SHIPPING DISASTERS ON THE HOOGHLY. 499 



" Agamemnon, " both vessels took the ground and 

 were rolled over by the tide; and in four hours not 

 a vestige of either ship was to be seen, and many of 

 the crews of both ships were drowned. * On August 

 n, 1877, the ship " County of Stirling '," carrying 1444 

 tons of wheat, grounded on the Falta Sand, a little 

 to the north of the James and Mary shoal, and was 

 literally turned upside down ; she disappeared in eight 

 minutes and five men were lost. On September 28, 

 1878, the steamer " Qiieen Anne" with 2400 tons of 

 general cargo, grounded on the Falta Sands, and 

 capsized in two minutes; the vessel and cargo were 

 a total loss, and six persons were drowned. There 

 were 78 persons on board, but the rest were saved 

 by clinging to the ship's bottom, until rescued by a 

 steam-tug, f On October 21, 1887, the British India 

 S. N. Co.'s steamer " Arcot" 1782 tons, struck while 

 crossing the Muckraputty Sands outside the mouth of 

 the Hooghly, and at once capsized, but crew and 

 passengers with the exception of five persons were 

 saved. And again August 26, 1892, the Anchor 

 Line steamer " Anglia" capsized in a similar way and 

 fifteen of the crew were drowned. ** 



The circumstances connected with this last case were 

 particularly dreadful and created great horror in Calcutta, 

 where we often heard the matter discussed during our 

 recent visit to that city. But as the details we heard 

 may have been exaggerated and coloured by the excited 

 fancy of the people there, we forbear to repeat what 

 was currently reported, and shall merely quote from 



* See Murray's Handbook for the Bengal Presidency, 1882, p. 83. 



f See Ibid., p. 83. 



Anmial Register for 1887 Chronicle for October in Ibid. 



** Ibid, for 1892 Chronicle for August. 



