THE RAISING OF THE EURYDICE.

Press, Volume XXX, Issue 4095, 11 September 1878, Page 5 (Supplement)

THE RAISING OF THE EURYDICE.

["Lloyd's Weekly."] Attempts to raise her Majesty's ship Euryriice, lying in the English Channel, on the southern extremity of the Isle of Wight, have at length eventuated in a successful scheme. She was lying in 60ft. of water, and embedded in lift, of mud, in which she was gradually settling down. The alterations on the last plan have been few and simple. Wire hawsers were substituted for two chains, so that the arrangements were in the following manner :—The stems of the Wave and the Swan, and two smaller vessels, which, lay across the Eurydice beamwise, pointed towards Culver cliff somewhat, while the larger vessels, the Pearl and Binald, stood alongside them on the outside, pointing in the opposite direction. The two smaller vessels were each attached to the wreck by two toggles, the Binaldo by two toggles and two jewel ropes, and the Pearl by four jewel rop<?s, all crossed in such a manner as to give the utmost resisting power. The wire hawsers used upon the Wave and the Swan were both of 7in. in diameter, while on the Binaldo and the Pearl there were two of 7in. and two of Bin.

On Monday afternoon, under the superintendence of some of the Portsmouth naval authorities, every preliminary arrangement was made for carrying out the scheme, some 400 or 500 men having been told off from H M.S. Duke of Wellington, the Asia, and the Excellent, and operations were resumed at one o'clock on Tuesday morning, when the tide was about flood. When the tide was about flood the whole of the vessels were pumped into until they were sunk to the depth required; 924 tone of water were pumped into the Pearl until, with a depth in her hold of 10ft., she was sunk sft. 6in. The Binaldo was made to hold 600 tons, with an internal depth of 9ft., and external sft.; while the Wave and the Swan were immersed 3ft. 6in., by means of 100 tons of water in each. When the wreck was made taut with these boats, and the water was pumped in them, the amount they had been sunk, added to the amount of the rise of tide, gave a greater lift than the depth of the hole. When the tide had ebbed, divers were sent down to see that everything was eecure ; they reported most favourably, and as soon as the tide began again to flow, steam fire engines and steam tugs were set to pump out the water in the gunboats, the body of water in them varying from 190 to 224 tons. The only fear now was as to whether snch a strain would or would not pull the Eurydice to pieces, but as the buoyancy in consequenoe of tho pumps pumping out the boats, and the tide increased, the wreck camo up gradually. It was intended to have employed the turret-ship Thunderer as a tug as coon as the Eurydice was suspended in the water, so as to have towed her with the gunboats attached to shallower water. She steamed round about waiting for her opportunity, but in so doing ehe swept across the tide and lost her cables and gear. This necessitated some delay, inasmuch as it, took up valuable time creeping for the hawsers. One was speedily recovered, but it required the work of a diver to find the other. The second, however, was to have been dispensed with, and a rope hawser substituted, but, just as the Thunderer was steaming towards the scene of the operations, her capuon fell overboard, carrying with it the line. In order to ascertain, therefore, if the wreck was freed it was decided to haul in the hawsers, bo as to draw the craffc with the flow of the tide, slackening those that had kept them stationary. This experiment proved in every way successful, and the Eurydice was lifted out of the hole, conveyed some 150 or 180 feet in the water, ai d deposited on a hard bottom. Operations will now go on daily until the vessel is docked.