SMART OCEAN TOW.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 7867, 1 August 1911, Page 1

SMART OCEAN TOW.

DUCHESS'.TAKES ERMINIA

A. LARGE DEAD WHALE! SIGHTED. The .Wellington.Harbour Ferries, .Ltd., vtcamer Duchess, which left Wellington, .it 2.39 p.m. on Saturday with 1 the Italian barque Erminia in tow for Lyttelton, completed her, undertaking, and arrived back at Wellington at 4 p.ra. yesterday. The Italian barque put out part of her cargo of Marseilles tiles at Dunedin, and was'endeavouring to make Lyttelton with the remainder of cargo when , she; was compelled- to put in to Wellington last Thursday, for shelter. In order to keep her. engagement to load coal at Newcastle for the West Coast of Smith America it was deemed more economical to pay for a tow to Lyttelton than risk further delay. The Duchess■: started from .Wellington at 2-30 p.m. on Saturday with the Ermiuia in tow. There was a light north-, oily Hvind till abort thirty' miles oil Lyttelton heads where a fresh southwesterly broez'i was encountered. A big south-easterly roll, .the-result of the. recent stormy weather, lasted throughout the passage and. made this barque roll heavily. This imposed a severe strain ou the tow line; which comprised 30 fathoms of chain, 80 fathoms of wire, and 30 fathoms of coir spring. The lino stood the ; test without, mishap. , The barque dropped auchir in the stream at Lyttelton at 9 p.m. ou Sunday', the 175 miles haying occupiri about 18J- hours. After two hours’ rtay at Lyttelton the Duchess set out on the-return-trip at 11 p.m. oh Sunday. .Fine weathar provided with light variable winds and a slight southeasterly sea. The home run was completed at 4 p.m. yesterday, the trip occupying IT hours. . When about eight miles off the Wellington entrance yesterday afternoon a carcase of a large dead whale was sighted about a mile out of the Duchess's course. As a dead whale of the "right'-’ kind is a valuable asset the Duchess’s course was altered to pick up the carcase. The crew anticipated a harvest from the ’’lind," but they were much disappointed to discover when the vessel approached the carcase that the whale had already been stripped of the blubber, by whalers. The stench from the body was 1 overpowering, and the Duchess was quickly put on. her course ; again. Thousands of sea birds which had' ■ been gorging on the carcase were so full that they were an iblo • o rise from the water. The steamer actually ran over some of tire birds, as they could not exert themselves sufficiently ■to get out of the way. There were also hundreds of porpoises in the vicinity. Some members of the vessel’s crew were sickened by the stench, antt all hands were pleased to get out of range again.