Chapter XVII: Part III: “the Iron Clippers.” (3)

PASSAGES UNDER 80 DAYS TO MELBOURNE IN 1873.
+-------------+----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+----+
| | | |Crossed | Passed | | |
| Ship |Departure |Crossed |Cape | Cape |Arrived |Days|
| | |Equator Meridian| Otway | |Out |
+-------------+----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+----+
|_Miltiades_ |Start |June 6|June 24 | |July 15| 64 |
| | May 12 | | | | | |
|_Thomas_ |Ushant |Sept. 14|Oct. 16 |Nov. 7|Nov. 8| 66 |
| _Stephens_ | Sept. 3 | | | | | |
|_Ben_ |Tuskar |Nov. 2|Nov. 21 | |Dec. 13| 67 |
| _Cruachan_ | Oct. 7 | | | | | |
|_Loch Tay_ |Tuskar |Sept. 28|Oct. 22 |Nov. 13|Nov. 14| 69 |
| | Sept. 6 | | | | | |
|_Thermopylae_|Start |Dec. 30|Jan. 20 |Feb. 15|Feb. 16| 72 |
| | Dec. 6 | | ’74 | ’74 | ’74 | |
|_Mermerus_ |Lizard |July 30|Aug. 19 | |Sept. 16| 72 |
| | July 6 | | | | | |
|_Sam Mendel_ |Tuskar |July 26| | |Oct. 6| 72 |
| | July 25 | | | | | |
|_The Tweed_ |Lizard |Sept. 30|Oct. 25 | |Nov. 18| 73 |
| | Sept. 6 | | | | | |
|_Marpesia_ |St. Albans|Oct. 17| | |Dec. 29| 73 |
| | Oct. 17 | | | | | |
|_Theophane_ |Tuskar |Sept. 25|Oct. 17 |Nov. 9|Nov. 12| 74 |
| | Aug. 30 | | | | | |
|_Jerusalem_ |Lizard |July 24|Aug. 22 |Sept. 14|Sept. 14| 77 |
| | June 29 | | | | | |
|_Strathdon_ |Start |Sept. 21| |Nov. 7|Nov. 9| 78 |
| | Aug. 23 | | | | | |
|_City of_ |Portland |Jan. 1|Jan. 21 | |Feb. 19| 78 |
| _ Hankow_ | Dec. 3 | ’74 | ’74 | | ’74 | |
|_Loch_ |Tuskar |July 23|Aug. 18 |Sept. 12|Sept. 13| 79 |
| _ Lomond_ | June 25 | | | | | |
+-------------+----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+----+

The homeward runs I have had to put in the Appendix for want of space, as this part has run to far greater length than I had contemplated at first.

The races to catch the wool sales will thus be found in Appendix F, under the heading of “The Wool Fleet.”

Notes on Passages to Australia in 1873.

The fine passage of _Miltiades_ and the maiden passages of _Samuel Plimsoll_ and _Ben Cruachan_ I have already described. The 66 days of _Thomas Stephens_ was a very fine performance. She left Gravesend on 30th August, with a very heavy general cargo, which put her down in the water like a sand barge. She crossed the equator in 26° 55′ W. and was then forced over on to the South American coast near Pernambuco by very unfavourable S.E. trades. The meridian of Greenwich was crossed on 12th October in 44° 33′ S. Her best week’s work running down the easting was 2055 miles, and she would have equalled the run of _Miltiades_ but for 48 hours of calm in the neighbourhood of the Otway. She arrived in Melbourne after an absence of only seven months, including nine weeks in London.

_Photo lent by F. G. Layton._]

_Loch Tay_, which left Glasgow on 4th September under Captain Scott, also lost a day becalmed off the Otway. She crossed the equator in 29° W. and the meridian of Greenwich on 18th October in 39° S. Running the easting down she averaged 276 miles a day for 19 days, her best day’s work being 336 miles.

Of the others nothing special calls for notice. _Thermopylae_ left Gravesend on 2nd December, and had a light weather passage all the way, though she went as far as 47° S. in search of wind. _Cutty Sark_ also was handicapped by very light winds. She ran her easting down in 40° S. with light winds and calms from the S.E. trades to Port Jackson.

This was the _Tweed’s_ first visit to Melbourne. This magnificent clipper was probably the tallest ship ever seen in Hobson’s Bay. And wherever Captain Stuart took her she compelled admiration both for her majestic appearance and wonderful sailing performances.

Devitt & Moore’s Crack Passenger Ship “Rodney.”

Messrs. Devitt & Moore always considered the _Rodney_ to be the fastest of their iron ships. She was also one of the finest specimens of the passenger sailing ship in its last phase.

The following account from an Australian paper of November, 1874, will give a good idea of the _Rodney’s_ accommodation for passengers. It is also interesting as showing what was considered luxury in the seventies and comparing it with the present day:—

To render voyaging as easy and pleasant as possible has long engaged
the attention of shipowners, but it is only of late years that it
has become a special study to make the accommodations for oversea
passengers not merely comfortable but absolutely luxurious.

The change in this respect since the time when only a certain amount
of cabin space was provided is something akin to a transformation.
The worry and bother of attending to the fitting up, as well as the
extra expenditure of time and money, are now avoided, and with very
little need for previous provision or preparation, the intending
voyager nowadays can step on board ship and find his cabin carpeted
and curtained and fitted up with almost all the accessories and
appointments of a bedroom in a hotel.

An inspection of the _Rodney_ will convince the most fastidious that
the entire question of passenger comfort has been thought out fully
and amply. The _Rodney_ is an iron clipper of beautiful model and is
what is termed a 1500-ton ship. She has been constructed specially
with a view to the conveyance of passengers, and there are few
sailing ships coming to the colony which have such a spacious saloon.
It measures 80 feet in length and has berthing accommodation for 60
people. No cost has been spared in the decoration and embellishments,
and yet these have not been promoted at the expense of solid and
material comfort.

The cabins are 10 feet square, and a number of the sleeping berths
can be drawn out so as to accommodate two people. For each cabin
there is a fixed lavatory, supplied with fresh water from a patent
tap, and by the removal of a small plug in the centre of the basin,
the water runs away right into the sea, so that all slopping is
avoided. The lavatory is fixed on top of a cupboard, which answers
all the purposes of a little chiffoniere, being fitted up for the
reception of bottles, glasses, brushes, etc.

There is also a chest of drawers in each cabin—a very great
convenience—in which may be kept clothes, books, linen and many
“unconsidered trifles,” which generally go knocking about in ships’
cabins at sea.

The windows in the cabins are large, admitting plenty of light
and air, and the passengers have easy control over them. The
ventilation, in fact, is all that could be desired. Good-sized
looking-glasses and handy little racks for water-bottles, tumblers,
combs, brushes, etc., also abound, and in other little matters the
comfort of the passengers has been well cared for.

The cabins are also so arranged that two or more or even the whole
of them on one side of the ship afford communication to each other
without going out into the saloon, and where families are together
this is very advantageous.

The bathroom occupies the space of one of the largest cabins, and hot
as well as cold baths are attainable.

The saloon is lighted by two large skylights, one of them being
21 feet in length. They are emblazoned with very pretty views of
Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, and Capetown, these being the principal
ports to which Messrs. Devitt & Moore’s vessels trade. There is
also a piano in the saloon, by which the tedium of a voyage may be
enlivened, and the tables are so constructed that they can be easily
unshipped and the saloon cleared for dancing.

For gentlemen there is a capital smoking-room at the top of the
companion leading from the saloon to the deck.

The accommodation in the ’tween decks for second cabin and steerage
passengers is everything that could be desired, and there is quite an
elaborate system adopted for ventilation.

Cooking can be done in the galley for 500 people, and there is a
steam condenser, which can distil 500 gallons of water daily.

The passengers of all classes who came out in this ship on her maiden
voyage here expressed themselves wonderfully well pleased with
the ship and her commander, Captain A. Louttit, who has had great
experience in the passenger trade.

The _Rodney’s_ best passage was to Sydney in 1887, when under Captain Harwood Barrett, with Captain Corner of training ship fame as his mate. On this occasion she ran from the Lizards to Sydney in 67 days, and 68 days from pilot to Sydney. Her best passage home was 77 days from Sydney to London. Her best run to Melbourne was 71 days in 1882, and to Adelaide 74 days in 1880.

The _Rodney_ was sold in 1897 to the French and renamed _Gipsy_. On her previous voyage she had encountered terrible weather both out and home, and was even robbed of her figure-head by the raging sea; it was probably on account of the damage sustained on this voyage that Devitt & Moore sold her.

On the 7th December, 1901, the _Rodney_ was wrecked on the Cornish coast, when homeward bound from Iquique with nitrate. The ship became a total loss but the crew were saved.

Nicol’s “Romanoff.”

_Romanoff_ was Alexander Nicol’s finest iron clipper until the _Cimba_ came out. Nicol’s ships were always good lookers, painted Aberdeen green with white masts and yards and scraped jibboom and topmasts, they fully upheld the Aberdeen reputation. _Romanoff_ was a fast ship, but was overmasted with double topgallant yards and skysails, and after a few years she was severely cut down. She was a very regular Melbourne trader. She ended her days under the Norwegian flag.

Duthie’s “Cairnbulg.”

The _Cairnbulg_ was another Aberdeen ship, but she was in the Sydney trade. She was of about the same speed as the _Romanoff_, a fine, fast, wholesome ship without any very special records to her credit.

She came to a most unusual end. After being sold to the Russians and renamed _Hellas_, she was sold by them to the Danes and called _Alexandra_. On the 26th November, 1907, she sailed from Newcastle, N.S.W., for Panama, coal laden. In April she was taken off the overdue list and posted as missing, being uninsurable at 90 guineas. The following June, one of her boats in charge of the mate, was picked up off the South American Coast. The mate then told the following extraordinary story:—On 8th May the ship was abandoned owing to her provisions running out and for no other reason—as in every other way, both in hull and gear, she was perfectly seaworthy. The position of the _Cairnbulg_ when abandoned was given as 500 miles off the South American Coast. A search expedition was at once sent out after her, but in vain. Some time afterwards she was found ashore on the rocks at Iguana Cove, Albemarle Island, with her back broken. Her insurances, hull, freight and cargo amounted to £30,000, and she was abandoned in calm weather through lack of provisions. This story is not to the credit of either her captain or her owners.

The Speedy “Thessalus.”

_Thessalus_, Carmichael’s largest three-master, was one of the finest and fastest sailing ships ever seen in Australasian waters. Though not a regular wool clipper like the _Mermerus_, she was well known both in Sydney and Melbourne. But she was also as well known in Calcutta and San Francisco, and wherever she went she always made fine passages.

_Photo by Hall & Co., Sydney._]

Here are a few of her best:—

AUSTRALIAN PASSAGES.
1878 Start to Melbourne 67 days.
1882 London to Sydney 79 „
1884 Downs to Sydney 77 „
1887 London to Sydney 79 „
1893 Cardiff to Sydney (_via_ Capetown) 78 „
1894 London to Sydney (_via_ Capetown) 78 „
1896 Sydney to London 75 „

CALCUTTA PASSAGES.
1876 Calcutta to London 90 days.
1878 Calcutta to Dundee 98 „
1879 Penarth Roads to Calcutta 98 „

FRISCO AND W.C.N.A. PASSAGES.
1883 Frisco to Lizard 105 days.
1885 Frisco to Hull 125 „
1888 Portland, Ore., to Queenstown 98 „
1889 Frisco to Queenstown 104 „
1890 Swansea to Frisco 113 „
1890 Frisco to Lizard 109 „
1892 Frisco to Queenstown 101 „

CROSS PASSAGES.
1878 Melbourne to Calcutta 48 days.
1880 Calcutta to Melbourne 49 „
1882 Sydney to Frisco 55 „
1884 Sydney to San Pedro 66 „
1884 Frisco to Newcastle, N.S.W. 45 „
1886 Newcastle, N.S.W., to Frisco 50 „

On her third voyage she encountered the cyclone of 31st October, 1876, near the Sandheads. Captain E. C. Bennett, foreseeing the approach of the cyclone, stood over to the east side of the Bay of Bengal, and considered himself lucky to escape with the loss of his topgallant masts.

Lashed on top of his main hatch, he had a large kennel containing a pack of foxhounds for the Calcutta Jackal Club. When the cyclone began, the hounds were let out of the kennel, to give them a chance to save themselves; and shortly afterwards the kennel was washed clean over the lee rail without touching it. The hounds had meanwhile disappeared and everyone thought that they must have gone overboard; but when the weather cleared they all came out, safe and sound, from under the lower foc’s’le bunks, where they had taken refuge.

This cyclone wrought havoc amongst the Calcutta shipping, and cost the underwriters over £100,000. _Thessalus_ was lucky to get off with a repair bill of £380.

The _Thessalus_ was lucky with live freight. On her seventh voyage she took horses from Melbourne to Calcutta and landed them all alive and in prime condition. Shortly afterwards the _Udston_ arrived with only four horses alive. She had had bad weather in the Bay of Bengal, the horses had broken loose and in their fright kicked each other to death. On this voyage, _Thessalus_ returned to Melbourne with wheat bags, wool packs and camels. The camels also arrived in good condition. At Melbourne she loaded wool for London at a penny per pound.

Her best wool passage was in 1896, when she left Sydney on the 17th October and was only 75 days to the Start, where she signalled on 31st December. She had left Melbourne in company with _Cimba_ and _Argonaut_. _Argonaut_ made a long passage, but _Thessalus_ and _Cimba_ were twice in company, concerning which Captain Holmes of _Cimba_ wrote:—

I left Sydney in company with _Thessalus_ and _Argonaut_. I was twice
in company with _Thessalus_ on 3rd October in 54° S., 152° W., to
5th October 54° S., 143° W., and on 25th November in 30° S., 34°
W. I came up on him in light winds, but when he got the breeze he
just romped away from me as if I was at anchor. _Thessalus_ was a
wonderfully fast ship. I think the German five-master _Potosi_ is the
only one I have seen to touch her.

This is high praise, for Captain Holmes had a great knowledge of ships, especially in the Australian trade, and he had a very fast ship in _Cimba_, which on this occasion reported at noon at the Lizard when _Thessalus_ was reporting at Start Point.

After a long and successful career _Thessalus_ was sold to the Swedes in 1905, when she was still classed 100 A1.

Notes on Passages to Australia in 1874.

1874 was _Ben Voirlich’s_ great year. It will be noticed, however, that on her record passage she had _Lochs Ness_ and _Maree_ on her heels the whole way. Both Lochs had just changed their commanders, Captain Meiklejohn going to the _Loch Ness_ and Captain Charles Grey succeeding Captain McCallum in _Loch Maree_. _Loch Ness_ chased _Ben Voirlich_ very closely all the way to the Australian Coast, her best 24-hour run being 321 miles. But _Loch Maree_ dropped back in the roaring forties through no fault of her own. On 13th and 14th December she experienced a tremendous gale from east working round to S.W. with high confused sea, during which her patent steering gear was completely smashed up; and this prevented her from taking full advantage of the westerlies, as Captain Grey decided it would not be safe to go further than 42° S.

PASSAGES UNDER 80 DAYS TO SYDNEY IN 1874.
+------------+---------+-------+--------+---------+---------+----+
| | |Crossed|Crossed |Passed |Arrived |Days|
| Ship |Departure|Equator| Cape |S.W. Cape| Port |Out |
| | | |Meridian|Tasmania |Jackson | |
+------------+---------+-------+--------+---------+---------+----+
|_Cutty Sark_|Start |Dec. 11|Jan. 1 | Jan. 26 |Feb. 2’75| 73 |
| | Nov. 21| | ’75 | ’75 | | |
|_Mermerus_ |Start |May 8|May 29 | June 24 |June 27 | 74 |
| | Apl. 14| | | | | |
|_Hallowe’en_|Start |Apl. 30|May 22 | June 17 |June 22 | 74 |
| | April 9| | | | | |
|_Patriarch_ |Wight |July 2|July 26 | Aug. 19 |Aug. 24 | 77 |
| | June 8| | | (Otway) | | |
| | | | | | | |
|_Jerusalem_ |Plymouth |Apl. 29|May 21 | June 14 |June 22 | 78 |
| | Apl. 5| | | (Otway) | | |
+------------+---------+-------+--------+---------+---------+----+

PASSAGES UNDER 80 DAYS TO MELBOURNE IN 1874.
+-------------+----------+-------+--------+-------+--------+----+
| | |Crossed|Crossed |Passed |Arrived |Days|
| Ship |Departure |Equator| Cape | Cape |Hobson’s|Out |
| | | |Meridian|(Otway)| Bay | |
+-------------+----------+-------+--------+-------+--------+----+
|_Thermopylae_|Lizard |Dec. 25|Jan. 14 | |Feb. 4 | 64 |
| | Dec. 2 | | ’75 | | ’75 | |
|_Ben_ |Plymouth |Dec. 1|Dec. 24 | |Jan. 14 | 64 |
| _Voirlich_ | Nov. 11 | | | | ’75 | |
|_Loch Ness_ |Tuskar |Dec. 1| |Jan. 16|Jan. 18 | 68 |
| | Nov. 11 | | | ’75| ’75 | |
|_Ben_ |Tuskar |Feb. 19|Mar. 15 |Apl. 5|Apl. 6 | 69 |
| _Voirlich_ | Jan. 27 | | | | | |
|_Thomas_ |Lizard |Dec. 12| |Jan. 29|Jan. 31 | 70 |
| _Stephens_ | Nov. 22 | | | ’75| ’75 | |
|_Ben_ |Cape Clear|Sept.29|Oct. 20 |Nov. 13|Nov. 14 | 71 |
| _Cruachan_ | Sept. 4 | | | | | |
|_Romanoff_ |Lizard | | | |Jan. 16 | 72 |
| | Nov. 5 | | | | ’75 | |
|_Theophane_ |Tuskar |Sept.12|Oct. 3 | |Oct. 30 | 75 |
| | Aug. 16 | | | | | |
|_City of_ |Channel | | | |Feb. 2 | 75 |
| _Hankow_ | Nov. 19 | | | | ’75 | |
|_Loch_ |Tuskar | | | |Feb. 14 | 75 |
| _Lomond_ | Nov. 30 | | | | ’75 | |
|_Loch_ |Channel |Dec. 1 |Dec. 25 |Jan. 22|Jan. 23 | 78 |
| _Maree_ | Nov. 6 | | | ’75| ’75 | |
+-------------+----------+-------+--------+-------+--------+----+

_Cutty Sark_ and _Thomas Stephens_ also had a great race, the famous tea clipper making the best passage of the year to Sydney.

Both ships were off the Lizards on 22nd November, and experienced very baffling winds to the equator, which _Cutty Sark_ crossed in 26° W. and _Thomas Stephens_ in 29° W. a day later. _Cutty Sark_ was 65 days from the Lizards to S.W. Cape, Tasmania, whilst _Thomas Stephens_ was 68 days to the Otway, where she was becalmed for 14 hours.

_Thermopylae_, with a 64-day passage from the Lizards, her best run being 348 miles, arrived just in time to defend herself, for Captain McPetrie was declaring to all and sundry that _Ben Voirlich_ had broken _Thermopylae’s_ record, by making a better run from port to port.

The “Loch Garry.”

Many experts considered the _Loch Garry_ to be the finest sailing ship in the world at the date of her launch. She certainly was an example of the well-known Glasgow type at its best.

A new feature was adopted in the placing of her masts. Her mainmast was stepped right amidships, with the fore and mizen masts at equal distances from it.

_Loch Garry_, her sister ship _Loch Vennachar_, Green’s _Carlisle Castle_, Nicol’s _Romanoff_ and the American ship _Manuel Laguna_ were rigged in a manner peculiar to themselves. They had short topgallant masts with fidded royal and skysail masts, on which they crossed royals and skysails above double topgallant yards. When in port their upper topsail and upper topgallant yards would be half mast-headed, and with the seven yards on each mast, all squared to perfection, they presented a magnificent appearance. _Loch Garry’s_ first commander was Captain Andrew Black, a very fine seaman indeed. He commanded her from 1875 to 1882. He was succeeded by Captain John Erskine, who was followed by Captain Horne.

With regard to her merits, the veteran Captain Horne, who commanded her for close on 26 years, wrote to me:—

The _Loch Garry_ is a front rank ship and always will be so. She is a
ship that has got no vices and when properly loaded is as gentle as
a lamb. It is quite a pleasure to sail such a ship, which might be
described as a 1500-ton yacht. She is not a ship of excessive speed,
but with a moderately fresh breeze will maintain a speed of 10 or 11
knots without much exertion.

_Loch Garry’s_ best run under Captain Horne was on 26th December, 1892, when running her easting down in 40° S. With a N.W. wind and smooth sea she covered 334 miles. It is very possible that she exceeded this in her early days when she carried a stronger crew. She was also a good light weather ship. In 1900 she went from the South Tropic to the North Tropic in 14 days 2 hours.

The following passages of recent date will show that Captain Horne kept the _Loch Garry_ moving in spite of the lack of a good crew of sailormen:—

1892 Tuskar to Cape Otway 71 dy.
1894 Downs to Melbourne 77 „
1895 Lizard to Melbourne 77 „
1896 Melbourne to Prawle Pt. 80 „
1900 Melbourne to Prawle Pt. 85 „
1901 Adelaide to C. Otway 48 hr.
1903 Port Philip Heads to Lizard 74 dy.
1904 Melbourne to Dover 77 „
1906 Tuskar to Cape Borda 73 „
1905 Equator to Leeuwin 36 „
(Average 240 knots)

The following account of Captain Horne’s care of his boats and system for provisioning them should be a lesson for younger masters. It is taken from the _Melbourne Herald_:—

A feature of _Loch Garry’s_ equipment, in which Captain Home takes
a justifiable pride, is the system for provisioning the lifeboats,
should it ever be necessary to abandon the vessel. In two minutes
the apprentices can place enough provisions in the boats to last all
hands 14 days. The lifeboats are on the after skids and the falls
are always kept rove. In each boat are two 15-gallon breakers, which
are kept full of fresh water, charged about once a month. Then in a
strong wooden box, fitted with beckets, is stowed a good supply of
biscuits, in protected tins, whilst in another box a number of tins
of meat are packed together with the necessary opening knife. A
third box contains miscellaneous articles, such as medical comforts,
clothing, tobacco, a hatchet, knives and a compass. The three boxes
are always kept handy in the lazarette, the provisions they contain
being changed each voyage, so that the biscuits and meat are always
fresh. One man can easily lift either of the boxes and the equipment
is completed by the lifeboats’ sails and all necessary gear being
kept in a canvas bag close by. The system is simplicity itself, and
Captain Horne says that he would like to see some such plan made
compulsory by the B.O.T. in all ships.

The career of Captain Horne, who was the veteran skipper of the Loch Line, is worth recording. He was born in 1834, apprenticed to the sea at 15 years of age, and only retired in 1911, after 62 years at sea and 47 years in command without experiencing shipwreck, fire or collision. The motto of his life, which he always emblazoned on the cabin bulkhead, was:—“Never underrate the strength of the enemy.” Like many another old seaman, he was not pleased with the changes brought about by steam and cut-throat competition.

Just as Captain Horne’s apprenticeship finished the Crimean war broke out, and, volunteering for active service, he was appointed to the three-decker H.M.S. _Royal Albert_, the largest ship afloat. He was rated as A.B., but soon promoted to be second captain of the maintop. Sir George Tryon was a junior lieutenant on this ship. The _Royal Albert_ was in the engagement against the Kinburn Forts on the north shore of the Black Sea. At the close of the war Captain Horne received the Crimean and Turkish medals and was paid off on the _Victory_. He then returned to the Merchant Service and served in 1859 as second mate of the tea clipper _Falcon_ under Captain Maxton. Subsequently he was attached to Lord Elgin’s embassy and placed in charge of a lorcha by Lindsay & Co., of Shanghai. As a member of Lord Elgin’s staff, he was present at the taking of the Taku Forts and was on the house-boat which was towed to Tientsin by one of the gunboats; and he remained there until the treaty was signed.

After this he was 13½ years in the employ of John Allan & Sons. In 1877 he joined the Loch Line and took command of the _Loch Sloy_, leaving her to take charge of the _Loch Garry_ in 1885.

The _Loch Garry_ only had two severe mishaps in her long life. In August, 1880, when running under topgallant sails off the Crozets in a heavy beam sea, the weather forebrace carried away, the fore topmast went above the eyes of the rigging and took main topgallant mast with it—and _Loch Garry_ was a month getting to Melbourne under jury rig. She was rigged in Geelong with Kauri pine topmasts and long topgallant masts, as shewn in the illustration. In August, 1889, she was dismasted in a furious gale to the south’ard of the Cape. To save the ship Captain Horne was obliged to jettison some 100 tons of cargo in the shape of gunpowder, hardware, whisky, bottled beer, paper, etc. The main and mizen masts carried away close to the deck, but Captain Horne succeeded in sailing his vessel 2600 miles to Mauritius, under foresail and fore lower topsail. Here the _Loch Garry_ was delayed some months whilst new spars were sent out from England, and she eventually reached Melbourne on 14th February, 1890, eight months out from Glasgow. After 36 years of good service, she was sold in March, 1911, to the Italians for the scrap iron price of £1800.

“Loch Vennachar.”

One of the finest and fastest of the Lochs, as well as one of the most unfortunate, was the _Loch Vennachar_, launched from Thomson’s yard in August, 1875.

She was usually one of the first wool clippers to get away from Melbourne, and for many years, sailing in October, she made very regular passages home, her average under Captain Bennett being 86 days for 12 passages.

_Photo lent by F. G. Layton._]

Her first misfortune was in 1892, when she was dismasted during a cyclone in the Southern Indian Ocean.

The following is an account of the disaster, given in the _Melbourne Argus_:—

The _Loch Vennachar_ left Glasgow bound for Melbourne on 6th April,
1892, with a crew of 33 all told and 12 passengers, four of whom
were ladies. All went well with the ship until she reached lat. 39°
55′ S., long. 27° 21′ E., when at 8 o’clock on the evening of 3rd
June the barometer began to fall ominously and sail was promptly
shortened. Darkness lifted soon after 5 o’clock in the morning and
the break of day showed the terrific head seas that swept down upon
the vessel, lashed by the north-east gale. (At this time both watches
were aloft fighting to make the foresail fast.) Captain Bennett, who
was on the poop, saw the danger of his crew and at once resolved to
sacrifice the sail. He sang out to the mate to send the men aft and
the hands, who had been lying out on the pitching foreyard, gained
the deck in safety and reached the poop in time. As they did so,
two enormous waves bore down upon the ship, which rode slowly over
the first, and sank to an interminable depth in the trough at the
other side. Whilst in this position the second wave came on towering
halfway up the foremast, and broke on board, _filling the lower
topsail 60 feet above the deck_, as it came.

Hundreds of tons of water swept over the ship in a solid mass from
stem to stern, thundering inboard on the port side of the foc’s’le
and racing away over the main deck and over the poop, where most of
the crew were standing. Every man on the poop was thrown down, and
when they regained their feet they perceived that the foremast and
mainmast were over the side, and the mizen topmast above their heads
had disappeared. Not a man on board actually saw the spars go or even
heard the crash of the breaking rigging so violent was the shock and
so fierce the howling of the hurricane. The cook was washed out of
his galley and swept overboard, the galley being completely gutted of
everything it contained.

For nine days after her dismasting, _Loch Vennachar_ lay unmanageable, rolling in the trough of the sea, whilst the gale still raged. At last with immense difficulty a jury mast was rigged forward and a sail set on the stump of the mizen mast; in this trim Captain Bennett managed to get his lame duck into Port Louis, Mauritius, after five weeks under jury rig. The ship lay in Mauritius for five months whilst new masts and spars were being sent out to her from England. On the arrival of the masts, Captain Bennett and his crew showed their smartness by completely rerigging her in 10 days, the cost of the refit coming to £9071.

On 18th November _Loch Vennachar_ at last proceeded on her voyage, and after a light weather passage arrived in Port Phillip on 22nd December 260 days out from the Clyde. As soon as her anchor was on the ground, her crew assembled at the break of the poop and gave three ringing cheers for Captain Bennett and his officers, who had brought them safely through such a trying time. For saving his ship under such difficulties, Captain Bennett was awarded Lloyd’s Medal, the Victoria Cross of the Mercantile Marine.

In November, 1901, when anchored off Thameshaven outward bound to Melbourne with general cargo, _Loch Vennachar_ was run down by the steamer _Cato_. The steamship struck her on the starboard bow, and the Loch liner went down in 40 feet of water. All on board, however, were saved, including a parrot and a cat, the only cat to escape out of seven on the ship.

The _Loch Vennachar_ lay at the bottom of the Thames for a month and was then raised. After repairs and alterations to the value of about £17,000 were made on her, she was pronounced by experts to be as good as the day she was launched; and she once more resumed her place in the Australian trade.

About September, 1905, when bound from Glasgow to Adelaide, she came on the overdue list. On 6th September she was spoken “all well” by the ss. _Yongala_, 160 miles west of Neptune Island. But as the days passed and she did not arrive, grave anxiety began to be felt. On 29th September, the ketch _Annie Witt_ arrived at Adelaide, and her captain reported picking up a reel of blue printing paper 18 miles N.W. of Kangaroo Island. This paper was identified as part of _Loch Vennachar’s_ cargo. A search was made on Kangaroo Island and wreckage was discovered which made the disaster only too sure. It was concluded that she had run on the Young Rocks in trying to make the Backstairs Passage. Captain Hawkins, late of the _Loch Ness_, was in command, having taken her over from Captain Bennett the year before.

As if the fatal curse of Jonah had been transmitted from father to son, T. R. Pearce, a son of the twice wrecked Tom Pearce, was one of the apprentices lost in her.

“Salamis”—an Iron “Thermopylae.”

_Salamis_, one of the most beautiful little ships ever launched and without doubt the fastest of all Thompson’s iron ships, was really an enlarged _Thermopylae_ in iron, as she was built from Bernard Waymouth’s lines with a few minor alterations and improvements. The following comparison of their measurements shows that _Salamis_ was roughly 100 tons larger and 10 feet longer than _Thermopylae_:—

+------------------------+-----------+--------------+
| Measurements | _Salamis_ | _Thermopylae_|
| of | Iron Ship |Composite Ship|
+------------------------+-----------+--------------+
|Registered tonnage net | 1079 tons.| 948 tons. |
|Registered tonnage gross| 1130 „ | 991 „ |
|Registered tonnage | | |
| under deck | 1021 „ | 927 „ |
|Length |221.6 feet.| 212 feet. |
|Breadth | 36 „ | 36 „ |
|Depth | 21.7 „ | 20.9 „ |
|Depth moulded | 23.7 „ | 23.2 „ |
+------------------------+-----------+--------------+

In _Salamis_, Thompson’s were determined to have an out and out racer, and she was not fitted for passengers, her raised quarterdeck being only 48 feet long as against _Thermopylae’s_ 61 feet. She had a tremendous sail plan and of course spread a full suit of stunsails and other flying kites.

The following spar measurements show that she set even more canvas than _Thermopylae_, her mainyard being a foot longer, and the other yards in proportion:—

SPAR PLAN OF _SALAMIS_.
+---------------------------+----------+
|Mainmast—deck to truck | 150 feet |
|Main lower mast | 66 „ |
|Main topmast | 52 „ |
|Main topgallant mast | 34 „ |
|Main royal mast | 23 „ |
|Main masthead | 2 „ |
|Main lower doublings | 15 „ |
|Main topmast doublings | 12 „ |
|Mainyard | 81 „ |
|Main lower topsail yard | 72 „ |
|Main upper topsail yard | 64 „ |
|Main lower topgallant yard | 57 „ |
|Main upper topgallant yard | 49 „ |
|Main royal yard | 37 „ |
|Jibboom | 66 „ |
+---------------------------+----------+

Messrs. Thompson, when they gave Hood the order for _Salamis_, intended her for the same round as _Thermopylae_—out to Melbourne with general cargo, then across to China and home again with tea. But by 1875 the steamers had got a firm hold on the tea trade, and the clippers were either being driven away into other trades or had to content themselves with loading at a cut rate in the N.E. monsoon; and practically only _Cutty Sark_ and _Thermopylae_ were still given a chance to load the new teas. This was not a bright outlook for a newcomer with her reputation all to make, and the only time _Salamis_ loaded a tea cargo home was on her second voyage when she came home from Hong Kong in 110 days. In 1878 she made another attempt to get a tea cargo home, but freights were specially bad this year, and she was withdrawn from the berth at Shanghai, and finally came home with wool from Port Phillip.

_Photo lent by F. G. Layton._]

As a wool clipper she set up a wonderful record; her average for 13 consecutive passages to Melbourne being 75 days pilot to pilot, and for her outward passages from 1875 to 1895 her average was 77 days. Homeward with wool, like all iron ships, she occasionally got hung up and topped the 100 days, nevertheless here she also had the best average for an iron ship, of 87 days for 18 consecutive wool passages from Melbourne to London. Her best run from London to the equator was made in 18½ days. Twice she ran from the equator to the Cape meridian in 21 days, and twice she ran her easting down from the Cape meridian to Cape Otway in 22½ days, and no less than four times in 23 days. Captain Phillip left the _Harlaw_ to take the _Salamis_, and his name is associated with her during the whole of her life under the British flag.

On her maiden passage _Salamis_ left London on 6th July, took her departure from the Start on the 10th, then had very buffling winds to the equator, which she crossed on 2nd August in 25° W.; the S.E. trades were very poor and she had to make a tack off the Abrolhos Rocks. The Cape meridian was crossed on 24th August in 44° S. Running her easting down, the wind was very changeable, being mostly from the south’ard, and without any steady breezes her best run was only 304 knots. She passed the Otway on 16th September and entered Port Phillip Heads the same evening, 68 days from Start Point.

On her second voyage she had a very protracted start, losing three anchors and chains in the Downs and also a man overboard during a very severe gale. She had to slip her third anchor and get underweigh in a hurry to avoid dragging ashore. After this she had to go into Plymouth to get new anchors and chains. She finally left Plymouth on 24th March, 1876, the “dead horse” being actually up the day she left Plymouth. She took her departure from the Lizard on 25th March, crossed the line on 18th April, and had light winds to the meridian of the Cape, which she crossed on 14th May in 43° S.

In 69° E. she encountered bad weather, and shipped a heavy sea whilst running under a fore topsail. This sea broke over the quarter, smashed the wheel and broke in the cabin skylight, and she had to be hove to for 14 hours whilst repairs were made. The main upper topsail had also blown away and a new one had to be bent.

She eventually made Cape Otway at 10.30 p.m. on 7th June, entering the Heads early morning of the 8th, 75 days from the Lizards. In crossing to China, she went from Sydney to Shanghai in 32 days. Failing to get a tea cargo in Shanghai, she ran down to Hong Kong through the Formosa Channel with a strong N.E. monsoon in two days and some odd hours, but, of course, she was nearly new and in ballast.

In 1878 she again tried for a tea cargo, crossing from Sydney in 43 days: after a very tempestuous passage of 83 days from London to Sydney, during which she continually had to be hove to, indeed, Captain Phillip declared that he had never met with such heavy gales during 30 years’ experience, even so she was only 79 days from the Channel to Cape Otway.

She found tea freights slumping very badly at Shanghai, and was finally placed on the berth for general cargo only at 30s. per 50 cubic feet. _Salamis_ left Shanghai on 26th November in company with _Thermopylae_, which was the only sailing ship to get a tea cargo for London. The two ships made the Straits of Sunda on 15th December, but were compelled to anchor off Sumatra owing to the strong N.E. current. Here they found a fleet of 37 sail all vainly trying to get past Thwart-the-way Island.

Of this fleet the first to get through was _Thermopylae_ after several ineffectual attempts, but she was closely followed by her iron sister ship; clearing Java Head on 29th December after a delay of 14 days, the two sisters squared away for the S.E. trades, and left the fleet of 37 ships to wait patiently until the N.E. current slackened.

_Salamis_ carried the trades to 32° S., and then made some fine running to the Australian Coast, her best day’s work being 336 miles. On 26th January, 1879, she arrived off Port Phillip Heads and anchored off Queenscliff to await orders. She was sent up to Sydney and loaded coal alongside the _Cutty Sark_. On 18th March _Cutty Sark_ sailed for Shanghai with 1150 tons of coal, _Salamis_ followed on the 20th with 1200 tons of coal. Unfortunately I have no details of the race across, except that _Salamis_ made the run in 37 days. Both ships failed to get a tea cargo for the London market, and _Cutty Sark_ went off to Manila, whilst _Salamis_ went to Foochow, and took a tea cargo from there to Melbourne, which she reached in time to load wool home, after a very light weather passage of 64 days. After this unsatisfactory voyage _Salamis_ was kept steadily in the Melbourne trade, with the exception of one passage to Sydney.

When the Aberdeen White Star sold their sailing ships, _Salamis_ went to the Norwegians, who stripped the yards off her mizen mast and turned her into a barque. After several weary years of threadbare old age, the beautiful little clipper was finally wrecked on Malden Island in the South Pacific on 20th May, 1905.

The Colonial Barque “Woollahra.”

The pretty little barque, _Woollahra_, owned by Cowlislaw Bros., of Sydney, had a very fair turn of speed, and on more than one occasion showed up well against some of the crack ships in the trade. In her later years she used to run from Newcastle, N.S.W., to Frisco with coal. She came to her end on Tongue Point, near Cape Terawhite, New Zealand, whilst bound in ballast from Wellington to Kaipara, to load Kauri lumber for Australia. She was wrecked about half a mile from the homestead of a sheep station, the only habitation on the coast for miles. The captain and an ordinary seaman were drowned, the rest of her complement getting safely ashore. She went to pieces very quickly and there was not even an odd spar or deck fitting left a few months afterwards.

“Cassiope” and “Parthenope.”

_Cassiope_ and _Parthenope_ were actually sister ships though by different builders. They were both fine fast clippers of the best Liverpool type. _Cassiope_, however, had a short life, being lost with all hands in 1885, when bound to London with Heap’s Rangoon rice, under the well-known Captain Rivers. _Parthenope_ was sold in her old age to the Italians and rechristened _Pelogrino O._ On the 31st July, 1907, she sailed with coals from Newcastle, N.S.W., for Antofagasta and never arrived.

“Trafalgar.”

D. Rose & Co.’s _Trafalgar_ was a very regular Sydney trader. She went to the Norwegians and was still afloat, owned in Christiania, when the war broke out.

_From a painting._]

PASSAGES UNDER 80 DAYS TO SYDNEY IN 1875.
+------------+---------+-------+--------+---------+-------+----+
| | |Crossed|Crossed | Passed | |Days|
| Ship |Departure|Equator| Cape |S.W. Cape|Arrived|Out |
| | | |Meridian|Tasmania | | |
+------------+---------+-------+--------+---------+-------+----+
|_Cutty_ |Lizard |Dec. 21|Jan. 13|Feb. 4 |Feb. 12| 75 |
| _Sark_ | Nov. 29| | ’76| ’76 | ’76| |
|_Samuel_ |Falmouth |Sept. 4|Sept. 28|Oct. 19 |Oct. 22| 75 |
| _Plimsoll_| Aug. 8| | |(Otway) | | |
+------------+-----------------+--------+---------+-------+----+

PASSAGES UNDER 80 DAYS TO MELBOURNE IN 1875.
+--------------+-----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+----+
| | |Crossed |Crossed |Passed | |Days|
| Ship | Departure |Equator | Cape | Cape |Arrived |Out |
| | | |Meridian| Otway | | |
+--------------+-----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+----+
|_Thermopylae_ |Lizard |Dec. 24|Jan. 14|Feb. 7|Feb. 9| 68 |
| | Dec. 3 | ’76| | ’76| ’76| |
|_Salamis_ |Start |Aug. 2|Aug. 24|Sept. 16|Sept. 16| 68 |
| | July 10 | | | | | |
|_Mermerus_ |Tuskar |Aug. 15| |Oct. 1|Oct. 1| 68 |
| | July 27 | | | | | |
|_Loch Garry_ |Tuskar |Dec. 5|Dec. 29| |Jan. 20| 73 |
| | Nov. 8 | | | | ’76| |
|_City of_ |Start |Sept. 27|Oct. 21|Nov. 16|Nov. 16| 73 |
| _Corinth_ | Sept. 4 | | | | | |
|_Loch Maree_ |Scilly |Sept. 5|Sept. 26| |Oct. 21| 74 |
| | Aug. 8 | | | | | |
|_Romanoff_ |Lizard |Sept. 5| |Oct. 22|Oct. 23| 74 |
| | Aug. 10 | | | | | |
|_Loch_ |Inistrahull|Oct. 10|Oct. 28|Nov. 18|Nov. 19| 74 |
| _Vennachar_ | Sept. 6 | | | | | |
|_Wasdale_ |Tuskar |Sept. 4|Sept. 26| |Oct. 20| 74 |
| | Aug. 7 | | | | | |
|_Moravian_ |Lizard |June 22| | |Aug. 9| 75 |
| | May 26 | | | | | |
|_City of Agra_|Start |June 24| | |Aug. 15| 76 |
| | May 31 | | | | | |
|_Ben Cruachan_|Tuskar |July 1|July 29| |Aug. 23| 77 |
| | June 7 | | | | | |
|_Parthenope_ |Tuskar |June 29| | |Aug. 25| 77 |
| | June 9 | | | | | |
|_Glengarry_ |Tuskar |Mar. 22| | |May 14| 77 |
| | Feb. 26 | | | | | |
|_Old_ Channel | | |Apl. 21|Apl. 22| 78 |
| _Kensington_| Feb. 3 | | | | | |
|_Loch Katrine_|Holyhead | | | |July 25| 79 |
| | May 7 | | | | | |
+--------------+-----------+--------+--------+--------+--------+----+

Notes on Passages to Australia in 1875.

In no year were so many magnificent iron clippers launched as in 1875, and of the ships which made the passage to Melbourne in under 80 days no less than five, namely, _Salamis_, _Loch Garry_, _Loch Vennachar_, _Parthenope_ and _Old Kensington_, were on their maiden passages. _Loch Garry’s_ best run in the 24 hours was 333 miles, and _Loch Vennachar_ did a week’s work of 2065 miles, viz., 285, 290, 320, 320, 312, 268 and 270. _Samuel Plimsoll_, with 360 emigrants on board, left Plymouth on 6th August, at 11.15 p.m.; on the same day she ran into and sank the Italian barque _Enrica_, though without damage to herself. She saved the Italian’s crew and put into Falmouth to land them.

Captain Richards left the _Thomas Stephens_ in order to tune up _Parthenope_. He made the latter travel, but as he returned to the _Thomas Stephens_ in 1876 he evidently preferred his old clipper.

_Thermopylae_ still maintained her wonderful reputation; on this trip she averaged 270 miles a day from 23° W. to 100° E.

The _Old Kensington_ was a very fine ship with a good turn of speed, and she usually loaded home from Calcutta or San Francisco.

The _Wasdale_ must not be confused with the later _Wasdale_, which was not launched until 1881. This one must have been a very fast ship, for on this passage she made five 24-hour runs over 300, her best being 332 miles.

Many well-known heelers were just over the 80 days; for instance, _Miltiades_ was 81 days from the Start, _Thessalus_ 83 from the Lizards, _Theophane_ 83 from the Tuskar, _Cassiope_ 81 from the Tuskar, _Marpesia_ 83 from the Tuskar, _Thyatira_ 80 from the Start, all to Melbourne, whilst _Patriarch_ was 82 days from Torbay to Sydney.

Two writers to the _Nautical Magazine_, both of whom were serving on the _Cutty Sark_ during her 1875-6 voyage, claim that she was 50 miles south of Melbourne on her 54th day out from the Channel, and that owing to strong head winds she was compelled to go round Australia.

As will be seen, she was 67 days from the Lizard to the S.W. Cape, Tasmania, and I fear that a mistake of ten days has been made. Captain Watson also stated in a personal letter to me that she ran 2163 miles in six days. I have 14 years of her abstract logs, and from what her logs tell me I consider that she was quite capable of accomplishing such a run with a strong steady breeze, but it is very rarely that you get such a breeze for six days on end even in the roaring forties. She left London on 20th November but collided with the _Somersetshire_ off Gravesend, and lost her main topgallant mast, besides other damage, so that she had to put back to refit.

“Sir Walter Raleigh.”

The _Sir Walter Raleigh_, commanded by Captain W. Purvis, was a very well-known and regular wool clipper of the type of _Romanoff_. I do not think she was quite in the first flight, but she was never very far behind, and in 1880 she shared with _Ben Voirlich_ the distinction of making the best outward run of the year.

The following extracts are from _Patriarch’s_ log, when homeward bound in 1878, 79 days out from Sydney.

Feb. 8.—18° 41′ N., long. 38° 55′ W.—Spoke the _Sir Walter Raleigh_,
Melbourne to London, 77 days out.

Feb. 9.—_Sir Walter Raleigh_ still in company.

Feb. 10.—_Sir Walter Raleigh_ ahead.

Feb. 11.—_Sir Walter Raleigh_ dead to windward.

Feb. 12 to 16.—_Sir Walter Raleigh_ still in company.

In the end _Patriarch_ got home a day ahead, _Sir Walter Raleigh_ making the best passage by a day. _Sir Walter Raleigh_ was probably faster in light and moderate winds than in strong, as I can find no very big runs to her credit.

On the 10th November, 1888, she left Sydney for London, wool-laden, and was wrecked near Boulogne on 29th January, 1889, when only 80 days out and almost in sight of home. Five of her crew were drowned. It was a tragic end to what promised to be the best wool passage of her career.

“Loch Fyne” and “Loch Long.”

These two 1200-ton sister ships from Thomson’s yard, though fine wholesome ships, were not considered quite as fast as the earlier “Lochs,” though each of them put up a 75-day passage to Melbourne, _Loch Fyne_ on her second voyage in 1877-8, and the _Loch Long_ in 1884.

The _Loch Fyne_ left Lyttelton, N.Z., on 4th May, 1883, under Captain T. H. Martin, with 15,000 bags of wheat bound for the Channel for orders and never arrived.

In January, 1903, _Loch Long_ arrived in Hobson’s Bay from Glasgow, commanded by Captain Strachan. From Melbourne she was sent to New Caledonia to load nickel ore. She sailed on 29th April, but failed to arrive. Portions of wreckage, however, were washed up on the Chatham Islands, which made it only too certain that she had struck on the rocks and gone down with all hands.

“Aristides”—The Aberdeen White Star Flagship.

In March, 1876, Messrs. Hood launched the beautiful passenger clipper _Aristides_, the largest of all Thompson’s sailing ships. Captain R. Kemball of _Thermopylae_ fame, the commodore of the Aberdeen White Star fleet, was given command of her, and she became the firm’s flagship.

On her maiden voyage she sailed from London on 6th July, and arrived in Port Phillip on 18th September—74 days out (69 days from the land). Leaving Melbourne on 28th November, she arrived in the Thames on 17th February, 81 days out, beating two such well-known clippers as _Loch Maree_ and _Collingwood_, which had sailed on 27th November, by 18 days. The Aberdeen White Star ships invariably made fine maiden voyages. Their captains always left port with the firm intention of breaking the record, and they had every help from their owners, the ships being most carefully loaded with their Plimsoll marks well out of water. Crews also were picked men, and gear, of course, everything of the best.

_Photo by Hall & Co., Sydney._]

_Aristides_ was kept on the Melbourne run until 1889, when she went out to Sydney in 85 days. From this date she was kept in the Sydney trade. She usually had a full passenger list and being perfectly run like all the Aberdeen ships she was a favourite both in Sydney and Melbourne. Captain Kemball retired in 1887, and Captain Spalding had her until the early nineties, then Captain Allan took her over; her last commander was Captain Poppy, who was lost in her.

Her best 24-hour run that I have record of was 320 miles. Her passages, both outward and homeward, were very regular, from 78 to 88 days as a rule, but she never beat the times of her maiden voyage.

When the Aberdeen White Star sold their sailing ships, they refused to part with the _Aristides_, and she remained under their flag till the end. On 28th May, 1903, she sailed from Caleta Buena with nitrate of soda for San Francisco and was posted as missing. H.M. ships _Amphion_ and _Shearwater_ made a search amongst the islands on her route for the missing ship, but no trace of her was ever found.

“Smyrna.”

The _Smyrna_, which was built on fuller lines than most of Thompson’s ships, came to a tragic end, being run into by the steamer _Moto_ on 28th April, 1888, during a thick fog off the Isle of Wight, when outward bound to Sydney, and sank with Captain Taylor and 11 of her crew.

The “Harbinger.”

The _Harbinger_ was built to lower the colours of the wonderful _Torrens_ in the Adelaide trade, being fitted to carry a large number of passengers. Indeed she was the last sailing ship specially built and fitted for carrying passengers. In more ways than one she was a remarkable vessel, and differed in many interesting details from the stock type of Clyde-built iron clipper.

In her rigging and sail plan, she had various fittings which were peculiar to herself.