By Inst advices from Batavia (2'ri November) nothing had been heard of the three still missing boats from the found-ored staumer Koning vier Nederlanden, The N.LS.N. Company's steamer Gouverneur Generat Van Lansberge was despatched search of them, her cruising ground being tract of sea considered as not examined yrt by any vessel for that purpose, takes coal for 65 days, and her voyage undertaken on behalf of Government. Letters have been received at Batavia from several of the rescued passengers from the Koning der Nederlanden, giving accoun more or Jess detailed of the calamity which overtook that heir subsequent voyage and suffer ing is a translation of o1 which "appears in the Batavia Handelsblad of the 23rd November.
"Qeylon, 9th November, 1881.—You will have become aware by this time of ti misfortune that has happened to us, and hence will not take it ai me when I send you a short, though cursory, description of it, On the evening of the 4th Uctober, at 7.30 o'clock, our splendid steamer Was atill steaming on in the best of order, When we suddenly became aware of scusation ae if our ship was passing over a rock. Moat of us, including myself, remained very calm, but, ut the next moment, jete was a great uproar when we were formed that the fan of our screw wan broken, and that the vessel had sprung a Teak in consequence. The outlook was not encouraging then, especially when orders were given to lower all ti and that every one must take the sam and all the other pumps rk, the result being that at one tertained hopes of being able sfloat. Many of na, becoming tranquillised by this, went to sleep. Others helped with the hand-pumps and made themselves serviceable. by conveying labs of tin from the after part to the fore part of the ship to give her a better At 6 a.m. next morning the boataw: received orders to set sail. This wan an other trong: g circumstance, whi was, however, event. Soo information that the vessel was mediate descent into th boats was our only means of safety. What " dreadful moment. To see one hundred and ninety-two human beings seating themselves in the bunts as rapidly as possible with being able to take anything with the other than what clothes they had on.
uld not even get hold of a flannel shirt, took my seat in the box dressed in white pantaloons, and cabaya, with hare feet and bare head. The Bent wan "tur. board bent No 3, i h, besides scantily dressed wife, 26 axilora and sold took their sents [must not forget to mention that we were the worst tered little w without or who knew anything of that mor t, it struck comed, and that it mat. all were in th around the ship until orders were given to sail away. Our boat was fitted up for only 18 men, but w we got under anil with 28 persons on board, ug course for the Cha nds, which it was said might be reached wit three or four days. At first, nil went well, the third day, when, owing to storm and wind, we lost sight'of xll the other oats and had, moreover, the ill luck to encounter none: of them again, Captnin Bruyn's order was to ateer East and to do the best we could. But notwithstand ing that we did our utmost, not a ulimpae min of land was discernible. to gai the mastery over us, esp when on the 9th, out ration waa dimi and we g biscuit a day two. We high seas result, the consequence being that our ration was reduced to half a biscuit per day, that article being very mouldy too. It is impossible for me to describe our situation You may pict re to yourself day after day futourable weather, benumbe? with cold and suffering from hunger, until 5th November, when the daily ration was fixed at a quarter of biscuit each, with an eye to prolong our for six more days. Among the soldiers great dissatisfaction began to prevail, and it took sll my per-ive powers to inspire these poor fellows i rave as much as possible. I did not fail to point out to them the condition of my prior wife, who gut not a crumb more than we did, and for even then nothing of the kind could yet he see So it con ned the next day and the following night, till, at length, at daybreak, a small narrow streak on the horizon was perceived by ench of us. Our joy was indescribable. It waa an affecting moment when, on seel first fishing hosts, tears came eyen of even soldiers usually by privation. When the boats drew near, something to eat and drink was first offered na, and afterwards we ate piloted to the Iand. At 8 am, we lay off Con-dare. on the island of Ceylon. After our landing we were erizod at like wild berists by thousands of Klings, Fortunately the headman also made his appearance, Soon a table was placed in readiness for us, with fish, curry, rice, and eofive on it, while wemation of our miafurtnnes was forth with sent to Matura, from which place a large supply of refreshments was imme: diately sent to us. Believe me, we were not able to enjoy properly the good things Inid before us, We were like drunken people in consequence of the privation. of the previous days, and of the sudden change from the utmost dervair to a renewed life, On the 7th November, we left for Matura and then proceeded straight to Point de Galle, where we were kindly treated in the hotel, I might make my letter much more tragical without falling short of the truth, but why is it necessary to publish all the miseries endured, when, with the aid of Provid we have surmounted them? forgot, however, to mention that a sereoant major and a serjeuut became decidedly insane and caused us much trouble. A private, who preferred " apordy end to inesleulably long ery, Kprang overboard and disappeared jer our beat. The sea was high and reac impossible. I have passed through fearful momenta, The curses and flag phemies of the soldiers at their misery appeared to heve no end, and began afresh avery additional day, When any one among us tuck courage to try to calm this diser: Aerly horde the response wx 'n shower of abuse. r-proaches, and even threats. The most dreadful of all Waa, moreover, ut some of the ringleaders expressed the 1 after the expiration of the days h our moderate arock of provisions would last, of waiting knife in hand for the lant breath of the first of us who died, order to feed their emaciated bodies on the little flesh that might he left on ours."
The Batavia Handelsblad also publishes a letter from one of those in the boat re-by the ateamer Iyberton, in which umber of persons stowed away in the honta of the Kening der Nedortanden n at 213. From the spot where that sunk, the Chagas islands were estimated to lie 108 geographical mil distanen expected to ho traversed ten to twelve days, Exch boat was applied with provision and drinking water for fourteen days, and almost every boat was provided with a chart, chronometer, compass, and either sextant or octant. All the boats were in good order and their crews well civilled. The box in which he embarked was commanded by the chief officer of the Koning, and contained 39 per packed almost us tight ax sardines in a Save on the first two days after setting sull for Chagas, the wind waa unfavourahl Reckoning of their course was kept daily. Those in the boat were rationed each on one ship's biscuit, a small glass of wine, and a beer-zlass of water daily, He then continues thus worthy of imitation by us. spent almost 30 days, scantily dressed, on and never uttered a mplnint One day, L do not know which. I saw something on the horizon which resembled land, but was knocked m the head by the tion generally expressed that it was an illusion, This proved to be the truth, Thoush we suffered neither from hun-nor thirst, our food was anything but luxurious, which, however, does not do away with the fact that we might have held out long on this diet. A much greater trouble was the weather, we having om-barked in the boats with nothing else than what we had on At noon the heat was almost unendurable, so that we suffered greatly from it and the fearfully intense
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.