THE GREAT EASTERN'S VOYAGE TO NEW YORK.—INTENSE EXCITEMENT AND ENTHUSIASTIC RECEPTION.

Colonist, Volume III, Issue 306, 25 September 1860, Page 2

THE GREAT EASTERN'S VOYAGE TO NEW YORK.—INTENSE EXCITEMENT AND ENTHUSIASTIC RECEPTION.

The Great Eastern steamship, which left Southampton on the morning of the 17th June, reached New York on the morning of the 28th. The following is from a correspondent on board :— At 9.55 the engines were stopped, the pilot's boat lowered, and Mr. Bowyer and his two men loft the ship. As the little boat pulled in for the shore, the order was given for both engines to go " easy: ahead," and a course was. shaped down channel.. ....With the screw making 30 revolutions, and the paddles 7h revolutions,; the ship seemed to make 12 knots with: great ease. Her draught of water at starting was 26 aft and 22 feet forward. On leaving the Needles we ran down Channel with light winds from the north-" ward, with hazy weather. No attempt was made to get anything like speed out of the ship. It was felt that in the actual condition of things the most judicious course was to go steadily .and get the men used to their work, before attempting to push the engines in the slightest degree. In fact, the object was to make; a safe rather than a speedy voyage to New York.' Monday, June 18, commenced with'light variable breezes and fine weather. Ship steaming steadily on her course, with piddles making eight revolutions and the screw twenty-seven to twenty-eight.. As we rounded the Stilly Islands the long westerly • swell. of the Atlantic became very apparent, and soon produced its natural effect. The great ship acknowledged its power by a slight but very distinct roll. , The wind had been blowing from the westward ; about 1 p.m. it got round to thejttorthward and eastward, arid began to freshen so much,as to make it worth while, to spread canvas. By midnight it blew so hard that the foresail and topsails were hauled up, and the men appeared to have much difficulty in stowing them, from the force of the wind. Tuesday, June 19, commenced with fresh gale and heavy rains. The behaviour of the ship after sail was got off her justifies the belief that the anticipation that passengers will not suffer from sea-sicknesa will be fully realised. Her motion during a blow is very distinct; but it is so slow and regular, as compared^ with an ordinary vessel, and the absence, of pitching is so decided, that the most susceptible may trust themselves to make a voyage in her, with the certainty that if they do not escape altogether, they may rely oh having their sufferings reduced to a minimum. At breakfast time, although still blowing pretty strongly, a cup of tea on the table did not roll out any of its contents into the saucer. At noon, our latitude by observation was 48 deg. 41 m. N.; long., 12 m. W.: distance ran, 340 miles. ~.,., Wednesday, June 20.—Fresh breezes from W.N.W. prevailed all the morning, ship steaming steadily against the wind, about 12 knots an hour. In the morning watch, in 'order to test "the compasses, the ship's head was turned duo north for fifty minutes, and then due south for the same period. This of course made her lose one hour and forty minutes in her direct course. Only one compass was foundto be J in any way affected by the attraction of the iron in the ship's hull. Gray's method of,counteracting deviation from this cause seems therefore to be perfectly effec- ' tive." ..''.■.■ . - Thursday, June 21, commenced with strong breezes and thick weather. Wind hauled again to the west- I ward, with heavy squalls of rain. At eight a.m. took,. in all sail. A long westerly swell this morning, which caused the ship to roll more than she had done before. The motion however, was still inconsiderable as compared with that of an ordinary vessel, and did; hot in, any way prevent the least habituated amongthe passengers from taking their usual promenade on deck. In one of the large unoccupied spaces of the lower deck a party of English and' American athletes were' discovered to be deeply engaged in an international match of skittles. Foot races have been quite popular, and the usual distance run—once round the noble deck—was found quite sufficient to "breathe" the aspirants very effectually. And peculiar and very interesting feature of the voyage has been an evening performance of choice music in the ladies' paloon. Without recording the daily speed of the vessel, and the winds and weather which prevailed, it maybe stated that she made, a southern passage to avoid meeting ice on the banks of Newfoundland. On Sunday, June 24, divine service was performed by the Rev". Thomas Castle Southey, one of <lie passengers. , Wednesday, June 27th, commenced with less fog than had been prevailing. Engines at half-speed till daylight. Towards noon fog lifted. New York pilot boat No. 1, hove in sight, to windward, ran down alongside, fired a gun, and dipped her colors—the first salute to the great ship in American waters. Our i colors hoisted and dipped in acknowledgment. From indicator diagrams taken to-day, from both screw and paddle engines'it was found that the paddle engines were working up to 3760 horse power, and; the screw engines to 3970 horse power, making a total of 7730 horse power. . ■ After dinner to-day the health of the captain was proposed by General Watkins, one of the passengers, and responded- to in very graceful terms. Subsequently, at a meeting of passengers, a memorial to the captain was unanimously adopted and signed by the passengers, expressing their conviction of the superiority of the Great Eastern as a passenger vessel, and the admiration of her pei formances during thel voyage. On Thursday, June 28, the weather was clear, inclining at times to be misty on the horizon. Ship nearing the land. At. 8.30 a.ra., the highlands of Naveeink, in New Jersey, at the entrance of the bay of New York, .were made out through the morning haze, and at 9.20 we passed the light ship off Sandy Hook, having completed the ran, without .deducting stoppages to sound and delays from fog and the,gulfstream, in eleven days two hours. • This practically ended the voyage, as the ship had to lie off the bar for water enough to get over. Notwitstanding the disadvantage under which the ship labored from the state of her bottom, she has averaged 13 knots an hour for the whole ran; . Had she come the shortest route, she would have saved a day's steaming, and avoided detention in the gulf stream. Nothing could exceed the perfect smoothnesss with which both screw and paddle engines have performed, and but for the fog and the stoppages to take soundings, they would have wotked continuously from the Needles to Sandy Hook without any necessity for interference.. A statement from official sourceß gives the following totals of the work ■performed by the paddle and screw engines—Paddle engines, 150 feet each revolution; distance in statute .miles, 3094: revolutions of engine, 164,326; statute miles run by engines, less £ slip, 4053 ; tons of coal, 1201. Density in boilers at If; Vacuum in engine-room 25£ to 26 inches; 4 ipm. 26th, 36*76 H.P. indicated. Screw engines, pitch of the screw, 44 feet; revolutions, 532,334; statute miles, less & slip, 3901; tons of coal, 1676; total coal, 2877. .Vacuum in engine-room, 25J to 26 inches. Horse power, 3976. '..;■■< The Home News says when it was known at New York that the Great Eastern was off the bar, the ferment was somethingl almost indescribable:— ! The spit at Sandy Hook was crowded with visitors, who Btood bareheaded in the fierce sun as they cheered and: waved their hats to the ship. The bell at- the lighthouse was clanging madly in honor of the oc-' casion. and signal flags of every hue and colour were drooping in the sun, though still giving an air of festi-; vity and animation, even to the arid spot over which they were expected to flutter. As the harbour opened out it could be seen covered with a perfect fleet tof yachts, which now,-favoured with a slight breeze, were skimming across the still water from all directions towards us, their flags waving, their crews cheering and shouting a welcome till they were hoarse .again. Great ferry-boats and coasting steamers, looking for all the world like a street of houses floating out to sea, with then-three tiers of windows and regular cotton roofs, came rolling slowly down—decks, roofs, and windows, all crowded with eager heads, the ladies waving handkerchiefs and clapping hands—the men , shouthing and cheering—all seeming wild with exultation and delight. Passed the shores of Staten Island, and on to the Narrows, the Great Eastern continued her stately way, every minute increasing the excitement and adding 'scores to' the numbers of yachts, pleasure-boats, and .steamers, swarming round. Every minute brought down fresh Bteamers,' each seeming more crowded and more enthusiastic than the others, and every minute added to the thousands who lined the r shore and stood bareheaded; cheering under an almost'tropical sun. Off Fort Hamilton the high compliment of a salute of 14 guns was given—the first time- that ever a merchant vessel has been saluted in America. To this distinguished honor the Great Eastern responded by stopping, and dipping her ensign replied; gunfor gun in a regular and seamanlike style., ; A; government vessel,. ,the chief revenue ship, next'ealuted and dipped her flags,

arid tlile Honor was similarly acknowledged. FWm this time out it was almost one continued roar of artillery, ringing -bells, blowing steam whistlea, shouting and clapping hands, till one was almost dizzy with the whirl and wild confusion of uproar and excitement. As she came through the Narrows, New York could be seen dimly through, the smoke and hot haze, red, dry, and baked-looking in the summer sun, with the shore lined with thousands and tens of thousands of people, and the water so covered with boats'of every size and shape that it seemed a mystery however the Great Eastern was to get through them all. The difficulty, however, was solved by the simplest of all methods, viz., that the Great P]astern kept her course, and everything else took good care to keep out of her way. As New York loomed nearer and nearer, the jangle of joy-bells could be heard from the steeples. What had seemed at a distance hut a dark line along the shore grew more and more distinct, and shewed at last to be dense masses.of human beings shouting aud waving hats as if they were> possessed^ Not only, i too was the shore thus lined, but: even the roofs of the stores and houses far and new, the rich green hills on the opposite bank, the very masts and yards of all the vessels in the Aarbor seemed literally black with countless swarms. Right in the middle of the Hudson lay the Niagara at anchor as the Great Eastern steamed up, and the former, hitherto the largest vesselin the world, seemed dwarfed to, the dimensions of a cock-boat as the huge hull of the great ship towered high over the waters, reaching almost haif-Woyiup the mast of the fine frigate. . The New York journals which have just come to hand are almost entirely filled with descriptions and .incidents of the ■ voyage of;the :Greafc Eastern. Tho ' New York Herald' publishes nearly 20 columns of particulars, heading the article with the following phrases in imposing type :—" The Tenth Wonder;" "Arrival of the Mammoth Steamship Great Eastern ?■ "The Crowning Triumph of Ocean Stearji Navigation;" " Narratives of the voyage across the Atlantic;" " The performance of .the ship aftd her machinery ;" " Her. reception at New York;" " Splendid escort of steamers, yachtsi and other craft.;" " Intense excitement throughout the metropolis;" " General turnout of the populace to welcome the big ship;" "Thunders of artillery from the torts and shipping;" " Scenes in the bay, on the battery, and along the wharfs ;" " History and dimensions of the vessel ;"■.. "Trial trips of the Great Eastern ;" •' Description of the ship, officers, and guests,' 1 &c, .. . . . . » The Great Eastern having been; cleaned and renovated was opened for public exhibition on the 3rd of July, and was visited by 1500 persons, the price admission being one. dollar. ? ' I' ' i. j