WRECK of the S.S. STAR or the SOUTH.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 15, Issue 800, 30 June 1870, Page 2

WRECK of the S.S. STAR or the SOUTH.

OFFICIAL INVESTIGATIONS. Tn?i preliminary official inquiry into the wreck of the s.s. Star of the South was held on Monday last, June 27, at 3 p.m., at the Custom-house, before J. M. Tabuteau, Esq , Collector of Customs; and the magisterial investigation was held on the following day at 10 a.m. in the Court-house, before S. Rochfort, Esq, R.M. ; J. Fairchilcl, (commander of the Government p.s. Luna), Nautical Assessor ; and J. M. Tabuteau, Esq. The evidence of the, principal witnesses at the two investigations having been almost word for word the same, it is unnecessary to fully report the preliminary inquiry. The following was the evidence adduced at the magisterial investigation : William Bendall, master of the Star of the South, being duly sworn, deposed : The Star was a screw steamer, three-masted-schooner-rigged, and used to ply between Auckland and Napier ; her port of registry was Dunecjin, and her registered tonnage 161 67. I believe she was insured—partly in the New Zealand Insurance Company, and partly in an Australian office. She left Auckland for Napier via Mahia at 1 p.m. on the 21st June, and had strong westerly winds with cloudy weather and rain during the first part of the voyage. She arrived off Kinikini, Mahia Peninsula, at 5.30 a.m. on the 23rd ; landed 20 f ons empty casks, and received on board 16 or 17 tuns oil. Left at 1.30 p.m. the same day, and went to Te Hoe, a whaling station on the peninsala, where we took in 25 casks oil. Loft at 4 p.m., / ' i

and proceeded to Mahia, where she any ehored at 4.30 pm., half- a- mile due west t of the Bluff, and took on board 25 casks of t tallow and two boatloads of sheepskins, i At 7.30 p.m. we left for Napier direct, and < shaped a course S-W. i W., which was ' supposed to bring the vessel to the Napier t Bluff. I allowed for an average speed of i 7£ knots, and expected to arrive off the 1 Napier Bluff at from 1.30 to 2 a.m. I I went below some time after we started, and i came on deck again about 9.45 pni. I i went aft to the binnacle and saw the ship : was heading S.W. f W.—in facS, nearly S.W. by W. I asked Tyson, the man at the wheel, what course he was steering, and he said S.W. i W-, which had been : .given him by the man he relieved at eight o'clock. Either he or the man he relieved had made a mistake, for be was steering rather more than half-a-point to westward : of her proper course. In order to correct < this, I ordered him to steer the vessel S.W., and to keep it good. I could then see the coast, the weather being beautifully clear and starlight. I went forward and saw the chief mate on the bridge, and told him the course was S.W-, and to see that it was made good. I als:> told him to instruct the second mate to call me at 1 o'clock, or sooner if there was any change in the weather. I then went below and turned in, having been up since 2 a.m. I was called by the second mate about 1 o'clock, and dressed myself and went on deck. I saw no land to the S.E. I saw land all round to the westward, and high .land, which I took to be the Ahunri Bluff, right ahead. I went to the compass to see its bearings, and found it bore S.W. The night was still calm and starlight, but there was a haze over the laud. I also took the bearings of high land lying N.N.W. i W., which I took for the high land north of the Old Man's Bluff. These bearings quite agreed with what I expected to liud and I concluded that I was fully six miles ME. of the Ahuriri Bluff, east of the Pania rock, and that I had about 9 miles to run. Had this been her position the course she was steering—S. W.- -would have been the correct one. As the bearings corresponded with what I expected to find, I did not feel any doubt whatever as to the position of the vessel, and considering that she had still 8 or 9 miles to run, I did not think it necessary to ease speed: moreover L wanted to get into the Iron Pot at 2 a.m.' as soon as the moon rose. On going forward I met Mr Walker, a passenger, on the break of the poop, and walked up and down the deck a few minutes in conversation wi'h him. I suddenly heard surf on our starboard bow. I sung out to the man at the wheel—" Hard a-starboard," and the order was at once obeyed. I could then see the white surf, but not the beach, and saw that she could-not come round clear with the speed on her. I at once tele graphed to the engineer, " Stop her," and "Full speed astern." The engines had begun to go astern, and had slightly checked iier headway, when she took the beach The engines had perhaps been reversed about a minute and a half, but I could not judge the time —it might been only half-a-minute. I had not hove the lead, I bad felt so confident of the ships position. I found she was on a sandy beach, and kept the engines working to get her off until the sea had slewed her broadside ou to the beach. When she struck I had all hands at once called, and ordered a kedge and warp to be got ready, and as soon as I found it safe to lower a boat I did so, and ran out the kedge from the port quarter. I bad the warp drawn taut, but it was of no use, for wbile the kedge was being run out the bottom of the vessel rose and carried away the weather main rigging, the straining of the ship having raised the rnasl about six inches through the deck. I ordered the mate to take off the main hatches, and go below to see if there was any water in the hold. He reported that there was no water, but that the iron stanchions of the hold were all bcmt. She was then nearly dry amidships on the starboard side, and I did not try any mare to heave her off; the tide was ebbing, and I did not know whether she would have floated if I had got her off. I did not know what beach we were on, and therefore ordered the second mate to take the boat ashore and find out where we were. He came back soon after, and reported that we were near the slaughter-house on the Meanee beach. In the meantime the moon had risen, and I had discovered our position through seeing Kidnapper Qape (which must hav© been obscured before) to the E.S.E. I then sent the second mate to town to inform the agents of the casualty, and to obtain agsistauQe. I got readv to. lsnd ca>'g<\

ind to save as much as possible. Shortly ifter daylight laborers and carts arrived ind began to land the cargo ; the Harbornaster also came with a boat's crew. The jargo haying been discharged, I saw it jpould be useless to attempt to get the vessel off, as the tide was flowing into the nain hold, and, the engine room bulkhead laving been burst in from the straining of ;he vessel, the tide was also in the ongiuoroom. I then had the vessel stripped to save all 1 could, and called a survey. The ship was condemned, and sold for the benefit of whom it might concern. Joseph Hughes, deposed: I was chief mate of the Star of the South. As it was aiy watch below, I was not on deck at the time of the accident. When I was relieved at midnight I gave orders to the second mate to call the captain ac 1 a.m. or sooner if the weather should change. The japtain had told me the course was S.W., to be made good, and that I was to look aut for the land. I gave these instructions to the second mate. At midnight I cou;d see land to the westward; there was a slight haze over the land. I went to bed at 12 o'clock, and knew no more till I heard the vessel grinding Q.n the sand, and the second mate came and called me. I went on depk and heard the captain order a keJge and warp to be run out. I got them reapy, and a boat was lowered, and manned by the mate and four men, and the kedge run out directly. The captain ordered me to take off the hatches, and see if there was any water in tho hold. I did. so, and could see no water, but found that some of the iron stanchions had given way —one was broken and two bent. The cargo was all got out in good order. John Collins deposed: I was second engineer on board the Star of the South. I remember the night of the 23rd. I was on the watch from midnight to 6 a.m. on the 24th. About 1.25 or 1.30 a.m., the telegraph bell rung "Stop her," and immediately after, " Full speed astern." I stopped and reversed the engines instantly, and the same moment felt a shock, as if the vessel had struck. We had been going at full speed and the engines worked more freely than usual. I account for this by the superior quality of the coal, and by the weather being calm and the water smooth. I did not fire up more than usual, azid the pressure was from 13 to 13£ lbs.

Kenneth Nasrnyth deposed : I was chief* engineer on board the Star for with the exception of ten months, when I occupied the same position on board the kesra. Wa left Jlahia for Napier on the evening of the 23rd, about 7.30. The engine went better than ix ual during my watch; which I attribute principally to the fact of our having recently fitted a new propeller j beside which our fires were clea:!, and our coal good. I went to bed, shortly before midnight, instructing the second engineer to call me when the Napier Bluff came in sij;ht. I turned out on hearing the telegraph strike " Full speed astern,' and about a minute and a half alter, while dressing myself, I felt the vessel take the ground. On going on, deck I fancied we were aground at the entrance of Iron Pot. I kept steam on ail day, in accordance with the captain's, orders, to be ready with assistance if any further attempts were made to get her off. Before flood tide I observed that the ship's bottom had given way, and that she was making a great deal of water in the main hold and engine-room.

The inquiry was then adjourned to Friday the Ist July at 10 a.m. * The following additional evidence was. taken at the preliminary inquiry on Monday :< — John Northe deposed : I was second mate and carpenter on board the Star. I called the captain at 1 o'clock, and about ten minutes afterwards I savv him on tha bridge. I was then on the top gallant forecastle, looking out ahead. The captain went aft to the man at the wheel, and I saw him talking to Mr Walker, a passenger, on the poop. 1 heard the captain say he saw breakers; and he ordered the helm. hard a-atarboard and had the engine stopped and reversed. The engine had not been reversed a minute when the ship took the beach, Efforts vvera at once made to get her off, by running out a kedge. We could not got the boat alongside again* and the captain ordered the boat to land, and find where we were, which we did. He then sent me to the town to get assistance from, the agents.

William Tyson, able seaman, deposed : I was at the wheel from 8 to 10 p.m., ami, the course given ine by the man I relieve^

was S.W. £W. I kept her at that till the captain came aft, about 9.30, when he told me to keep the vessel S.W., and make it good, as she was heading S.W. |W\, or nearly so. She yawed a little, bub always to westward of her course, Anthon Christiansen, A. 8., deposed : I was at the wheel about ten minutes previous to the accident. I was steering S.W. according to instructions, and keeping it good. About 1.30 a.m. the captain called to me to put the helm hard a-sfcar-board, which I immediately did. The vessel paid off to the southward ; she answered her helm pretty quickly. The engines were reversed, and she almost immediately went on the beach. G-. Walker deposed ; I was a passenger from Mahia to Napier in the Star. Not boing a good sailor, I remained on deck all the night. I can corroborate the evidence of the previous witnesses concerning the accident. About midnight i. the second mate remarked to me that the ves.sel was slipping through the water faster than usual. The whole affair occurred in something like a minute and a half after the captain's remark to me that lu saw breakers. I have come into Napier in the Star at night several times before with Captain Bendail, and I did not suspect that; the vessel was out of her course on the night of the accident.