WHEN N.Z. TRIP TOOK 152 DAYS.

Hokitika Guardian, 8 October 1927, Page 4

WHEN N.Z. TRIP TOOK 152 DAYS.

BELFA STM AX ’ S LETTER. VOYAGE IX LITTLE AA'AIPARA. ONE OF QUEICX’S ISLAND’S EARLIEST. (Belfast Telegraph of August Ljl.li). There is contained in a letter received a few years ago by the late .Air J. K. Mansfield, of Ballyhoime, Irom a relative. .Air F. AA'. Alansfield (since deceased), an interesting and informative account. of the voyage made in the early sixties to Lyttelton. New Zealand from Belfast by a small screw steamer. AA'aipara. which was of under -IS tons net register, built by .Messrs Harland and AA'ollf shortly after the Queen’s Island shipbuilding works of Robert Hickson and Co. were acquired in 185!). If is of interest to note that in the first three years of the firm's existence (1850-02) Messrs Harland and AA'ollf built thirteen vessels of 16,102 gross tonnage. In the next five years (186207) the total number of vessels built laid increased to 38 (the AA'aipara being the 20th of that number), while the aggregate gross: tonnage was 32.805

tons. The writer named. Air F. AA’. Alan, field, says:— “1 was only a kiddie of five years when we left Belfast in. Xovcnibe l ', 1803, and therefore at that time had only the happy memory of a child, which, as you will probably confirm, has no faculty for storing up the hard disciplining tilings of that period. Of the voyage and its incidents I have consequently a very hazy recollection I personally, but I have had access to the records in our Parliamentary Library and extracted the fallowing from the ‘Lyttelton Times’ of 12th .May. ■IBO4. ‘May I]th, 1864.—Arrived at Port Lyttelton AA'aipara Capt. Tlorthwick, from Belfast. ‘The s.s. AA'aipara, which arrived at Lyttelton yesterday from Belfast after a,' passage of 152 days, is 4S tons burden, and is commanded by Captain Rnrthwick. who reports having experienced light south-west trade' winds to the Cape, hut had weather alter passing the Cape. ‘The AA’aipara made the land mi Saturday, and passed through Cook’s Straits under steam. She is an excellent sea boat and is the first steamer for tho Salt '.Abater Creek and l\ainpnri Steam Navigation Company. The following is a list cf her passengers: Mrs Mansfield and four children and Mrs Reclpath.’ ROOT! FOR FFAY BAGS OF COAL Regarding the reference “under steam’’ (Mr Mansfield continues) it seems singular to mention this circumstance, hut the fact is we did not come out under steam for the simple reason we had only room L: carry pro. visions and water for passengers a'Ud crow, including the engineers—about. 48 tons in all, and 1 suppose a. few bags of coal to enable us to steam out of the doldrums and also into Port Lyttelton when wo reached Now Zealand. Her draught, remember, was only 7ft fiin, and it is a fact that the sailor had no occasion to let go the handle of Hie bucket when lie stooped over the bulwarks to get. r, bucket of water In swill- clown the deck. “I remember the net as ion of our sailing under steam in the Trnuics - lor on sighting a big hast Tndiamnn wo steamed up to her (I suppose far the purpose of exchanging latitude and longitude), and I have a distinct recollection of being vorv frightened of the size of the ship which towered above us .so high that she seemed as though she might roll over and kill the lot of us. In my feat T stooped behind our false bulwarks, and in my sale hiding plaee pooped through a chink ill the boards and all f remember was seeing a negro (very black) with his arms akimbo, nhd someone was holding up a blackboard with the latitude and longitude chalked upon it. “There was no verbal e niinunication between the ship although we were practically alongside, so 1 presume now that the ship must have heein of some other than English nationality—or must have thought ns a suspicious-looking craft—locality and other circumstances considered.

“Another incident, on the voyage at that- time was the catching of a huge shark, which my mother espied just' in time to save one of the engineers front going over the side to dive after a pannikin or tinplate which we children would throw overboard at his request. On this occasion, however. he postponed his dip until he caught the shark, which lie did by hho tfiill, if you please, by skilfully dangling a piece of pork in front of a bowline noose through which the shark's enormous tail could not pass, ft is recorded that we had fresjji steaks of fish from off the said tail for several meals, of which T remember nothing; but F have often heard mother refer to the much appreciated fresh fish after the everlasting salt ‘junk’ and how she had given a silver coin to fm>il with the fish as a test for poisonous matter. The coin coming out as bright and clean as it went in. the cook pronounced the fish good and wholesome.

“The Maoris are not quite so fastidious as the Europeans, for they catch and dry the shark for food at. certain seasons of the year, when they \isit the const for that purpose. RUSH TO GOLD DIGGINGS.

“But to return to flic* AA'aipara—the little boat had a wonderfully successful career, and earned much money for her owners. She was recognised as such an excellent sea boat that she was secured liy the shipping interests of the other side of the island from Kaiapari to become a tender on the Hokitika Bar. on the west const of the South Island, a very inhospitable and rough const. In the early days Hokitika was a very important town, because of the gold diggings which attracted thousands from Australia and other places. The M’Meeknn and Blackwood mail steamers made Hokitika, their terminus and the little AA'aipara. I am told, (barged LI per head to land passengers and their belongings. It was a. not uncommon occurrence to land 250 passengers irom one ship. “I have spoken to quite a number who have boon over the Hokitika Bar in her. The collector of Customs there for many years, who had been out in her hundreds of times, fold me she was a wonderful sen boat, find being twin screw, was very easy to handle He had been aboard her on a particularly rough trip when he has known the captain to bout ship marvellously quickly to meet a particularly heavy “roller” coming in. This lie was able to do because the steamer was twin screw. I think she was built by Harland and AA'ollf, of Belfast. in the very early days o! that firm T fancy she must have been one of the very first steamers built by them for the New Zealand trade. They have built a good many for the same trade, hut I doubt if any ol them exceeded the very high standard of those early days of ■ the linn.

“Shortly before retiring from the Civil Service 1 had a visit from an old surveyor who mentioned incidentally that in the. days of his cadetship he had been employed on a government survey party laying nut a township in Martins Bay, AA’est Coast, in the early seventies for a period o! twelve months, and the AA’aipara used to bring their mails and supplies every month. AA hen I told him of my connection with the vessel lie was deeply interested and asked me if 1 would like to look at a picture of Hie Bay. showing tile little steamer snugly anchored close inshore, opposite the Survey Camp. A few weeks later, to inv surprise lie brought me a copy ol the picture to keep. \ had it framed and to me it is Ike most interesting picture in the house. THE EX 15 OF IT ALL.

“But to return to the records of the vessel, during her thirty years tender work on the Hokitika Bar she was wrecked, or rather stranded on the shore several times hut always successfully relaunched, until in January, 1898, she struck on a sand hank on the Okarito Bar. where she became waterlogged and an obstruction to navigation, ’i he owners evidently did not think her old hull was worth saving, and so abandoned her. She was evidently very strongly built, for she. withstood the weiir-iind-t.ear of the sen. for over eighteen months, when the Government instructed the Marine Department to take steps to ‘remove the obstruction from the fairway, and on 22nd October, 1900, according to the records of (he Department. the little AA'aipara was blown up. The records also showed a. full report of

the stranding, or rather the inquiry as to the cause. There were pages of it. The Court cleared the captain and blamed no one for the disaster.”

[N.B.—Regarding the statement that the AA’aipara had twin-screws, it would seem probable, if this were the case, that she had been fitted with these during her career in New Zealand waters, as the double screw system of propulsion did not come into general use until the late eighties; and she certainly had a single screw when leaving Belfast. The “Encyclopaedia Britanniea” states: “Every decade has seen the ships of its predecessor becoming obsolete. Thus, to speak roughly, the ’fifties saw the iron screw replacing the wooden paddle steamer: the later ’sixties brought the compound engine, which effected so great an economy in fuel that ) steamship, previously used for the conveyance of mails and passengers, began to compete with the sailing vessel in the" carriage of cargo for long voyages; the ’seventies brought better accommodation for the passenger, with the midship saloon, improved

state-rooms, and covered access to smoke-rooms and ladies' cabins; the early ’eighties saw steel replacing iron as the material for shipbuilding, and before the (lose of that decade (the late ’eighties) the introduction of the i win-screw rendered breakdowns it sea more remote than they had previously been, at the same time giving increased safety in another direction, from the fact that the duplication of machinery facilitated further subdivision of hulls. The introduction of boat, decks gave more shelter to the promenades of the passengers and removed the navigators from the distractions of the social side.] BUILDERS’ OFFiICT.A.I STATEMENT

As the result of a communication with Messrs Harland and AA’ollf, Ltd.. Mr Charles Payne, 0.8. E., D.L-, kindly informs the ‘Telegraph.” : “According to our ro(ords, a singlescrew steamer called the AAaipaia vas he,ill hv the firm in 1804, lor the Salt. Water Creek and Kaipnrai Coasting Steam Navigation Co. Harland and AVolff’s building number was “20r,”. and the dimensions of the ship were as follows :—Length. 80 lect : .breadth. 10 feet; depth. 7 fcet;_gims tonnage. 00.09; net tonnage. 4/..W.