TRAINING AT SEA

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVI, Issue 23382, 26 June 1939, Page 13

TRAINING AT SEA

MERCANTILE CADETS

HORORATA TO BE USED REPLACING THE DEVON As one of the three sea-going cadet training ships of the British merchant service, the former Federal Line steamer Hororata will replace the wellknown cadet ship Devon in the British India Steam Navigation Company's fleet. The transfer of the Hororata from the Federal Company to the associated British India Company was announced this month. The British India steamer Nardana, also a cadet training ship, arrived at Auckland from New York yesterday with the information that the Devon is to bo withdrawn from commission.

The Hororata has had 25 years service in the trade from the United Kingdom to New Zealand and Australia. Built in 1914 as an immigrant ship, she had accommodation for 1200 passengers, and this space was taken advantage of during the war years, when the steamer served as a troop transport. After the war she was in the immigrant trade and later, for a number of years, was a cadet training ship. The Devon, of 9025 tons, was built at Dunkirk in 1915 for the Federal Lino, under which flag she served for a period as cadot training ship. She was taken over by the British India Company in 1934 and replaced the Nerbudda as one of the company's cadet vessels.

Special instruction in all branches of navigaiton and seamanship is given in the training ships, which afford a thorough education. The Nardana, under Captain Dorkin-YVliitc, has paid frequent visits to New Zealand in the course of trading which carries her round the world by varying routes usually once each year. Equally wellknown in New Zealand waters is the third of the British training ships, the Federal Line motor-ship Durham, under Captain Pilcher.