THE GREAT EASTERN.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIII, Issue 263, 5 November 1932, Page 7 (Supplement)

THE GREAT EASTERN.

AN UNLUCKY SHIP.

WORLD'S FIRST GREAT LINER.

HEAVY LOSS TO OWNERS

One of the most unlucky ships in the history of the British' mercantile marine was the Great Eastern, which, when elie was completed in 1857, outclassed in size, equipment, and accommodation for passengers all other ships, afloat. Plans for the construction of this first leviathan of the seas—she was christened the Leviathan when launched) but the name was changed to Great Eastern — were completed in 1852 by Mr. Isambard Brunei, on behalf of the Great Eastern Steam Navigation Company. Her length was to be 602 ft, beam 83ft; she was to have accommodation for 1000 passengers, and room in her holds for 5000 tone of cargo. At that time there were no merchant ships above 500 tons, but the Great Eastern "was to exceed 18,000 tons. Many people declared that it was] impossible to build such a large ship; J that if she were built she wouldu't float, and that if she did fleat it would bo impossible for her to move through the water except at a snail's pace. All these predictions were falsified; nevertheless, the gloomy forebodings of those pessimists who declared that she would be a failure were realised. When she was being built at Millwall, on the Thames, by Scott, Russell, and Company, many alterations were made in the plans, and these added to her cost. Not until November 3, 185J, was she ready to be launched. Thousands of people assembled at the shipbuilding yards to see her take the water, but the ceremony was a frost. She stuck on the ways, and she resisted many attempts to get her off made in the course of the ensuing weeks. It was not until January 31, 1858 —90 days after the launching ceremony—that she was floated. The expenses of launching her mounted up to £60,000, bringing the total cost of the ship to £732,000. In August, 1859, she was ready for her trials. The ship was equipped with sails to supplement her engines. She had two paddle wheels driven by one set of engines, and a screw driven by another set. The engines were set* in motion for the benefit of the guests at the banquet given to celebrate her readiness for sea. As the paddle wheels began to revolve slowly the engines controlling the screw were put astern, and the ship remained practically motionless at her moorings in the river. The Great Eastern was intended for the trade with India, but before sending her on such a long voyage the directors of the company decided to give her a trial trip across the Atlantic. She left the Thames on September 8, 1859, but when off Hastings, on the south coast, one of her steam pipes burst, seven persons being killed and others injured; The voyage, therefore, came to an abrupt end a few hours after the start. She made another start across the Alantic on January 17, 1860, from Southampton. She crossed to New York in eleven days without mishap; During the remainder of that year and the following one she made many voyages across the Atlantic. In 1867 she was chartered to bring passengers from New York to Havre for the Paris Exhibition, but the venture was riot a commercial success. Although the Great Eastern was able to provide much better accommodation for passengers than the smaller ships, people were afraid to travel by her. Her early mishaps had given her a bad name. She 'was next employed in laying the first cable across the. Atlantic between England and America, and she also laid the French Atlantic cable, the Mediterranean cable to the Red Sea, the cable from Suez to Bombay, and two more cables across the Atlantic. No further use could be found for her at sea, and eventually this great steamer, which was by far the largest vessel afloat, was used as a coal hulk at Gibraltar. She was afterwards sold at auction to be broken up, and she realised only £16,000, which was equivalent to less than 6d in the •poutd on the £732,000 spent on building her.