THE ANTIPODES WRECK.

Lyttelton Times, Volume LXXX, Issue 10215, 8 December 1893, Page 5

THE ANTIPODES WRECK.

SOME DETAILS OF THE DEPOTS,

The Government steamer Hinemoa arrived In Fort yesterday morning from Dunedin, having on board the survivors of thewreoked barque Spirit of- the Dawn, who were rescued from the Antipodes.: Island after having spent sighty-thres days there. The whole of the survivors, : with the exception of the half-oasts Indian boy, who was left In the Dunodia Hospital with frost-bitten feet, are in good , health. Dating the afternoon a large number of people went on board ’ the . steamer and engaged in conversation with the castaways. The whole of tkie moo looked in excellent health, and would ' certainly not strike one as having lived iot nearly three months on the raw flesh of penguins and their eggs, Our shipping, reporter, during the course of a , few minutes’ pleasant- chat with Captain, Fairchild, gleaned some details of thf working of the depfifcs, and how tbeycame to be established. Captain Fairchild; it may be observed, is a perfect .walkingencyclopaedia on matters appertaining to thf-. maritime history of New Zealand daring the past fifty years, and nothing-delights the genial skipper more than’ to b» given the opportunity of relating some of the many and varied experiences he has under* gone on the out-of-the-way islands,to tbs southward of New Zealand, which, have , been the scenes of eomany sad casualties, - and, it is to be feared, untold suffering on the part of castaway crews. /, In reply to a question as to / . - ;I HOW THE DEPOTS CAME TO BE ESTA»*. - :: LISHBD, . . Captain Fairchild ; explained that - tbs. ; idea was ongiuated ;by the Southland- ■ Provincial Government after tha wreck of the General Grant in 1866. The Govern* ment then put several cases of. clothing and provisions on the Auckland Island;, leaving them just above high-water mark, . in places : where ;• they .would be likoly to meet the notice of shipwrecked marinate Then, when the Provincial Government days passed, away, the idea was t&kaa up in real earnest, several wrecks having occurred in the meanwhile and demonstrated in a most forcible manner. thf necessity of some such provision being made. The Government then had - HUTS BUILT on all the islands which belong to thf Colony. The Auckland Island, where the General Grant, Derry Castle, Inreircauld. and other vessels are known to have mar their fate, besides probably os many more which have left no, trace behind them, hoe two dep6ts. The island is about thirty ■ miles long, and the store-rooms contain everything that the long experience tad foresight of such a genuine mariner'M Captain Fairchild can suggest from • - A NEEDLE AND THEEAD 4 to a rifle and ammunition with which to shoot the cattle and sheep which have been liberated there as additional -food l supply in cose of necessity. The Hinemoa makes periodical trips at intervals ol! about six months to each island, and Captain Fairchild examines the depdts and leaves a record of tho steamer’s visit aud also when she may be expected to call again. A chart of the islands and the positions of the various depdts is also provided, while in different parts of the island finger-posts have been erected, indicating - the existence of the depdts and the di£ tance. Every voyage of the Hinemoa brings to light some additional requirement to make the provisions complete, and the experience of the Spirit of the Dawn*a men shows that ADDITIONAL FINGEB-BOSTa ABE EBQUIBBD. It is Captain Fairchild’s intention to endeavour to have a sufficient number of these provided, so that in the future any mariners who may bo cast away on-the islands cannot fail to find their way to the aroze-rooms. Captain Fairchild- ia-a thorough believer In the old adage, 5‘H» - thing is worth doing at all, . it’s worth doing well,” and his hobby is now to have CHIMNEYS AND FIREPLACES’ ■ built to each dep6t. That the authorities will see their way to fall in with each a suggestion is no doubt the earnest wish of all those who have the least care for the large section of the community who “go down to the sea in ships.”’ It wag remarked that at the present-time every island over which New Zealand has control is supplied with these’ store-rooms. However, there is one group, viz., tha’ Macquaries, which was annexed by-Tas-mania in the year 1881, which is not ao provided. The New Zealand Government at one time contemplated erecting a depdt there; and, if we mistake not, the material for the building of the store-rooms was ready on board the Hinemoa when Tasmania quietly hinted that it would be as ’ well for New Zealand to mind her own business. Thus the matter was dropped, and the Macquaries still remain the only island npon which a depdfc for castaway mariners is not provided. Public opinion should demand that this should not con.tinue, and if the sister Colony ta prepared to NEGLECT AN OBVIOUS DUTY, then a Colony with a better eensa of its responsibilities should be given control of the group. The experience of the survivors of the Derry Castle and Compadre should be sufficient evidence of-tho necessity of such provision. .. A CHAT WITH THE CASTAWAYS. Leaving Captain Fairohild our reporter had a few minutes’ conversation with, some of the survivors, who spoke in the highest possible terms of praise of the kindness accorded them on the Hinemoa. Questioned as to their reasons for not making: a thorough examination of the island; it was pointed out that they were bat poorly clad and fed, rain was falling, or a thick dense fog enveloped the island almost continually. This, together with the fact that only four of them had-boots, put a somewhat different aspect upon what appeared in the first instance to be an unexplainable omission. They farad well enough as soon as the penguins come to the island, which was about amonfch after they landed. The first month of their stay on the island proved a most trying time, but after that the whole company put on flesh wonderfully. It might be added that the penguins go to the islanda at set times of the year, and the probability , is that if the men bad been castaway a month earlier they would have starved to death. . . [Peb Pbess Association.! DUNEDIN, Dec. 7. At the meeting called by the Mayor to consider the. case of the castaways ol tho Spirit of the Dawn, it was decided, in view of the steps already taken by the Government, that there was no necessity for p-.airing any organised effort to raise subscriptions. The Mayor was requested, to keep a watchful eye over the half-caste lad Hewbert, at present in the hospital.