Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1853-05-21
TERRIBLE DISASTER AT SEA.

We gather from the New York papers the following
particulars of the laundering of sea- with
probable loss of nearly two hundred lives
Capt. FORBES Of the brig Reuben Carver, from Sagua
Ia Grande brought into port this morning the captain
mate, and six of the of the ship William and Mary,
of Bath, Maine, who picked up from boat at sea-
in lat ~ 3d. and long. 70 90 having wrecked
Strrup Key among the Bahama Islands, the Sd May.
Captain Stenson, of the William and Mary, has furnish
ed us the following particulars of the loss of his vessel
which the passage from Liverpool to New Orleans
with cargoof railroad iron and two hundred and eight
passengers chiefly emigrants At seven o'clock A. Nj.
the Sd May during cloudy weather and strong breezes
blowing from the southeast they passed the Hole in the
Wall which is the southern part of the little island of
Abaco of the Bahamas nearly north of Nassau. At
they made Strrup Key, and then bore off about
miles in southerly direction The weather grew thicker
all the while and the wind stronger while the began
to roll at fearful rate. AT nothing could be
othe Key and the captain supposed that he well TO
the north oft having steered by north since mer
dian. At A. M when be judged himself sufficiently to
the north and Of the Great Isaacs he put ship
west by south, and commenced heavng the lead, but
found no bottom in twenty fathoms
About half-past eight P. M the vessel struck upon
sunken rock where she hung for time with ten
athoms water all around After pounding heavily for IF
teen minutes she got off, but Immediately struck another
rock within few rods of the first where she again
pounded for some time and again went off, 1t was then
thought exPedient to let the anchor and prepare the
boats for launching The ship taking in water very
fast and though the passengers worked for life the
pumps, they found it impossible keep her free. At
midnight there four feet in the hold and
A. NJ, with both pumps going eight feet The weather
was very black and squay. and the tremendously
high Shortly after daybreak they found
in, and the vessel apparently going down The
nation of the crowded decks this period may be ina
gned, but cannot be described.
All the boats FIVE in pumber then made ready
and launched but two of them touching
the water, leaving only small.boat and long and
one life-boat. These manned by the captain, his
mates and the together with many passengers
could be crowded into them The remainder ne pdss1-
gers Lt 6oQrd, and after, about
eight o'clock A. M, rent dopn rah The vessel How many
persisted it is impossible ascertain; but from this
count of the captain infer that less than hun
dred and fifty persons, women, and children At
the time the Great Isaacs bearing by southeast
about seven miles.
The several boats separated after leaving the ship
but the captain saw, from the boat in which he was a
bark apparently bound to Europe, hove in the drec-
ton Of the long and boats and he surmises that the
people in them picked up. But there certainty
OF ths and supposng them also to have been lost the
total number Of deaths win be two hundred The
cook and steward Of the William and Mary together with
two Of the among those left behind when
the small boats put of Captain Stenson has memo
randum Of the of the lost which consequent
ly unable to give.
1t will be seen, by reference to telegraphic
umn, that the persons in the ongboat and feboat were
picked up by an English vessel