THE SCENE OF THE WRECK

A DANGEROUS COAST. (Fbom Oub Own Cobbespondent.) WELLINGTON, August 6. It is understood here that Captain Nicole was in command of the Maori. Captain Kempson, of the Athemc, &aj-» Captain Nicole ib a most experienced navigator, and knows the coast at the Cape thoroughly, also the currents and weather at this time of the year. As to Duiker Point, Captain Kempson says it is a bad place for navigation at this time of year, owing to the prevailing fogs. A strong ~-curi»ent runs to the northward, and this would be on the starboard side of the Maori. The current sweep*, right up into the South Atlantic. Duiker Point itself is a continuation of the Table . Mountain range. The mainland is very liigh and bold.— There is first the Devil's Peak (Table Mountain), Lion's Rump, Lion's Head, Little Lion's Head, and Gather Peak. At the foot of the latter is Duiker Point. It is a very rocky point, too, as- all the coast is sharp pinnacle rocks. The Twelve Apostles lie well off the mainland from Green Point to Duiker Point. In foggy weather the locality is very dangerous. The coast thereabouts is notable for its wrecks. The Oakburn was wrecftect off Chapman Point, a f c wmiles to the southward of Duiker Point, the Aberdeen White Star steamer Thermopylae was lost on Mouille Point, just to the northward, and the Tantallon Castle was lofat on Robbin Island. Messrs John Duthie and Co.. of Wellington, had a large quantity of material on board for. delivery at Dunedin. It was for the Dimedin Drainage Board, and consisted of pipes, valves, and other fittings, and some fairly heavy "lifts" were included. It was valued at £4500, and was insured. Much of the material was absolutely irreplaceable in the Dominion, and the order will have to be repeated, with consequent serious loss of time. THE VESSEL. The Maori, a steel screw steamer, was built in 1893 by Messrs C. S. Swan and Hunter, at Newcastle, for the Shaw, Sayill, and Albion Company Her registered tonnage'at liloyd's was-53T7 ton's, and her measurements were : Length, 402 ft 6in ; breadth, 48ft 3in ; depth, 29ft 6in. She left London on her thirtieth voyage on July 6, and was due at Dunedin on the 27th of the present month. On her last visit to this port she was commanded by Captain G. Nicole. She was a well-known regular trader from London to New Zealand porte, and will be missed from the shipping list in New Zealand waters, OTAGO CARGO, The lose of the steamer was the general subject of conversation in local shipping and commercial circles last week, and it is generally recognised that several of the local insurance offices will suffer as a result of their ri6ks on the cargo, and that wholebale and retail merchants and shopkeepers in Dunedin, as well as others, will bs put to considerable inconvenience and loss through delay in receiving now shipments in place of those lost. The Maori was a full ship, and her cargo of general merchandise was as follows.' — Tons. Dunedin (including transhipments for Bluff, Oamaru, Timaru, etc.) ... . 4100 Lyttelton * ... 600 j Tasmania (1500 steei rails), about .. 600 From inquiries made in town last week . it is evident — although detailed particulars are not available owing to manifest lists not being to hand — that a considerable part I of the cargo comprised new reason's softgoods for wV.olesale and retail houses. Me=srs Herbert, Haynes, and Co. had a "large quantity of new season's goods in the vessel for their Dunedin and Invcrcargill businesses; the- D.ff.A. .had 70 or 80 cases on board, valued •at about £2000. and would have had much more had 40 case<? not arrived previoiisly by the Tongariro; Messrs Butterworth Bros., owing to earlier shipments by the Mamari, Otalu, and Tongariro, had only about £200 or £300 worth of goods coming by the Maori : and Messrs Bing, Harris, and Co. had about 100 tons. >Ir T. Rosa al*o liad goods on board, but i 3 unable, until ad wees

arrive, to say what quantity ; and two or three of the wholesale Boftgoods houses are in the same position. Messrs J. B. J&acEwan and Co. had a consignment of cheese-factory requisites — bandages and caps — on the fiteamer, for supply to the cheese factories throughout the colony for the ap j preaching manufacturing season. Messrs R. Wilson and Co. had coming to them a large shipment of general merchandise, included in the consignment being supplies of many lines of which the local market is somewhat short. Mr A. Barnett loses stock and shop fittings purchased by him on his recent trip to— England, but is covered by insurances. Among other_ importers who have cargo aboard are Briscoe and Co., Mackerras and Hazlett-, Stevenson and Cook, Farra Bros., Shacklook Ltd., and James Sparrow Briscoe and Co.'b included a large quantity of hardware and building goods, and also 850 packets of explosives. The Government has drawn largely from the local stocks of explosives lately, with the result that supplies have had to be brought from other centres. The loss of the Maori therefore will cause some inconvenience, unless northern centres can supply the deficiency . The Oiago Drainage Board had iron pipee, to the value of £?500, for the rising jnain at Musselburgsh, on board. The contract for the supply was made by the board with Messrs John Duthie and Co., of Wellington, the' terms being delivery a* the shin's slings' ait Dunedin wharf. The only monetary loss' the Drainage Board will be 'subjected to to fcfae matter -will be- the expert inspectorial fees at the manufacturing end. ' Tie loss of the pipes, however, will seriously delay the progress ■of the board's operations in carrying out the rising main work, and wall aJeo delay the employment of a number of extra men — carters, labourers, and ciphers — at a time when such work is required. The board 1 will hold a special meeting en Monday to deal with the mattes*. OTHER PARTICULARS. The Shaw, Savill, and Albion Company will, it is understood, put on another boat to come direct to Dunedin in place of the Maori. The 'hull of the vessel, it is stated, is insured in London, but for what amount ie not known. The amount of insurances on the cargo in local offices is not aecertainable until -particulars are forward en to the shipments by the steamer. The plates for the Peninsula Ferry Company's new steamer Waikana were on board the Maori, and the fact of their being lost represents the second misfortune which, has befel this company, for it will be remembered that some months ago it 3 original steamer was destroyed by fire at Portobello. The plates were valued at about £200, and, of course, were insured. The company's electrical plant and other appliances were, fortunately, on another steamer, otherwise they v»ould have &uifered the same 'fate. A meeting of tha directors was held on Friday afternoon, and, as .a result of their deliberations, cablegrams were despatched immedia'ely to several firms in Australia with a viewto getting -the~ "plafes 'there, if possible. The company ie determined that the nsw boat shall be completed in time For tike Christmas running.