The acting agent of the Messageries Maritimes Company, M. J. Chapsal, sends the following communication, respecting the loss of the it, to the Yokohama papers In view of the sad emotions into which the loss of the Nil has thrown the foreign community of Yokohama, I have been for some time desirous of giving to the public, through the press, some information as to the circumstances which led to the loss of this unfortunate steamer. Unfortunately, the small. number of survivors from the accident (two sailors, the ship's baker, and a cook—a passenger), and, above all, their incompetence to give any exact account of the disaster, made me fear to that I saw myself obliged to await the result of the painful and laborious enquiry which has just terminated, The Nil left Hongkong on the 13th of March. Up to the 20th the passage was accomplished as is usual at this time of year—that is to say, with rough and fine weather alternately. During the day, on the 20th, the weather became cloudy, the sea rough, and the wind blew with great violence from the SE. In consequence of the state of the atmosphere, it was impossible to take observations at midday. At night, the fog had become very thick, it rained heavily, and the sea was extremely rough.
About 10 in the evening, Capt. Samat must have supposed from his dead reckoning that he was in sight of the lighthouse on Rock Island, but the darkness of a rainy and foggy night prevented the rays of light being seen, and not perceiving light to guide im, he ordered speed to be slackened. They were then steering N.E., with staysails and the two jibs set, when, at about a quarter past eleven o'clock, a slight shock was felt. The vessel, drawn out of her course by the violent currents, of which so little is known, and which surround these Islands, the Captain found himself entangled in the midst of rocks from which it was impossible to extricate steamer, The group of rocks which the Vid was lost is known to the inhabitants of the coast as Mitsun Ichi*, It is composed of three principal ones, forming a triangle, of which the base is towards the sea; and in the limit of which all evolutions re impossible to a steamer of the dimensions of the Nil. only means by which the unfortunate steaner could escape was in going astern, or in crossing tthe line of rocks, At the moment of the shock, Captain Samat, who was upon the bridge, imtake mut scarcely had the engines made mediately gave the order to go astern, and to
one revolution before one of the piston rods:
80 the order could not be executed ho was forced at any price whatsotricate himself from his present perilous situation. 'Ihe steamer, deprived of all help from her engines, could no longer be steered; it had simply become the plaything of a furious sea, and struck with violence against the roche, the water rushing in at an opening made in' the fore part of the hull, the only hope of saving his ship, that la to Captain then probably resolved to attempt say, by crossing the line of breakers ahead of him, ant upon which the wind and the sea
short distance on the other side of the roo were driving him. Perhaps ho, observed a small bay, where he may have hoped. his vessel would have run aground, and thus save the lives of the passengers and crew, He ordered the jis to be run up, the main topsail to be loosed—t topgallant sail (2) was prepared. the sails, and helped also a little by the onl engine that was in working order, but whic was too feeble of itself to work'them astern, the Nil forged ahead; but all efforts were futile, for, in a moment, the vessel found herself upon a rock. It was then that the Capt., ing the impossibility of following out teas, and doubtless hoping to await daylight, and thus save the ship and effect a landing under less perilous conditions, gave the order to let go the two anchors and take in sail, but these last orders there was not time siderable, and her hold filling rapidly, thatshe Degan to plunge forward, when an enormous wave caused her to slide upon the rock where her stern still touched, and cross it when she immediately went down, bow first.
At the last moment, the two sailors managed. to launch a small boat, and thus effected their own rescue. In view of this almost unhoped for escape, one immediately asks oneself why all the boats were not launched, and one is naturally led to think that, by this means, if not all, of least a great number the unfortunate victims might have been saved.
Is there not, however, room to believe that it only two sailors were enabled to launch a boat and thus save their lives, it might not have been "the same, in a general order, when The observations made at Cape Id are not ofan ture to permit. us to. give. the precise position of rocks pot which the A was lost it is only Cly an ex-now lies in 34°37" N, lat, and 196°28"B. longitude,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.