Star.
London, England, 1825-05-23 00:00:00

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THE PLAGUE.

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(Concluded from tkee Bsakulatesida7.)
Having completed :ter lading, the 'Bann moved on
the Bth of irebroory, ;to the anchorage off I ie. Town,
and she arrived there .on the 1 lth, having grounded
both on rocks and shoals on her passage; from which
she became leaky, making fourteen inches of water in
twenty-four holm, and at one time she had eight feet
of stater in her hold ; she then anchored about three
quarters of a mile from the squadron, endeavouring to
procure men to navigate her to England from amongst
the invalids of the men of war about to be sent home,
and the prisoners belonging to slave vessels which had
been sent into Sierra Leone for adjudication, and there
was no restriction in the communication with her. On
the 22d of February (according to the same report),
which, it may be observed, was nearly three months
after the arrival of the Caroline in the country, a pa-
tient was sent to the Hospital from her with the more
fatal form of the fever ; but Dr. Barry adds, a by this
time it-had began its ravages on shore," and thererore
rejects the idea of its having been imported by that
ship, or indeed from any other known source.
The Caroline anchored near the mouth of the river
in Cockle Bay, on the 13th of March, and_ the leak
increasing, returned to the anchorage off Free Town,
on the 19th of March, with her crew much weakened
by incessant labour at the pumps, and constant ex-
psure to the sun ; some of her men were again taken
nil, and several left her ; and it was at this time the
Dann's boat gave her assistance.
Soon after her return (about the 22d or 23d), a sur-
vey was held by the master of the Bann, the master
of the Snapper, and the carpenter and carpenter's mate
of the Owen Glendower, on board the Caroline, and
they remained on board for several hours, visiting the
bold and between decks, as the nature of the duty on
. which they were empl led required ; yet neither the
master of the Snapper, nor the carpenter, or carpenter's
mate of the Owen Glendower, were taken ill in conse-
quence, nor any of the Snapper's boats crew, which
remained on board the whole time, nor were any of the
crew of the Snapper or frigate attacked with this dis-
ease in consequence. The master of the Blum certainly
suffered an attack of fever Soon after ; but this was so
slight that he was only on the sick list from the 26th
to the 28th, and had no yellow suffusion ; besides
which, the crew of the Caroline had constant commu-
nication with the men of wars boats at the watering
piece; and moreover, an invalid from the Cyrene,
named Robert Dowland, had gone to sea in the Caro-
line, and on her return to Sierra Leone he left that ship,
and took his paisage in the Thistle.brig of war to Eng-
land, yet this man and the Thistle's crew remained in
good health.
The Caroline sailed finally for England on the sth
of May, and arrived in the Downs on the 29th of June ;
none died during the voyage, but it appears that some
of her crew were affected with agues, or ephemeral
fevers, during the passage, which they ascribed to the
very hard duty they bad to perform in a ship still very
leaky, and to the insufficient quantity of food, being on
short allowance the greater part of the passage.
Having thus, I trust, successfully shewn the impos-
sibility of any contagious fever having been introduced
by the Caroline into the colony of. Sierra Leone (for
Who, possessed of common sense, will believe, that a
healthy ship coming from a healthy port, after a pas,
-age of six -weeks, and lying in that port for a month
without a sick man on board could have dune so ?) I
may be allowed to Observe, that there is nothing won-
, derful in a ship so situated, and a ship's crew so em-
ployed, being attacked by a fever; it would indeed
have been more surprising if it had been otherwise:—
there is not a shadow of proof that the Caroline intro-
duced the diseue ; and in fact, I may add, that it was

altogether impossible.
How the disease originated in the colony, I am, in
the absence of ill information, unable to explain ; and I
may weU be excused dolig so, when even a medical
officer, of high prolessioual character, on the spot, to
whom all the circumstances must have been familiar,
has been unable•to accomplish it.. There is one thing,
however, which has struck me forcibly in reading the
accounts, viz. that the spiny season is not the period
when ardent fevers are to The expected in hot climates,
for the experience of ages has taught us, that they more
commonly appear in the dry season, when the surface
bf the earth has been loos exposed to- the rays of
the sun. _ _ _

A curious fact is mentioned by Dr. Barry in his re-
.port to the Governor, not very Moly to happen in a
contagious disease, via. that " European females and
children were perfectly 'tempt, and that no case oc-
curred amongst the natives, di. Maroons, or the black'
settlers." The women and children at Ascension were
not so fortunate, but the negroes of the Bann
equally escaped.
I have bee stated my belief, that the Bann did not
derive the fever from this source (I mean from
the Caroline), for the Surgeon, now in England,
has stated to me explicitly, that the first eight or nine
persons who were taken ill, had no communication
whatever with the Caroline, or her crew; but that four
of them were employed in the San Raphael (the
schooner before mentioned), and three, viz. two marines
and a carpenter, were not employedout of the Bann, on
any occasion, While at Sierra Leone; and I am sure,
when we add to this the far more extended communi-
cation before mentioned, held by other ships of the
squadron with the Caroline, and with complete im-
punity, it will appear very improbable, to every im-
partial mind, that any contagion could have been de-
rived from this ship. On those wedded to peculiar
and favourite doctrines, I do not expect, even by the
facts I have related, to make any impression; but
should I be mistaken, I trust they will at least allow
me to claim equal put ity of intention wilt themselves.
I must own I am at a loss to account with certa;nty for
the origin of the lever in the Mum The surgeon of
that ship, an excellent and intelligent officer, ascribes it
to their long stay in port, the crew being much exposed
to the heat of the sun's rays in refitting the Bann's rig-
ging, and also that of the San Raphael, and perhaps
(he says) indulging in irregularities (which It is well
known sailors will do whenever they can, notwithstand-
ing the utmost vigilance of their officers), and the vicissi-
tudes of the weather which they meet with in sailing
from Sierra Leone; and it appears, by bis report, that
the men were generally taken ill in the night when ex-
posed to chills on their watch : he never even hints at
the Caroline as she cause in his report; and since his re-
stun to England, totally denies it to have been the
case; and when the simultaneous, indeed I may say the
prior apisaianceeof it in the schooner, her tender, is
considered, anj t c iiitcrai Captain Phillips at one
time had of destroyinr, hcr, is added to other circum-
stances, it is pretty caticht that the occiarscace of fever

lIP

•
•
''n the schooner 44 gapcia n 9 opwan*pression on the
Captain7s mind: - •
'There cannot, honveliew, I drink, Ms a 'donhtof its
having postessed VllllttgietiS'propertits afterwards, and
' of its having beeri introduced Into the Island of Asreri.
sion by the Bann ; still, even here, ,d:fliculties occur in
accounting for many circumstances, particularly the at:
tack of two' posts, and the exemption of a third; viz. the
Green Mountain (where there were six soldiers, one
woman, and two children), when the c! mmunication
-was open for eighteen days, and one of these persons
had even been on board the Bann for some tm.. I
' have, however, formed my own opinion, froni a consi•
deration of all the circumstances of the Cage 1 and I
have narrated the whole of the facts connected. with it,
as far as they have come to my knowledßed with ti,er
utmost impartiality', without suppressing re
one of them ; and I must, after they have lead l;
remainder of this report, leave others to form their owl%

- .
A late letter from Rangoon mentions, In. terms of
enthusiastic praise, the conduct of all the treops.dtirinit
the late actions. Never did the Sepeys (the writer
states) acquire more fame than those of the Malta,
Army have upon this occasion. 11ajot YATES rind his
corps, the 25th N. I. (the old 18th) were psuilatutirly
distinguished : they defended the port of Xernendi. e
for seven days and eight nights. Daring the List two
days and nights the enemy's attache were so desperate
and repealed, that the men had nolime to cook their
victuals, but ate the rice dry.' On one of their officers,
while he praised their determined valour, lamenting
the privation they suffered from want of food—" We
want no food, but ammunition enough," was the ge.
neral reply of these fine fellows.
The following is an extract of a lettei from Capt.
JAMIESON, of the Marquis of Huntley, to Messrs.
S. F. and J. SOMES, dated Cape Coat Castle, January
14, 1825 I arrived here, all well, on the 24th
December, after a long passage of 71 days from the
Isle of Wight. We were 24 days becalmed in lat. 7
deg. N. and long. 15 deg. W. On the 16sh Novem-
ber, in lat. 10 deg. N. and long. 19 deg. W. we were
attacked by a pirate schooner of abut 250 tons, with
one long nine-pounder in midships and six smaller
guns, and apparently 80 or 100 men ; she bad a blue
and yellow flag at her gaff end. They fired four shots
from the long gun through our rigging and sails be-
fore we took any notice of them. We rounded to
as soon as we thought our guns would reach him, ran
the guns to one side, knocked away the bulwarks, and
commenced our defence, which he found rather hot
for him; many of their sails came tumbling down
from our shot cutting the ropes, and they seemed to
be in some confusion ; the wind was at the time quite
light, and with the assistance of ten or twelve long
sweeps, on each side, he got off from the reach of
our guns. Fortunately we had no person on board
hurt, as his shot were all fired high, which grased
along the booms and through the courses; however,
he got a good thrashing, and steered off north-west." .
ANGOULEME, MAY 12.—A duel which has just takers
place here, has excited a good deal of sens Aim. The
following are the derails : A young man of this town,
who wore over a black waistcoat a red riband, to which
his-watch was attached, was walking in the Park a few
days ago, about the hour of one in the afternoon. He
was met by Lieutenant-Colonel LACHAPELLE, of the
20th Regiment, now in garrison here, and a Captain
Bounoou. These two individuals, on perceiving the
red riband, rushed towards him, and Colonel LACHA-
PELLE said, " You have there a riband which y tf have
no right to wear ; I insist upon your taking it off."—
This riband, replied the young man, serves to eecuie
my watch, and I do not see why any one should find
fault with it. " You deserve to be soundly kicked,"
said the Colonel, and with one hind he tore away
riband and watch along with it, which he threw against
the wall, and with the other hand struck the young man
a blow in the face. " Now it is my turn, said Cap-
tain BOUROON, knocking the young man down, and
trampling upon his body. They then railed, leaving
their.victrm bleeding from his mouth and nose. Short y
after, three yopng men belonging tothe town came up,
and on learning what had pass. d, they went and bought
red rikands pot them over their waistcoats, and .re-
paired to the Cafe. de la Comedie, where they fend
Captain Bouttoon. The latter approached one of ti.e
young men, named Cuasteitata, and said, " It is no
doubt fur the purpose of annoying toe that you wear
that riband. Know that I have-just torn one away from
one of your townsmen, and that I shall do the same by
ton." " I charge you not to touch it, or you shall
. ave to do with me." "Let it be, then, immerruately,44
said Bouaoon, and they accordingly refaired to the
ground with swords and pistols. As they were going
to begin, Bouaoow then, addressing the spectator:,
said, in the most insolent and bullying planner, ,".Lee
the ten best of your turn out, and I shall begin with.
number one, and spit the whole of you, up to number
len." This was meant to intimidate COAMRRAN ; but
be coolly replied, " You may find me quite enough
for you." At the first pass, CIIAMERAN broke the bold
Captain's sword, and then plunged his own a few
inches into him, under the right brear. " You may
flatter yourself at having wounded the bravest man i
the army," said BOURGON. He then called for pistols;
but CHAMERRN said, " You now. have not strength
enough, but when recovered, we shall go to it again.
Boustoon's life is in danger.
Satinday, as a man was cleaning a second fi il-
- at a house in Norfolk-street, &rand, he missed Os
hold, and fell with great force on the iron railings, the
spikes of which entered his side ;. he was conve)ed.to
the Hospital in a lifeless state.

DIED.
At Montreal, Sevenoaks, on Saturday, the 41st instant,
Mary Herne', youngest daughter of the late Colonel nettles, i
sister of J. C. Berries, Esq. M. P.
The 7th inst. at his residence, Cravycarnonso, parish of Kilmot.‘
Mr. Mat. Cleland, farmer, at the advanced age of 101 years. Unsil
the last few years of his life be was a great drinker of spirits.
On the 14th instant, at a very advanced age, the Mcrqtlis of
VillevieWe, a relation'of Voltaire, and one of the Consetvator.
the Library of St. Genevieve.

IIAtISTIIT.B DAT.
Asa rum ask. otlff
Gobllli it 0.1 Vtanca 1 U
Waterford 1 0 1 lizsrilsur4 1 0
Guernsey audJermy 1 0 1 Flanders • 1 •Il
Lisboa 0 0 1 Buenos Ayres . 0 0
Gottenborgh 00 1 Jamaica 0 0
Malta 0 0 America '0 0
Holland 1 0 Brazil i 0

HIGH-WATER. et LON DONARIEIGK T0.,401t ROW.
Morning . • 26 minutes after 6
♦fternoon 55 minutes atter 6
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i.oncon: Pnxtert frnd PuMsked 6y J. F. Ks.A.LT. :hefT‘k tJrr.c■
4VO. 1, rxictr-liace, .