SHIPPING.

Globe, Volume III, Issue 286, 12 May 1875, Page 2

SHIPPING.

PORT OF LYTTELTON. ARRIVED. May 12—Phrebe, s.s., 416 tons, Worsp, from Northern Ports. G. Mackay, agent. Passengers—saloon: Mr and Mrs Frazer, and family (4), Mr and Mrs Reid, and family (5), Mr and Mrs Langdon, Mr and Mrs Cameron, Mr and Mrs Morshead, Mesdames Wallace, Rail, Misses Jones, Rail, Everett, L™gdown, Bowles, Messrs Everett, Bailer, Buller (2), Berghoff, and Kohn. SteerageMr and Mrs Middleton, Mr and Mrs Fitzjames, Messrs Kirkin, Duncan, Berrymau ; and 27 for South. CLEARED. May 12—Phcebe, s.s., 416 tons, Worsp, for Dunedin. SAILED. May 12-Craig Ellachie, Joss, for Newcastle. May 12—Sarah and Mary, ketch, 40 tons, Grubb, for Charleston. May 12—Janet Gray, schooner, for Wanganui. The Lady Jocelyn parted her cable early this morning, through friction at the hawse pipe. She was brought up at once by the other anchor, and is now riding safely, the sea having abated. The s.s. Phcebe arrived in harbor from Northern ports at 11.30 a.m. to-day. She sails South this evening. TESTE KDAYS SIIIVPING. May 11—9 a.m.: Wind N.E., fresh breeze; weather, rainy. Barometer, 29-B.S. Thermometer, 56 High water—Morning, 9.18 ; afternoon, 9.46. There was no work done on the wharf yesterday owing to the continued wet. IM TORTS. Ter Julia Pryce—2B,7ooft timber. ConsigneesMeyers Bros. The schooner Julia Pryce, Captain Queen, arrived In harbor on Monday, May 10th, at noon. The captain reports that he left the Thames on Saturday, April lVth, with moderate N.E. winds winch lasted for seven days; from thence light N.W. winds. Put into Talogo Bay on Sunday. May2ud, with a strong southerly gale; left again on May 6th, with light N.E. winds. Made Godley Heads at 11 a.m. on Monday, aud arrived as above. Three more passengers, Mr and Mrs F. Wilcox and child, have taken advantage of the delay of the Lady Jocelyn to proceed in her to England. It is to be hoped that if there arc any more passengers wavering they will go on board at once, as the N.L. eale may change any time, and this noble ship leave our shores. It will be some time before another ship with the same accommodation leaves this port, and we advise all those who are at all afraid of the sea and its sickening effect to go in this floating castle if they possibly can. THE YACHT FLEETWING. The Lyttelton Yachting Club some time ago determined to purchase an Auckland yacht.and a vessel named the Fleetwing, celebrated both for her speed and sea-going qualities at theWaitemata,was chosen. Mr P. Cunningham materially assisted the club in purchasing the yacht, and on May Ist she left the Auckland Harbor, and proceeded down the Last Coast. Crossing the Bay of Plenty a S. VV. gale and heavy sea was experienced, and the vessel anchored in the Kawa Kawa Roads on the 3rd. the wind shifting to south shortly afterwards. During the 4th the wind still continued southerly, but on the sth a light northerly air sprang up, and she tripped her anchor, and got away as far as Portland Island, when the wind freshened to a gale, with a tremendous sea running. The wind suddenly fell, and for four hours there was a calm, but the yacht was in a heavy sea, and this was four miles east of Castle Point. From thence to Cape Palisser had heavy sea and light northerly wind, but when off that headland was becalmed for twenty-iour hours. Thence to Port Lyttelton, had E.N.E. with high sea and dark gloomy foggy weather. Only two men came down with the yacht, Mr A. G. Armstrong being in command. He speaks most highly of the vessel; to quote his own words, he says.—"l cannot speak too highly of the sea-going capacity of the yacht." He must, thinking of the weather we have lately experienced, have had ample opportunities of judging of the vess-d, which he says can do her ten knots, and she certainly seems a tight, fast, weatherly, little craft. Her measurement is about ten tons, and we hope she will reward her enterprising purchasers by winning many a race in these waters. The men must have had rather hard times of it, as they have been wet for many days, aud no doubt were glad to greet the friendly shelter of the breakwater yesterday morning. WRECKS OF THE BARQUE CYRENE AND THE BRIG PUINCESS ALICE. (From the "Timaru Herald," May 10th.) After an immunity from shipping disasters on this part of the coast for over twenty months, we have again, we regret to say, to chronicle the deaths of two more fine vessels here—the barque Cyrene and the brig Princess Alice. The catastrophes occurred yesterday morning, the weather then and during the previous night being fully as bad as on the memorable 27th of August, 1873. when the brig Fairy Queen, the three masted Schooner Duke of Edinburgh (since Euphrosyne), and the ketch Wanderer, came ashore here. The weather looked threatening on Friday morning last, and at about 2 p.m. of that day. a fresh north-east wind sprang up and continued till about 8 p.m., when a drizzling rain set in. The gale prevailed with variable force till 3 a.m. on Saturday, when the wind freshened, rain at the time falling heavily. The prospects of a dirty spell of weather being apparent, Captain Mills, the Harbor-master, ordered the vessels in the roadstead, ten in number, to stand oil, signalling by a gun and by the other notices on the flagstaff. At this time he had the life-boat crew in readiness in case of any accident. Immediately after the signal the eight fore-and-aft rigged vessels Stood off ouc after another, the last getting away at a little before ten o'clock. These vessclß comprised the brigantine Kate Brain, the schooners Wanganui, Janet Ramsay, Crest of the Wave, Owake, and Zior, theketchElizaMcPhee, and the cutter Nautilus. The barque Cyrene and the brig Princess Alice aid not attempt to start, as it was impracticable for square rigged vessels such as they were, to work out while the wind came from the direction that it did, and while such a heavy sea was running. The harbormaster signalled to these two vessels to be prepared as they probably would require all their tackle to hold them. During the early part of the morning the steamer Maori arrived from Lyttelton, but seeing that there was no chance of communication, she left for Dunedin after remaining here about three hours. The weather kept squally all Saturday, the wind keeping in the east, and the sea getting more lumpy as the day wore on. The life-boat crew were again ordered to be in readiness for the night, and Mr Dale's express was engaged to convey the rocket apparatus if it were needed. Both vessels rode well until a little after ll p.m, when a blue light was observed in the direction in which the Cyrene was lying, the night being so dark that the vessels could not be discerned. It was seen that the vessel was drifting on towards the shore, and the rocket apparatus was then conveyed to the beach. By this time a considerable number of people had assembled on the beach, many of whom remained there the greater part of the night. From the beach the outline of the vessel could be easily distinfuished, she having come in nearly half a mile, he Cyrene did not drag for the rest of the night, ! but just about day - break the brig Princess Alice was observed to have parted, and a bon-fire was immediately lighted on the beach to indicate the best place to beach her. She came ashore on the reef on which the breakwater was built, at the end of Strathallan street, and the rocket was at once thrown over, the first having the desired effect. Shortly after she was beached the crew came ashore by the aid of the life saving apparatus. The Cyrene continued to hold till nearly ten o'clock yesterday morning, when she finally drifted to the reef just to the north of the George street service. The rocket was also fired successfully over this vessel, but as there was comparatively speaking a calm piece of water between her and the snore (the vessel breaking the force of the waves), the people on board, among whom was the captain's wife, were conveyed ashore in the whaleboat of the Timaru Landing and Shipping Company, by the life-boat crew. We will now proceed to give the facts furnished by the officers in charge of each of the vessels, which comprise many particulars that could not be observed from the shore. When the signal to stand to sea was given on Saturday morning the Cyrene, being square-rigged, imfloot; being WW incapable of beating

out. She was riding at this lime with ninety fathoms of chain. Captain Glayburn was prevented from giving greater length of chain, or letting so a second anchor, in consequence of the Princess Alice being' so close astern. The gale increased in violence during the day, and between 11 and 12 p.m the vessel began to drive, the captain believing that the slock of the anchor had carried away. She drove towards the shore past the Princess Alice, almost touching her, and when well clear of her the second anchor of the barque was let go and the cable veered out to 80 fathoms. She rode securely throughout the night till about nine o'clock yesterday morning, when she bumped on the rooks to the south side of the Timaru Landing and Shipping Company's Service, the sea being at about hall'-ebb. A heavy roller caused her to bump again heavily, and part her chain. She then drove on to the rocks to the north side of the channel. A rocket was immediately fired across her from the shore, but the life-saving apparatus was not used, as it was practicable to us'' a boat between the vessel and the shore. The people taken off the barque were Captain Clayburn, Mrs Clayburn, two mates, eightable seamen, and the cook. The captain says that besides a north-east sea there was a heavy southeast swell all night, making a nasty cross-sea. The strength of the gale and force of the waves were felt most severely at midnight, but during the whole night the vessel was shipping seas. He feels pretty confident that had she not bumped she would have held on.and ridden out the gale. With' reference to the Princess Alice, Captain Brownell being ashore on business in connection with the vessel, the mate was in charge. The inate, Mr McDcarmoid, after the signal was gh'en on Saturday morning by the Harbor-master prepared to go to sea. The wind, however, was so contrary, the sea so heavy, and the vessel so light, that he did not consider it safe to attempt to beat out. He therefore secured the cables with extra coir springs, hoping to ride out the storm. The gale increased during the day, and at 10 p.m. the seas were occasionally flooding the deck. At 11.30 p.m. the mate heard the captain of the Cyrene requesting him to slip, as his cable had parted. Scarcely a moment had elapsed before the barque was seen drifting straight for the brig. Fortunately, however, a roller caused the brig to swerve and avoid a collision, the barque gliding quickly by towards the shore, about three feet away from the brig. At about 2.30 am. on Sunday, a heavy sea struck the brig on the starboard bow, and caused the stout port cable to part at fifteen fathoms outside the hawse pipe. The trysail and jib were then set, and the starboard anchor got ready. After the vessel had cleared the barque Cyrene, the starboard anchor was let go, about half a mile off the Government Landing Service. The fifteen fathoms of cable left on the windlass when the vessel parted, were as soon as possible shackled to the starboard cable, making ninety fathoms that she was riding by. The vessel labored heavily till 6 a.m. when the cable parted at the hawse pipe. Some sails were set and an endeavor made to get an offing, but this was lound to be impossible, as the vessel had drifted in the breakers. The mate, seeing a light on shore, beached her, the brig coming en the reef opposite Strathallan street, and the sea making a clean breach over her. The crew, consisting of eleven men, were soon afterwards taken ashore in the life-saving apparatus, the mate coming last after having sent off the chronometer and the logbook.

During yesterday morning 1 a large hawser was fixed from the Cyrene's head to the ways of the Timaru Landing and Shipping Company, and as the tide rose during the day the barque drifted ofl the reef on to the shingly beach just to the north of George street. It was seen that her bottom was stove in considerably. S ion after the Princess Alice came ashore, her back was broken and her starboard bilge stove in. At about eleven o'clock yesterday the captain, mate, and sailors went aboard,;made all sails fast, and secured the private effects of the crew. Mr Henry Green, the agent for the company in which the vessel was insured, caused a number of the sails and some of the other gear to be landed at low tide. It was also under his direction that the Cyrene was secured by the hawser. The gale continued throughout yesterday and last night, accompanied as before by a nasty drizzle, and at high tide last evening tho vessels sustained further severe injuries by bumping. The Cyrene was built in 1865 at Halifax, Nova Scotia, is therefore ten years old. She was a very smart vessel, and had been lately overhauled and painted. Her owners are Captain ltichard Wood and Mr C. VV. Turner, of Christchurch. Her tonnage is 527. She arrived at this port on the 2lst o" April, with 18,000 railway sleepers from San Francisco. Of these, 9000 sleepers had been landed when the vessel was stranded. She is insured in the New Zealand Insurance Company for about £4OCO.

The Princess Alice, 268 tons, is thirteen years old, havinsrbeenbuiJtinDurham,England, 1862. Sheisinsured for about£2ooo in the same ofllce as the Cyrene is, and belongs to the same owners as that vessel does. She arrived here on the 13th of April with a cargo of 380 tons of coals from Newcastle, N.S.W., for her agents, Messrs Jackson and Gibson, who are also the agents for the Cyrene. At the time of the wreck all the coals were out of her but forty tons, and she had on board 860 bags of wheat belonging to Messrs P. Cunningham and Co. The wheat, which was part of a cargo the vessel was to convey to Sydney, is insured. During the day, although the weather was very wet and boisterous, a considerable number of people visited the scene of the wrecks.