ARRIVAL OF THE BARQUE ELIZABETH GRAHAM.

Otago Witness, Issue 1155, 17 January 1874, Page 14

ARRIVAL OF THE BARQUE ELIZABETH GRAHAM.

The New Zealand Shipping Company's third arrival (counting the unfortunate Surat as one), direct from England, occurred on Sunday evening, when the barque Elizabeth Graham was to »ed in by the p.s. Geelong from the Heads, where she had been lying at anchor the greater part of the day. She comes in first-rate trim and condition, and has had a very fine although rather long passage from home. As she brought neither immigrants nor powder she was towed right up to the lower anchorage and moored between the barque Duke of Edinburgh and the steamer Mikado. She is a smart little barque, sailing under charter for the New Zealand Shipping Company, but owned by Shaw, Savill, and Co. Captain Mordue, her commander, who is on his first visit to Otago, reports having left Gravesend on the 22nd September, and favoured by a leading wind, cleared the Channel, and on the 22nd a last departure wa-s taken from tho Lizard. Off Finisterre she encountered the first and only gale of the passage. It was a downright hard blow from the South, that hove the barque to under close-reefed main topsail for twenty- four hours, and kept her under head-reach-ing canvas for two days besides. After that she bad good weather to the N.E. trades, which were met with in lat. 32, and lost in lat. 0. For the next 5 degrees, which brought the ship into 4 north latitude, excessive doldrum weather prevailed, and heavy rains. Then the S.E. trades wore picked up, but hung very much to the southward, so that the Equator was crossed rather far to the westward, in loivitude 32.32 west. The Tr.ides still keeping well south, the ship fell to loowaid of Cape San Rogue, and what between the wind and the current she could not weather it, and after a three days' thrashing match, she reerossed the Line to make easting again. This unfortunate incident lost her fully ten days, for she did not get across the Line on her way south again until 3S^ ember sth. She weathered the (Jape that time with 170 miles to spare, and had a very oood Tr.idc until it was lost in lat. 20 .south, on November 17th. A short spell of southerly weather followed, and then westerly weather set in. The meridian of the Cape was crossed on December 2nd, and the meridian of the Leuw in on the 28th December, in 45 south, between which parallel and 42 south the ship ran her easting down. She tjave Stewart's Island a wide berth on account of the thick weather that set in, and hence did not sight laud until the Nuggetloomed up on Saturday morning last. She was off Cape Sauudars at daylight yesterday, and at the Heads bj S a.m. No vessels were sighted during the passage until she was off the coast, when the ship Lady Jocelvn and the barque India wore seen on Saturday morning a little south of the Nuggets. Amongst the good things brought out by the Elizabeth Graham are seven valuable Leicester sheep, out of twelve that were shipped at London, five of them having died on the way.