The Cambrian

GREAT STORM. WRECKS & LOSS OF LIFE ON GOWER COAST o The state of the weather in this district, and, indeed, d e? ac, r £ area °f Europe, has been the cauae of a great *os.s a"d anxiety lately, but this culminated 011 aturday in a storm which has wrought more havoc ong the Gower coast than any similar visitation for PMratioiis past. For some days previously, the wind aa been strong and gusty, but about five o'olock on w>h m°rning it gathered up its strength and blew o.\fcgreat fury, accompanied ever and anon by showers hail and rain. As far as the land is concerned, aese storm forces seem to have effected comparatively ittle damage. We hear of few trees cut down, or ouses untiled, or chimneys immolated, but on the coast it expended all its power of harm, and, as a esult, we have to record an awful tale of loss of human 1 e and destruction of valuable property. The first Qtimation which reached the town of the disasters hat had already happened, was contained in the elegram, which came from the Mumbles Head Station g 12.20 p .m., and which was posted outside both the I fwbour office and The Cambrian office soon afterwards. hat telegram was to the effect that a Dantzic jj^que had gone ashore off the Mumbles Head, losing he of her crew, and, worse still, that in the coursa of .gallant effort to save life, the Mumbles Lifeboat had stove in and six of her crew had perished. It was ttrther briefly stated on the authority of Mr. Thomas 'obs, Lloyd's agent at Porteynon, that a fine "teamer bad gone down off that part of the Peninsula, thit all hands had perished. It was also believed hat another steamer had struck the shore at Rhossilly, and had totally disappeared before day break. It ay Well be imagined that such news as this created a 8>reat deal of excitement in the town, and led many Persons to take train for Oystermoutb, to Iparn more ^e catastrophe. There the state of things was Pfteous in the extreme. That a large ship had gone to PIeces, was nothing compared with the scene of human Aguish that presented itself to the earlier arrivals on e scene. The women and children of the village, the pothers and wives and offspring of the twelve brave who had gone forth in the lifeboat, stood on 116 hill in the anguish of despair, tearing their hair *1d tearing the grass on the ground beneath their feet. WREOK OF THE ADMIRAL PRINZ ADALBERT.— DESTRUCTION OF MUMBLES LIFEBOAT, AND LOSS OF FIVE LIVES. When the story, which was at first fragmentary somewhat conflicting, came to be consecutively told, the nature and extent of the disaster could be Appreciated, but not till then. It appears that the barque Admiral Prinz Adalbert, of Dantzic, Ludwig f^ibaner, master, with a crew of 16 handi, was com- J,ng up channel on Friday night. Sbe was on a voyage "otn Rochefort, in France, to Swansea with a cargo 990 tons of pitwood, consigned to Mr. Jas. D ■vies, yie barque passed Lundy and Caldy Island, and had the Lights of the Channel in view and took bear- Ings from them in the course of the night. From to 7 a.m on Saturday morning the ship was hove to on the port tack. Signals were m ule for a pilot, "at none came. Later on the Flying Scud steam tug up, and an agreement was entered into that AoOO should be paid for towing the barque into safety. The ship's two hawsers, however, snapped, and the barque drifted towards the shore. The first and second anchors were let go, but the chain of one Parted and the other dragged, so that the vessel washed right on the rocks to the westward of 'he Lighthouse, where she soon bumped the musts out her. 1 lie increasing danger of her situation having been seen from the shore, the rocket apparatus \\>IIS intflectu >lly used, while the lifeboat was got out and manned. Then coming out from the bay through the Inner Sound, the gallant crew of the lifeboat made eVery effort to save life. It being impossible to go to the leew; rd of the wreck, which would hive been the Usual course, they pulled to windward and let go their anchor, so as to keep the boat from dashing against the rocks, but afier they had succeeded in rescuing two Inen, and were in the act of hauling in the third, their Anchor cable parted and the lifeboat was dashed against the wreck, and most of her men thrown out. *he details of the sad story may be gleaned from the evidence at the inquest, which we give herewith. Suffice to say ttiat four of the gallant but unfortunate hfeboat men lost their lives, and two more were terribly injured, while the carpenter of the barque was fru o drowned. After the tide had ebbed, the crew of the barque were able to come ashore, and they were humanely treated by Mr. Ace and his family, at the lighthouse and the artillery men's quarters. The bodies Of two of the lifeboat men, John Jenkins and William Jenkins, were picked up at once, and the other two were afterwards found in Bob's Cove, severely tajured, between the waves and the rocks. Nearly the the whole of the lifeboat men were severely cut and bruised, even those who were not thrown out of the boat in its thumpings and capsizings were more or less Injured. The lives of two of the lifeboats' crew were saved by Miss Ace, the daughter of the lighthouse- keeper, who w nt down to the rocks, up to her waist in water, and threw her shawl to the sinking men, and so drew them ashore. The Prussian carpenter's body Was washed ashore near the wreck. When George -Jenkins was taken out of the cave he was suffering ter- ribly, both legs being more or less smashed and his scalp shockingly torn, but happily he is believed to be on the way to ultimate recovery. He is a married OMm with three children. Jenkin Jenkins, the elder, the first coxswain of the boat, was much injured also. The names of the men who were drowned were :—John Jenkins, of Southend, Oystermouth, second coxswain of the lifeboat, who leaves a wilow and six children William Jenkins, who leaves a widow and two chil- dren William MacNamara, who leaves a widow and our children and William Rogers, who leaves a widow and seven children. Peter Ausust Rahberg, the car- penter of the barque, belonged to Dantzic, and leaves a widow and two children. The wreck of the barque was visited by thousands of Persons during the Saturday afternoon and the Sunday evening, but by that time she had gone literally to pieces, and her timbers and cargo were strewn all found the Bay and the Coast. On Monday afternoon all that was left of her was old by Mr. Evan Crapper, under the direction of Capt. fahne, the German Consul, for small sums amounting In the aggregate to £170. An inhabitant of the Mumbles has sent us the fol- lowing account of the disaster:—It was about 10 o'clock in the morning that a report ran through the village that a ship had gone ashore in Bracelet Bay. A brisk Walk of twenty minutes brought me to the scene of the disaster. There appeared to be nothing extraordinary in the view presented to me when I arrived at the brow of the hill. A barque, with masts erect, and topsails set, slightly rolling from side to side, about fifty yards from the shore; the lifeboat riding at anchor a cable's length to windward, and scattered groups of men and women running here and there. The rolling of the ship which at first attracted but little attention, was now evidently doing its work most effectually, for aa she heeled over to the pressure of the wind and sea, her foremast went by the board, taking with it the main and mizen masts, sails, spars, and everything above board, leaving but a miserable wreck of what was a few moments before a fine and noble ship. The crew had up to this time appeared to hesitate before leaving their ship, preferingto take their chance with her rather than risk their lives on board that light and fragile craft that danced upon the boiling surf a few yards off. If tbev had hesitated how to act before, the falling of masts and tackling enabled them quickly to decide, for as fast as possible one after another passed along the line to the life -boat. The water was now becoming shallower with the ebb tide, consequently the sea began to run with fearful violence, the hull of the ship being at times completely submerged. Nor did the sea spare the life-boat and crew, for whom the anxiety of those on shore now became apparent. Two Of the barque's men had reached the life-boat in safety, but whilst the third was being hauled on board the life- boat's mooring warp parted. Then all became confusion and dismay the last poor fellow was left to his fate, a fate which many of those who tried to save him shared. She had scarcely fallen off broadside to the tempest when a sea came rushing madly along as though specially reserved for its mission of death, and caught her in its fatal folds, sending her with fearful force against the barque's side. In this extraordinary flight she threw one man on the poop of the ship that was now fast breaking up. The next sea completed the work of destruction by burling the shattered life-boat upon the rock of the lighthouse, leaving the crew helplessly struggling towards the shore. The horror and dismay which were now depected on every face baffles description, no words can truthfully represent the anguish of those whose husbands and eons tormed the crew of the Mumbles life-boat. In the cause of humanity four of these brave men have lost their lives. Although all are not called to risk life and limb as those have done, yet ell can respond in some way and degree to the appeal made on behalf of the widows and orphans, whose lives — burdened with this fresh affliction and the now increased cares of life-must be almost unbearable. I trust, sir, that the sailors' friends will contribute fairly towards the relief fund. THE INQCEST. was opened at the Mermaid Hotel, before Mr. Edward Strick, at five o'clock on Monday evening, with a jury of whom Mr. Gelderd was foreman. Among those present were—Capt. La'Primandaye, R.N., District Inspector of Life Boats, and Mr. J. W. Islay Young, the local secretary to the Royal National Life Boat Institution, watched the proceedings on be- half of that Institution Mr. Felix Webber, the Rev. Secretan Jones, Mr. Steel, &c. This was an inquiry touching the death of John Jenkins and William Jenkins, of Oystermouth, and Peter August Rahberg, the carpenter of the Prussian hamTieV. rmpninsr the inquest, said this was which had happened in the district for many years, for it concerned the death, not only of the carpenter of the foreign ship, but also of several men of the village, who had lost their lives while endeavouring to save the lives of others. U nler these melancholy circumstances he was sure the jury would not grudge the time required for a most careful inquiry. The evidence was then called. „ j John Williams, oyster dredger, Mumbles, deposed The both Jenkinses were my cousins. John was 37 last birthday, and he was a dredger, and second coxswain of the lifeboat. William Jenkins was a5 years of age and he also was a dredger. I was in the lifeboat at the time of the disaster, and was washed aboard the vessel. 1 was one of the last men called to the boat. When I got to the lifeboat bouse, the boat was got out on the bank. A lot of men were running in and saying there was a vessel ashore on the Toot." The crew of the lifeboat were 13 men, including Jenkin Jenkins the coxswain, John Jenkins, second coxswain, George Jenkins, Jenkin Jenkins, jun., John Williams, J. Thomas, David John Morgan, Wm. Rosser, Wm. Macnamara, Wm. Rogers, Thomas Michael, and Geo. Davies. We first went out through the Inner Sound. The barque was right in front of us, and just then she left her anchor go. The wind was blowing a perfect gale at the timo. The anchor did check her a little, but it must have broken, for she drifted right on to the lighthouse. There she bumped the masts out of her, and then she lay quiet. After we got through the Sound we went to windward of the vessel, and let go our anchor. That held our boat for some time. I was holding the rope; it was a four-inch rope. A cording to my judgment it was in very good order. We could not make it fast to the boat. We were bound to haul in the slack and let go when wanted. We were trying to get a line aboard the vessel so as to get the men into the lifeboat. We were 20 or 30 yards to wind- ward of the vessel—not more than that. They (the Prussian barque) hove a life buoy overboard, and we, by means of a grapple, got it on board the lifeboat, and then we got the line aboard. Then we bent on a second line, so as to get a hauling rope alongside the other one. We !lot that aboard also. By means of this we succeeded in getting two men from the ship into our boat, and we were hauling in a third when the acci- dent happened. While hauling the third, the sea came and parted the rope that held us to our anchor. I don't know what happened next. The next thing I know was that I found myself washed on the deck of the vessel. The deck of the vessel while on the rouks was fully 20 feet above our boat. I was washed over the weather side of the barque. I did not see what became of the second man we were trying to save, but I saw George Jenkins and Jenkin Jenkins, my cousins, swimming astern of the barque, and Rogers I saw in the breakeis. I remained in the vessel until the tide ebbed, and I was then able to walk ashore over some ropes. The rest of the crew of the vessel remained there too. When the lifeboat went out she was properly equipped. There was noqueationastothewiadomof anchoring to windward of the barque. My uncle sung out Let go Johnny." I should think we rode at anchor about three-quarters of an hour before the line parted. The barque lay there quiet during that time ■—after her masts went. I ca-i't see that anything further could have been done than was done to save the boat, except to have a line from the tug boat. There were two tug boats there. A Juryman Not when the boat capsized ? Witness: No, they were gone when she capsized. To my own knowledge, after I was washed aboard the barque, I don't know that the lifeboat struck the barque; only what I was told. Afterwards, when the lifeboat was on the rocks, I saw my uncle, the coxswain, go down to bis son, John Jenkins, where he was washed in, but be made no answer, and was quite dead. I saw George on the rocks twice, but he was washed away again. I called out, but no one heard me. My uncle, Jenkin Jenkins, was all covered with blood. After that I saw the tug taking the lifeboat in tow, with some of the men in it. The tug boat called the Plying Scud had been near us when we left go. We did no: ask her for assistance. We did not hail her. They could have been of great assistance if they had backed astern, and given us another rope. We could have done what we liked then. We did not think of parting our rope, or we would not have gone there: If we had called, the tug could not have heard us. Weoould have waved to it, but we did not. Our rope seems as if it was chafed through. The accident had not happened when the tug left us. I lost sight of George and Jenkin Jenkins when they were washed into Bob's Cave. George had his leg broken. After the accident, the lifeboat washed through the Sound on to the bay side of the rock, where she was taken in tow. The port side of the boat and her bottom, where sbe bumped against the rocks, have been stove in. Her gunwale on the starboard side was broken where she is said to have struck ag-iinst the vessel. When we saw the vessel on the rocks we thought the crew would have been washed off, and that she would have been broken up. The length of the lifeboat's rope was about 50 fathoms, and we had paid out all but six fathoms., and then we were gathering in and paying out. I think the cable was chafing cn the rock. A good deal of cable was hauled in afterwards by the men who were never thrown out of the boat. By a Juryman: I don't know what made the tug- beat leave us. By the Coroner We knew the rock«, but we did not think the rope was chafing. I could not bear what the coxswain was saying at the time. Ludwig Leibauer, the captain of the Admiral Prinz Adelbert, sworn, said: I am a master mariner, and captain of the said vessel. We passed Caldv about 12 o clock on Friday night. It blew very hard from west- north-west and west by north. We had no pilot on board. We passed Lundy at 1 o'clock, I had those lights as well as Bull Light in sight all night, and took bearings from them. I made the signals for a pilot, the flare," but no pilot came. From 4 to 7 a.m. 1 hove her to on the port tack. I was then in the middle of the channel. I saw the tug boat. It came to me about 8 o'clock within h iil, and I gave him a rope directly. Sbe was a Swansea boat; it was the Flying Scud." I could not wear the ship, and that was the reason I gave her the rope. I wanted to be towed up out of danger of the rocks. We were about seven miles off the Mumbles. I gave him a 9-inch hawser, and in about 50 minutes the hawser parted. When that parted, the tug came and I gave another hawser, which immediately parted. Then I let go my port anchor. W ben the chain was out 50 fathoms that parted, and I let go my starboard anchor. We paid out of that 30 or 40 fathoms, but it did not check her. The anchor must have dragged, and then we were on the rocks. The lifeboat came to windward of us and anchored. In my judgment I don't think sbe could have done better to help us. The orew of the lifeboat threw a rope and had got two of my men on board, and when the third was going over, the hawser of the lifeboat anchor parted, and all was lost. Peter August Rahberg was one of my crew. Ho is one of the de- ceased. After the boat capsized nothing more could have been done than was done. The wind and sea were very high. My vessel had not lost her rudder, and but for the parting of the ropes we should have been in tow. I can't say that the tug boat acted in the best possible way. I can't say whether it went ahead "full speed." If that was so the rope must have broke. The agreement was made that the tug should have £500 for towing us before we gave him the rope. He asked that sum, and I did not demur to it. By a Juryman After we parted our both ropes, the tug did not offer me her rope, but went away. She ought to have done so, of course. I certainly thought the sum dernanded was exorbitant, but what could I do ? I was in danger. There was plenty of time for the tug-boat to give us his own rope. The tug-boat ought certainly to have stuck to the ship to try and save life if possible. The tug blew his whistle and went away after the last hawser parted. I had then no alternative but to let go my anchor. I let go my first anchor about 2 miles from the place where I struck. When we grounded, the wind was west by north. It was very near the time of high water. By a juryman Do you think it was necessary for the life-boat to stay there, s.nce she was in more { danger than the ship ?—rdou t know. If her cable ( had held, she would have been all right. ( By the Coroner When my ship got on the rocks at first we were in danger of our lives, we dId not j know the rocks, and we might have been killed by the, falling of the masts. I did not wish my crew to stay ti by the ship. They had their choice. I did tell the 1 deceased, Raghberg, not to go, because he took the 1 rope from the boys. Boys are boys, and men are t men. I like all to stop till the boys go first. I would t have stopped to the last, and I would not care if I had ] been drowned. ( William Rosser, qne of the life-boat crew, deposed: When I went out with the rest, I thought it was necessary to go to the relief of the crew of the Prus- SIall ship. I first saw the barque about 8 o'clock or half-past, that morning. She was then to the west- ward about 6 miles from the Mumbles Head. The tug-boat was going to her at the time. I saw her after that about half-past nine o'olock, me and the coxswain of the boat, and John Thomas. She was then about half a mile off the land, off the Toot. She- was about half way between the Mixen buoy and the Toot, with her head towards the land, and she was making for the land, under no control when we saw her We then came down from the Mumbles Hill and launched the boat. When the life-boat got through the Inner Sound, she had just got on The rock AH that Williams the former witness has said about what occurred is correct, to my knowledge. It did not occur to us-at least nothing was said about the risk of chafing the cable against the rock. I was pulling a starboard oar, keeping the boat square, with our heads to the ship. After the great sea struck the boat she relieved herself, and I was one of the hve who were left in her. Five of us were not thrown out, and she righted. The coxswain and the second coxswain, John Jenkins, were left in the boat. We were not aware at first that the cable bad parted. The coxswain told me to heave in the bow rope, or cable. I and two otheis trie 1 to do s ■, and found it had parted. I then saw the coxswain and second cox- swain in the boat bleeding. Their laces were all over blood. The boat was now under the stern of the vessel, but the next sea knocked her right over and wbea she righted herself again, I was in hers ill. Before the second sea came I was called to help to haul William Macnamara into the boat, and we did so. I did not speak to him. When the sea struck her a third time, I was knocked out of her, and I could do nothing but get breath and go ashore. Mr. Ace's two daughters and a soldier were there throwing a rope. I took the rope, and Mr. Ace's two daughters hauled me up. The life-boat was got out in less than a quarter of an hour after the order was given. By a Juryman If the steam tug stood by and had passed a rope, all lives would have been saved. By the Coroner So all would have been right if our cable had held, The coxswain and the second cox- swain were injured by the boat knocking against the ship's side. The inquiry was then adjourned. At the resumption of the inquiry on Tuesday after- noon, Abraham Ace, the Mumbles Lighthouse-keeper, said that about 9 o'clock on Saturday morning he saw the Admiral Prinz Adalbert coming up the Channel, apparently unmanageable. At this time a steam tug was playing about her. He could not s >y whether the tug was fast to the steamer when he saw them, but at halt-past nine they were certainly not connected, i At this time the vessel was half a mile from the Mixen, and he felt positive that she would strike, as she was drifting. Everything was then got ready for the pur- pose of saving life. He saw the captain let his anchor go at 20 minutes past ten, the vessel then being close in under the Mumbles Htiad. The two topsails were up with the object of backing the ship, but she struck upon the Mumbles Rock. Witness then immediately s*w the lifeboat come out from one of the Sounds. Judging from the position of the ship, he thought there w ts great danger of the crew being washed overboard. She could not have been in greater danger. The sea was breaking over the ship very high there was a tremendous ground sea on, and she bumped a good deal. The mast fell over the side to the eastward on I the rock. Witness saw a line between the lifeboat and the ship, and noticed two men endeavour to leave the vessel by that means. A tremendously heavy sea then went right over the barque and the boat, turning the latter over. She righted herself, and as soon as the spray cleared away, witness saw one man alongside ot her, and the others in the sea and on the rocks. He did not see any men actually in the lifeboat after she had capsized. Sbe then went through the gutter with this one man beside her, he being entangled. There were, he thought, four or five of the lifeboat men on the rocks, and they walked across to the lighthouse when the tide receded. Ot tuose in the water, witness, his two daughters, and an artilleryman, saved two by heaving a rope to them. Another man, William Jenkins, caught hold of a line which Was thrown to him, but he failed to retain his grip. Witness saw the bodv of John Jenkins no iting in the water. The life- boat drifted through the S .und and stopped close to the steps by which the lighthouse rock is ascended The tug which witness saw near the barque left her an hour before she struck of this he was positive. The tug did not appear to take any notice whatever of the vessel. Witness saw one rocket tired from the appa- ratus, but it failed to reach the ship. He did not know where the rocket apparatus was fired from. It could hive been taken on to the lighthouse rock in a boat. He believed all did their utmost to save life He considered that atter the mast went over the crew of the vessel would have been safer on board th in in the lifeboat. The tide was then receding. In reply to Mr. Young, the witness said that the captain ot the tug could have greatly assisted tbe life- boat I;)y passing a rope to her. In reply to a juryman, witness said that the men thrown out of the lifeboat were afloat for 10 minutes. Tne artillerymen behaved bravely. There was no foundation for the report which placed their conduct in another light. There w .s no telegraphic communi- cation between the lighthouse and Mumbles village. John Tkomas, dredger, Mumbles, one of the crew'of the lifeboat, said that, after being knocked out of the boat, he swam out to sea, being afraid of the rocks. He heard someone say, "Haul in the rope," and upon looking round and seeing that the boat h id righted herself, he returned, and again got in her. Shortly afterwards she was struck by « second sea. He was again knocked out, and a second time awamback to the boat. He then laid hold of her, and so remained till he was rescued by a soldier. When he went out of the lifeboat he saw the tug Flying Scud to the wind- ward of the vessel. A man on board the tug held up a rope to them, but one of the crew of the lifeboat said, "Don't attend to that; you have got enough to do to look after your oar." He could not say how far off the tug was at that time. By a Juryman Had the steamer passed a rope to the lifeboat, the crew might have been saved. Captain Rosser, owner of the Flying Scud, remarked that the steam tug was bound to go ahead, and bad she given a rope to the lifeboat she would have pulled her away, and removed the chance of her saving life. Win. Harvey, master of the Flying Scud steam tug, said that, just at break of day on Saturday he saw two barques hove too, about five miles from Pwlldu. He went to tbe bigger one, the Admiral Prinz Adalbert, The captain said he was bound for Swansea, to which witness replied, H ird up, and follow me, and you will get in this tide." This occurred between seven and eight o'clock. The captain gave orders in accordance with witness's advice, the foresail, forestay-sail, and jib being set to keep the ship away. Finding the ship did not keep away, witness turned round and asked the captain why he did not run up after him, to which he replied that his helm was hard up all the time. The ship, however, would not pay off at all. Witness again went away, and seeing tbe ship did not follow, turned a second time, when he saw the captain beckoning him. The latter said»' Will you puti my ship's bow round ?" To which witness said, Yes, on condition; I will tow your bow round for £500." The captain then directed his crew to give witness a rope, and one of seven inches was thrown to him. They then went a-head, but the rope parted after they had gone over two or three seas. A rope of 13 inches was then handed to him, and they proceeded along, but the second rope also broke after they had expe- rienced four or five seas. The ship then drifted on towards the land. The rope on board the tug was a small and short one, which it was no use to give to the vessel. The sea was very high. Witness, seeing that he could do no more, blew his whistle, ran up to the Mumbles Head, and signalled for the lifeboat. He then returned to the vessel, and drifted up with her close to her stern. He saw the two anchors let so and observed the vessel strike her stern swinging round on to the Mumbles Head. The first blow unshipped the rudder. Witness saw tbe lifeboat come out and one of his men held up a rope to the lifeboat, but no notice was taken of it. He considered that the lifeboat ought not to have gone where she was, considering the sea. After a short adjournment, the jury signified that they wished to conclude the case that night, and the Coroner assented. No further evidence was tnken, but after some consideration the jury arrived at a verdict that the deceased had come to their death accidentally but tbe following words were added to that verdict: "The jury expresses great sympathy with the relatives of the deceased, and tind great fault with the owners of the Flying Scud for not having proper tow ropes on board capable of towing ships; they also censure the saptains of the two tugboats Flyidg Scud and Flying Cloud, for not attempting to render any assistance." TOTAL LOSS OF THE S.S. AGNES JACK WITH ALL HANDS. In coneequence of the distance of Porteynon from Swansea, the ruggednesa of the roads, and the compa- ratively little traffic that exists, it is difficult to get inything like prompt information. Until, therefore, 3ap ain Symmonds—who bad been despatched to the !pot by Mr. James Strick, Lloyd's agent, immediately >n receipt of the news—had returned, it'was not defi- ntely known, though it was feared, that the wreck atT°[th £ ASnes Jack- This steamer was owned was 9q QBQ11 ^acon» °f Liverpool; her official number j .f • >' ner gross registered tonnage was 737 • ind the net registered tonnage, 476; while the nominal lorsepower of her engines was 85. She was well- mown at Swansea, since she was a somewhat frequent .rader between Liverpool. Cardiff, and Swansea. On his occasion, her cargo consisted of about 600 tons of ead ore, containing silrer, belonging to Henrv Bath und Son, Swansea, and it was consigned on this vovaee to Nevill, Druce, and Co. of Llanelly. The ore, being argentiferous, is valued at about £9,000 to £10000 and is insured. It fortunately happened that on Saturday the ships articles were washed ashore and picked up. Had it not been for this circumstance, much less would be known than is at present ascertain- able about the crew who have perished. The difficulty of identification of the bodies found, and of any that may be hereafter washed ashore, is enhanced by the fact that the men did not all join the ship at the same time. We learn from the articles that the voyage commenced on July 6th, 1882. An entry shows that the vessel left Caglian, in Sardinia, on the 12t;" January. The following eleven names appear on the articles, without any mark of discharge; — John Jones, aged 38, Neath, captain; Watkins, 25, Maidstone, chiet mate; William Morriston, 32, Alloa, chief engineer; James Down; 2J, Taibach (Aberavon), second engineer; David Williams, 26, Pembrey, donkeyman George Cook, Belfast, fireman James Jones, 26, Cardigan, fireman; Wm. Wfraben, 30, boatswain; John Williams, 40, Liverpool, cook James OweD, 40, Newport (Pembroke), steward; Augustus Hill, 43, Boston, A.B.; William Johnson, 2j, Liverpool, A,B.; John Yeo, 35, Plymouth, A.B. Roberts, 35, Nevin, A.B. William Smith, Finland, A.B.; Giovanni George, 30, Trieste, A.B.; Joan Finn, Sligo, It is fair to presume, there- ) fore, that these were all on board at th] time of the disaster and are drowned. We understand that the Agnes Jack arrived off Llanelly on Wednesday even. ing too late for the tide, and so she ran up to the Mumbles roadstead, wlwl] the captain came ashore to meet his wife and children, who now reside at St. Thomas. She left the roadstead on Friday, and the next we hear of her is a sad tale. It appears from the evidence given at the inquest, wbich is fully re- ported below, that about five o'clock on Saturday morning a farm labourer at Porteynon, when going to work, heard cries as of human beings in diftress from the sea. He went some way towards the fore- shore, but when he saw a light, as of a ship, about three quarters of a mile off the shore, and heard no more cries, he went away to his work, and said nothing about the affair till breakfast time. Other people, however, also heard cries and went to the shore and saw a light, but could not make anything out. As soon as the dawn broke it was seen that there were two masts of a sunken ship about 500 yards distant from the shore, with about ten men clinging to the vard. Messengers were despatched to Oxwich and to Rhossilly for the rocket apparatus and volunteer crews, and they came as soon as possible, the former com- manded bv Coastguardsman Downing and the latter by Coastguardsman Darsh. The further details of the sad story are told in the evidence of the inque.-t. There was at first a rumour that another steamer, supposed to be the Edith, had been lost off Rhossilly, -1 but that has now been reiuteu. The following is the account by an eye-witness, Mr. C. Bevan, of Overton :-On Saturday morning shortly after 5 o'clock, a light was seen off Poiteynou Poin' and cries of men were heard coming from the same direction. As scon as day broke two masts of a steamer were visible above water, and on one of the masts the spectators were horrified to see ten or twelve men huddlei together on the yard about the mast-head, crying pitifully for help, Lord help us, Lord save us," &c. Messengers had been sent to the coast-guards at Oxwich and Rhossilly. Mr. Downing, of Oxwhicb, arrived on the scene shortly after eight o'clock with the rocket brigade and getting on to the nearest point of land, the red flag was shown. Mr. Downing looked at the wreck, paused for a moment, and then said, Too far." They fixed their gear and fired a rocket, which dropped about 150 yards short of the distance. By this time stores of men had arrived on the spot ready to render any assistance in their power, but nothing could be done to rescue the poor men from their perilous position, and the spec- tators could do nothing more than gaze on the awful sight. The wind blew with terrific force, and the sea w..s frightful to look at. Huge waves rolled in one after another, breaking on the rocks, the foam and spray rising in the air like clouds. Every eye was fixed on the frail mast to which the doomed sailors clung—the only one that now stood-and every moment was expected to be the last About nine o'clock one of the men was seen to fall into the sea and disappear. The other poor fellows appeared to be stripping themselves of their clothes, one thing after another, boots, &c., were seen droppmg into the sea, as if the men were preparing to swim, until some of them appeared to be almost naked. Shortly after the first man fell out of the mast, a second man was seen to go down, as if hand over hand, over a rope. He paused a moment and then plunged into' the water, and struck out for the shore, but was soon loot sight of. About ten o'clock the Rhossilly brigade arrived, and moie rocketi were fired, but to no effect. Shortly after tec, a tre- mendous wave struck the mast, and it fell, carrying with it about 10 precious souls. As the mast fell into the water the lower part lifted a little out of the water and three or four of the men were seen to be struggling to get on to that end of the spar, but in a moment a big wave swept them all off. From five to seven heads were visible above water for a few minutes, swimming hard for shore. They succeeded in getting about 30 yards from the wreck when they were all lost sight of with the exception of one, who was very near the rocks, but the rebound of the sea took him off again. It was a heart-rending sight to behold-a sight that will nevr be forgotten by those who witnessed it. It has cast a gloom over the whole neighbourhood. On Saturday night and Sunday morning ten of the bodies were found. They present a ghastly appearance. Three of them have gold keepers one their fingers, and one had a watch on him. A pair of pants was also picked up, sup- posed to be the captain's, containing a purse and £ 3 6s. 9d. Two of the bodies found were st art naked. One of the bodies was identified as that of Philip Beynon, a pilot, of Llanelly, by his three sons who came here on Sunday. Philip Beynon was formerly a native of Llan- madoc, Gower, and was interred there. The steamer is entirely broken up, nothing visible but a snull piece of the how and two or three floating spars at low water. It will be impossible to save any of the cargo, as it is outside of low water. THE IN-QUFST. The inquest was opened at the Ship Inn, Porteynon, on Tuesday at noon, before Mr. Jno. Gaskoin, the deputy coroner of the district Mr. Jas. Strick, Lloyd's agent at Swansea, watched the proceedings for the under- writers of the ship and ctu-gi. The Rev. Ba Melland was the foreman. Mr. Daniel Morgan, theSwansca. agent, watched the proceedings on behalf of Mr. Bacon, owner of the ill-fated steamer. The inquiry was touching the death of the ten unfortunate seamen whose bodies had up till then been recovered. Only five of them had been identified. The coroner and jury first of all pro- ceeded to the rude stone shed or stable on the foreshore, in which the ten bodies were lying, beneath straw and tarpaulin, some of the faces being terribly blood-stained, but not much otherwise disfigured. The bodies that had been identified were those of John Jones, the captain, David Williams, doukey-man, James Dowse, second engineer, John Owens, and Philip Beynon, the pilot. The Coroner said lie would first proceed with the case of Philip Beynon, the pilot. William Thomas, of Waunarlwydd, deposed I am a labourer. One of the bodies just shown to the jury is that of my uncle, Philip Beynon. He was my mother's brother. He was a Llanelly pilot. He was a married man, aged 63 years, and had a family. I had not seen him for the last three months. He left his home on Thursday, so his son told me. After hearing of the loss of the Agnes Jack, I heard that my uncle had gone out as pilot in her. One of his sons was here yesterday, and identified the body. Rev. W. Melland He did that in my presence, for I saw him kneel down and kiss the dead face, and say, "My father Morris Downing, coastguardsman, stationed at Oxwicb, deposed: I have seen the body which is described as that of Philip Beynon. It was found by me and others about three o'clock on Sunday morning near the house on the beach where the bodies are now lying. The body is not much hurt, beyond the left leg being broken by the ankle, aud the features being cut. The fact that a ship was in distress was reported to me about six o'clock on Saturday morning. It was told me that a vessel was ashore off Skysea, Porteynon. I proceeded there with the rocket apparatus. When I got there, I saw the vessel on the rocks with her fore and mainmast standing. There were men on the foreyaid. I could not tell how many. It was daylight-about nine o clock. The hull of the vessel was under water, and not visible. We took the rocket apparatus on to the point of land and fired one shot, but the distance being so far and the force of the wind so great we did not reach her. We then went to another point and fired another shot, while waiting for tha tide to ebb. We were aiming the third shot, when we saw the ship's foremast go over, with all the men upon it. How many I can't tell. I then with others went down to the point of the rock to render assistance to any that might come ashore. The vessel was about 200 yards from where we were firing. When the fore- mast fell there was nothing left standing. The main- mast fell some time before the foremast. The foremast is the tallest and strongest mast of a steamer. After the men fell into the sea, we could see them in the water for about quarter of an hour, but we could do nothing to help them; The range of a rocket w mora than 200 yards, and our rockets went beyond JJut owing to the force of the wind and the sweep of the line, we could not strike her. We had ten rockets with us. I fired two rockets from the and two more were fired by the BhossiIIy men with their appa- ratus. I remained there on duty all day Saturday, but no bodies came ashore then. IJ»nnot tell how many men were on the mast, but there were several. The weather was not thick. With the aid of a glass the men were distinctly to be seen. I did not then know what vessel she was, but since it b« been ascertained she was a steamer called the Agnes Jack. o A portIOn of a head- board and the ship's articles came ashoie. The articles were picked up by Samuel Jones. The ship s lifeboat, with the name on it, also came in on top of the rocks early on Saturday morning, ]ust after the wreck. One of the jurymen expressed an opinion that the distance from which the first rocket was^fired was about 500 yards. After some discussion, however it was agreed that Mr. Downing was perfectly accurate m his eTTbe°0C™»Mr: I .hoaldtblnk. ft. co..l-gu,rd,me„ »„ beiji«dge|i.-Witt«B JJjgjfe^ (Lt f.rm,' part of susses; I first heard of this wreck about eig } life «av^r" day morning. Twenty-one,men the crew, came up with me and uie ir silly. The two masts were »tond«« wh.arrived, and we saw some men on the y too farto rocket at a distance of dOO yara», » too rar to windward, because it was allowo n_QV ymdage. We fired a second shot from a much nearer distance, I should say about 200 Jfl1 ov«r the yard arm, but the arm was slightly peaked and the force of the wind blew the rope into the water. Then while we were preparing to fire another shot, we saw the foremast fall, and all the men thrown into the sea. By the Foreman When I saw the mast fall over the side, of course I could not see the side of the vessel, it was under water; and, besides, I was blinded by the SPWiiliam Hopkins, Porteynon, labourer, deposed: About a quarter to five o'clock on Saturday morning I got up and went about 200 yards from my house, when I heard cries. I was going to my. work. It was a dark, rainy, stormy morning. The cries came from the direction of the sea. I called two or three men, and went with one of them down to the beach. We could hear no cries then, but saw a. light apparently half a mile from the land. It was then from an hour to an hour and a half's flood. I ca.me back to the village and went to my work. We supposed there was a ship in distress, and that the men had left in the boats. We did not think the vessel was on the rocks. When it became daylight we saw the two masts of a vessel n the direction where I had heard the cries. i I v.Mr' *^ames Strick This wants explanation—that you should have heard cries, and seen a light, and should then have gone calmly to your work without saying any- thing about it. Witness What should I have done? Mr. Strick What human nature would suggest, I should think, when men are in distress. I Witness They were not cries, but sounds coming from men. It did give me the idea that men were in distress. The wind was blowing right ashore. I did call my neigh- bours, and they went down to the point. Juryman Grove My children heard cries, and I went down to the Point with others. Mr. Strick wished to bring into prominence the fact that notwithstanding what the witness, Hopkins. had heard and seen, he had calmly gone to his work without taking any steps to arouse his neighbours. The foreman The difference is that Mr. Grove is his own master, and this witness is not. He had to go to work. A Juryman The fact is, sir, that there is nothing to encourage anyone, except the claims of humanity, to do anything in cases of this sort. There is no pay for them, however far they may go, and whatever they may do. Mr. Strick: What pay do you expect in the cause of humanity ? Juryman: There ought to be something for them, for whatever they do there is nothing to encourage them. Another Juryman Can I make a statement? Coroner Yes, but let us get on. Juryman I saw a light that morning- Coroner: 0 no; I can't allow that. You are a juryman. The Foreman: It would be a good thing if all were examined before they were sworn on the jury. (Hear.) Mr. Strick: I should like to have the matter cleared up, because there is a statement that the masts of another steamer werese-n off Porteynon,and it has been suggested that there might have been a eollisioa between two steamers, and that both have gone down. Foreman I think you will find that is a myth. Mr. Strick: I think sn. too. At this stage of the inquiry a coastguardsman brought in a piece of wet paper which had been washed ashore. It was the corner of a seaman's discharge note from the ship "Rossini," but the fragment did not give the name of the seaman himself. It had, however, a piece of blue ribbon attached with a pin, showing that the possessor had taken the temperance pledge. Mr. James Strick, Lloyd's agent at Swansea, produced the ship's articles, which bad been found. They were six months' articles. They showed that her master's name was John Jones, of Swansea, and she had a crew of 16 hands. The papers were too much mutilated to give much information. William Jenkins, labourer, said he had gone to Rhos- silly to call the rocket apparatus and volunteers. The watch which had been found on the body of the corpse supposed to be that of J. Owen was produced in evidence, and it had stopped at two minutes to five. Mr. Daniel Morgan, the agent of the ship in Swansea was able to state that Philip Beynon the pilot bad gone out in the steamer. The second watch, supposed to be that of the engineer, had stopped at twenty-five minutes past eight. The Coroner said this was all the evidence in this spe- cial case, and it seemed to him there could be no other conclusion than that the deceased had come to his death accidentally, through the foundering of the Agues Jack, steamer, of which he was pilot. Formal evidence of identification of the four corpses, whose names are known and given above, was then taken and a similar verdict returned, as also in the case of the other five bodies, which are not yet identified. Mr. Daniel Morgan gave instructions for the interment, at the expense of the owner, Mr. Bacon, of the bodies of those not identified by their friends. They were buried in Por(eynon Churchyard. LOSS OF THE S.S. JAMES GRAY, WITH 25 LIVES, OFF PORTHCAWL. While the foregoing terrible disasters were occurring off the Gower const, a telegram came to the Mumbles from Porthcawl, asking for the assistance of the lifeboat, on that part of the Glamorganshire coast, as their own boat could not reach a ship which was drifting towards the Tuscar. That request, of course, could not be com- plied with, becau-c the Mumbles lifeboat had already been disabled. A ship, whose name was for some days unknown, was seen to go down off Porthcawl, and she has since been identified as the James Gray. The official number of the s.s. James Gray is 72.140. She belongs to Whitby, her owners being Messrs. Gray and Taylor, of that port. Her net tonnage is 1,058; horse power. 140. Messrs, C. O. Young and Christies are the brokers in Cardiff. She left the Koatb basin laden with coal on Friday morning, anchored in the roads, and afterwards proceeded on her voyage to Cape de Verdes. laden with 2,154 tons of coal, including bunkers. The following is a complete list of the crew of the steamship James Gray :—Edward Macleod, master, 34 years of age, 6, Bannington-road, Leith; William Harries, 33 years of age, native of Fishguard, first mate, Tower-bill, Fishguard; John Thomas, 3) years of age. second mate, 22, Crich ton street, Cardiff; F. Murry, 48 years of age, 40, Leckwith-road, Cardiff; Henry S 'ell, 39 years of age, native of Gloucester, steward, 109, King's- road, Canton Julian Danbar, Cape de Verdes, cook, 27, Petl-street, Cardiff; Carlos Owens, 42 years of nge, native of East London, boatswain, 67, Bute-street, Car- diff; E. Voss, 32 years of age, German, A.B. and lamp trimmer; M. Anderson, 25 years of age, Norwegian, Penygraig, near Pontypridd Peter Hanson, 27 years of age, Norwegian, A.B, 47, Christina-street, Cardiff; G. Cunderson, A.B., 21 years of age, 47, Christina-street, Cardiff; Thomas Hosking, 22 years of age, of Cornwall, living at Weymouth Joseph Baroni, 44 years of age, a native of Malta, 11, Bute-terrace, Cardiff; John Jones, 25 years of age. first engineer, Woodvilie-road, Cathays, Cardiff; John Li^btburn, 26 ye;>.rs of age, of Crewe, second engineer, Birkenhead George Warton, 24 years of age, native of Congleton, third engineer, of Liverpool; F. Canziani, 29 years of age, native of Naples, donkey- man William Davies. 20 years of age, fireman, 6, Union- street, Carmarthen J. Reed, 31 years of age, Trowbridge, fireman; W. J. Papi, 31 years of age, native of London, 16, Moira-street, Splotlands, Cardifl; R. Morgan, fire- man, 24 years of age, of 36, Adam street. Cardiff David Hughes, 32 years of age, of Neath, 2, Parkfield-street, Maindy, Cardiff John O'Neill, 17 years of age, engineers' steward, of Beaumaris; D. Walker, 15 years of age. of Dundee, assistant steward, 2, British Workman, Cardiff. Twenty-four all told. A correspondent, who was an eye-witness of the loss of the steamer, gives the following account of the wreck -About an hour before low water on Saturday last, a steamer was observed coming in over the Nash Sands and it was also observed that something must have gone with her. There was a very heavy gale blowing and a heavy sea running at the time. She came in, and let go her anchor to the southward of the Fair buoy." She then had her ensign flying at half mast. By this and the general appearance of the vessel, Mr. J. Pearce, jun., coxswain of the lifeboat, concluded she needed assistance, and at once gave orders to man the lifeboat, which was immediately done by a crew of willing brave men. She was launched in a very short space of time, but owing to the very strong gale, the heavy sea, and the flood tide which had now made, it was beyond the skill and deter- mined energy of the men to keep her from drifting to leeward. They were driven up two miles from the goal for which they were struggling, and they had to let go their anchor. During the time that this was going on (the weather getting worse every minute) the steamer in distress was dragging towards the ill-fated Tusker. Mr. Wessendorff made every effort to get some informa- tion from the steamer by the means of signalling, but with little success, the only intelligent signal being (the last one received from the steamer) Circumstances appear threatening; be on your guard." Immediately after this she appeared to part her cable and drift away very fast towards the Tusker. It was now getting dark. They sent up three rockets, which were answered from the shore; and by this time it was quite dark, and it was just about now the tug would have been afloat in the basin. Two rockets were then noticed to be dis- charged from tbe steamer, which did not rise at all, but just appeared to ignite and go out again and this was the last sign that was seen of her, although rockets were sent up and lights were burnt on the shore to try and get a response