Ships and the Sea

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 3, 3 July 1926, Page 28

Ships and the Sea

Old-time Tramps,

Mr. B. E. Bunny, of Masterton, writes interestingly of an. old-time fleet of tram]) steamers. In a letter to "The Post" he says:—The recent death of Sir William Corry calls to mind the fleet of tramp steamers which sailed under the management of Corry Bros, twenty-five years ago. Cardiff was headquarters, and the fleet were known to sailormen as "The Hungry Gooso Line." Perched on top of the foremast was a bird with open beak and outstretched wings, which was partly responsible for the nickname;

STOP PRESS NEWS PORTER INSTANTLY KILLED.

TLVWERA, Tli is "Day. A tablet povter, George T. Eolleston, iell between the station platform and ;. moving train at Molcoia yesterday, ,■ nd was killed instantly. The accident occurred in tlio dusk, and was not noticed by anyone. The guard of a specill train to Waiiganui, which was (rawing into the station at the time, iound the body between the station End the train. The victim, who was ;J3 years of age, leaves a widow and inn* children..

but in those days the British tramp was ill-found and undermanned. The average registered tonnage was al>out 1500, and the horsepower of the engines about 200 nominal, and from Cardiff, Barry, Swansea, and the East Coast ports hundreds of this type of tramp sailed the seven seas in all weathers and with the minimum degree of comfort for officers and crew. The second niato received &1 10s per month, and mates, engineers, and crew had to provide their own mattresses and bedding. The food was poor, and quarters bare and comfortless. Almost helpless in a heavy sea, it was astonishing the great number that sailed to the remote ports of the world, year in and year out, but every year a few departed never to bo heard of again. During many a rough night in mid-Atlantic Kipling's lines came to mo as we lay hove-to in a raging galo and dirty sea. "Overloaded, undermanned, meant to founder, wo ouchred God Almighty's storm, bluffed the sternest sea.'' Yes, the old tramp of a quarter of a century back deserves a niche in the romance of the sea, the foundations of which were laid and maintained by the fastdisappearing sailing ship, and from boy to captain one had to be a sailor-mail if you had any inclination to live." Lloyd's Secret Service. How many people know, I wonder, that Lloyd's have an intelligence service which daily, collects information about shipping from ' all parts of the world? This question is raised by an insurance correspondent of the London "Daily Mail." Working in secrot, this service, ho says, makes investigations all over the world and issues confidential reports, giving "inside" information concerning cases of overloading, vessels sailing in bad condition, and the tricks of the shady foreign shipowner. "This secret information is of tho greatest service to underwriters, and has, on occasion, led to the detection of fraud. It 13 a very difficult undertaking .these days to bring off a fraudulent insurance claim. During the past six years underwriters have successfully defended a very large number of claims made by foreign shipowners. Because of the shipping slump, numbers of unscrupulous foreigners have sought to recover their trading losses by deliberately casting away their over-insured vessels. In somo cases the game has been given away by one fano has got wind of the proposed fraud communicating with Lloyd's, but this is not the only way in which fraud is detected. In one case a vessel supposed to have been sunk by a floating mine was proved to have been deliberately sunk by an explosion from within the vessel, good staff work having made it clear that no mine could possibly have been, in the waters where the accident occurred. In another case, heavy insurance was obtained on Army stores loading at a foreign port. Casual mention of this fact by an underwriter to a broker led to investigation by Lloyd's agent at the loading port. It was found that the "stores" consisted of worn-out Army boots, worth next to nothing, and the insurance was promptly cancelled. Underwriters recently found they were receiving many heavy claims for sea-water damage to goods. The Liverpool Salvage Association, an institution created by underwriters for their protection and benefit, undertook investigation. It was proved that in many cases sea-water was deliberately introduced into cases containing perishable goods, and analysis showed that in some instances a solution of salt and water had been used to produce effects like sea-water damage. A number of claims were rejected as a result of this investigation, whilo doubtful cases were compromised at an enormous saving to the underwriters. Perhaps the most striking case of detected fraud is that of the Mabrouk, a Turkish vessel, which sailecl from Beirut with a cargo alleged to bo gold, but declared to the Customs as "old iron," the underwriters being told this was a ruso to avoid the Turkish prohibition of the export of gold. The vessel was lost, and £400,000 being involved, investigation was made. Unfortunately for the insured, tho vessel had sunk in shallow water, and divers wero ablo to prove that the cargo was indeed old iron.

Tanner's "Ark."

The recent death of Bobby Leach, the man who "shot" Niagara Tails in a barrel, has jogged the memory of Captain F. W. Cox, harbourmaster at Grcymouth, and he tells an interesting tale of a man who planned to sail around the world in a barrel-like craft. The incident took place away back about 1903, at Nelson, says an exchange. Tho navigator's name was Tanner, and his queer craft was known as tho "Ark." It. was shaped like a barrel, about 30 feet in length, with two masts, and had a keol of iron rails. Tanner's idea was to form a syndicate to financo his proposed voyage around the world, and lie raised a certain amount of money from credulous persons. Then tho Marine Departmeiu heard about the "Ark," and dispatched Captain Cox, then located at Wellington, to inspect tho craft at Nelson. He did so, and reported that, should the voyage bo undertaken, there would be more danger of the inventor d3'ine

through starvation thaii through drouv ing. The Department instructed Ca;: tain Cox to see that Tanner, if ho si;' sail, should not take passengers -will him. The "Ark" left the wharf am set a course down the harbour, will1 Tanner as its only occupant; short!; afterwards, however, ho was joined l>' a young man, who sculled out to I.H: "Ark" and went aboard, evidently l>-pro-arrangement. The strange vosr.f managed to negotiate Cook Strait am' sailed southwards, eventually bchi.. towed into Timaru, where Tanner on deavoured to raise further funds for tin purpose of installing an engine. Cap tain Cox last saw the "Ark" when h was skipper of the steamer EnnerdakThe product of Tanner's inventive gen ius was lying in Timaru Harbour Needless to say, the "Ark" did no sail around the world. Tanner was ai:; noted for his ability to. dispense wit! food for long periods, and he declare that, if the food supply ran out, In could easily fast until the "Ark' reached port. What would have become of the passenger under such circumstances is a matter for conjecture. Big Trench Liner. The largest vessel flying the French flag is the turbine-driven passcuger liner Ile-dc-Franee, which has a gross tornage of. 40,200. The Ile-de-France, which was launched in March of this year, is intended for the Havre-Ply mouth-Now York service. In her general characteristics the new vessel will follow closely on the lines of the Paris which has now been running on tin Now York service for about fou; years. The Ilc-de-Francc may, indeed be described as an improved Pari says the '' Shipping World.'' The ne\ liner has an overall length of 793fi beam 91ft, and depth moulded 70fi Her displacement is 41,000 tons, dead weight 11,500 tons, and gross tonnagi 40,200. Accommodation is to be pro vided for 1740 passengers, and her crew will number 803. The launching weight of the ship was 15,000 tons. She will bo placed in service during the summer of 1927. The Ile-de-France has nine decks, five of which are continuous. ' Admiralty Tugs. According to cable advice received in Sydney recently the ex-Admiralty tugs St. Hilary, St. Mabyn, and St. Aristell have sailed from London for Sydney and Newcastle. After the war a largo fleet of powerful . tugs wore built for the Admiralty, but finding no further use for them many were placed on the market. Several have found their way to Commonwealth ports, tho St. Giles, St. Olaves and Lindfiold' (ex St. Claude) being employed in Sydney Harbour, the St. Ertli at Newcastle, while the St. Kitts is now on her way to Adelaide. Tho St. Hilary is of 414 tons gross register, built in 1919; tho St. Mabyn, 444 tons gross, built in 1919; and the St. Aristoll, 413 tons gross, fjuilt in 1920. "Graveyard of the Pacific." • Reports state that tho mystery of the Graveyard of the Pacific," at the southern end of Vancouver Island British Columbia, where for years, despite the powerful siren warning's oi the lighthouse, scores of ships have pi] cd. up on the. Eace Bocks, has bee:' solved. Scientists, after a thorough investigation of tho reports of deep-sea captains, are convinced that a shifting "zone of silence," through which no fog signals can penetrate, hovers about tho southern extremity of the is land. The investigators recommend a complete change in the site of the lighthouso as the only method of grappling with the problem. Ship masters entering tho Straits of Juan de Fuea, bound from the Orient to Canada and the United States, have reported, again and again, that they did not hoar the sirens of the lighthouse, although at other points, not far distant, the signals were almost deafening. Year after year, during fog, vessels from all parts of the world joined the great fleet resting in the graveyard. The question was brought to a head by tho report mado to the Canadian authorities of the experience of the Holland-American cargo steamer Eemdyk, which was wrecked on Bentinck Island, not far from the Eaco Eocks fog signal. Captain A. Eynink. of the Eemdyk, reported that no fog signals were audible before the vessel struck the rocks. Investigation showed, however, that the captains of other vessels, which were further away from the rocks, clearly heard the signals. The experts now conclude that wind and tide combine, at certain periods, to create a zone of "dead air," which will not carry sound. It is believed that this zone shifts over a radius - of many miles under the influence of the changing winds and tides. Once the investigators, who were abroad a small tug, were able in the fog to see the lighthouso keepers' figures, though they could not hear tho sirens.

tinuous,