SHIPPING INTELLIGENCE.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 26, 22 July 1871, Page 10

SHIPPING INTELLIGENCE.

ARRIVED July. 15, Lord Ashley, 8.8., 296 tons, Andrews, from Napier and Auckland. Passengers: cabin—Miss Hatfield, Mrs Stuck, 2 children, and servant, Mrs Montrose and 2 children, Sir George Arney, Hon D. M'Lean, Captain Stack, Inspector Scully, Messrs Moore Montrose, Thompson, Smith, Flood, M'Lean, Wilson, Bigl'ey, and 3 for South ; 7 steerage. 16, Camille, barque, 365 tons, Tucker, from Newcastle. 16, EBther, brigantine, 45 tons, Campbell, from the East Coast. 17, Wanganui, s.s., 164 tons, Linklateiy, from Nelson and Wanganui. 17, Kate, schooner, 26 tons, Jenkins, from the Grove. 17, Thames, cutter, 17 tons, Lambert, from Havelock. Put in through stress of weather, 19, Rangatira, s.s., 164 tons, Renner, from the South. Passengers: Cabin—Mrs Clark, Mrs Allan, Miss Goddago, Messrs Bishop, Barr, Barnard, Bnllen, Smith, Japp, Grant (2), Lenpold, Hentschke, While, Armstrong, Swicklands, Howard, Jones, M'Cann, M'Caulie ; 10 steerage, and 1 for the North. 19, Falcon, ketch, 37 tons, Morrison, from Wairan. „ , „ 20, H.M.S. Basilisk, Captain Moresby, from 20, Duke of Edinburgh, barque, 370 tons, Hill, from Newcastle. "SAILED. 15, Omeo, s.s., 1000 tons, Calder, for Melbourne, via the South. Passenger : CabinMr Calthorpe. , 15, Falcon, ketch, 37 tons, Morrison, for Blenheim. Passengers—Messrs Sinclair, Sollars, Griffiths, and Meech. 16, Lord Ashley, s.s., 296 tons, Andrews, for the South. 20, Rangatira, s.s., 175 tons, Renner, for Napier. Passengers : Cabin —Messrs La seniles, Cullock, Williams, Gilligan, Moorshead, Allen, Ferris, and 5 natives ; 25 natives in the steerage. 20, Wanganui, s.s., 165 tons, Linklater, for Wanganui. Passenger : Cabin—Mr Greenfield. 20, Glimpse, ketch, 38 tons, Croucher, for the East Coast. The Basilisk, a double-funnel paddle steamer, commanded by Captain J. Moresby, arrived in harbor on Thursday, about half-past one o'clock. She left Sydney on the 12th inst, and has, therefore, occupied'eight days on the passage. With the exception of the double-funnel, she is the very counterpart of the Virago, and after her refit in Melbourne is in very trim condition. As we have already published a full account of the ship, and the names of her officers, it would be mere recapitulation to enter upon the matter again. Wo can simply add to all that wo printed that she in every way justifies the remarks made about her. She has had fine weather during the trip from Sydney, nothing worth rocording happening during 4be voyage. H.M.S. Blanche was in dock at Sydney when the Basilisk left. The Rosario and the Clio are at present Iving in Sydney harbor. * H.M.S. Mageera is shortly expected to arrive at Sydney. A cyclone is reported as having occurred near Aden Canal, and the steamer Collingwood is supposed to havo foundered. The steamer Breadalbane was lost on the Red Sea coast; the crew, passengers, and part of the cargo were saved. The mail steamer Behar, from Bombay, broke down, and a new boat, the Khedive, has come, via the Canal, to take her place on the China line. The Dutch are starting a mouthy line of steamers between Java and Holland, via the Canal. A coolie tradgey has taken place in the China seas. A ship wa9 burnt, and 600 out of 650 lives were lost. The ship Mainear Scott has been lost. In view of the recent loss of the Queen of the Thames from mistaking a point on the South African coast, it may be worth quoting from the "Gazette".a notice from a Cape colony authority : —" From and after the 31st of December, 1870, the Roman Rock Lighthouse, Simon's Bay, will be painted in broad horizontal bands of red and white." By our latest files we perceive that the business of the port of Newcastle is improving. According to the " Newcastle Chronicle" of the 6th iust, there were 35 vessels in the harbor, the largest being the American ship St. John, 1885 tons, and the smallest the schooner A mherst, 162 tons; so that we are not likely to hear any more, for some time at least, of the doleful tales we have been accustomed to hear of late from Newcastle. The "Times," in commenting upon the accident to the Queen of the Thames, hints that it was caused by a desire to make a sharp run, , and pooh-poohs the idea of a master being out of his reckoning by local attraction or the , currents. This is scarcely fair to the master of the Queen of the Thames, for she is not the first vessel, by something like a score, that has been lost on almost the same spot, from causes which, so far as we have heard, have never yet been accurately defined. The "Times" says nothing of the wind prevailing at the | time, probably because the writer was not i aware of the fact that nearly all the shipping j disasters which have occurred off the Cape Coast have resulted from endeavoring to force I vessels round Cape l'Agulhas in the face of heavy north-westerly gales. Then, even were the weather fair, and the winds light, the coast is not less dangerous; for it is known, by those who have read the reports of the investigations held into the loss of vessels at | about the same spot, that, aftor a north-west gale, the normal velocity of the current is in- j creased to an extent hitherto incalculable, so

variable is it in its nature. Indeed, wo know it to have been proved, in more than one instance, that when the commander of a vessel has believed himself, by accurate reckoning, to be some twenty or twenty-five miles at sea, the " look-out" has reported " breakers ahead," and the vessel has almost immediately taken the ground. —" European Mail." A severe thunderstorm visited the harbor at about 7 o'clock this morning, and one of the most vivid flashes of lightning struck the cutter Tartar, which was anchored about 300 yards N.E. of the waterman's stairs. The little craft for a moment appeared to be wrapped in a sheet of flame, and it was expected by all who saw her struck, that she would receive considerable damage. This, by an examination which was made directly afterwards, was proved not to be the case : not so much a 3 a rope-yarn had been carried away, and with the exception of some of the shingle ballast, being removed, thero was no sign of the cutter having been in danger from the electric fluid, which had just before been distinctly seen to strike her.—" Auckland Evening News," July 10. On Tuesday night it was telegraphed from Queenseliff that a man of-war under Dutch colors had entered the Heads and anchored. Yesterday afternoon she reached Hobson's Bay, and, on boarding, we ascertained her to be his Netherlands Majesty's steam-sloop Curagoa, from Batavia, bound on a visit of inspection round Australia. She is a fine vessel of 1750 tons register, 250 horse-power nominal, and carrying 16 guns and 224-officersand men, the latter classified as follows :—l7 officers, 372 seamen, and 35 marines. The guns consist of eigbt smooth-bore thirty-pounders, and eight rifled long guns, all muzzle-loaders. The Curagoa was built at Viessinger, and launched in 1863, and commissioned in 1867. She then proceeded to Japan, and after remaining in those waters some time, returned home, and was the first Dutch vessel to puss through the Suez Canal. Afterwards, after visiting the Porsitm Gull", Bombay, and. Ceylon, she proceeded to Batavia, and remained there and adjacent ports until leaving for this port on the 31st of last month. Of the passage thence there is little to report, beyond that very boisterous gales had to be contended agains l : from Cape Leuwin to arrival, and after anchoring at the Heads one of the cables parted, the violence of tlie squall which caused the mishap being very great, in fact of hurricane f orC e_" Age," June 19. The Admiralty charts of New Zealand can be procured by masters and owners of vessels at the Custom Houses at Auckland, Nelson, Hokitika, Christchurcb, and Dunedin, and at the Marine Office, Wellington. H.M.S. Virago soiled from Sydney for England on the 28th ult.

The captain of the ship Himalaya, which arrived in harbor on Sunday, must have experienced a very trying voyage ; for not only did the stormy weather protract the passage and prove disastrous to the vessel itself, but the majority of the seamen appear to have become insubordinate. No less than nine of the sailors are now under arrest;—six upsn a charge of combining to impede the navigation of the vessel while on the voyage from London to Sydney, and three for a moro serious offence, namely—assault on the high seas. The litter charge was investigated by the Water Police Bench yesterday, and occupied the Court for several hours. The prisonersThomas Quinn, John Smith, and Robert Hearne—-were charged, on the information of David Dyabell, chief officer of the ship Himalaya, with having, on the morning of the 18th June, while on the high seas, jointly and severally assaulted him. The evidence ofprosecutor was in effect as follows: —About aquarter past 4 o'clock on the morning of the 18th inst, he went on the poop and saw prisoner Quinn, who was at the wheel. He (Quinn) had previously threatened the mate " that he would let daylight through him with a knife." Dyabell, upon seeing him, said, "Is that you; you threatened to put a knife through me ; you had better look out." The chief officer then turned round to look at the compass, and was immediately felled to the ground by Quinn, who had taken an iron belaying pin from under his coat, where he appears to have kept it concealed. Quinn, after striking Dyabell, left the wheel and grappled with 113 opponent, throwing him against the port rail. He also attempted (as prosecutor stated) to throw him overboard. The chief officer finding himself in such a position, struggled with Quinn, who then gave a " whoop," which resulted in the appearance of prisoners Smith and Hearne, the former of whom struck Dyabell on the head with another belaying pin. Very severe wounds were inflicted, and prosecutor bled very profusely in consequence. He, however, managed to rise from the deck, and gob into the alley leading to the main deck, where one of the prisoners kicked him. The witnesses for the prosecutor corroborated his evidence in all the main points, and the evidence of Dr Fyffe, who was called to attend Dyabell as soon as the vessel reached Sydney, went to show that the wounds were such as might have endangei'ed life. Several witnesses were called for the defence, but their evidence appeared to tend in the direction of an alibi on behalf of Hearne, who was said to have remained in the forecastle while the disturbance was going on. The prisoners were committed for trial at the ensuing Criminal Court. Mr Grrecr conducted the prosecution, and Mr R. Robinson the defence. In the case previously mentioned, for impeding the navigation of the ship Himalaya, the defendants were remanded until to-morrow.—" Sydney Morning Herald," June 29. A fatal accident occurred at the Thames on June 30. The dingy of the schooner Clio, which had arrived from Russell, waß going ashore and capsized. Two of the men were rescued, and a third drowned. An inquest which was held on the body terminated in a verdict of " accidentally drowned" being returned,

Regulations for the establishment of a sick and superannuation fund for the benefit of pilots are gazetted in Melbourne. The Napier Port light is, as we on a previous occasion surmised it would be, a failure. The lamp was lighted on the night of the Ist inst, and burned brilliantly till about 3 a.m. It was visible at a distance of 15 miles. On a breeze springing up a strong draught was created within the lamp, and the whole of its interior became thickly coated with lamp black, which effectually prevented any light penetrating through the glasses. This would not have been the case had colza or whale oil been used. A new lamp will now have to be procured, in which those oils can be burnt. While on this subject we may remark that the light is useless as a guide to coasting vessels to keep clear of the Pania reef, inasmuch as they would have to steer six miles out of their course, and round the reef, before they could perceive it. The light may, however, be of some service as a mere port light, but a much cheaper construction would have answered equally as well or better for that purpose.— " Hawke's Bay Telegraph." Further accounts ot the wreck of the Queen of the Thames are thus given by the " Cape Standard" of the 4th May :—" We have late accounts from the wreck. The Bismark left the Queen of the Thames some ten days ago. While there was a strong gale blowing there was no communication between the land and the wreck, and for thirty-eight hours the men who were employed on board in taking out cargo were kept in the ligging. The sea during the gale made a clean sweep of the deck. Nothing is left standing but a part of the wheelhouse. Some idea of what the seas were like can be imagined when we state that the iron galley-house was torn from the deck and twisted to pieces as if it had been brown paper. The vessel had heeled over more, but it is thought by competent persons that she will hold togethor for twelve months, and that everything she has in her will be taken out. Her'being floated again is very doubtful; but even if she is not, her speculators will have made a very good thing out of her. The copper ore in her alone is worth £IO,OOO. The salt water will not affect this portion of the cargo in any way ;it will all be recovered. Up to the end of last week 1,600 bales wool had been landed, and the Bismark, with 400 bales on board, had left, or was just about leaving, for Pert Elizabeth."

A painful and fatal accident occurred in the harbor last Saturday forenoon. The particulars are as follows : —The lighter Victoria, in charge of Mr John Gruthrie, was on her way from Dunedin with a cargo of preserved meats for the ship Roslyn Castle, lying at Port Chalmers, and when in the Cross Channel, the wind blowing fresh from S.W., a sudden gust got underneath the weather side of her deck load tarpaulin, and blew it to leeward, knocking John Craigie, one of the hands, overboard. The helm was at once put down, and Craigie, although he had a heavy topcoat on, succeeded in catching hold of the painter of the boat that was towing astern, and even succeeded in getting into the boat. The vessel still having considerable way on her, he went forward in the boat with the intention of getting on board with the painter. This action depi'essed the boat's bow, and she filled, going right from under Craigie, who, poor fellow, sank, being seen by his shipmates only for about a second. The vessel was brought to an anchor, and the boat (minus the oars, which had floated out of her) wus hauled up and emptied. There was one spare oar on board, with while the boat was sculled about in search of the drowned man. The search, however, proved of no avail, and Mr Gruthrie, seeing that it was useless to continue it, went on to Port Chalmers and reported the accident to the police, who proceeded to the spot with grapnels, but could find no traces of the body. Craigie was a carpenter by trade, and well known in Poit Chalmers. He leaves a wife and four young children to moui*n his loss. The search for the body was continued for several days, but has not been recovered. — " Otago Daily Times." A large black whale, estimated to yield about six or seven tuns of oil, is reported to have been captured by Ellison's whaling party at Waikouaiti. The whale, which is a female or cow whale, was attended with its calf. This was also killed, but sank about a mile from the shore shortly after its capture, with the harpoon and line attached. As the weather continues fine, hopes are entertained of its recovery. Meanwhile the party is said to be busily engaged in extracting the oil from the blubber at the try works at Waikouaiti. Mr 0. Bradshaw's party also sighted and gave chase to whales, and if the weather continues fine, other captures may be shortly expected. —" Dunedin Evening Star." Considering the great disadvantages that shippers of produce have labored under for many years past, and the expenses that have been entailed upon them for shipping charges, commission, lighterage, &c, any cbange for the better will be hailed with the greatest satisfaction. The opening of the new steam wharf must be regarded as a step in the right direction, and its desirability was fully proved by the facilities it offered to the steamers yesterday. Captain Kennedy, of the s.s. Wellington, was the first to avail kinself of the new wharf, which, although not fully planked (the remaining timber being on board the barque John Knox), was so far finished that the steamer could lie alongside. At noon Captain Kennedy invited his friends and visitors on board to inaugurate the opening of the wharf, and in a short speech expressed his satisfaction at seeing a wharf erected which was fully suited to the requirements of the port. The toast of " Success to the Commerce of Canterbury" was drunk with three times three, Later in the day the s.s. Maori, which was waiting for a berth, hauled in to the wharf to discharge her inward cargo. The workmen are bow employed in laying down the rails to

connect the wharf with the main line, and the turn-tables have been already fixed. The wharf is 207 feet long by 36 feet wide ; the piles and caps are of iron bark, the deck of blue gum ; the whaling, braces and stringers are of native wood, blue gum and totara. The work has been under the superintendence of Mr Martindale, upon whom it reflects the highest credit. —" Lyttelton Times," July 15. The barque Annie sails on Monday for Newcastle. She is chartered to run three trips from Newcastle to Wellington, and will afterwards probably load wool for London. —" Lyttelton Times,' 5 July 14.