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THE WRECK OF THE SURAT.

As stated in our telegrams of Saturday Captain Thompson, Harbour Master, and some Dunedin gentlemen interested in the ship, proceeded to the scene of the wreck, where it was expected the Wallabi would arrive before them. The following description of the action taken by Captain Thomson and others, and the circumstances connected with the stranding of the vessel, we extract from the " Daily limes," believing it will ba interesting to our readers : — When the Wallabi had her load of passengers on board, she had;to anchor for some time to wait for high water in order to get over the bar, and during the delay, Captain Thompson, Captain Johnson of the Surat, Mr. G. W. Eliott, Mr. G. F. Reid, and some others, landed at a place called the Sandspit so as to get as near to the Surat as possible and examine her. The position of the Surat was quite, even, and she was apparently slightly imbedded in the sand, lying about two cables' lengths from the shore. The masts and rigging appeared to be uninjured. Her lower topsails were set, and her foresail was also set, her main-topgallant-sail and jibs flying loose in the wind. It would have been impossible to get near the Surat in a boat on account of the heavy surf. The vessel was to all appearance but little injured, and the sea was only breaking over her slightly, although the' waves were running rather high at the time. The following is the report of the official survey made at the time : — " Survey held this third day of January, 1874, at the request of t. aptain Thomson, on the ship Surat as she now lies beached in Catlin's Bay, by the undersigned. We report as follows — that the vessel is water logged and tho seas breaking over her. That the Captain reports having struck upon a reef on the coast, and finding his vessel in a sinking condition, beached her to save the lives of the passengers and crew. As the vessel now lies on an exposed part of the coast and is liable to break up at any moment, we recommend that she be abandoned and sold for the benefit of whom it may concern. — (Signed) G. F. Reid, master mariner ; Win. Thompson, Harbour Master : James Leys, s.s. wallabi ; Robert Mills, shipwright." We may add that there is some difference of opinion with reference to the probable breaking-up of the Surat. At the time the party inspected her from the Sandspit, the wind v.'as blowing -moderately from the wescward, anil should this wind continu ■, the vessel is likely to hold together for a considerable time. Some of those who inspected her position are of opinion that with a tug and proper appliances, the stranded ship might be got off, after she ha» been lightened by the removal of her cargo, which is rather a heavy one. She had oa board five hundred tons of roilway iron, valued at £15 per ton, and insured up to the Ml Talue, making the total" Of tho insuranno ujem it JEfrGOO. Tliis portion of the loss will fall upon London offices. She also had on board the plant and machinery for the establishment of a woollen manufactory by Mr. Booth, one of the cabin passengers, who had also a number of men ou board engaged as skilled workmen for the manufactory. We were given to understand that the machinery was insxired, but for what amount we could not ascertain. The loading of the vessel was made up with a valuable general cargo, including a large consignment of drapery for Messrs Koso and Glemlining, which was insured for £7590 in the N ow Zealand Insurance Company. The Surat was a comparatively new iron ship, close upon 1000 tons register, and was chartered by the New Zealand Shipping Company from her owners, Messrs Shalcross and Higham, of No. 5, New Quay, Liverpool, and was the second vessel despatched to this Colony by the Company. We have not been able to ascertain whether the vessel was insured or not. Captain Johnson is reported to have stated, in answer to questions put to him, that she was not insured, but considering her value this seems highly improbable. The vessel has been valued at about £25,000, and it is rumoured that an assurance had been effected over her for £15,000 before she left London, but in what oflice or offices we could not hear. It is also stated by some of the passengers that the New Zealand Shipping Company were in treaty with the owners for the purchase of the Suart, but that the negotiations fell through. From Captain Thomson, the Harbour Master, we obtained the following statement of Ciptain Johnson of the Surat : — "On Wednesday night at about 10 o'clock, the ship Surat struck the rocks, by Chasland's Mistake, and after a severe bumping, got oif. She was very leaky after this, and was hove to all night, all hands being kept at the pumps. On Thursday morning the vessel was anchored in a little bay near Catlin's River, and some of the passangers were landed. Soon after it was found that the vessel was sinking, and the cables were slipped, and the ship run ashore in Catlin's Bay. This was about 10 or 11 . o'clock on Thursday morning. The remainder of the passengers were landed, and all the crew, with the exception of the first mate and two men, also went ashore. Nothing was saved except a little bedding. On Friday morning, tbe mate and the two men who had been left on the vessel made signals of distress, and were taken off by a boat sent by the Port Molyneux and Catlin's River Harbour Master. The Harbour Master and Captain Johnson of the Surat went to the place where most of the passengers had been landed, and brought a number of women round to Catlin's River by boat. About a hundred of tho passengers were landed first from the Surat, and among them were six or

seven women, who were weak and not able to travel. Theses-were brought round to the river in the boat, the others being strong enough to go across the bush. The passengers were then distributed amongst the sawmills, and some of them were lodged at the Harbour Master's quarters. On Thursday morning, before the anchor was let go, the captain sent a boat to the steamer Wanganui, -which was in sight, but the persons on the -steamer did not appear to see the boat." Tliis completes the captain's statement of the circumstances attending the stranding of the vessel. The accounts of how the Surat struck, how she came to be so close in shore, and the subsequent events on board, are most conflicting. It 13 said that the wind was moderate at the lime, and blowing off the land, and that only half an hour before the vessel bumped on the rojks, the captain and one of the cabin passengers — Mr. Booth — had ascertained what was supposed to be the ship's exact position, and marked it off on the chart. At noon on the 31st ult. the ship was in lat. 47.34 south, long. 167-27 east. Dog Island was sighted at 2 pjn.; at 8 p.m, the course steered by standai'd compass was N.E. by E. half E., Dog Island bearing W. by N. 20 miles. The ship was under plain sail, and the yards checked about a point and a-half or two points. At 9.15 the ship struck on the Brothers, and got off. The pumps were sounded, and it was found that the vessel had only made four inches of water for the first hour. jA.t 11.39 it was found that the water had suddenly increased to 20 inches ; at midnight there was four feet of water in the hold, and the ship was run for Bloody Jack's Island. The .starboard anchor was let go in seven fathoms ; but it was observed 1 that the ship was settling down, and nothing ■was left to be done but to land the passengers. From what- we have been able to learn, and from the appearance of some of the women especially, the passengers . appear to have suffered 'a great deal of hardship. Very few of themmaeaged to get ashore with more than the clothes they had on, and the

majority of them were in bed when the vessel struck, and when the confusion began," a few had barely clothes to cover them. In landing, some of them ran -a great risk of losing their lives, and most of them reached the shore cold, wet, and miserable. Of course, when the Surat first struck, there was the most intense excitement on board ; and with reference to what afterwards occurred, it is impossible to get two statrments that do not differ in a good many njAterial points. One of the passengers says that when the vessel bumped on the rocks a considerable shock was felt, and as the ship went over the rock a noise was heard resembling the rumbling of a lot of iron tanks being moved about. Some of the passengers state that the pumps were never sounded, in order to ascertain whether the ship was making any water or not, until long after she passed over the rocks. The little Bay in which the vessel anchored on the following morning is called Bloody Jack's Bay.

Nearly all tho passengers' statements are to the effect that, after the Surat Btruek, and before she was beached, there was considerable confusion and disorder on board Attempts on the part of the passengers to signal the pacing steamer Wanganui were stopped, revolvers were produced, and violence threatened. The water gained, notwithstanding the working of tlie pumps incessantly by the crew and passengers, including the married women and girls, all of whom took their turn at the work. When it was determined to beach the vessel, and the boats were lowered, the men behaved most creditably, according to the accounts we have heard. The women and children and the oil men were all put in the boats before the other men followed, and except in the case of one woman, mentioned above, there was no accident. Pilot Heyward. who is also Harbour Master at Port Molyneux and Catlin's River, was of great assistance in pointing out the best place to beach the ship, and in landing the passengers and getting them together, The passengers also spoke well of the carpenter, whose name is Lodge, the sailmaker, familiarly known as "Old Sails,'' but whose proper uarae we did not hear, and a seaman named Donovan. Dr. Tighe also made himself most useful, both on board, during the time when great confusion and excitement prevailed, and after the passengers were landed. At one time some of the women are said to have

been almost frantic with excitement, waving their shawls and handkerchiefs, and J making all the efforts in their power to attract the attention of those on board ths Wanganui ; and a few of the male passengers had a great deal of trouble to endeavour to calm them and get them below. The excitement did not last long, and when it was all over thp passengers are reported to have become remarkably calm. There was no moonlight, and rain was falling nearly all the time. At the time the vessel strnck the &satmA — *«, whose name. i« Ti»a«j«ne, was m charge of the deck, and the captain was below with a few other passengers. We have avoided giving any of the passengers statements of what occurred on board the Surat after she struck the rocks, as they are contradictory, and as the true version of the whole matter will shortly be laid before public, when an official inquiry into the loss of the ve3sel is held.

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/TT18740107.2.19

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Tuapeka Times, Volume VI, Issue 319, 7 January 1874, Page 3

Word count
Tapeke kupu
1,979

THE WRECK OF THE SURAT. Tuapeka Times, Volume VI, Issue 319, 7 January 1874, Page 3

THE WRECK OF THE SURAT. Tuapeka Times, Volume VI, Issue 319, 7 January 1874, Page 3

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