SHIPS AND THE SEA

Evening Post, Volume CXXIII, Issue 1, 2 January 1937, Page 20

SHIPS AND THE SEA

(By "Spunyarn.")

There has come into the possession of the writer an interesting booklet issued in 1888, containing notes written during a cruise to the Southern Pacific Islands in the Colonial Government ship Stella. Readers will recall that in last week's article in these columns the writer gave an outline of the career of Captain John Fairchild, and the following particulars of the southern cruise of the Stella are given added significance by reason of the fact that the vessel was, on this voyage, commanded by Captain Fairchild. The notes, prepared by Mr. William Dougall, contain detailed information of the visits to Stewart Island, the Snares, and the Auckland, Campbell, Antipodes, and Bounty Islands. However, it is possible to print here only short extracts from the booklet, the section given below containing much information concerning the early shipping history of the colony. Referring to the vessel's call at Ross Island, the writer said: "There are waterfalls in abundance on this island, but owing to the mountainous seas it was impossible to photograph any of them. I made a rough sketch, however, of a crest of the cliffs about 300 | feet high, over which five streams of |

water were falling. The peculiar feature was that a few feet below the edge of the cliff the strong wind caught the water and turned it completely back, so that the appearance was that of live jets of steam leaving the face of the rock and flying in fine spray about 150 or 200 feet. A prettier effect I had never seen, and the same thing was noticed at several points during that .day's coasting trip. GENERAL GRANT "YARN." "We sailed inside of Disapolntment Island, as close as possible to the land, and soon reached the spot where the General Grant is said to have gone into a cave when she was wrecked on the night of May 4, 1866. Now, I don't care about taking all the romance out of a good story, but on the west coast of the Auckland Islands there is not a cave into which a cutter could find her way; indeed, I question very much if you could get into one of them with a ship's whaleboat. Therefore the cave part of the General Grant narrative is a 'yarn,' and if the steamer Southland found the cave, as was reported, those on board were smarter than this Southlander and got ahead even of Captain Fairchild, who has carefully examined the whole coast and is confident that no such cave exists. We entered a fine harbour on the north, and another on the southeast, and took soundings. The latter is also a good harbour, but is not to be compared with Carnley Harbour, where we anchored. While we were fossicking about for a site for the boat-house a heavy squall came on, the mountains, although close to us, were hidden, and the spray from the seas breaking on Monumental Island flew across the steamer like pellets of ice. To say that spray was cold is to describe it mildly.

"On January 26 the second mate and four others went albatross hunting and had a rough experience, having had to travel eight miles each way through a thick scrub. I took the ship's whaleboat and went to Monumental Head and Monumental Island. I was very much interested with this part of the trip, having just read 'Wrecked on a Reef,' in which work was a picture of the mausoleum which I admired. I could identify the place and that was all. In the romance referred to there is a picture showing Monumental Island as closely hemmed in by cliffs of 400 to 500 ft, whereas the passage here is about a mile across, with Monumental Island just in the centre. . . . The seas which enter Carnley Harbour by this entrance are fearful, the surf breaking about 50ft high and the spray flying over our boat a quarter of a mile off. Returning to the steamer we landed stores for castaways at Camp Cove, a pretty little spot covered with bush of no great height, but so dense that I could not find a single point from which to get a view, so I had to take one from the steamer's deck. There is no refuge for castaways, except a storeroom 7 by 6, but any distressed persons could construct a hut and make themselves tolerably comfortable." THE GRAFTON WRECK. The Stella then made for the wreck of the Grafton, where she anchored for the night. The writer records: "The captain and I went ashore and secured several relics of this noted wreck. We also found the remains of Epigwaitt, the house for so long of the Grafton's crew. The remains of the house consist of the uprights made out of the vessel's masts. Oh the following day I took several photos of the Grafton, one of them showing the skids or ways by which their reconstructed boat was launched. She has evidently been a very strongly-built craft, the chief part of her planking and the knees being of blue gum. There was also some box and Oregon timber about her, and one of the masts of Western Australian mahogany and the other of gum. We also found her stove which we nearly) brought away with us, but satisfied our-geives-with^ome-iemnaiits.joi-iiiiiberJ

THE STELLA'S SOUTHERN CRUISE ~.A m THE GENERAL GRANT FALLACY *

and copper bolts. Just as we were leaving I found the original hammer and took possession of it There is a fine beach where she went ashore, covered with small boulders, and from which the water deepens rapidly. Indeed she could not have touched ground more than 30 or 40ft from dry land. There are no rocks near, and only about \\ miles of harbour water, so that even with a very stormy gale it would be quite impossible for an overwhelming sea to get up. The locality resembles an inland lake, and is not open to any sea. On reading 'Wrecked on a Reef I felt very much for the poor creatures described as being perilously drawn to land through enormous breakers, and alongside of great rugged boulders, but alas for the romance—the Grafton could scarcely have gone ashore at an easier place for landing." Recording the landing at the Antipodes, the writer states "on ascending an almost precipitous ledge of rock and tussock we found a piece of totara board with the remains of an inscription, apparently marking a grave. So far as decipherable the inscription read as follows:—To the M Foster, chief officer of the Schr. Prince of Denmark, who was unfortunately drown ke the Boat Arbour 14th day of December in the 1825. We care-

fully examined this interesting and sad memento, marking the wild and lonely resting place of one who had perished on this inhospitable shore, and we hoped to glean further information concerning it when we reached the mainland. Doubtless the Prince of Denmark was a sealer which visited the island sixty-three years ago, and after our experience of the difficulty of landing we could not feel surprise upon learning that an attempt to 'take' boat harbour, for so we interpreted the inscription, had been attended with loss of life."