The Sun.
London, England, 1850-10-23 00:00:00

ADVENTURE on the COAST of BRAZIL.

(From the Hereford Times.)
We have been favoured with a sight of the follow-
ing very interesting letter, addressed to the late
Joseph Bailey, jun., Esq., the late lamented represen-
tative for Herefordshire, from his brother, Lieutenant
John Bailey, R.N., who is at present employed in the
Slave-trade Suppression Squadron on the South
American coast. It will be seen that he has been re-
cently eugnged in what he very aptly calls " ticklish
work." The exploits of which he gives this stirring
yet unaffected detail appear to have been of a truly
gallant and daring character :

"Rio, June 28.
My dear Joe,—l have got much to tell you, and
hope it may lead to promotion, and therefore this
letter is almost, I may say, a business one. When I
was ordered out to Brazil, Admiral Dundas wrote to
me saying he hoped I should take many slavers, and
get my promotion for so doing, as Crofton of the
Rifleman has. The Rifleman has been out here
eighteen months, and has taken three empty and one
half full slaver. I had only been on the station five
days when I captured my third ; the last of which
was from within pistol shot of a battery manned and
loaded. We arrived off Rio on the 18th of June,
and in sight of the Barbour captured a slaver. We
then went in to report ourselves to the admiral, re-
plenish, and provision after our long passage ; but, as
the admiral was cruising outside, I was ordered out
again immediately to report myself, and at the same
time to destroy the slaver, which was not in a fit state
to go to sea : we sunk her that night. Whilst
looking for the admiral on the night of the 20th we
captured a second slaver, and she being a fine sound
vessel dispatched her to St. Helena, for adjudication.
We then returned to Rio ; but, being informed where
the admiral was, again went in quest of him imme-
diately, found him that morning, viz., the 221 It
had hitherto been unlawful to take slave vessels out of
Brazilian ports, but I had brought out dispatches for
the admiral, ordering him to take them out of their
ports when it could be done without successful re-
sistance being opposed. Now, it was a strange thing
that I had that morning obtained information of a no-
torious fellow lying in a port about eighty miles off,
and at once obtained the admiral's leave to go
and take the first shine off the new order. Mind
you, it was ticklish work ; for Mr. Hudson,
the British Minister at the Brazilian Court,
tells me nothing could be better as it has ended;
but that, if blood had been drawn between the
Brazilian troops and my men, the whole responsibility
would be thrown on my shoulders. As we had not
been more than half an hour in Rio, we had not had
time to re-victual, water, or coal, and had therefore
only half a day's water, two days' bread, and about
fifteen tons of coal remaining; we, therefore, went on
two pints of water a day, and started on our mission.
I arrived off the port of Macahi at half-past three
P.M. on the 23d. We observed our friend moored,
with four stout chain cables, ready for sea, and within
pistol shot of an eight gun battery, and lying imme-
diately under the guns. The boats were sent to exa-
mine her, who found no captain or papers, but a re-
gular slave deck, and the beach was crowded with
ruffians, banging off muskets in all directions. Whilst
the officer was searching, a body of soldiers marched
into the battery and loaded the guns; my young
officer not knowing exactly how to act, therefore,
dropped his prizs and returned for further orders. I
therefore went away in a four-oared boat to speak to
the commandant of the battery, and see if it was
practicable to get her out. It was now dusk, and
as I walked up the bank to the office, a fellow let
fly a musket close to my head, out of a hedge. I,
however, did my business with the officer, and went
on board to examine her myself ; she was a perfect
little beauty, called the Polka, but as palpable a rogue
as I ever saw in my life. I therefore wished them
good evening, and returned on board, steamed out a
little way to trick them, and having cleared for action
and loaded with grape and canister, manned the boats,
towed them to within musket-shot of the schooner and
fort, then cast them off, as there was not water for the
ship to approach any nearer. I gave my men in the
boats orders not to fire even if their vessels or boats
were struck, but to reserve their fire until some of
them had received personal injury, when in self-de-
fence they were to return it ; and as soon as they had
done so I intended to open on the fort, which I sus-
pect would very soon have been cleared, for we were
within short musket range, loaded as I told you. The
boats dashed alongside the slaver on the side opposite
to the battery, whilst a perfect blaze of muskets and
rockets was going on around them, though at so cau-
tious a distance that no one was touched. Presently,
in the moonlight, we eaw her sails dropped, the
cables were slipped, and out she shot like an arrow.
Directly she did so bang went the first gun from
the battery, which went far over the mark ; and
then a second, it splashed them from head to foot ; a
third fisshed iu the pan, and by that time she had run
across our bows, and directly she had done so we
steamed in across the line of fire, which immediately
ceased; and, giving them three good cheers, as the
only return for their shot, dashed off to sea together,
at the rate of eight miles an hour. It was the work
of ten minutes, and vs as done without our even snap-
ping a cap. We then put all the remaining bread we
had on board the prize, borrowing some water from
her—for we had not a drop left—and, packing her off
to St. Helena, returned to the admiral, who was
pleased beyond measure, and ordered us into Rio, to
provision, fuel, and water. This is unprecedented. We
had captured two slavers before our reporting ourselves
to the admiral ; and in five days had captured three
slavers, and that before her provisioning, and with
merely the remnant of fuel we brought out from Eng-
land. Furthermore, the very first day the new order
was issued about taking them out of the ports when
practicable, we have taken one of their crack craft,
from under the very nose of a manned and loaded
battery, and that without spilling a drop of blood.
Now, Joe, if they have given Crofton his promotion
for taking four vessels in 18 months, I think 1 de-
serve mine for taking three in five days—l assure you
it was not from chance, but from right hard work.
We had, since coming on the station, examined 17
vessels; and when we arrived in Rio this time, I had
not been in bed, or had my clothes off, for nine days
and nights. I can assure you my men were fairly
done up. The Brazilians are furious—they declare
that their only treatment of us shall be the knife and
the musket; and their threats are not empty ones.
The Rifleman bad a volley poured into one boat's
crew, which killed one man dead; and the whole
party would have been murdered, had it not been for
their own presence of mind. The Cormorant had
three men killed in the street of Rio by being thrown
out of a window. We are, therefore, close prisoners,
and never think of going anywhere.
" Believe me, your very affectionate brother,
JoHN BAILEY."

THE LATE ATTEMPTED ROBBERY AT KENDAL BY
MEANS OF CHLOROFORM.—IIe fellow charged with the ex-
traordinary attack upon the Rev. Lachlan APlntosh, at '
Shaw's Temperance Hotel, Kendal, was tried at the West-
moreland Michaelmas SessiongVliendal, on Friday last. He
gave his name Charles Montgomery, but his real name is
Charles Vem, from Carlisle. He stood committed for trial
upon the double charge of an assault with intent to rob, and
of stealing a key belonging to the room where the prosecutor
slept, which was found along with the bottle of chloroform
in prisoner's carpet-bag. The proprietress of the Temperance
Hotel, however, refused to swear to this key before the grand
jury, although she had sworn to it before the committing
magistrates, and the consequence was that the bill for the
larceny of the key Jell to the ground. The prisoner pleaded
guilty to the attempt to rob, and was sentenced by the
bench to eighteen months imprisonment with hard labour,
including one month's solitary confinement. A good deal
of comment has been made in this town upon what is
considered the leniency of the sentence compared with the
diabolical nature of the attack. Mr. M'lntosh had been
preaching a missionary sermon on the day the assault was
made, and it is supposed that the prisoner expected to find
the proceeds of the collection in the pockets of his intended
victim.
MONEY MARKET—The premium on gold at Paris
15 5. per mille, which, at the English Mint price of
3/. 17s. 10d. per ounce for standard gold, gives an ex-
change of 25.29; and the exchange at Paris on London
at short being 25.221, it follows that gold is 0.26 per
cent. dearer in Paris than in London. By advices from
Hamburgh the price of gold is 431 per mark, which,
at the English Mint price of 3/. 17e. lOid. per ounce for
standard gold, gives an exchange of 13.8; and the ex-
change at Ileniburgh on London at short being 13
it follows that gold is 0.12 per cent. dearer in Nam-
burgh than in London. The course of exchange at
New York on London for bills at 60 days' sight is 1101
per cent., and the par of exchange between England and
America being 109 23.40 per cent., it follows that the
exchange is nominally 0.92 per cei.t. in favour of Eng-
land, and after making allowance for difference of
interest and charges of transport, the present rate
leaves a profit on the importation of gold from the
Uuited %atm