PERILOUS VOYAGE OFTHE SHIP DEN VOIRLICH.

Grey River Argus, Volume XXXI, Issue 5304, 26 September 1885, Page 2

PERILOUS VOYAGE OFTHE SHIP DEN VOIRLICH.

&*•-- The iron dipper ship Ben Viorlich, from London with general cargo, arrived in Hobson s Bay a few days ago. On the j. voyage the Ben Viorlich has passed | through one of the most stormy periods I «vermet with in her career, and it was \ owing in no small degree to he presence t of mind of Captain Martin, and Scott, one '■ of the men at the wheel, that the ship was raared from being dismasted, if not .entirely lo3t. On August 6, rough weather commenced. The ship was then in lat. 40deg. 28min. S., and lon. 19deg. E; At ft. 1 a.m. on that day the wind increased in p force, and the barometer fell rapidly. I-' Canvas was reduced to the lower main and ; fore topsails, and fore-sail. At Bam a *■ frightful squall from W.N.W. burst over |he vessel, and blew away the foresail. The truasband of the forayard also carried ) away in the squall, and s«me tr< u'le was i experience-! in securing it; "At 10 a.m. the gale rayed with greater violence than b*£*e, ;md there was a high *Ba- : a]l r<und. The sens came crush- - ;«n|^: inboard on ..very side, and the ;v? water was flush from rail to rail. The |i device of pouring oil on the surging $ wafcHrs was triad, but the seas were of |^ «nclfe force and volume that the beneßt of < the application was not apparent. , At 1 a.m., while the ship was sailing before a -:• hurricane, und«r her lower fore and main f topsails, she shipped a fearful sea, which ;:• washed two men from the wheel, and A Captain Martin; who was at the after taffj rail, was nearly swept overboard. He was r driven, and Scott, one of the men, along with him, against the hencoop at the break* of the poop with such force as to smash it to pieces. On recovering themselves, they made a dash for the wheel, which, unI fortunately, was found smashed in two, \ and hanging by the brass rim which bound £ it. Scott held the wheel, while Captain $■'■ Martin wrenched the broken half away, ; and the ship was prevented from broaching to. Had this occurred, nothing could have prevented the masts being wrung out of her, and there would have been loss of life as well as destruction of property. ' Theother sailor, a foreigner, whowas at the wheel, rushed into the mizzen riggings and , lecuredhur self there. The seas continued to break over the ship without let or hindrance, and poop ladders, hen coops, ; and harness casks full of moat were washed away. The port lifeboat on the skids aft was smashed beyond recognition. The &.. standard compass and the steering comK pass, aa well as the bridge, were all carried p away^and the t pgallant bulwarks suffered gf considerably. AH the braces had to be H worked from the forecastle head. At 2 |; p.m. +he lower foretopsail was stowed, I and the ship brought to the wind en the . port tack, under the ley-clew of the lower maintopsail. The hurricane gave no indifi cation of abating,' and the ship lay to all : lurching, and laboring heavily. At I da^Ughtnext mdrnirg the wheel was fixed t-l with lasfi|nga r and repaired as well as i could be under the circumstances. The V wind, in the meantime, had shifted to | ; S.W., and the weather had moderated. At 10 a.m., the lower fore and main topsails were set, and a new foiesail was bent. At 11 a.m., the ship was kept away on her course. The barometer during this fx-ite wifi tfown to 28.20. Duriuu tliis uu*,:w.iv Uit, sec ud c=t.lji>i pa^stji'/ers t.ii<--ii ait, iest the | deckhouse, where they were berthed, W might be driven in or washed clean away.