(eno THE "40: of this paper had an interview with one of the officers of the steamer Hankow on her arrival from Canton yesterday afternoon, but gleaned nothing in addition to the information contained in the telegram from our correspondent, beyond that-all on board were believed to have got on shore in safety. The fire, it is said, originated in a cabin near the captain's room, and was caused by the upsetting of an opium lamp. As the Fushun was electrically lighted throughout, rendering unnecessary the uso of exposed li-lits for the purpose of the ship, this explanation of the fire may reasonably be regarded as a tolerably. cor reet one. That it was caused through the carelessness of one of the Chinese passengers is looked upon as morally certain. The steamer was lying at her buoy at the time, and as the fire did not start until half-past. ome. the captain and officers were, asleep in their cabins. There were also on board about twenty Chinese pas sengers. The flames spread with such bewildering rapidity that when the ship's officers rushed from their cabins it was to find the fire utterly beyond their control. The passengers and crew were immediately summoned—such of them, at least, as had not gathered on deck on the first alarm—and, with the captain and officers, who recognised their utter helplessness to save the ship, got into a boat hastily lowered and pulled ashore. Everyone was believed to have left the burning vessel, which at two o'clock, half-an-hour after the outbreak, was in flames from end to end, the glare lighting up the harbour for a great distance in every direction. The boats in the chocks were quickly destroyed, and the mast commenced to yield, eventually taking a bend that left it banging over the ship. Boats from H. M. 8. Firebrand, filled with ready blue-jackets, rowed over to the burning vessel, and were augmented by one or two sent out by the Customs authorities, who dispatehed a manual engine to the scene. Nothing could be done, however, to stay the progress of the fire, and by five o'clock the decks fell in, leaving the vessel a mero hollow shell, with sides glowing hot with a red-heat that made approach to within effective working distance an Smpossibility.
The fire had simply to be allowed to burn itself out.
The vessel was loading cargo, and there was also on beard a part of her import cargo. All this has been lost, the rapid spread of the fire preventing any attempt to save anything.
The Fushun was commanded by Captain Tut, one of the oldest skippers in the China Merchants' service. She was built in 1883 in the yard at Glasgow of Messrs. W. B. Thomson, and had a gross tonnage of 2,304 tons. Her measurements were:—Length, 280 fect; breadth, 40 fet; and width, 17 feet 9 inches,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.