the house, would bring on disgrace, and therefore it would be adviseable At mid at night to strangle her. night, therefore, in presence of all the above-mentioned persons, while Delawur held the girl's feet, and Abdul Rehman her head, Jummaul put a noose round her neck and tightened it, till the girl, after convulsing for about ten minutes, expired. Umole then took off the ornaments from the ears, nose, arms, and legs of the body; and those of the neck Jummaul himself took off, and tying them all up in a handkerchief, delivered them to Umole, and she put them into a chest; after this Jummaul tied her on his shoulders, and covering himself with a quilt, went, in company with Abdul Rehman, Soliman, and Delawar, and flung it into the ditch, and they then returned home." In addition to the preceeding particulars, which we have detailed with as much accuracy as circumstances would admit, there are many others forcibly corroborative of the degrees of guilt in which the several parties were implicated, in respect to this unprecedented act of barbarity; but we imagine sufficient has already been advanced to appal the very feelings of humanity. We shall, therefore, for the present, dismiss so melancholy a subject, in the hope of being able to follow it up hereafter, by announcing that all the parties who bore a share in this vile and infamous transaction, have suffered that exemplary punishment, which the horrid enormity of their offences so justly exposes them to. MADRAS Occurrences for April, 1804. Circumstantial Account of His Majesty's Sip Porpoise and Cato. Captain Flinders, late. commander of his Majesty's sloop Investigator, and Mr. Park, commander of the ship Cato, arrived at the government house, at half past three o'clock in the afternoon of the 8th instant, with the following disagreeable intelligence, as communicated in the following letter to his Excellency. Sidney, New South Wales, SIR, Sept. 8th, 1803. "I have to inform you of my arrival here yesterday, in a six-oared cutter, belonging to his Majesty's armed vessel Porpoise, commanded by Lieutenant Fowler; which ship I am sorry to state to your Excellency, I left on shore upon a coral reef, without any prospect of her being saved, in lat. 22. 11 south, and long. 155. 13 east, being 1988 miles to the N. 38 degrees E. from Sandy Cape; and 729 miles from this port. The ship Cato, which was in company, is entirely lost upon the same reef, and broken to pieces without any thing having been saved from her; but the crew, with the exception of three, are, with the whole of the officers, crew, and passengers of the Porpoise, upon a small sand bank near the wreck, with sufficient provisions and water, served from the Porpoise, to subsist the whole, amounting to eighty men, for three months. land near Indian head; from whence I kept the coast on board to this place. "I cannot state the extent of wreck reef to the eastward, but a bank is visible in that direction, six or seven miles from the wrecks. In a west direction we rowed along the reef twelve miles, but saw no other dangers in the passage towards Sandy Cape. There are several passages through the reef, and anchorage in from 15 to 22 fathoms, upon a sandy bottom; the flagstaff upon wreck reef bank, bearing S. E. to S. S. W. distant from three quarters to one and a quarter mile. "After the above statement, it is unnecessary for me to make application to your Excellency to furnish me with the means of relieving the crews of the two ships from the precarious situation in which they are placed, since your humanity and former unremitting attention to the Investigator and Porpoise, are sureties that the earliest and most effectual means will be taken, either to bring them to this port, or to send them and myself onwards towards England. "I enclose to your Excellency a letter from Lieutenant Fowler upon the occasion; and as he refers to me for the particulars of the wreck, an account thereof is also inclosed. "I think it proper to notice to your Excellency, that the great exertions of Lieut. Fowler and his officers, and ship's company, as well as the passengers belonging to the Investigator, in saving his Majesty's stores, have been very praise worthy; and I judge that the precautions that were taken, will exoperate the commander of the Porpoise from the blame that might otherwise be attached to the loss of his Majesty's armed vessel. "I have the honour to be, your Excellency's obedient humble servant, MATHEW FLINDERS. Account of the loss of his Majesty's armed vessel Porpoise, and the Cato, upon the wreck reef. The Porpoise, with the hon. company's extra ship, Bridgewater, and the ship Cato in company, on the 17th of August last, at two in the afternoon, fell in with a sand bank in about 23.7 South latitude and 155.26 East longitude, and 157 miles N. 51 E. from Sandy Cape on the coast of New South Wales. This bank being two degrees east of the situation where the Eliza whaler found the reefs lying off the coast to terminate, it was thought to be such a detached bank as some others seen by lieut. Ball and Mr. Bampton, which lie much farther over towards the end of New Caledonia, and no thought of meeting with any more was entertained, especially as the Investigator had before steered for the Torres Straits from reefs several degrees farther to the west, without interruption. The signal being made to keep under easy working sail during the night, and a warrant officer being placed at the look-out on board the Porpoise, the ships steered N.N.W. on their course, with a fresh breeze from the E. S. E. the Bridgewater being on the starboard quarter, and the Cato on the larboard quarter of the leading ship. At eight o'clock the Porpoise sounded with 35 fathoms, no ground. nine, breakers were seen a-head, and the Porpoise's helm was put down, in order to tack from them, but the foresail being hauled up to keep the other ships in sight, she was then under three double-reefed At half past top topsails, and only came up head to wind in paying off again she struck upon the coral reef which occasioned the breakers. A gun was attempted to be fired to warn the other ships, but owing to the confusion and the spray that was flying over, it could not be accomplished; and before lights were up, the Bridgewater and Cato had bauled to the wind on different tacks across each other. The two ships must have touched and gone on the reef together, had not the commander of the latter ship stopped setting his mainsail, and bore away to let the Bridgewater go to windward, by which means she cleared the breakers, and stood on the southward, but the Cato missing stays for the want of her mainsail, when she afterwards tried to tack, struck upon the reef about two cables length of the Porpoise The Porpoise heeled on upon the reef, and lay upon her broadside, so that the surfs flew over, but did not fill her her foremast went very soon, but the other masts stood till they were cut away. The Cato unfortunately took the opposite inclination, and the sea breaking furiously in upon her decks, tore them up, and every thing within the ship, almost immediately, leaving the crew no place where they could prevent themselves from being washed off by the seas but the inner fore-chains, where they clung all night with their eyes bent to the S. W. after the Bridgewater, and waiting anxiously for day-break, when they confidently hoped that the boats of that ship would come to their relief. An hour after the Porpoise had struck, a small gig and a six-oared cutter were got out to leeward, bnt the latter was stove and full of water. Observing that the break ing water did not extend any distance to leeward, capt. Flinders spoke to lieut. Fowler, the commander of the ship, and told him of his intention to get the charts and log books of the Investigator's voyage into the small boat, and get on board the Bridgewater, that with her boats he might be able to get the people out of the ship as soon as possible. This was assented to, and with six men and two oars, he got through the surf without being swamped, though nearly full of water, The smooth water was found to be upon a coral reef, and just deep enough to float the boat. After rowing for a short time towards the Bridgewater, captain Flinders saw that unless she tacked it was impossible for them to come near her; and as her light shewed her to be standing on, he determined to get back to the wreck, leaving his charts and books in the boat; but the surf ran too high for this to be done in the night, and therefore he kept rowing gently under the lee of the breakers, and the cutter which had by this time got her leak partly stopped and shoved off, he also desired to keep near the ship till morning. Several blue lights were burnt on board the Porpoise during the night; and some on board the Bridgewater answered them by shewing a light, whilst others took it to be only a general light which was still visible: it was last seen about two in the morning. A raft was prepared during the night, lest the ship might go to pieces, and at day break captain Flinders got on board by help ef the fallen masts. A dry sand bank was now seen near the wreck, sufficient to receive every body, and all the provisions and stores that might be saved out of the ship; and they they had the still further satisfaction to see the Bridgewater standing towards them. Every body was now set to work to get out the provisions and water to be landed on the sand bank, where capt. Flinders went with the small boat, in order to go off to the Bridgewater as soon as she came near, to point out to captain Palmer the shelter to leeward, where he might safely take every body on board, with what else might be saved. On landing at the bank, he hoisted up two handkerchiefs to a tall oar, but about ten o'clock it appeared that the ship had gone upon the other tack, not being able, probably, to weather the reef, and she was not seen any more during the day. Whether the Bridgewater saw the wreck or the bank, cannot be certainly known, but her courses, if not the hull, were visible from both the ships. As the tide fell the people of the Cato quitted her, and got through the surf to the Porpoise's small boat, which waited within to receive them, and at low water, which happened about two o'clock, the leef was dry very near to the latter ship, and every person was employed in getting provisions, water, and their clothes, upon the reef, from whence they were taken to the bank by the boats, for round the bank the water is deeper. Betore dark, five half hogsheads of water were landed, also some flour, salt teat, rice, and spirits, besides pigs and sheep; and every person had got on sbore with some necessaries, together with the Cato's people. These last had left their ship naked, but having got on board the Porpoise, Mr. Fowler had clothed four or five in lieutenants uniformis, and some promotions of a similar kind had taken place amongst the Porpoise's seanien. Those who had saved great coats or blankets sharing with those who had none, they lay down to sleep with some little comfort: except a few of the Cato's men, who were bruised on the reef, there was no complaining heard upon the bank. The three boats of the Porpoise were hauled up at night under the lee side of the bank, but the small boat not having been properly sesecured was carried away by the tide. As there was no hope of saving the Porpoise, the tide by this time flowing in and out of her; on the 19th, in the morning, captain Flinders thought proper to do away the circumstance of his being a passenger, and took the command of the whole party. He divided the Cato's people, who had saved nothing, amongst the Porpoise's men, quartering them in messes, in the proportion of one to three; and then lieut. Fowler, with a large working party in the two cutters, went off to the ship. The Cato had gone to pieces during the night, and one of her quarters had floated in upon the reef, but nothing of her cargo or stores remained with it. During this and the following day the wind continued to blow fresh from the south-east, and the Bridgewater not coming in sight, it was supposed that captain Palmer was beating to windward waiting for finer weather to relieve the unfortunate people with more safety to himself; but the 21st and 22d being fine days, with moderate winds, and no appearance of the ship, it made them almost give up hopes of seeing her more. They continued to work hard on board the wreck, and got provisions, water, water, sails, and many other stores, upon the bank, during the abovementioned four days; but all hopes of seeing the Bridgewater having then vanished, captain Flinders called together the principal officers to consult upon the steps proper to be taken for transporting the two ship's crews and passengers to some frequented port. The plan that met with general approbation was as follows: That the largest cutter should have a light hatch deck laid over her, and that captain Flinders and Mr. Park, commander of the Cato, should proceed in her to Port Jack son, and either procure from his excellency the governor, sufficient colonial vessels to carry every body back to Port Jackson, or otherwise to hire a ship for the purpose; or to carry them on to India, from whence passages might be procured to Europe. But lest an accident should happen to the cutter, that a small vessel, sufficient to carry all but one boat's crew, should immediately be laid down by the carpenters, to be built from what might be saved from the wreck, and that this vessel should in two months proceed to Port Jackson, or as soon after as she is ready. The small cutter, captain Flinders proposed should remain with the stores for a few weeks longer, if the provisions would admit of it, and then for her to go to Port Jackson also, if no colonial or other vessel should arrive before that time. On consulting with the carpenter of the Investigator, about the possibility of building such a vessel, and the time it might require, he gave his opinion that two boats sufficient to carry the people would be sooner built, and perhaps answer the purpose as well; and this seeming to be the general opinion, it was adopted by the commander. By the evening of the 23d the whole of the water, and almost the whole of the provisions were landed on the bank, and their stock was now found to consist of the following quantities and proportions for 94, men at full allowance. Biscuit 920 pounds, Flour 6944 ditto-83 days. Beef, in 4 hhds. 592 pieces, Pork, 2 ditto-94 days. Pease, 115 bushels-107 days. Oatmeal, 30 ditto-48 days. Rice, 1225 pounds-114 days. Sugar, 370 pounds, Molasses, 125 ditto-84 days. Spirits, 225 gallons, Wine, 113 ditto, Porter, 60—84 days. Water, 5650 gallons-120 days, at half a gallon per day. With some sour crout, essence of malt, vinegar and salt. The other stores consisted of a new suit of sails, some whole and some broken spars, iron work, the armourer's forge, a kedge anchor and hawser, rope, junk, canvas, some twine, and other small stores, and four half barrels of powder,two swivels, and several muskets and pistols, with balls and flints. Until the 25th they were employed in fitting up the cutter, which they now called the Hope, for the expedition, and in still adding to their stock upon the bank; for although the sea had much shaken the ship, since the holds were emptied, yet she still stood, and they hoped would keep together at least until the next spring tides. At lieutenant Fowler's own request, capt. Flinders ordered that he should remain with the stores until the last boat: and that lieut. Flinders and Mr. John Aken, the master of the Investigator, should take charge of the two large boats, |