The Sun.
London, England, 1857-08-03 00:00:00

THE W.E3T INDIA MAILS.

The Royal Mail Company's steamer Parana,
Capt. Bevis (Admiralty agent Lieut. Cartwright,
R.N.), arrived at Southampton on Saturday, with
the West India, Pacific, and Mexican mails. Her
dates were Tampico, June 30 ; Vera Cruz, July 5 ;
Havaunah, 10 ; Santa Martha, 7 ; Greytown, 5 ;
Carthagena, 11 ; Chagres, 9 ; Jamaica. 12 ; Hayti,
13 ; Porto Rico, 15 ; Deraerara, 10 ; Tobago, 9 ;
Trinidad, 10; Barbadoes, 22; Grenada, 11; Cariacoa,
10 ; St. Vincent, 11 ; St. Lucia, 13 ; Martinique,
13 ; Guadaloupe, 13 ; Antigua, 14 Dominique, 14 ;
Montserrat, 13 ; Nevis, 13 ; St. Kitts, 14 ; Tor-
tola, 14 ; St. Thomas, 16 ; La Guayra, 6.
Her cargo comprises silver and gold to the value
of $2,169,363, on merchant account. The whole
of the cargo was contained in upwards of 700 pack-
_ _ _

-The Parana brought home 121 saloon passengers,
amongst whom were the SpAnish Admiral Quesada,
Mr. Cerrai, the Venezuelan envoy to France, and
Mr. lle,se, the charge d'aTaires from Prussia to
New Grenada.

The yellow fever is believed to have been at its
worst in the West Indies, and a change for the bet-
ter was thought to be approaching. The Parana
had 30 cases, and only three deaths, the last of
which happened on the 2Gth

Messrs: Obree and Williamson, belonging to the
Custom-house department, and Surgeons Wiblin
and Durautoy, the health department, went
down Southampton Water to meet the Parana, and
after putting the commander and surgeon of the
ship on their oaths as to the sanitary state of the
crew and passengers, the Parana was admitted to
yr at i clue.

The comparatively healthy state of the ship is at-
tributed to Capt. Bevis hauling her off from the
coal wharf at St. Thomas at night, and getting out
beyond the confines of the harbour, and only going
alongside the insalubrious wharf just long enough
to coal. Admirable arrangements were also made
by Dr. Finlay, the surgeon of the Parana, for
thoroughly ventilatiag her. Although a ch.inge
for the better as far as regards the health of the
West India shipping is believed to be on the eve
of taxing place, the yellow fever was still very
bad amongst the shipping at the Antilles. The
Spanish line-of-battle ship ' at Havannah had
already lost forty hands from it, and all the
Spanish fleet was unhealthy. The royal inter-
colonial ship Dee still suffered from yellow fever ;
sines the last despatches, Mr. Moresby, sth
officer, a quartermaster, and a German passenger
ha f been sent ashore from the Dee at St. Thomas's
hospital, and had died there. At Mexico black
vomit was very prevalent.
The Clyde left Barbadoes on her way to St.
Thomas healthy, but within three days the yellow
fever broke out on board of her, and one person,
struck with the yellow fever, was.put ashore at St.
Kitts, and two persons died on board of her. The
yellow fever had not Leen so prevalent or so fatal
in the West Indies for five years—a collier had lost
nearly all hands, the captain, mate, and nearly all
the crew having died from it.
It is fully expected that when the new coaling
arrangements of the Royal Mail Company are in
operation at St. Thomas, the homeward mail
steamers will arrive at Southampton much healthier
than they have ever done hitherto. Neither the
blacks, creoles, nor any Europeans who have been
long in the West Indies, although they may be in ill
health, ever get the yellow fever, but persons fresh
from Europe, if they are even slightly indisposed,
catch it invariably at St. Thomas. This shows that
much depends upon acclimatisation.
H.M.S. Brilliant was at Grenada, the Orion at
Jamaica, the Monarch (Admiral Bruce) at the
Chinca Islands ; the Arab was on her way home.
The Tartar was at Colon ; the Cockatrice at Callao ;
the Falcon was proceeding to Bermuda;theArachne
was on a cruise, and the Termagant (Commodore
Kellett) was proceeding to Jamaica.
From the West India Islands there is no news of
importance. The crops are rather over the aver age.
The planters are prosperous, and in good spirits.
Estates are in great demand, and when one is to be
sold a dozen persons are competing for it.
In the Jamaica markets the excitement noticed in
the intelligence by the last mail has almost entirely
subsided, and operations have been caufined, with
but few exceptions, to sales for retail. Excepting
flour, which is still exclusively in the hands of spe •
culators' the market for breadstuffs looks more
healthy than previous accounts. Thera is nothing
offering in freights. Logwood remains scarce, and
is worth 525. per ton. Large re-sales of rice have
been made. Sales of rum are reported at ss. per
gallon. The small quantities of sugar offering have
been taken at 335. 6d. to 365. per 1601bs. Exchange
as last quoted.
In the island of Trinidad an extsnsive coal mine
has been discovered, and the specimens promise
well. Gold has also been found there. Labour is
much wanted in Trinidad. In consequence of the
discovery of c3al there, several merchants have
come to England in the Parana, to seek assistance
from the Government in making railroads and get-
ting labourers.
The Port of Spain Gazette (Trinidad) of the 17th
ult. give some accounts from the newly discovered
gold fields, viz.:—
By a vessel from Uracoa (orAraguao of the maps) some
distance in twig side Barancas, which arrived here on
Tuesday morning, further indirect intelligence has been
received frame the gold fields. Not only intelligence has
been brought, indeed, but a number of specimens of the
auriferous quartz. We have been kindly favoured with
a couple of these specimens, and if we can succeed in
getting them properly awayed we will furnish a notion
of ther value. In a private letter to a merchant in town
the diggings are stated to be still in gond repute at Lira-
cop, whence the letter is dated on the 10th June. It is
also affirmed that some of the first in the field " have
obtained already as much as 12,000 dole. worth of this
precious metal." It seems that the metal is now be-
coming difficult of extraction, and will require powerful
machinery to_ work it, although on the authority of
French adventurer from California the gold is said to 1••
as abundant as it was there in the quartz. Doubts are
tl row-n upon the correctness of the unfavourable
report of Dr. Plasar, to which we adverted the
other day, on the grounds that he is interested and dis-
-nointed in efforts that he has been making for several
years to obtain possession of the tract of the country in
mines are situated. From inquiries of one of
which ,
-re by the vessel the reported want of
those who ca.-. ' • but by those well acquainted with
water is C"lle4 ^,l drawback is ridiculed as ab.
the country this suppne, —lege the country in every
surd, as streams of water perm_
direction.
Iu Demeram, the Court of Policy bas

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