RAISING OF THE EURYDICE.

Kumara Times, Issue 618, 20 September 1878, Page 3

RAISING OF THE EURYDICE.

Attempts to raise Her Majesty’s ship Eurydice, lying in the English Channel on the southern extremity of the Isle of Wight,, have at,length eventuated in a successful scheme. She was lying in 60ft. of water, and embedded in lift, of srad,~ in which she was gradually settling, 4bwn. The alterations on the last plan have been few and simple. Wire hawsers were substituted for two chains, so that the arrangements were in the following manner;—The stems of the Wave and the Swan, and two smaller which lay across the Eurydice bUamwise, pointed towards Culver cliff somewhat, while the larger vessels, the Pearl and Rinaldo, stood alongside

fPor remainder see last page.]

them on the outside, pointing in the opposite direction. The two smaller vessels were each attached to the wreck by two toggles, the Rinaldo by two toggles and two jewel ropes, and the Pearl by four jewel ropes, all crossed in such a manner as to give the utmost resisting power. The wire hawsers used upon the Wave and the Swan were both of Tin. in diameter, while on the Rinaldo and the Pearl there were two of Tin. and two of Sin, Under the superintendence of some of the Portsmouth naval authorities, every preliminary arrangement was made for carrying out the scheme, some 400 or 500 men having been told off from H.M.S. Duke of Wellington, the Asia, and the Excellent, and operations were resumed at 1 o’clock on Tuesday morning. When the tide was about flood the whole of the vessels were pumped into until they were sunk to the depth required ; 924 tons of water were pumped into the Pearl until, with a depth in her hold of 10ft., she was sunk 6ft. Sin. The Rinaldo was made to hold 600 tons, with an internal | depth of 9ft,, and external 5 ft.; while j the Wave and the Swan were immersed 3ft. Sin., by means of 100 tons of water in each. When the wreck was made taut with these boats, and the water Was pumped in them, the amount they i had been sunk, added to the amount of j the rise of tide, gave a greater lift than ! the depth of the hole. When the tide I had ebbed, divers were sent dpwn to | see that everything was secure; they I reported most favourably, and, as soon as the tide began again to flow, steam fire-engines and steam tugs were set to pump out the water in the gunboats, the body of water in them varying from 190 to 224 tons. The only fear now was as to whether such a strain would or would , not pull the Eurydice to pieces, but as ! the buoyancy in consequence of the ! pumps pumping out' the boats, and the tide increased, the wreck came up gradually. It was intended to have employed the turret-ship Thunderer as a tug as soon as the Eurydice was suspended in the water, so as to have towed her with the gunboats attached to shallower water. She steamed round about waiting for her opportunity, but in doing so she swept across the tide and lost her cables and gear. This necessitated some delay, inasmuch as it took up valuable time creeping for the hawsers. One was speedily recovered, but it required the work of a diver to find the other. The second, however, was to have been dispensed with, and a rope hawser substituted, but, just as the Thunderer was steaming towards the scene of the operations, | her capstan fell overboard, carrying j with it the line. In order to ascertain, 1 therefore, if the wreck was freed it was decided to haul in the hausers, so as to draw the craft with the flow of the tide, slackening those that had i kept them stationary. This experiment proved in every way successful, and .the Eurydice was lifted out ol the hole, conveyed some 150 or 180 ft. in the water, and deposited on a hard bottom; Operations will now go on daily until the vessel is docked.