During the preceding night the Captain, as a measure of prudence, had ordered the first reef to be taken in the topsails, in order not to enter the passage before daylight.
The ship struck on the reef so violently, that both keel and rudder were instantly knocked off and carried away, and the Captain declared the vessel to be totally lost; at the same time giving orders to get the boats ready and furnished with provisions, in order to endeavour to reach the island of Timor.
At the time the vessel was wrecked, she had four boats, the longboat, two cutters, and a dinghy or small jolly boat. In the largest cutter, W. Grindall, Laurent Constantine, and George Pigot, left the wreck, and Richard Quin, and James Wright, joined them the next morning by swimming across a bar or reef at the risk of their lives.
The other boats were knocked to pieces and lost, by the vessel falling over on her side, and they were unable to save any more of the passengers or crew, as it was impossible to pull the boat up against the strong current; and none of them would venture amidst the heavy breakers to reach the boat by swimming. They were unable to state what became of the Captain, passengers, and rest of the crew; but at the time Richard Quin and James Wright left the wreck, all the passengers and crew were alive on the forecastle of the vessel, with the exception of one sailor named James Price, who was drowned by the smallest of the cutters swamping at the time she was lowered.
The passengers on board at the time the vessel was wrecked, were Captain D'Oyly of the Bengal Artillery, his wife, and two sons, George and William; an English gentleman named Armstrong; and a Bengalese native servant.
NAMES OF THE CREW.
The ship's crew consisted of twenty-four persons: J.G. Moore, master; J. Clare, chief mate; W. Mayer, second mate; G. Pigott, third mate; J. Grant, surgeon; L. Constantine, carpenter; W. Montgomery, steward; W. Perry, J.P. Ching, midshipmen; R. Quin, A. Quail, W. Moore, C. Robinson, J. Caen, W. Hill, J. Berry, R. Lounce, W. Jeffrey, J. Wright, W. Gumble, J. Miller, and W. Williams, seamen; J. Ireland and J. Sexton, boys.
The five seamen in the cutter, not seeing any possibility of saving more of the ship's company, and the next morning not perceiving a single person on the wreck, concluded that these unhappy persons had been washed off by the increasing swell of the sea during the night. On Sunday morning, August 17th, they left the wreck, and steered as westerly a course as possible by the sun and stars--they had no compass--in order to reach the Dutch settlement of Coupang in the island of Timor. The whole of their provisions consisted of 30 pounds of bread, one ham, and a keg containing about four gallons of water; which had been placed in the boat before she was lowered.
THE CUTTER REACHES TIMOR LAUT.
After driving about for fifteen days on the ocean, they descried land which they took to be Timor; they went on shore and procured some water and coconuts; but afterwards pursuing their course along the coast, they were attacked by a number of native proas, and being warn out with fatigue, and without any arms to defend themselves, they were forced to surrender. The natives upset the boat, and stripped them of all their clothes, after which they were brought on shore, where the natives at first seemed inclined to kill them, but through the intercession of two chiefs, named Pabok and Lomba, their lives were spared.