AN interesting tabular return has just been published in Lloyd's List of the casualties to shipping, reported to Lloyd's during, the month of January last. They are thus classified : vessels totally wrecked, 145; part of cargo saved, 12; whole or nearly so of cargo saved, 3; sunk, 32; raised, 6; abandoned and lost, 42; ships recovered after being abandoned, 6; stranded whose subsequent fate was not reported, 155; stranded but afterwards got off, 179; ships got off with loss of part cargo, 5; missing, 10; condemned after striking, &c., 5; condemned from other causes, 4; ships touching the ground and sustaining trifling damage, 6 ; total casualties, 610. What a fearful list of disasters for a period of only one month! It will be observed, that no return has been made of the sacrifice of life on these occasions.

We believe, however, that we are within the mark when we state that probably 1000 persons have perished from these accidents.

But no account is rendered to Lloyd's 'of the frequent disasters to boats and their crews, which happen to those individuals who are compelled, in some way or another, to seek a livelihood on the borders of the sea.

Although we cannnt subscribe to the dogma that, by increased nautical skill and the continued improvement of ship-building, sea and land travelling could be brought to the same degree of security—for it is not in the power of man to control the stormy elements—yet we do believe that by the, diligent cultivation of these sciences, shipwrecks could be very materially lessened; and we trust that, when the excellent clauses of the new Merchant Shipping Act will be brought into full operation, disasters at sea, as far as English ships are concerned, will be considerably less numerous than unfortunately they are at present.