of the western passage, at the eastern and western extremities of the breakwater; two others, bearing red lights, are moored in the southern part of the same passages. The white light in the western passage illumines an arc of the horizon from S.W.S. (round by West and North) to E. N.; the white light in the eastern passage illumines from W.S.W. (round by West and North) to E.b.S.S.; the red light in the western passage, from S.S.W. W. (round by West and North to E.b.N. N.; and the red light in the eastern passage illumines from W.b.N. (round by North and East) to S.E.b.S. The white lights may be seen seaward in clear weather from a distance of three miles. In entering the port by either passage, the white light must be left to the northward, and the red light to the southward. If entering by the eastern passage in a vessel of more than twenty feet draught, care must be taken not to pass to the southward of the parallel of the red light; if entering by the western passage it will be necessary to bring the lights in that passage nearly in line, bearing about S.E.4 E. (c.) They will illuminate seaward from N.N.E. E. round by East and South, and up the harbour to the Parlatorio at Marsa Musceit, after passing which the upper light only will be seen. It is stated in the Hong Kong Register, 27th July last, that a lighthouse is to be erected at Pulicat, on the eastern coast, by the sanction of the Madras Government: this will prove a great boon to the shipping frequenting these parts. The cost is estimated at 3,000 rupees. By order of the same, distinguishing marks iu the form of obelisks or columns are to be erected at the numerous small ports on the Ganjam coast. NEW LIGHTHOUSE OF COLON,-N.W. Point of Manzanilla Island. R.M.S.P. "Trent," St. Thomas, W.I. Sir,-Having just arrived here from Navy Bay, Colon, I beg to inform you that a new open iron lighthouse has just been completed on the N.W. point of Manzanilla Ísland, Colon, alongside the old wooden lighthouse, about to be pulled down. The height of the lantern 65 feet above high water mark, and shows a fixed white light of Fresnel's 4th order, visible at a distance of 15 miles in ordinary weather, and first lighted in September, 1859. These particulars were furnished by the engineer of the Panama Railway Company, who superintended its fitting up. In your Magazine for January, 1846, page 23, is printed a table for finding the ship's position by sun's altitude, drawn up by Capt. L. G. Heath, R.N. I have invariably used it since then, and have given copies to friends, but, strange to say, never met a person who had seen it before. But as I have found it most useful and correct, I think it a pity it should be lost to navigators, and therefore venture to recommend your publishing it in some future number again, and also think if it were printed on a card and sold separately, for which no doubt Capt. Heath's consent could be obtained, much advantage would be derived from it. There is one small error which requires correction at the head of Table в top of left hand column the word lat. is misprinted instead of declination, as the precept at head of table shows was meant to be there. With best wishes for the success of your Magazine, which I have taken in and read for years, I have, &c., To the Editor of the Nautical Magazine. J. HAMMACK, Commander. Our kind friend, to whom we are much obliged for his letter, seems to have an old edition of the West India Lighthouse book. He will find the last edition to October, 1859, at our publishers' for him, in which this has all been rectified to the new light. SOUTH ATLANTIC OCEAN,-Nelson Bank. Seeing the water discoloured, brought the ship to the wind to stop her way, and sounded in 19 fathoms, muddy bottom. We were then on the West end of the bank, which apparently had an extent of two or three miles. Appearances led us to suppose that there was less water on the centre of the shoal. Our position was lat. 32° 43′ S., and long. 46° 53′ W. LOGAN BANK. Captain Logan, of the ship Rob Roy, from Labuan to Singapore, reports having seen off Apie Point, (coast of Borneo,) the wreck of a vessel aground on a reef bearing from Marundum Island, N.E. § N. ; Haycock Island, N.b. W. W.; St. Pierre Island, W. S. The reef is not marked in the Admiralty charts and is very dangerous should it prove to be one, being in the track of vessels running between Singapore or Sarawak and Labuan. The part in question had remained unexamined, but now shows the position of the shoal.-ED. SHOAL West of Bird Island,-Pacific Ocean. The E. L. Frost on her late expedition after guano, sailed over a shoal, situated less than a hundred miles W.N.W. from Bird Island, with 17 to 20 fathoms of water and a coral bottom. The shoal was upwards of fifty miles in extent from North to South. That this shoal should have been unknown until now is rather singular, considering the amount of cruizing in that neighbourhood. POSITIONS OF SHOALS recently discovered on the South African Coast (Compass), The Atlas Shoal (3 fathoms)-E.N.E. of Struys Point, is in 34° 37 S., and 20° 22.8' E., about two miles off shore, being 22.2/ S. 86° W. (Mag.) from L'Agulhas. The Aliwal Shoal-S.S.W. of Port Natal, is in 30° 15' S., and 30° 50′2′ E., two and a half miles from shore, one mile long, and a third of a mile broad, with 2 to 6 fathoms. From its shoalest part Natal Bluff bears N. 56° E. (Mag.), twenty-five miles. PACIFIC OCEAN.-Sailing Directions from Honolulu for Jarvis Island.-By W. C. Stone, commanding brig Josephine. On leaving Diamond Head a South course to lat. 19° is about the best one; but if headed off to S.S.W., I should still keep on the port tack. On attaining to 19°, or a little southerly, you will have the regular Trade from East or E.N.E.; then keep on the wind, a good rap full, until getting into 156° W., or 156° 30′. This is a great plenty, far enough to the eastward; then making a South course, you are in a position to run free with strong breezes, or to be headed off when first taking the S.E. Trades, without any anxiety. Always pass to the leeward of Christmas Island, and do not tack, even if headed off S.W., for that will not last more than an hour or so, and you are sure to make a South, and most likely a little easterly, course before reaching the line, if you wish to. After passing Christmas Island I always steer so as to be about thirty miles to the windward of Jarvis when in that parallel of latitude. The currents are a westerly set of about twelve miles a day when in the N.E. Trades; and in about 6° or 8° N. I have always found a streak of about 2° of strong easterly currents, and have been set fifty miles to the eastward during a calm there of twenty-four hours. The doldrums vary much, both in latitude and extent. I have carried a stiff breeze and fine weather until taking the S.E. Trades steady; and again I have had a great quantity of rain, with most vexatious calms and baffling winds, for two or three days. We speak of the S.E. Trades, but I have seldom seen them South of E.S.E., and more generally from due East as you approach the equator. On approaching Christmas Island you will always find a strong westerly current, and if you try to go about thirty miles to the windward of it, you are sure to run on it by night; but steer for the West end, which lies in long. 157° 30', lat. 2° N., and you will go all clear. I have shaped my course this way a number of times and not seen the island at all. If you should pass thirty miles to leeward of this island, you have no occasion to fear being able to weather Jarvis. When in the latitude of Jarvis the current cannot be calculated upon, for I have known it to set as strong to the eastward as ever I did to the West; but this is not common. There is one thing which I have always found in making these passages, both up and down, viz., if the wind head me off, I am always sure that it will favour in a proportionate manner in some other place. Consequently, a fair sailing ship may run free a great deal without fear of getting to leeward. There are no other islands in this track than Christmas. Tide-rips sometimes resemble shoals very much. COAST OF CALIFORNIA.-Captain Pierce reports that the barque Emerald touched on a reef between Natividad Island and Point Eugenia, on the coast of Lower California, on the evening of the 9th January, while working up to anchor under the island, but came off without any material damage. This reef lies about East, by compass, from Seal Rock, one mile distant, and breaks heavily. In very fine weather it breaks only at long intervals. That the passage between the island and point is very unsafe in the night does not seem to be generally known. I have conversed with several masters in regard to this passage, all of whom supposed it to be a deep water channel. The Minerva passed through at 12h. p.m., wholly unaware of danger until boarded by us. The tides run very strong, perhaps five knots, at full and change. The vicinity is good whaling ground, but vessels should be cautious of the tides and reefs referred to. Pacific Commercial Advertiser. DESPERATE ENCOUNTER WITH PIRATES. The following frightful narrative is from the Bombay Standard:— With fifty pirates on board, twelve ordinary convicts, a guard of fifteen European Madras Artillerymen, and eight sepoys of the Marine Battalion, the Ararat left Singapore on the 19th of June, and arrived at Penang in the evening of the 24th. Twelve convicts were here added to the gang, making seventy-four in all. The Ararat left Penang in the evening of the 25th, a junk leaving at the same time and doing her best to keep up with the ship. Captain Correya, not liking the appearance of things, dodged his satellite, and finally lost sight of the craft on the evening of the 27th. A few hours later the Ararat was some sixty miles from Penang. The 28th broke gloomily, very dark, and sharp gusts of wind. At 2h. 45m. the captain ordered the mate to set topgallant sails if the weather should clear, and lay down on the poop. His rest was of short duration. Ten minutes later he was aroused by a noise, such a one as awakens a man broadly in an instant. The noise, a crash as of something giving way, followed by a shout startled the mate also as he was standing by the break of the poop. There was no doubt as to the cause-the convicts had broken loose. Quick as thought, the captain leaped to the deck, and brought his arms-a revolver and two pistols-from the cabin. The mate as instantly aroused the guard; at the same time hailing the sentry forward, but received no reply. He remained by the night-guard muskets until the guard turned out, before which the captain's revolver spoke from the poop. The captain, it seems, on reaching the deck, could just discern that the convicts were making their way aft. They had advanced as far as the stern of the long-boat when he fired into them. Still they came on, a tremendous rush, yelling like fiends, and heaving before them blocks, hand-spikes, holystones, firewood, curry-stuff grinders,— anything, in fact, they could lay hands on. Captain Correya was severely struck by some of these missiles, as were also several of the guard, who had by this time joined the captain (the crew, Lascars and Spaniards, being altogether without arms, having made their way into the rigging) on the poop. The gallant party had no thought, however, of acting on the defensive, but, jumping to the quarter-deck, commenced a hand-to-hand fight with the scoundrels. Both the captain and guard fired into them as fast as they could load, using also their cutlasses and bayonets to keep them at bay. They had desperate men to deal with. No sooner was a musket fired than a rush was made upon it before it could be reloaded, but in no one instance did they succeed in wrenching it from the grip that held it for life or death. One bayonet was their only spoil. During the whole time they kept up a shower of the missiles described above, and it is only wonderful that more mischief was not done by them. Inch by inch, however, the captain and his party gained ground, advancing purposely with caution, lest from behind the water-casks a rush might be made upon them, and their armstheir salvation-be seized. And here we have to record an instance of courage as rare as heroic. Some ten minutes or so after the outbreak, amid an uproar as of hell let loose, arising from men who were thirsting for blood, the captain's wife took her part in the fray by loading and continuing to reload her husband's pistols, and passing them up from the cuddy skylight. As each hatch was gained, it was seized by the guard and fastened down. After an hour's hard fighting the convicts were driven on to the topgallant forecastle, where they were charged with the bayonet, and several run through or driven over the bows. Two or three were seen to lay hold of the foretopgallant studding sail, which was lying on the forecastle, and jump overboard with it. They were shot from the poop and quarterdeck as well as the darkness permitted their being made out. The deck now being clear, lights were brought. Many attempts had been made to get lights during the fight, but as soon as one appeared it was knocked over by the convicts, and the whole work was NO. 11.-VOL. XXVIII. 4 K |