THE GREAT EASTERN.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XII, Issue 739, 7 December 1859, Page 5

THE GREAT EASTERN.

DEtARTUJRE AND FRIGHTFUL EXPLOSION OK BOARD. ,

(From the ' Home News,' September 19.)

The great ship at length, on the 7th September, moved from her station at Deptford and left the Thames for Portland.; Early in the morning all hands were astir, making preparations. A number of additional passengers and a crowd of assistant pilots also came on board. Half : a-do'zen tugs were brought up and fastened to the huge vessel, four being lashed alongside and the remaining two attached by long hawsers to her bows. The whole of the arrangements were completed soon after 7 o'clock. _ The time of high water was ten minutes before 10; but it was thought that in the event of the ship's touching ground the" rising tide would v be of material assistance. At half past 7 Mr. Atkinson gave the word, " Let slip the moorings." These moorings consisted of three huge chains passing through hawse-holes at the head, and a similar number passing through hawse-holes at the stern of the vessel; all six being made fast to the " bits" inside. When, therefore, the chains were cast off, their weight caused them to quit the ship with surprising velocity, and to emit not so much a shower of sparks as a perfect blaze of flame, accompanied by a roar that must have been heard almost as far as the tolling of the great Westminster bell. It is hardly an exaggeration to say that they announced, as with a salvo of artillery, that the Great Eastern was free. The tugs then began to make way, and the ship's own crew being put into requisition, the vessel glided majestically from the berth, for which she seems to have shown more than a sluggard's affection. The spectacle appeared to afford the multitude who lined both banks the liveliest gratification, for they cheered with a lustiness and perseverance that have seldom been exceeded. After a short time, however, the awkward turn into Elackwall Beach was approached, and the plaudits' i of the spectators now gave way'to a feeling of intense'anxiety. There was a stiff breeze blowing S.S.W., and the force which this must necessarily exert on her huge broadside, rendered it more than doubtful whether she would be able to round the corner without going ashore.. Amongst the nautical men,present, "c'en the boldest held his breath, for a time." Happily their fears proved groundless. The vessel, in the words of her pilot,."steered like; a; boat ;" and in the skilful hands in which she was, the danger was quickly passed. Another hearty cheer told how warmly the marine population sympathised with her happy escape. We overheard a rough waterman exclaim, with no small emphasis —"Well, I'm a poor man, but I would rather see that than have a'present of, five pounds." The man appeared to speak only the sentiments of his class. \ The vessel was opposite Blackwall Pier at about half-past B. Presently a new danger showed itself a-head. The harbour-master had on the previous day given strict orders.that all. craft should be moved out of the vessel's path; but, 10, a large barque was found lying right in the middle of her course. At first a collision seemed inevitable: but the coolness and skill of the pilot,.who was ably seconded by Captain Harrison, the master, were once more equal to the emergency: and the barque did not become a ground of action before the right honorable the Judge of her Majesty's Court of Admiralty. She continued her course, but Captain Harrison determined to stop at Purfleet, because the state and set of the tide presented great obstacles to further progress. About four o'clock, the delicate mancevre of swinging her with the/turn of the tide was performed, and when she lay across the river she appeared to bridge the Thames. Of course, great crowds assembled ashore and afloat to witness the progress of the big ship, and to cheer her as she swept slowly on her way. Next day, the Great Eastern resumed her progress. As she passed down the river, everything afloat entitled to carry a flag dipped it as she passed by. The shore at Gravesend rang with cheers; the vessels off that place manned their yards; the soldiers ih'the troop ships crowded the decks, and of course the British, hurrah was heard in perfection. In Sea Reach, the steam tngs cast off, and .the great ship went on her way without aid. Although in very bad trim, she steamed fifteen miles within an hour. . ,

While the gigantic vessel was steaming grandly past Hastings, a terrible explosion took place in the forward funnel which passed through the grand saloon and' lower deck cabins to the boilers. It was probably. one of the most tremendous explosions which a vessel has ever survived, and which, none in the world could, have withstood save a structure of such marvellous strength and solidity as the Great Eastern. . The strongest line of battle ship, it is affirmed, would have had her sides blown out by it, and must have gone down like a stone. 'The Great Eastern not only resisted it, but, in spite of the dreadful nature of the catastrophe, it made so little difference to the movements of the vessel that her engines were never once stopped, and, save for half an hour, her course was never altered from its original destination to Portland harbour. Nevertheless, the accident was a most shocking and disastrous one.

[We have in type a very graphic description of the accident and its cause, from the pen of the ' Times' correspondent, but, from pressure on bur space, are compelled to reserve it until Saturday.]

THE EXTEKT OF DAMAGE DONE,

The 'Times' correspondent, writing from Portland Eoads, on the 13th September, says:—Now that the first excitement caused by the late dreadful accident on board the Great Eastern has partially subsided, the extent of the damage done and the probable causes of the explosion can be ascertained with a comparative degree of certainty. In the first place it is evident that the damage done to the ship is by no means so considerable as was at first anticipated, nor indeed is it one tythe as great as might have been expected from the terrific nature of the explosion. The light wood-work of the berths arid cabins on the lower deck and the fragile decorations of the grand saloon have of course been either entirely demolished or very much damaged, but the real solid structure of the ship has resisted the explosion as completely as if it had been that of a pistol. The iron main deck beams in the immediate vicinity of the spot where the explosion originated, and, the massive iron work by "which they are connected round the funnel are torn and rent like paper, showing the violence of the concussion, but the longitudinal and transverse bulkheads (in which the real strength of the vessel consists) have resisted, the shock, and confined the explosion to the compartment of the vessel in. which it originated. After the

arrival of the ship, .at Portland,' a committee was formed, consisting of the chairman, the directors on board, and Captain Harrison, by whom it was immediately determined to proceed with the repair of the damage at once. A survey was immediately made, mid the estimates sent in ibr.malcing good the damages, which do not exceed MROpO, of which £1000 will he consumed in. re-decorating.the grand saloon. The debris is now in course of being cleared away, with a view to the necessary repairs being1 commenced at once. How long these^epairs will take it is at present quite impossible to' say. To restore the ironwork which was found to need reconstruction will occupy from three weeks-to a month, but the question is how far the forward pair of main boilers, from which the funnel was blown, a^d which acted as a base to the whole explosive force, have been injured. Both will, in the course of to-ruorrow, be subjected to a strict scrutiny, and if any •,'injury, has been sustained, their repair will be a.iyjork of time and difficulty. But whatever may be the delay or cost, the directors have most properly determined that all shali be repaired in the strongest and most perfect manner, and the boilers tested with the hydraulic press before again proceeding to sea. The fragments which are being hauled up from the stokehole each minute afford fre&h evidence of the uncertain yet fearful nature of the explosion. In an apparently uninjured portion of the outer casing a round hole is blown out, through which a man could put his head. Yet there is no flaw in the iron, nor is any other portion of this segment hurt at all,- I have mentioned the apparently extraordinary fact that two of the largest mirrors in the grand saloon fixed on each side were left unhurt, when glasses at four times the distance from the funnel were pulverised. The reason is now explained by the fact of these two mirrors having been the only ones fixed in the iron bulkhead. A greater proof could not be given of the immense strength of the ship than this. Had the iron bulkheads vibrated in the least these glasses must have gone to fragments like the rest, but the manner in which they were stayed across kept them rigid even under the awful concussion of the blow-up. ,' '. The inquest on the bodies of those who were killed by the explosion on board the Great Eastern, six persons in all, is not yet terminated. It has already, first of all elicited the startling fact that the stopcock, placed upon the " casing" to test its strength by hydraulic pressure, was never removed. This alone accounts for the deplorable accident. It shows that the party on board the great ship were eyery hour sitting around a boiler which might have exploded at any moment. The donkey-engines, moreover, which were to have pumped water into the casing broke down, and were not used, water being supplied by other means to the boilers. The evidence that was taken on Saturday, September 17, includes that of Mr. Scott Russell, and Mr. Campbell. Mr. Scott Russell denied that he had any responsibility of an engineering kind after the vessel began to. sail, and stated he only went on board with a deep personal interest as to its success. He had delivered the paddle-wheels and engines up to the company. Mr. Cainbell, however, gave evidence of an opposite kind. IYom other evidence that was taken, it appears that the question of authority and responsibility is the one that demands solution, the company being of one opinion on that point, and Mr. Russell of another. The inquiry will be resumed to day, September 19.