ARRIVAL OF THE MAIL STEAMER MIKADO.

Grey River Argus, Volume XIV, Issue 1704, 20 January 1874, Page 2

ARRIVAL OF THE MAIL STEAMER MIKADO.

The unexpected appearance of a large steamer off the Heads late yesterday afternoon excited a great deal of surprise and curiosity, no vessel of the class of the stranger being expected. She loomed up over the Spit, and showed four masts and a huge smoko stack, and was altogether different in appearance to any boat that had ever visited these waters. She was not signalled, and hence until she was boarded from the shore it was not known, that she was tho Mikado, one of the line ol' steamers for the new European mail service, via California. The Mikado has for some time been advertised to leave Sydney on the 13th January, and the mails for England that -were despatched north in the Taranaki on Thursday were certainly expected to find her at the Island of Kandavu. That, however, can scarcely happen, the Mikado being here, and that she is s > is due to the fact of a considerable "cargo, and 536 Chinese passengers, having shipped at Hong Kong for this port. They have arrived here, the one in presumed good condition, and the other healthy, and to all appearance none the worse for their voyage. Indeed, it would have been surprising if they were otherwise, seeing that the accommodation provided for them -was superior to anything of the kind we ever inspected in a Chinese passenger ship. Each man had his bunk, whilst the cooking appliances were ample, and provisions abundant. Only three European passengers arrived in her -one being the son of the Hon. John Bathgate, of this city. The Mikado is a magnificent vessel, bran new, having only left Liverpool on her first voyage on the 31st of August last. She belongs, to Mr John M'tiregor, of Leith, from which port she hails, and was built for the trade between San Francisco and China to run in the Pacific Mail Company's service. She was under contract to that Company, but some difficulties arising in respect to subsidising mails in a British bottom, the contract was annulled by mutual consent, and the Mikado was thus free to enter upon any other line of service. She had not long to wait, for she was very soon afterwards chartered to run in the new mail line between the Colonies and San Francisco. The Mikado has proved herself to be a fast boat by making the quickest run on record between Liverpool and Hong Kong via Suez. She left the Mersey ou the 31st August; passed through the Suez Canal, called at Penang and Singapore, and arrived at Hong Kong on the sth day of October, thus doing the distance in 35 days 8 hours, her average speed bei"g 114 knots. She lay at Hong Kong until Sith December, and then left with the passengers and cargo above alluded to. Sighted the Island of Formosa on the second day out ; crossed the Line on the 23rd December; and made the East Cape of New Zealand on the 6th January. She had a fine weather run, and though she came by the eastern passage, no land was sighted save Formosa. From the East Care she ran to Banks' Peninsula by 7 p.m. on the Bth, sighted Gtago Heads at 2 30 p.m. on the 9th, and arrived at the anchorage, in charge of Pilot Kelly, at 630 p.m. The Mikado is a steamer of 1992 tons register, and 3034 tons gross measurement. She is 386 ft long over all, and 30ft main beam, with 20ft depth of hold. She is of iron throughout, even to her 'tween decks, which are laid with that metal, and is fitted up with the latest improvements in gearing, ffttings, &c. She is fitted with one pair of compound vertical direct acting surface condensing engines, built by John and James Thompson, of Glasgow, in 1872-3. The diameters, respectively, of the cylinders are 62in and 89in, length of stroke 4ft, and nominal power 400 horse, but capable of working up to nearly 1500. She was originally built in two decks, but subsequently a hurricane deck that runs from her taffrail quite two-thirds of her length forwards, was added. Her register states that she lias accommodation for 108 saloon passengers,' 87 second-cabin passengers, and 666 fore-cabin passengers.— Otago Daily Times.