LIFE-BUOYS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 339, 15 June 1869, Page 3

LIFE-BUOYS.

Mr James Greenwood, the " amateur casual," writing to the London Star, describes a discovery he has made as to the manufacture of so-called life-buoys. Having had his suspicions aroused, he went into Shadwell, and there he found a man who made buoys: — " With a candour that contrasted queerly with the villany his statements betrayed, the Shadwell operative informed me that the buoys which are all stamped 'warranted corkwood ' are nothing of the kind, ' not one in a dozen. You couldn't do it for the money,' said my informant. ' The Jews that such aa we work for won't give more than 3s 6d or 4s each for 'em, and how much cork can you afford to stuff into 'em for that, I'd like to know?' I asked him what he could afford to stuff into his buoys at the price, and he replied ' cocoa fl|jbre mostly, sometimes straw, sometimes rushes, same as what the caulkers use; anything almost does — shavings, if you haven't got anything better.' He appeared to think that it did not matter what the canvas covers were stuffed with so long as they were well sewed and painted. I further enquired as to where the precious goods of hia manufacture might be bought, and he replied shortly * anywhere.' A_id it seemed that this was perfectly true. The neighbourhoods of Shadwell, Radcliff, and Poplar, were visited, and at each place, at a seaman's slopshop, a 'good life-buoy' was enquired for, and bought. One was branded * warranted corkwood,' one 'all cork,' and the third simply bore the word 'warranted.' They ranged in price from 6s to 7s 6cL They were all three carried home and dissected, with the following result:— No. 1 ('warranted corkwood'), when its flimsy yellow skin was slit, was discovered to consist bodily of Btraw, sparely covered with cork shavings, for the satisfaction, it is presumed, of a cautious mariner, who might feel disposed to risk a little slit in his purchase, so as to make sure of the quality before he paid for it. No. 2 ('warranted ') waa stuffed with rushes. No. 3(' all cork '), cork chips and rushes, about 20 per cent, of the former and 80 of the latter. To test the buoyant capability of the three detected impostors,' they were placed ia water, a weight of icibs being

attached to each. This was the result: — 'warranted corkwood' sank in an hour. Warranted ' stood the test for nearly two hours, and then succumbed. 'All cork' floated four hours, and then sunk from view.'