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Otago Daily Times, Issue 311, 18 December 1862, Page 4

The arrival in Melbourne of the s.s. AJhambra, in Port Phillip, is thus noticed by the Argus of 11th December:- . The steamship Alhambra, belonging- to Messrs M'Meckan, Blt-ickwood and Co., of this city, and intended for the Melbourne and New Zealand trade, arrived from Southampton yesterday morning, under command of J. B. Godfrey, Esq. She left England on the evening of the 26 th September, and had to contend against a succession of south-west gales until she passed the Bay of Biscay ; then light winds and calm.3 were experienced, until arriving at Cape Town, she being compelled to steam the entire distance. To the southward, until reaching this coast, she also had baffling winds; and it was not until the last four days of the passage that she had a favoring breeze, when her sailing and steaming qual'uies were thoroughly tested. She crossed the Equator on the 16fch October, in long. 9 deg. 30 mm. >V., arrived at Ascension on the 19th of same month, where she remained three days; reached Cape Town at midnight on theO'th ult.. and lay there until <he 10th. She has thus performed the voyage in the short space of sixty eight days. The entire voyage was one of pleasure until her arrival off Port Phillip Heads, about midnight on Tuesday, when she lost her bowsprit by coming into collision with the pilot schooner Kip, while receiving her pilot from that vessel.

The Alhambra will this morning be taken up on the Government patent slip, Williamstown, for the purpose of being- cleaned and -epainted, after her long voyage. She will then load for Otago. for which pore she will leave in the course of the ensuing week. Judging from her appearance and her excellent accommodation for all classes of passengers, she cannot fail to be the favorite steamer of that tra le. under the command of Captuiu M'Lean, now of the Aldin^a. The Ayiambra is, a steamship of 1,000 tons and 400 horse power.

The Alhambra reports the arrival in Table Bay of the Australasian Steam Navi^Lion Company's steamer Coorarabara. This vessel was being overhauled at the time of the departure of the All'ambra, and was to sail immediately after. Her-arrival in Australian waters may, therefore, be hourly looked for.

Collision between the Hunter and Kembla Steamers, and Loss op Life.—The Hunter, s., Captain Sullivan, left Merimbula at five a.m. on the Ist instant, for Sydney, and when off the Three Sisters, about twenty four miles south of the South Head Light, was run into by the Kembla, s., bound south. The Hunter was struck in the starboard bow, and cut down to her garboard, leaving an opening of some ten feet wide. Fortunately, however, the damage took place before the water-tight bulkhead, w rich so eftcctually kept the water out that the vessel steamed on to Sydney in safety, although the Kembla kept company with her for fear of any further accident. The most serious circumstance attending the collision is the death ot the lamptrimmer, a lai named John Sedvich, of seventeen years of^ age, a native of Austria, who was sleeping in the forecastle, and must hare been killed by the crushing in of the steamer's bow, as he has not been seen since. The fol'owing is Captain Sullivan's account of the occurence: —At about 11.55 p.m. on the Ist instant, Mr Q-. Furse, second officer, having charge of the watch, came to Captain Sullivan and reported a steamer in sight on the starboard bow. Captain Sullivan asked if she would clear 1 and Mr Furse said she would, very far. The captain at once jumped up, and went on the bridge, and distinctly saw the steamer with her port light clearly in sight, and apparently bearine down as if for the purpose of speaking, which is often the case with coasting steamers. The Hunter was at once eased, then stopped, but without altering her course iin any way, when, finding that the Kembla still kept i coming on, Capbain Sullivan ordered the engines to be reversed, but before the boat had stern-way the accident took place. . On getting clear, and finding that the vessel was not making any water, he kept her on her course for Sydney, with the Kembla in company, as far as the Heads, when the latter vessel continued her voyage. The unfortunate affair is the more, extraordinary from the following causes :—A regulation exists by-which accidents on the coast may be avoided. Steamers bound S. keep a direct course of S. half W., or from Botany to Jervis Bay, while steamers bound from J ervis Bay to Sydney keep well in shore, her true course being N. half E., which was the position of the Hunter at the time she was strucK. The Kembla must have been steering S.S. W., and when she struck the Hunter her head was W.N.W. It was also a clear night, and the lights on both steamers distinctly visible. The Hunter will be at once taken on to the slip and repaired, and no doubt an inquiry will be held on Captain Miller's return from the Clyde. We should also mention that two of the Hunter's crew were seriously injured. One man was asleep in the forecastle, and although fortunately got out, was quite insensible, and remained in a very precarious state until taken to the infirmary, immediately on the Hunter arriving in Sydney. The second man had his foot crushed between the two vessels, and was also taken to the infirmary for medical reatnient. — Sydney Morning Herald, December 3.

Frightful Hurricane. — Captain Smerdon, of the Princeza, has furnished us with the following report of a hurricane at the Island of Seychelles :— " On the 12th October, the Seychelles Island, in lat, 4deg. 48nrin. S., lon. 55deg. 31min. E, was visited by a frightful and devastating hurricane, which lasted two days, and it rained heavily the whole time ; the waters from the mountains came down like an avalanche, sweeping all before them, utterly destroying most of the villages, uprooting nearly all the coacoa-nut trees, and spoiling most of the provisions on the Island; reducing the inhabitaiits to almost utter destruction. Eighty dead bodies had been taken out of the mire and debris. By last accounts, H«M. sloop of war came to Mauritius for supplies for the sufterers. Such a severe hurricane had never o.rcurred before at this island. The sloop reports having rode the hurricane out with three anchors a-head with the addition of lull steam. The mail due at Mauritius on the 23rd ult. was detained two days, having encountered the hurricane. — Argus, Dec. 10. Frightful Hurricane.— — Loss, of the Melbourne, off Gousitz Kiyer.—Mossel Bay, 6th November. Last night, about nine o'clock, Mr Richard Dunn arrived here, who states that he was chief officer.of the ship Melbourne, 1,169 tons, Captain R. Witchill, from Shanghai 4th August, bound to London, owned by Messrs. Wilson and Slaters, Feuchurch-street, London, principally with tea, besides cotton, wool, silks, spices, and tobacco, was wrecked at Buffels Hook, on Tuesday, 4th instant, at five p.m. The vessel in going about missed stays, and was driven on the rocts. In coming on shore the boats got stoved, and three men | were drowned, viz., Jacob Wilson, William Brice, [andß. Barclay. The cargo consisted of 900 tons

tea, 200 bales cotton, ICO balss wool and silk. She is near the beach t-n the rocks. Nothing can be landed unless she breaks up.— South African Advertiser, Nov. 8.

Colli-ion Between the steamer Alhamura and the Pilot cutter Rip.—At midnight of Tuesday the pilot cutter Rip and the steamship A]hambr& were in eollkion, off Port Philip Heads, with imminent danger to the first-named vessel. Grave charges axk made with reference to the causes of this disaster—of carlessness on one hand and the other.; Tho matter will, we understand, be thoroughly investigated by the Pilot Board.— Argus, Dec. 10. '