The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1838-11-06 00:00:00

THE LIVERPOOL, STEAM-SHIP.

(From the Albion. )
Much regret was felt in this town, on Wednesday last, on
the receipt' of intelligence, via Dublin, that the Liverpool,
which sailed on Saturday fortnight for New York, had been
compelled to put into the Cove of Cork, The weather, for
several days before and after her departure, had, it will be
recollected, been extremely boisterous; and the reports which
arrived of her progress down Channel showed, that she had
had to encounter adverse gales and heavy seas. Still, not-
withstanding all opposing obstacles, the Liverpool made
excellent progress, and had, ou the sixth day out, reached
long. 21, or nearly 900 miles on her passage to New York.
During these six -days, however, her consumption of coal
had been so much greater than it was calculated it would be,
that the engineer became satisfied that the remaining fuel
would not be sufficient to enable him to steam the ship to
New York. A report of the quantity of coal on board was
accordingly made; and Capt. Fayrer, •.vith the approbation
of his passengers, resolved to put about ship and make for
the Cove of Cork, which the Liverpool reached on Monday
last. For a detailed account of the occurrences which we
have thus briefly described, we refer to the extracts below,
which, though they contain some mistakes, if not misstate-
ments, we deem it better to give than, by suppressing them,
to give scope for malignant misrepresentation. All the ac-
counts we have seen, as well as those which we insert, agree
in representing the Liverpool as an admirable sea-boat and
a first-rate steamer; and that, had it not been fur the unfor-
tunate miscalculation as to her consumption of fuel, (for
which she seems to be a gluti.on, consuming dearly twenty-
five per cent. more, in a given time, than had been calcu-
lated,) she would, in all probability, have made her passage
to New York in sixteen days.
The passengers were, of course, greatly annoyed at the
"untoward event" which had prevented them from accom-
plishing their voyage quickly and safely; and several of them
gave vent to their feelings in angry complaints against the
Directors of the Transatlantic Steam-Ship Company.. The
great bulk of the passengers, however, much to their credit,
did not join in the angry complaints, very properly making
due allowance for the difficulties and the miscalculations in-
cidental to the commencement of a new undertaking. About
eight of the passengers returned to Liverpool; their passage
money was returned, and their expenses paid by the com-
pany; and they proceeded, yesterday, in the packet-ship
Sheffield, Capt. Allen, who has, in this instance, verified the
proverb, that " it is an ill wind that blows nobody good."
On Saturday evening they held a .private meeting, at the
Mersey Coffee-house, where they passed a series of resolu-
tions, in which, we believe, the conduct and the activity of
Captain Fayrer. his officers, and crew, were admitted to have
been praiseworthy. The original resolutions, passed by the
whole of the passengers, on her return voyage to Cove, may
be seen by any person on application to the agent for the
Tiansatlantic Steam-Ship Company. Those resolutions also
praise the captain, the officers, and the crew; but they cen-
sure the parties by whose miscalculation the fuel put on board
was disproportionate to the consumption of the vessel.
The Liverpool, since her arrival at Cove, has taken on
board an adequate supply of Welsh coal, and will proceed,
in the course of the.. Week, on her voyage to New York. All
the passengers, except those who have gene in the Sheffield,
remain with her. Meanwhile, it has been determined to
make an experimental trip from Cove, preparatory to the
final departure of the Liverpool for her destination.
TO THE EDITOR. OF THE ATHENEUM.
Cork, Oct. 30, 1838.
Site—Having been a passenger on board the Liverpool,
steamer, during her late unfortunate expedition westward and
back again, and knowing the interest you have. manifested
in the great scheme of Atlantic steam navigation, I offer no
apology for communicating, immediately on thy arrival here,
this morning, a few of the leading particulars.
We left port on Saturday, the 20th: more than fifty pas-
sengers on board,. in high' spirits. The weather was then
fair, but did not lortg.eontititie so. The sea had run high for
some days before, in consequence of long prevailing violent
west winds: it soon became a serious obstacle to our progress.
Bad weather came on, rains and squalls: still the boat went
on bravely. At times the sea, which grew worse and worse,
broke over her, fore and aft, sweeping all before it, and giving
her, not unfrequently, tremendous dead digs, which, as we
lay in our berths at midnight, or tried to lie, seemed absolutely
to take up the ship and give her a shaking, as a dog does a
rat. During this time, it appears, some damage was done.
Some small leakages were sprung bout the tipper part of the
vessel, such as might be expected in a new one under such
circumstances, causing a little transient alarm, but, probably,
without reason. The fore-cabin suffered severely: at one
time the water, as I now hear, was some inches deep there.
I also understand, that the cargo, to the amount of one hun-
dred and fifty tons, appears to he damaged throughout. Au
accident, at one time, happened to the machinery, which oc-
casioned a suspension of operations for some hours. Still,
we pushed on, not much exhilarated by such a beginning, but
yet more and more convinced of the staunch qualities of the
Liverpool as a sea-boat, and, moreover, satisfied with the
behaviour and rrginagement of the captain and all the officers
on board. Thus matters stood, when we were suddenly noti- '
fled of the captain's resolution to turn bhck. A great-sensa-
tion arose, of course ; a council was called; every cabin and
berth turned out their cadaverous-looking tenants, sea-sick,
sleepy, and ill. It seemed, that the engineer had sent in a
written report of the state of the fuel, from which it appeared,
on a comparison of quantities and distances, that there was
not enough on board to carry us through the voyage, and
that, consequently, we must seek absolute safety in retreat.
To this nothing could be said: we acquie,ead with the best
grace we could. At the end of between nine hundred and a
thousand miles, on the expiration of the sixth day, we turned
round and went before the gale, the ship dashing through
the surge with an eagerness which seemed to say, that no time
was to be lost.
And now, you will ask, what was the cause of this diffi-
culty ? Want of coals, and nothing else. The ship is a fine
sea-craft—nothing can be said against her—she is as stanch
as wood and iron could make her. The commander, and all
his subordinates, did their duty like old sailors—nothing that
skill or science could do was omitted. Our progress, in point
of fact, was satisfactory. In the worst weather, with raging
seas, the wind against us, all but a few hours, and generally
amounting to little short of a gale, we yet made at the rate of
more than 150 miles a day—something like 64-, miles the hour.
Even at this rate we anticipated making the voyage, at most,
in about twentyeon'e days, more probably in eighteen. • But
this was not be done without coals; and ttie calculations
seemed to be, that, having started with about 564 tons, inclu-
ding 100 of Williams's resiued and condensed peats,
"called patent fuel," we had already consumed something
like half our stock, which proved, that, instead of 564 tons, 800
would be the minimum of the quantity required to carry us
through. This extraordinary consumption will excite sur-
prise. The explanation of the ship's going to sea, provided
as she was, with such a consuming power, will be called for.
This question we have looked into as well as we could, hav-
ing examined the papers and all the officers from whom in-
formation was to be had, and that information being freely
given. It would appear, that the ship was not sufficiently
tried beflire starting. She went to Dublin, but that was no
trial at all. More than this, it collies out, that a very mate-
rial alteration was made in a part of the machinery, after the
Dublin trip, and without super-adding the least pretence of an
erperiment thereon, by which the consumption of coal was in-
creased nearly 70011). the hour. Other disclosures I might
add, butt I have said sufficient till an answer appears to ex-
plain this. The return voyage to Cork was made in three
days. The vessel showed great powers of speed as well as
strength. The passengers held several meetings during this
time. A committee was appointed for thorough investigation,
consisting of nine members, English, American, and others.
From this committee we hail a deliberate report of facts,
facts, which you will, 1 presume, see in due time. It was
adopted without a single dissentient voice. Summarily, it
lays the blame of the failure exclusively on the negligence of
the company's!agent, acquiting all other parties, including
the boat herself. At the same time it strenuously enforces
the position, that this disaster, in reality, offers net the slight-
est argument against Atlantic steam navigation, though it is
much to be feared, that discouragement will ensue to many
minds in consequence of the failure. This consideration
weighs heavily with the passengers, who are mostly commer-
cial men.. Of course, there will be a panic in the United
States, when the vessel becomes over due there ; and the suf-
fering of the numerous relatives of those on board, for, per-
haps, six or eight weeks, can be easily conceived. My pur-
pose has been merely to give you a statement of the facts
which have led to the failure.
(euoat THE MANCHESTER GUARDIAN.)
We regret to state, that the Liverpool, steamer, which
sailed for New York on the 20th ult., has been compelled to
give up her voyage, and return to Cork, on account of a de-
ficiency in her supply of fuel. We have seen several letters
from a gentleman on board, given a more minute account of
the circumstance than any which has appeared in the news-
papers, and from which we have extracted the following par-
ticulars :—lt appears, that, when the vessel left Liverpool,
her decks were in a state of great confusion, from the want
of time to make the necessary arrangements for the voyage,
and she went off very badly,—a circumstance which made an
unfavourable impression upon the passengers. This, how-
ever, was in some degree removed during the two first days,
as the vessel behaved well, and seemed to make a good pro-
gress, notwithstanding the contrary winds which she en-
countered. On the third day, however, the wind became very
boisterous, and so continued until the sixth day,-when the
engineer gave Captain Fayrer a written notice, that the stock
of coal remaining *as insufficient for the voyage : and it then
turned out, that, instead of hiving had, as was supposed, and
as was stated by the captain, a sufficiency of coal for '2l days,
she had only enough for twelve days, whet, she left Liverpool ;
her consumption being 40 tons per day, instead of 26; as had
been calculated upon. Under these circumstances, Capt. F.
had no course left but that of running, for Cork, whilst he had
sufficient fuel remaining to carry the vessel thither. Her
head was, consequently, put round (from lon. 21 50, lat. 46,)
and she arrived at Cove on the evening of the 29th oh. During
the return voyage, a committee of passengers was appointed
for the purpose of drawing up a statement of the facts for
publication; but we are no aware that that statement has yet
made its appearance. We understand, however, from the
letters above referred to, that the passengers complain of an
insufficiency of provisions and water, as well as of coals; and
it is even stated, that there were no candles on board, and
that, owing to want of room, no fresh bread could be baked
during the voyage. If these statements are true, they cer-
tainly show very great negligence in the agents of the com-
pany; but it must not be forgotten, that parties smarting
muter such a disappointment as that experienced by the pas-
sengers of the Liverpool would be very prone to complaint,
and very ready to believe any statements to the prejudice
of the parties to whom that disappointment was owing. We
understand, that they all exonerate the captain from any
share of the blame in the moss praiseworthy manner; and
they considered that he was not answerable for any of the
deficiences of which they complained. On the arrival of the
vessel at Cork, a messenger was despatched to the head office
at Dublin, for instructions; some of the passengers agreeing
to wait his return; others leaving the vessel at once, and
making the best of their way to Liverpool, with the intention
of proceeding by the Sheffield packet, which sails to day.
The messenger returned to Cork on Wednesday last, bring-
ing directions to take in a sufficent supply of coal for 21 days,
styli to pror;eed on the voyage as early as practicable, which
was expected to be to-morrow (Sunday) morning. What
number of passengers remained at Cork, with the intention
of proceeding wish her, the letters do not state; but the writer
says, that he shall take his chance in het', provided Captain
Fayrer, in whom he feels great confidence, continues in the
command,. but not abet wise.

The Earl of Stamford and Warrington has appointed the
Rev. John Thornycroft, M.A., of Thornycroft Hall, one of
his Domestic Chaplains, vice the Rev. James Smith, de-
ceased.

FATAL ACCIDENT.—On Friday an inquest was held on the
body of a female, sixteen years of age, who was burnt to
death on Tuesday evening. The deceased resided with her
mother in Sutton-court, Gascoyne-street. On the evening
in question, she was sitting near the fire, reading a book,
and while in the act of reaching an article from the chimney
piece over the fire-place, her clothes caught fire, and before
assistance could be procured, they were burnt to a cinder.
She was taken to the Dispensary in Vauxhall-road, where
her wounds were dressed, but she died on the following day.
Verdict--:•Accidental death.