WRECK OF THE COLONIST

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1933, 1 September 1888, Page 3

WRECK OF THE COLONIST

♦ (PKE PRESS ASSOCIATION.) Wellington, Anguat 31. Great excitement was occasioned m town this morning on receipt of tho news of the wreck of tho achooner Colonist outside the Heads, and quite a gloom was oast over the City when It was lea'.ned that three of the crew of the unfortunate vessel had perished. It appears that the Oolonls*-, a schooner of 43 tons register, owned by E. and T r Bayley, and under command of Captain Bayley (part owner), left Lyttelton with a cargo of prodnoj for J Waitara on Wednesday morning last All went well until the vessel was off Ctpo Campbell, and then heavy southerly weather was experienced, during which the schooner lost her rodder. The cap tain tben endeavored to make for Wellington to repair damage, but Gndlrj^ himself drifting on a lee shore m the neighborhood of Lyell's Bay, the anchor was dropped. This held for some time, but the increasing wind and se» had its effect, and the vessel commenced to drag shorewards. Sail was at once put on the schooner with a view to weathering tho reef, but it wan too late, and the venael gr&daally drifted on to the rocks near the old pilot station. Immediately the vessel Btrack the masts went by the board, and within a few Beconds the hull was torn to pleoes, and nothing was to be Been from the shore but floating wreckage. The Colonist struck the rocks about 11 o'clock this morning, but a couple of hours before this Captain Sinclair, of the Bteamer Tarawera, from Lyttelton, when nearing Wellington Heads, noticed signals of distress flying from the schooner, and he made a praiseworthy effort to render assistance to the disabled vessel, but owing to her close proximity to the shore nothing could be done, and the Tarawera came on to Wellington and reported a wreck. Those on board were- Charles Biyley (master), Ohaa. Burns, A.B. ; a man known as '' Mike," and another whose name is not known, who was working his passage. This last mentioned paraon had been working as a potter In Dunedin, where he had lived for borne yearß psßt with his wife and family. Captain Bayley, when the vessel Btruohr, had made a determined effort to awlm to the shore, but missed a line thrown him by the fishermen on the beach* and was dashed against the rocks. He breathed for a few mlnuteß after being washed ashore. The body has been brought to town. Captain Bayley leaves a wife nnd family, who reside at Waitara. The survivor jumped overboard before tho vesbel struck, and after swimming about 100 yards he clambered on to a rock, from which he was rescued by means of a line passed out to him by the people on shoro. The man was considerably knocked about when he was brought to shore, and there waß a great cut on his temple, but he had not lost consciousness, although somewhat dezad. The other people on board did not care to follow his example by jumping overboard, otherwise they might have saved themflslvea. New Plymouth, August 31. Captain Bayley, half owner of the wrecked OolonUt, was about 45 to 50 years of age. He leaves a wife aod family of four children, who are at Waitara, tbo eldest boy being 15 years As far as can be learned the vessel was uninsured. The vessel was built m Auokland twenty-five years ago. New Plymouth, September I. The Colonist, wreoked at Wellington, is said to have been the schooner which took the refugees from Poverty Bay to Auckland after the Te Kootl massaore In 1868.