubtless

duo to the intrepidity and coolness of the Europeans, as
well as to the judgment of Lieut. Dawes in ordering the
powder to be thrown overboard when the flames had be-

gun to make headway ; for had the magaziuo caught fire,
the consequence must have been calamitous.

Government has directed a court of inquiry to assemble
to hivostioto the eireuznaluacos counoctod with Ow out-
broak of the