After Deep-Sea Gold

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVII, Issue 7953, 17 October 1905, Page 2

After Deep-Sea Gold

AN EXPI3IIIHNCK AT TDK TliKKi KINGS ISLANDS. AN UNSUCCESSFUL KXPKDITION A N.IOIIT OK TERROR.

Alter an absence ol about live weeks, the auxiliary schooner Emma Sims returned to Wellington from tils Three Kings, where an unsuccessful attempt was made to secure, thci hullioi that went down in the Elingamitc some tlircc years ago. The schooner put into Auckland to land Mr A. M, Gow, proprietor of the Central Hotel, Wellington, who accompanied the expedition, and who was largely interested in tbc venture.

Interviewed by a N. 7,. Times reporter, Mr Gow says that the at- ' tempt was "euchred by bad weather" from first to last, and as. the charter was for six weeks only, and the weather was as bad as "ever at Hie Tlircc Kings, it was deemed advisable to return to Wellington. The Emma Sims, though splendidly equipped and well handled, met with such persistently bad weather on the run north via 1 East Coast that the trip occupied seven'tcen tfays., It should under ordinary conditions, not have taken more than seven days. Tlieyi reported at the East Coast lighthouse as they passed north, sheltered for a time under Cape Brett, and owing to a fierce gsie ran into Doubtless Bay l(o' shelter. While there, Leigh, the diver and engineer, visited the cable station, where messages were despatched and received, and whe.rfe t'lie staffiwas most jUM and courteous in supplying knowledge that might assist the adventurers. After the gale moderated, the little vessel ran for the Kings. What occurred thot'e was drear monotony—the hard monotony of riding out gale after gale, zigzagging this way and that, sheltering under the Great King when the roaring westerlies shrieked too loud and high, and waiting,, waitingi-hoping for oalm conditions, when something, however little, could be done. They had relief during the sixteen days they hung about The Kings in a minor degree by the sport afforded. The Great King is well stocked with wild goats—'which, paradoxically, , were quite' tame—and tlie-, fresh meat secured formed a welcome relief t« the corned beef with which the vessel was stocked. The fishing, too, was excellent —no sooner were the lines lowered, than the bait Was snapped by the finest blue cod Mr Gow had ever seen. They maffc delicious eating, and were a "valuable addition to the. menu. In parts of the Great King the cliffs rise almost sheer out of the water to a height of 1000 ft, and all day long myriads of seabjrds screata lifgh overhead and perch by the hundred on cverv ledge. The anchorage at the Great' King, where a good ilea! ol time was spent, 1 is only affected adversely when the wind jbpows' from one particular point of compass. They Were lying ■quietly, one night, when the second male gave the alarm that ihc vessel Was dragging her anchor. Captain Tosswilj saw at once that the wind had veered round, ami was toniing dead into the hay. I "AH hands on deck,'!" was (lie order ami all hands arrived ( 0 fj m ( I Mat the little craft was drifting i ne« lli Va 'r i a , Kn ' at WaM "ess-Mo surf-beaten cliff. To strike | meant death | 0 all, and Mr Gow candidly admits that his hair rose in the crisis.

| IjOigh jumped for tlio online-room 'ami in a few minutes had the eu- : gines going. The anchor Was slip, ped—there was no time lo pick it up, and Slowly the little propeller <W its woik leaning away at -the black sur under U, e heel of the'ship and to the immense relief of all, she battled her way into Mi c freedom o( 'e»P«ng seas outside. There was no sleep for anyone on board that IHRIII.

I||<> sißiis of a diminution in the seas occurred on Saturday last, but owing to flic very oxposol position where the wreck was supposed to lie lie seas were slill breaking furiousy, otcr tlie spot. On Sunday the water was smooth, with a great „j] v swe.l, but as the waves would break over tlie spot every five minutes or -so, nothing of any moment could-be done. Hope ran high that the swell —tlie residue of tlie westerly galeswould subside on the Monday but about midnight the wind began to pipe once more, and with dawn came a gab-lashed sea, that again dashed away any immediate hope of success. Nothing could he 'done under the circumstances, .and as t-iinc was dvinc n Was 'decided to return to Wcllincton at once.

Mr Gow speaks n ilic very highest, terms of Leigh, who was to 'have 'done 41ie diving, and who proved himself a brave, fearless man in everything he attempted throughout the. undertaking. He also commends the olbeers and crew for their pluck They were beaten—but only bv the weather. As to tlie future, Mr Gow Ims not yet decided whether any further attempt would fc c won l, the trouble and risk. I„ (b e first place it was a gamble on Uvc weathertiespot being fully exposed to the full sweep of the Western and southwestern ocean. Given smooth seas, the difficulties of finding tlie wreck awl the gold would then begin. No he would not commit liimsWf as to UlUirc.