THE CALLIOPE'S ESCAPE.

Te Aroha News, Volume VII, Issue 389, 31 July 1889, Page 6

THE CALLIOPE'S ESCAPE.

O^b of the crew of the Calliope has just written Home describing the escape of ''the vessel from the harbour of Apia,- in jSamoa during the great cyclone which wrecked the German and American squadrons. His narrative appears in the " Herts ana Cambs Reporter " of i\Jay 24, and states :— " Preparations were made to ride out the threatening gale by getting top-hamper on deck, striking top-masts, and making everything snug. On the night of Friday, March 15, it began to blow, and the wind increased in force until afc daybreak, the Calliope, with three anchors out, and steaming at ful speed, was just able to keep her position. The Vandalia, American warship, dragging across her bows and cairying away a cable, the English cruiser dropped aster.n, till the dreaded reef was ,within a fathom pi her. At last the captain gave oi'ders to slip the remaining ca-ble. and, steamiug- at" "eighty-eight revolutions per minute and rolling nettings under, the gallant cruiser struggled out of the harbour and made the open sea. On the following Tuesday, the gale having subsided, tho vessel^ returned to port and coaled." The writer continues-: — "I must- mention the way in which our skipper behaved. He was exposed to the whole of the 'heavy weather, and in a most unsheltered position too. I don't believe he left the poop for five minutes during the fcwenfcy-four houi3 the gale was at its height. When he regained theharbour on the Tuesday morning, we were all called . alt, and the captain made a speech., I never before saw anyone fao affected as he was at the time. He made several attempts co speak, bub could not master his feelings. When at last he found his voice, this is what he said :— ' X take the earliest opportunity of thanking you all, my men, for the way in which you have behaved during the terrible weather we have just experienced. I shall always look back with pride at the way in which my orders were carried out on Saturday last. What I did myself was very little, being only able to stand here and give orders. , These orders were .carried out more smartly and exactly than I had a right to expect, considering our situation. In conclusion, I must say we must not only congratulate ourselves on our escape, but we must thank Almighty God.' Here the brave old man broke down, and, with tears running down his face, motioned us to leave the quarter-deck, which we did, and you could have heard a pin drop so great was the silence, all hands being too full of emotion and gratitude to speak for some time." I

The recently published statistics of drunkenness in New South Wales prove that the Mother Colony is ridding herself of the evil reputation which she has borne of being the most drunken colony of Australasia. Since' 1885 there has been a regular decline in the number of persons arrested for drunkenness, the number in that year being 2-82 per cent, of the population, while in 1888 the number of arrests was only 1-P8 per cent.. Estimated upon the average 'consumption of intoxicating drink, the relative' positions of f the several colonies' stand thus, the ba3i's adopted being represented by proof alcohol: —New South Wales, 3-23 gallons; Victoria, 3-80 1 gallons; Queensland, 339 gallons ; South * Australia, 332 gallons ; New Zealand, 2-18 gallons ; and Tasmania, 2-17 gallons. "Auckland Star."