HER LOSS FEARED.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 195, 16 August 1907, Page 5

HER LOSS FEARED.

WRECKACE FOUND ON GREAT BARRIER. SUPPOSED WRECK ON MERCURIES.

When on Saturday last information was received in Auckland from the tidewt ier at Marsden Point that a ship's boat, bearing the same Constance Craig had been washed ashore at Taiharuru, near Marsden Point, it was feared that some disaster had happened to this well-known inter* colonial trader.

There was room for hope, however, that the boat might have been washed overboard in a heavy sea, and that the barque herself had survived the storm.

The worst fears, however, would unfortunately appear to be realised, for the Collector of Customs at Auckland, Mr. John Mills, to-day received the following letter, dated August 14, (Wednesday last), from Mr. T. M. Paddison, postmaster at Awanga, Great Barrier:—

"I wish to inform you I have picked up several pieces of wreck on south-east side Great Barrier.

"Some pieces of timber, broken, with large letters, when put together, was Margareta on one side, on reverse side Constance Craig. "Also one leg of a table and piece of end of table, and a chock for holding boat on deck. "One 14ft paddle, and sundry other bite of timber, also a piece of skylight. "I do not know if anything serious has happened, but thought it advisable to let you know."

Captain Fleming, Superintendent of Mercantile Marine in Auckland, is of opinion that the wreckage has drifted over to the Great Barrier from the Mercury Islands, as the set of the winds and ourrents would probably carry wreckage in that direction.

Mr. E. J. Chrisp, of Gisborne, one of the owners of the vessel, is at present in Auckland, and is endeavouring to charter a steamer to search the Mercuries, in the hope of finding some of the officers and crew alive oa one or other of the islands of the group.

The Collector of Customs, Mr. John Mills, desires masters of vessels trading on the coast outside the Coromandel to keep a look-out for wreckage, boats, or any traces of survivors of the supposed wreck.

— * * .. «. -lUjjpußCU WICU— The Northern Company's steamer Chelmsford arrived last night from the Great Barrier, but when questioned this morning, none of her officers knew anything about the finding of the wreckage. Mr. Paddison was himself on the Chelmsford yesterday, but made no mention whatever of the stranded flotsam.

Since the Constance Craig left Gisborne a month ago last Tuesday the weather has been stormy on the coast, and several small boats have met with misfortune, notably the scow Surprise, which went down at Slipper Island with all hands but one. This was on July 20th last, and seven days after that date a Press telegram was received from Hokianga stating that the Constance Craig was in sight that day ten miles to leeward. A gale was blowing from the south-east and the vessel was not in sight the next dayj nor has she made an appearance at the northern port since.

On Saturday last the Collector of Customs (Mr. J. Mills), received a telegram from the coast waiter at Marsden Point, stating that a ship's boat had come on shore at Taiharuru, with the name Constance Craig painted on the ptern. As the prevailing winds were easterly for a week or so before that it is considered unlikely that the vessel would have come round to this side of the island, and as a great quantity of wreckage has been found on this coast it is considered in shipping circles that the boat sighted off Hokianga was not the Constance Craig.