THE RIMUTAKA IN THE ARCTIC REGIONS. AN EXTRAORDINARY VOYAGE. (From Our Own Correspondent.)

Te Aroha News, Volume III, Issue 127, 7 November 1885, Page 5

THE RIMUTAKA IN THE ARCTIC REGIONS. AN EXTRAORDINARY VOYAGE. (From Our Own Correspondent.)

London, September 18. Yon will probably have heard by cable that the homeward voyage recently completed by the R.M.8. Rimutaka was a disagreeably eventful one. According to the statements of the saloon passengers who landed at Plymouth, the vessel left Wellington in the teeth of a stiff gale blowing from th9 South. The seas were running mountains high, and frequently made clean breaches over the ship. Two large boats were swept out of their chocks, and somewhat severely damaged. The gale raged with all its fury tor about two days, and after it abated the ship encountered an immense quantity of ice and enow The weather was bitterly cold, and intensely felt by thepas-sengers. The ship eventually became literally covered with ioiolec, and presented tho appearance of a vessel in the Arctic regions. The ropes were one mass of ice and miow, even the signal halyards being six times their ordinary size, and on the hurricane deck there were six inches of ice, and under the fore batch twelve inches The ship was amongst the ice for five days, and the thermometer most of the time registered 15 degrees below zero. Eight of the crew, including the boatswain, were frost bitten in their hands, and it was alleged to a reporter of the ''Western Morning News" that they had not altogether recovered even yet. *t any rate (that journal says) the boatswain wore gloves up to a few days before arrival, and then his hands peeled ae if they had been badly scalded. After leaving the ice the Rimutaka met with bad weather and strong winds to within three days of the Horn. The Cape itself was rounded in beautiful weather on the 10th of August, and from thence to Rio all *ent smoothly, calms for three days after leaving Rio, and then strong winds with moderate seas to Plymouth On entering the Sound, the Rimutaka is raid to have had a narrow etcape from colliding with H.M.S. A gincourt, which was moored just inside the Bteakwater Fort. The Rimutaka came in at the west end of the breakwater, under easy steam, and was reaching across the Sound to take up safe anchorage, there being a fresh gale blowing, when the Agincourt was seen right ahead. Passengers believed a collision inevitable, but the engines of the Rimutaka were promptly put full speed astern, and the danger was avoided.

Mr Strickland's Opinion. In order to ascertain the truth with regard to the complaints alleged to have been made by the passenger* of the N.ZS. Co 's Rimutaka, I this morning interviewed Mr Strickland, manager of the London office. He says he believes the statements in the Hymouth papers are a tissue of exaggerations. It was no doubt bitterly cold m the South Pacific, but the captain didn't e«en go so far south as usual. Generally, the N.Z S. Co 'a boats make lat. 56° during the lun down to the Horn, but on thio occasion Caprain Hallet turned E^orth at lat. 55°. Things cannot, Mr Strickland thinks, have been quite so bad as the landr-men passengers aver, for the Kimutaka made the run Home in much about her ordinary time. As to complaint?, they have had none 89 far. It, as reported, a protest was drawn up, it certainly hasn't reached the office, '.there were only 12 second cabin passengers, and eo far as Mr S can learn, the only complaint they made on board was about the quality of the butter supplied. The taik about a collision nearly eventuating in Plymouth >ound wtw pure nonsense. It was a pitch* daik night, and great care had in coneequeBce to be observed The Kimutaka was going dead slow, when she sighted the Agincourt a short distance off, and, of couree, reversed her engines. There was, however, nothing at all remarkable in the circumstance.