extricated. Two days before the parish priest came,
and, finding that Giraud was able to hear him,
addressed him in language of consolation and encouragement,
exhorted him to penitence for his sins, and gave
him absolution. His health was found to be little
impaired. So great was the interest excited in his
behalf, that the Empress received, by order, a telegraphic
despatch every day.

It is stated in the report of the National Institution
for Preservation of Life from Shipwreck that nearly
800 wrecks, with the loss of 870 lives, took place during
the year 1853. The report shows that, besides having
spent about £7,000 on lifeboats, and £9,000 on rewards
for saving life, this society, which has now been
established upwards of 30 years, has voted to brave men 78
gold medallions and 539 silver medals, the last gold
medallion having been granted to Captain Ludlow, of
the American whaling ship Monmouth, in testimony of
his gallant and persevering conduct on occasion of the
wreck of the English emigrant ship Meridian on the
island of Amsterdam, in August last. Her Majesty's
government have also marked their approbation of his
noble conduct by offering to him a present of 100
guineas and a gold chronometer by Dent. The society
has about 38 lifeboat stations on the coasts, the crews of
which are paid for exercising the boat four times a year.
The cost of a new life-boat, with carriage and boat-house,
cannot be reckoned at less than £300. Her Majesty
has contributed recently £100 to the society, but its
income was £600 below the expenditure in the past
year.

Captain Foote, of her Majesty's ship Conflict, and four
seamen were accidentally Drowned off Menai on the
19th ult. He had gone on shore in the morning with
Lieutenant Sloggett, on business connected with the
prizes. A letter from Lieut. Sloggett thus describes
the accident: "After calling on the commandant of the
town, the captain arranged all the business necessary
for sending home the prizes, and left the shores at half-
past four o'clock. The captain, knowing that the surf
is often dangerous on this bar, made many inquiries as to
whether the sea had risen, but could not learn of it being
more than in the morning, when crossing was perfectly
safe. Indeed, neither he nor I was at all aware of the
increase of surf on the bar until we were nearly in the
midst of it, and then too late to return. The first sea
which struck us filled the boat; the second turned her
over. I saw the captain swim away manfully for the shore,
then about half-a-mile off; but, encumbered with his
great coat and boots, and having in addition to struggle
against the rapid current, which set him back on the
breakers, he was not long able to bear up against it, and
was seen to go down by one of the crew, the only man
saved but myself. The boat's crew were five, four of
whom were drowned with the captain; three of them
managed to get on the boat's keel, but only one was able
to keep his hold, and he was washed off three times.
By the gracious interposition of Providence, I was
enabled to get hold of a couple of oars, and support
myself until the surf-boat came, which was about
twenty minutes. They picked me up just as I had let
go the oar in a state of insensibility."

A dreadful Shipwreck has taken place on the coast
between Antibes and Nice. The vessel was the Ercolano,
a Genoese steamer. On the night of the 24th of
April, Mr. Sansom, a passenger, who had been supping
with Sir Robert Peel, went upon deck to smoke a cigar;
it was a dark night, and the ship rolled heavily: to his
great surprise, he saw no man on deck but the man at
the helm. Lights appeared in the distance, and he
pointed them out to the steersman; who gave no reply.
In a few minutes, the ship was struck on the larboard
side, by a screw steamer, which proved to be the Sicilia.
The masts of the Ercolano gave way; it was evident
she would soon sink; all was horror and confusion on
board. Mr. Sansom, seeing two sailors lowering a boat,
jumped in and was saved. Sir Robert Peel ran to the
bow, stripped, plunged into the sea, and swam until he
was picked up. Another passenger, a Frenchman, gives
a lively description of his experience. He was below,
smoking a cigar: rushing on deck, he found the ship
going down by the stern: he saw "women and children
screaming—fathers seeking children—husbands making
desperate efforts to save their wives: "he himself,
a good swimmer, kept himself above water, until he
got a plank. "Whilst swimming, I saw some females
rise to the surface of the water, and then sink. One of
them, before going down, cried out, 'Charles, Charles,
my dearest Charles, save me!' This was twice or
thrice repeated—and the unhappy being sank. "Of the
passengers, thirty-seven were drowned, including all
the women and children on board save one, a servant;
and twelve of the crew. Among the drowned, were
Mr. Thomas Halsey, M.P. for Hertfordshire, Mrs.
Halsey, and their child. Among the Englishmen saved
are these—Mr. Sansom, Sir Robert Peel, Mr. Rankin,
Mr. George Wilkinson, Mr. Edward Dawnley, Mr.
Edward Knight, and Mr. Charles Gresham. The boats
of the Sicilia picked up these, except Mr. Sansom, who
escaped with the sailors to Antibes. There can be no
doubt that this calamity was the consequence of
criminal neglect. The Frenchman above quoted
emphatically says—"I declare most solemnly, and in
the presence of that God whom I implored when I
thought my earthly career terminated, that the horrible
misfortune which has plunged so many families into
mourning, is owing to the criminal negligence of the
two captains, neither of them being on deck at the
moment of the accident: all the officers were below,
and the Herculaneum was left to the care of the steersman
only." An inquiry into the conduct of the captains
is to take place at Genoa.

A dreadful Collision between two vessels took place
in the channel on the 29th instant, whereby 201 lives
were lost. The Bremen barque Favourite, Captain
Hoegeman, with 180 passengers on board, from Bremen
to Baltimore, which sailed on the 23rd ult., came in
contact, when off the Start, about 2 o'clock in the
morning, with the American barque Hesper, Captain
Jones, from Charleston, for Antwerp. The Favourite
was struck on the starboard bow, cut down to the
water's edge, and foremast carried away. The captain,
mate, and four of the crew got on board the American
during the collision; and the rest of the crew,
consisting of eight, are supposed to have got into the boat;
but the Favourite, with the whole of the passengers,
must have sunk immediately, since nothing could be
seen of her at daylight. The captain, mate, and four
men of the Favourite, who got on board the American,
were landed at Portsmouth by the Agenoria, pilot boat.
The Favourite was a barque of between 400 and 500 tons
burden, manned by a crew of fourteen, including the
mates. She left Bremen for Baltimore, with 191
emigrants (180 adults, mostly men, and eleven infants)
on board. Almost immediately after the collision the
ships parted from each other. The emigrants could
be just seen to be rushing on deck in the most frantic
confusion, but the heavy sea and wind which prevailed
entirely prevented those on board the Hesper from
rendering any prompt aid towards rescuing the unhappy
creatures. The Favourite was observed to have been
cut down below the water-line, and was fast settling
forward. The watch on deck were noticed lowering
one of the boats, but the darkness of the night and the
vessels altering their position precluded the American
from seeing whether they succeeded. The Hesper lay
to for several hours, in the hope that either the
Favourite would float or that some of the unfortunate
creatures might be picked up in the boat. At daybreak,
however, not a vestige of the ship could be seen.
It does not appear that any of the boats of the American
were lowered after the collision, but the darkness
of the night may explain why that was not done. The
total number who have perished by this sad catastrophe
amounts to no fewer than 201.

A Fire attended with dreadful results occurred in
Colchester Street, Whitechapel, at a beer-shop and
lodging-house, kept by a person named Brossette. A
policeman perceived smoke issuing from the windows,
and he raised an alarm: there were many persons sleeping
in the house. John Fosst jumped from a window, and
was fatally hurt; the Royal Society's fire-escape was
the means of rescuing Brossette, his wife, and three
children,—Wood the keeper of the escape carrying down
Mrs. Brossette in his arms, and one child with his teeth;
but when these people had been taken down the ladder,