The following particulars of a recent voyage of the steamer Thales, from Hongkong to Cooktown, will doubtless be interesting to our readers, not only on account of the adventures met with, but also for the daring and skilful seamanship shown by Capt. Coles under circumstances of more than ordinary difficulty:—The Thales left Hongkong on the 8h March, with about 500 Chinese emigrants for Cook town. Two days after leaving Hongkong, the ship got into a heavy north-east gale, which, besides doing other damage, washed away all the Chinese galleys, so that it was impossible to cook in them for three days. Afterwards all went well until arriving in Torres Straits, where, at two p.m. on the 24th of March, the ship being right in the fairway track, and full three miles from any dangerous places marked on the chart, she suddenly went crashing and bumping over a sunken rock, about 30 feet wide, anc having 1G feet of water over it, at dead low tide—the time the ship struck. The ship dragged right across the rock, and was soon in deep water again. An examination was immediately made, and, strange to say, the officers at first reported no water in the hold; but shortly afterwards Mr. Parlane, the chief engineer, sent for Captain Coles, who, on going down into the engine-room, found the water coming in fast. The pumps, seven in number, were at once set going at full power, but they were found insufficient to keep the water tinder, so Captain Coles determined to run the vessel ashore; but the problems to be solved were—where could this best be done, and would the ship be able to do it before the water rose high enough to extinguish the fires. Making a careful ealeulation accordingly, Captain Coles believed $3 that he could reach Somerset and beach the ship before that, which would have been a fatal result, happened. The pumps were kept at work, and the ship headed full speed for the shore—it was the only chance of saving the lives probably of all on board. The anxiety of the intervening time can scarcely be imagined, but the daring resolve succeeded, and the ship got into shallow water, and glided on to a sandy beach, just as the water was lapping the fire-bars! The vessel went so softly on to the sand that very few on board knew she was ashore. The engines were kept going slowly ahead all night to the water out of the engine-room; and the engineers were employed finding out and plugging the leaks with wooden wedges. In the morning, the ship was got afloat again as the tide rose, when it was found that the donkey pumps would just keep heer free, and no more. At the place were the Thaies was beached, there were neither supplies nor help to be obtained, and Captain Coles therefore resolved to steer direct for Cooktown, distant 400 miles, through the reefs. The passage was made successfully, though it was necessary to keep the donkey pumps going night and day the whole time; and the vessel arrived at Cooktown on the 20th March. As though the trouble and anxiety occasioned as above narrated, were not sufficient, a case of small-pox occurred on board' on the way down from Somerset, and on the steamer anchoring at Cooktown, the authorities kept her in quarantine for 29 days, although they knew she had 550 souls on board, and was so injured that the pumps had still to be kept going night, and day. None of the passengers were allowed to land, and as a matter of course there was much suffering and discontent. The authorities first wanted Captain Coles
Bay, 600 miles distant, and land the to take his almost crippled vessel to Keppel Chinese there. This he refused to do, and the authorities next asked him to go to. Fitzroy Island, distant 120 miles, and land them there. This he also refused to do, considering the state of the ship and the: number of persons on board. After much wrangling, firestoning, and surveying, the authorities eventually came to the conclusion that the Captain's decision was the right one, and he was finally permitted to land the Chinese at Cooktown,—The next consideration was about the vessel, and ultimately it was resolved that Mr Parlane should patch up her bottom as well as he could from the inside, then to have her surveyed, continue the charter, and proceed to hongkong. All this was done, and the Thales started on her homeward trip. While going through the reefs again, she to get on one of them, but it was soft coral—"'softasmud"—sodidno damage, and Hongkong was reached without further mishap on the 29th of May, amid abundance of congratulations. On' the ship being docked, the bottom was found to have been much worse injured than was supposed, and the screw and shaft were also much damaged—it was wonderful that the ship behaved so well as she did, or, in fact, that she reached harbour at all.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.