WRECK OF A LARGE SHIP AND LOSS OF ELEVEN LIVES.

On the forenoon of New Year’s-day a large full-rigged ship, with little or no sail on, and seeming in a disabled state, was observed from Stromness off Hoy Sound. The day being very stormy, a gale blowing from the south-west. With thunder and showers of hail, much anxiety was felt by the spectators regarding the seeming fate of the vessel. The movements on board as she came through the Sound were keenly watched from the different look-outs behind the town and the interest increased as she was seen to anchor in a dangerous position near the Hoy side. Here the ship was boarded by two men in a boat from Hoy, who advised that the anchor should be slipped, as it was impossible that the vessel could maintain her position when the tide turned. Every preparation was being made to comply with this advice, but before the chain could be either slipped or cut, the ship, about two P. M., struck on the rocks off the west point of Graemsay. The fate of the vessel was now decided, and the position of the passengers and crew became critical in the extreme.

Captain Mowat, Lloyds agent at Stromness as soon as possible proceeded in the steamer "Royal Mail " to the scene of the disaster. The ship was then found to be the "Albion "of and from Liverpool, a large and fine vessel of 1250 tons register, bound for New York with a general cargo and about fifty emigrants on hoard. The vessel sailed from Liverpool on the 21st December, and experienced very heavy weather off the west coast. The south-westerly gales kept her beating on a lee shore, and in the efforts to work her off she lost all her canvas and had become leaky. When she entered Hoy Sound she was therefore driving in an almost helpless state before the storm, and, to add to the danger, she was so far off course that there was no large chart of the Orkneys on board by which it was possible to navigate her among the islands.

Immediately after the vessel struck on Graemsay, preparations were made for landing the passengers, and by the aid of the ship’s boats and assistance from the island, the female passengers and a number of the males were landed in safety. "The Royal mail" was meanwhile endeavoring to render what assistance she could out in the tideway, and one of the boats with fifteen men, pulled for her in preference to going to the shore. The boat got safely alongside the steamer, but due to some unfortunate accident the boat was swamped, and out of the fifteen men eleven met a watery grave, four only being saved, despite the utmost efforts of those on board the steamer. One of the eleven who unfortunately perished was a young Graemsay man, who had gone off to assist, named Joseph Mowat, son of Captain Joseph Mowat, eight were passengers, and two seamen belonging to the ill-fated ship. The remainder of the passengers and crew were brought ashore in safety, bringing little more with them than the clothes they wore. Everything belonging to them perished with the vessel, which, in the course of three hours, was completely broken up and strewn along the beach. In the hurry the Ship’s papers were left behind and have not yet been found, so that we are unable to give the names of those that were drowned. Some of the passengers, we believe, were the husbands of wives who have been saved, and who are left widows with small families.

The crew, on being brought to Stromness, were taken charge of by Mr James R Garriock, hon. agent for the Shipwrecked Fishermen and Mariners Society, and after having their needs supplied, were sent to Kirkwall to go south by the weeks steamer, which they did on Friday morning, the steamer being three days behind time owing to the stormy weather.

Captain James Mowat has kindly and zealously exerted himself in behalf of the unfortunate passengers who, with the exception of two females were all sent to Leith with the "Reaper" on Friday morning. Only a very small portion of the cargo has as yet been picked up. One body, which drifted ashore, has been identified as that of a passenger.