The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1854-05-02 00:00:00

AUSTRALIA.

The Ship Vimiera, Capt. Henry Neathby, was off
Plymouth on Friday, from Sidney January 25. She has
on freight 10,000 ounces of gold dust, a large quantity of
wool (1,900 bales,) tallow, gum, copper, wine, &c.
Freights at Sydney very low, owing to the large number of
ships there—gold dust at 4 per cent.: wool, I and per
lb.; tallow, 30s. per ton; gum 70s. ditto; copper, 20s.
ditto. Very little gold for shipment, owing to the warlike
appearance of Europe, and partly to the banks reserving a
large quantity against the issue of their own paper. The
Maidstone was advertised to leave on the sth February,
and the Anglesey, Waterloo, Royal Stuart, Cheapside, and
Wooloomooloo, a few days after, all for London. Her
Majesty's ships Calliope, Herald, Torch, and Acheron
were at Sydney. Mr. Harvey, of the Torch, had been
drowned by the capsising of a boat.
By the Lima, which steamer had $253,000 on freight,
very brief advices had reached Panama from Australia to
the 2d February. The attention of the colonists was
principally directed to the means of defending Melbourne
and Port Philip from an attack by Russian cruisers in the
event of war, and the Melbourne papers were chiefly oc-
cupied with discussions upon the subject. With regard to
the wreck of the Marco Polo, the following letter appears
in the Argus from the commannder of that ship : The
Marco Polo has been lightened of all her passengers and
luggage, and a lighter is to-day taking off the small
portion of cargo she has on board. The greater portion of
her water (say 90 tons) has been started and pumped out.
Her top hamper has been sent down, and it is confidently
expected by Capt Ferguson (who has been giving valuable
assistance to me) that she will be towed off to-morrow.
The crew have worked most cheerfully, only four having
left the ship, which they did the first night the vessel went
on shore. The injury to the windlass is so slight that it
was in use yesterday. The vessel has made no water since
being on shore, and does not show the slightest appearance
of being injured by straining or otherwise. Her false keel
has not suffered at all. A subsequent announcement in
the same paper says :—" It is gratifying to be enabled to
announce that this celebrated vessel has been rescued from
what appeared inevitable destruction. A despatch was
received from her by Messrs. J. B. Were, Kent, and Co.,
Lloyd's agents, on Monday, and Mr. Were immediately
proceeded down with additional assistance, and, under the
able and judicious directions of Capt. Ferguson, the
harbour-master, at 4 o'clock yesterday morning the vessel
was hove off and brought up into Hobson's Bay about
mid-day."

Gold was quoted £3 18s. 9d., with a fair business doing.
Cash price for flour—firsts, £35 per 2,0001 b. • seconds,
£32. At M'lvor flour was £5O a-ton. The import
markets were generally unchanged.

The Australia ships which-arrived on Saturday, in
London, brought the first clip of new wool.

By the latest advices the intelligence from the gold
fields is a shade more favourable. The diggers were
returning to work after a somewhat prolonged indulgence
in the festivities of Christmas ; and the quantity of gold
brought down by the last escort shows a slight increase.
In the early part of January a rich vein of auriferous
quartz was found upon Hawkins-ridge, near Tambaroora,
which is now being worked successfully. Specimens of
the veins have been sent to Sydney; they are very good,
though the exact proportion of gold to the rock has not
yet been minutely ascertained. The published accounts
of similar discoveries are generally to be accepted with a
large abatement, but as to the Tambaroora vein, private
letters confirm the first report of its richness.