Wreck of the Penguin

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLII, Issue 7, 17 February 1909, Page 9

Wreck of the Penguin

FOUNDERS OFF TERAWHITI. /VER SEVENTY DROWNED. WELLINGTON, Saturday. News of one of the most sensational wrecks which have ever taken place on the coast of New Zealand reached Wellington to-day, when the information was flashed through that the Union Steamship Company's steamer Penguin was wrecked, with great loss of life, at Cape Terawhiti last night. Capt. Naylor’s statement is that he left Pieton at 6,20 last night, and entered the Strait at 7.50 pan. The weather was dear at the time. Half way across there was a change, and the weather became very thick. He set a course which would keep him well clear of the land, allowing for a southerly set a course expecting to pick up Penearrow light, as he could not «ee it: He was in the act of putting the vessel's head out, down the Strait, to see where he was, when the Penguin struck at ten o'clock on Thom’s Rock, the outlying obstruction of Terawhiti. The Penguin struck about midships on the starboard side. The pumps were set to work, and the well sounded; and it was found that water was making in the Nos- 1 and 2 holds. The water gained slowly on the engine-room pumps. The life-boats were swung out, and the women and children sent away. A very heavy sea was running, and the first boat was immediately smashed, but the occupants were all got on board, and transferred to another boat. There was plenty of time to get the boats away, but at 3 mins, to 11, ths steamer sank bodily. The captain and several of the crew were still on the deck, and had to launch the rafts and jump for them. The captain succeeded in reaching a broken boat and got ashore on it. On the way he picked up a man, but lost him coming over the reef. Two of the rafts landed about midnight, and neither had seen any of the boats. The captain, however, did not succeed in getting ashore till an hour and a-half before daylight. He found the men on the rafts being eared for by Mr. McMenamin, a resident ih the locality. He was on the bridge all the way, and the third officer was with him. He cannot account for the disaster except on the theory that he was eartried in by a heavy swell and southerly sea. The Penguin was an iron steamer of a registered tonnage of 824 tons, and ■ was built at Glasgow in 1864. Despite the fact that she has been running for nearly half-a-eentury, the Penguin was looked upon as one of the strongest built boats trading in New Zealand. Her length was 220 ft. breadth 28.5, and depth 14.4. The Penguin was chiefly engaged upon the VVellington-Nelson-Picton trade, but occasionally replaced the Takapuna or Rotoiti in the run between Wellington and Onehunga. Captain Naylor, the master of the vessel, was originally chief officer on the Tarawera.

LIST OF PASSENGERS SAVED. Only 13 passengers are believed to have been saved. The names of those saved are:— AIRS HANNAN HOPKINS, 808 JACK, ROBT. ELLISON, W. H. GREEN, GERALD BRIDGE, T. ALLEN MATTHEWS < a lad) FRANK SHAW, L. T. HOGG. P. PERKINS, RIGGS. MILLAR, C. E. DOWNES. NAMES OF CREW SAVED. The following are the names of the ;rew saved:— CAPTAIN NAYLOR, Second Engineer, MR LUKE. Purser, MR THOMPSON. Stewards: R. WATTS, KEYS, HULL, C. JONES, W. REES, D. McCORMACK, D. FRANCIS. A.B.’s: JACKSON AND FARRELL. 0.5., SNELLGROVE. Greasers: PIERRIE AND WICKTOUN. Cook: LYNN. LIST OF DROWNED AND MISSING. The following are either dead or missing:— THE PASSENGERS (44). MRS. BRITTAN MRS HART MRS. BISHOP MRS. TOOM ER

MRS. HALE .MRS. W. R. SYMONDS AND TWO < MILDREN MISS DORAN MISS McALLEY MISS RIBBANDS MISS HUNT .MISSES MAGUIRE (3, MISS IVY TOOMER MISS ALICE TOOMER MISS C LUNE - MISS NODINE MISS JESSIE RENNIE MISS AMELIA HANNAN MISS RUBY MAY" HANNAN MR. BIRD MR. H. G. BONE MR. COURTNEY MR. HALE MR. SYLVESTER HOLCROFT MR. HOLMES MR. HAROLD UNDERWOOD MR. NOD WHITE AIASTER TROADEC MR. EDWARD COUMBB MR. JOHNSON MR. WHARTON MR. SHAW i Melbourne) MR. KEITH (Cape Williamson) MR. SEED MR. ROGERS MR. E. MATTHEWS MR. HANNAN MR. W. HIGGINS HENRY MASTER RONALD E. HANNAN MASTER GEORGE A. HANNAN MASTER MAGUIRE. OFFICERS AND CREW (28). W. A. McINTYRE, chief officer F. DRISCOLL, second officer G. A. LOOSEMORE third officer 11. URQUHART, chief engineer W. S. RENTOUL, third engineer C. ALEXANDER, chief steward ' , B. WATTS, second steward ERNEST CROOK, saloon waiter G. CLAYDON, saloon waiter

M. KEYS, forecabin steward EDWIN HALL, second cook HENRY MeGUIRE, scullion man C JONES, first pantryman WELLUM, second pantryman COOKE, messroom steward T. HAYES, boatswain C. W. ESTACOTT, A.B. BOWMAN, A.B. E. GALE, A.B. HENDERSON, A.B. G. GOFFRU, donkeyman RAFFERTY, greaser C. FAIRBAIRN, fireman S. WARD, fireman HENRY LEGGY, trimmeBARNES, trimmer .MRS. C. JACOBS, saloon stewardess MRS. HOPE, forecabin stewardess. THE BODIES IDENTIFIED. The total number on board was 105, and only 30 were saved. The following is a list of identified bodies:— THE PASSENGERS. MRS. MARY' BRITTAIN, Blenheim. MR. C. BIRD, Wellington. MR. 11. E. BONE, Wellington. MR. J. BATES. MRS. BISHOP AND CHILD, Wellington. MISS MARY' A. DORAN, Wellington. MRS. L. EVANS, Kaponga, Taranaki. MR. C. H. HALE, Wellington. AIR. AND MRS. W. 11. HENRY, Kelburne. MISS JENNIE HUNT, Island Bay. MR. HANNAN AND FOUR CHILDREN, Tadmor, Nelson. MASTER MAGUIRE, Wellington. MISSES MAGUIRE (3), Wellington. MISS MARION McALLEY, Avondale, Randwick. MISS CLARA NODINE, Ka.roii. MISS JESSIE RENNIE, Wellington. MISS D. RIBBANDS, Sydney. MR. ROGERS, Newtown, Wellington. MR. SEED, Rangiora. MR. WHARTON SHAW, Melbourne.MRS. W. R. SYMON, Wellington. (.MISSES SYMON (2), Wellington. MRS. AND MISS ALICE TOOMER, • Berhampore. MRS. TRICE, Newtown." GUSTAV TROADEC, Nelson College. KEITH H. C. WILLIAMSON, Christchurch . FELIX WOODWARD. Brisbane. OFFICERS AND CREW. G. A. BARNES, trimmer. ERNEST COOKE, steward. C. FAIRBAIRN, fireman. EDWARD GALE, A.B. MRS. ANNIE HOPE, forccabln stewardess, Wellington. MRS. Ck JACOBS, stewardess, Newtown. W. A. McINTYRE, chief officer, Tasmania. JOHN RAFFERTY, greaser. STANLEY RENTOUL, third engineer. R. URQUHART, chief engineer, Wellington. THOMAS WOODFORD, A.B. JOHN WOOD (shipped as John Ward), fireman. WELLUM, second pantryman. H. WOOD, fireman. UNUSUAL CONDITIONS. NELSON, Saturday. Captain Stewart, of the Pateena, when interviewed this morning, said he left Wellington at 6 o’clock last evening for Nelson direct. The weather was thick with a moderate southerly gale. The land at times was wholly obscured and he did not see the Penguin. Captain Stewart had expected a moderate ebbtide, but had not experienced it. He was not disposed to lie communicative about tides, but enough was gathered to show that the conditions were very unusual. Captain Vickerman, of tl.i Anchor Company’s steamer Kennedy, -which left Wellington at 6.30 last night, said that ■when off Terawhiti at 9.30 he passed a steamer about live miles off the shore. He supposed it to bo the Penguin. The steamer was going slow, and the weather was very thick at the time.

BODIES COMING ASHORE. WELLINGTON, Saturday. For two miles the beach is strewn with wreckage. Pieces of the vessel, cabins, seats, cushions, and upholstery of every kind are floating about on the water and distributed over the sands. Not a vestige of the vessel itself remains, and it is absolutely impossible to determine where she struck. Even the men who were interviewed said they did not know, but one hazarded the opinion that it was cn Tom s Rock. The bodies, of which sixteen or seventeen have already boon recovered, are coming ashore in a little Imy to the west of AlcAlaneinin’s homestead. The sight on the beach is one which would never be forgotten. Three lifeboats are thrown up on the sand and one raft is also high and dry. Wreckage and the fourth lifeboat are floating about in the breakers. The sea is running very high ami the weather is very cloudy and misty. Just round a forbidding looking bluff WOMAN S AWFUL EXPERIENCE UNDER CAPSIZED BOAT. Mrs Joe Hannan, the only woman who survived the wreck, told a very lieartrending story to a "Times'’ reporter, her four children being all drowned before her eyes. "My husband," Mrs Hannan said, "was working on the railway in the South Island, and he latterly contracted consumption, so we booked our passages by the Penguin, taking our four children with us, our intention being to go to Rotorua, fo see if it would do my husband any good. At about 10 o’clock on Friday night we heard a bump, and a little later the stewardess came down and told us to get ready, as the boat was sinking. We all rushed oa deck, and I was told to get into one of the boats, which was being got ready. ■f refused to leave my husband and children, but they forced me into the boat, separating me from Mr Hannan, but my children were with me. “Just as they went to lower the boat the tackle falls gave way. and the boat went down head first into the water. All my children were drowned except the youngest, two years old. which I had lashed to one 'of the seats. Nobody seemed to have time to rescue the children, but I suppose that could not be helped. There were six women in the boat, and I should think somewhere near the same number of men. We got safely away from the ship. The saloon stewardess (Mrs. Ja.cobs) helped us before we got into the boat. She was a brave woman; she did everything, got blankets and wrapped tie up, and was calm and collected, and didn’t flurry ns in the least. "When the tackle falls gave way. I heard one of my children culling. "Oh, mummy, mummy, help us!’ But, God knows, we were powerless to do anything. Aly husband was on the deck, and I said to him, when we parted. 'Cheer up, father'; he replied. 'Good-bye.’ That was the last. We drifted about, and during the night we saw one of the rafts quite close to us. We eooeed, and tried to get up to it, but could not. We must have been some hours in the boat. We could see the rocks ahead of us, ami we tried to keep off them. "We drifted about, it -eemeil for hours, everybody straining at the oars and trying to avoid the reefs. My poor little iiaby was then still alive, and I realised it was all I had left in the world. The boat was filling with water, ami those not rowing kept baling out the water for their dear lives, but we could not, cheek the inflow, and we realised it was only a matter of time when the boat would be right awash. We knew by the rexwing of the ttreakers that we were close on the surf, and. pull as we eoulJ. wo were unable to keep the boat with her head to the sea. Suddenly an enormous wave struck ns side on, and the boat capsized. Everybody was thrown into the sea, but I managed to g’.i-p a rope. and. God alone know- how. I hung on. A young boy i Ellis Matthews) was lloating near me. and I got a rope to him and helped him to make himself secure .athwart of the eap-ized boat-. Wc were right, underneath the boat. but the air must have forced the water out. and while the bottom of the boat stood out of the water we elung on with our heads towards th<’ floor of the boat. We were thus enabled to breathe. We were really imprisoned between the keel of the boat audikthe seats, the boat still lloating all tins time upside down. It seemed that we were floating about for hours, until

Anally we were washed up on to tao bvavb. *• We were.” continued Mrs. Hannan, •‘still under the boat in its capsized con clitiuii, pinned in under the thwarts. Of course the water wa< very shallow, but the spent waves continued to lap right up to our bodies. We had* no way of getting out. My poor little baby had in the meantime died from the shock ant exposure. 1 think the lifebelt must have choked her. Eventually 1 heard the voices of the station shepherds, who lifted up the boat anti gut us out, and we were taken to the homestead.” BRINGING IN THE DEAD. W E LLI NG TO N, M o nd ay. An awe-stricken crowd <?1 people gathered at the Drill Hall in Buckle-street to iwitness the infinitely pathetic spectacle of loads of bodies being brought in from Miramar in vehicles. The faces of the drivers of the vehicles spoke of the seriousness of their mission, and as the crowd parted to allow the vehicles to pass into the shed through the folding doons, mere curiosity gave place to reverence, and (hats were doffed a>n»l women paled and stood appalled. The police kept th? door sternly, and no one who was not a rela•five or friend of any of the dead was allowed to enter, so that those of morbid •tendency and others desiring the mere experience of witnessing an unprecedented sight were debarred. Inside there were improvised tables running the whole length of each side of he building. All the corpses had been carefully sewn in blankets, sails, pieces of canvas, and other coverings that were •available. and so. happily, it wa<s impossible to see the poor faces that were (bruised and discoloured by the terrible •buffeting the victims had undergone previous to death. Dr. Frenglcy and a stall of helpers. attired in white overalls, twere busy spraying the corpses with a strong solution of formalin, and the fact ft hat it was absolutely necessary to treat •the occasion as one for business-like promptitude and quiet effort had a calming influence on those unhappy people who were permitted to enter in order to see if among the many unidentified •bodies there were any of their loved' ones. •' All th? afternoon there were conveyances coming ami going through the folding doors, a>nd each one bore a burden of heart rending interest. Sometimes an express came in with a load of coffins, ithen there was one containing the corpses of four 1 title children. Corpses were being loaded from the table-* to the carta a-* undertakers arrived to take charge of bodies for friends or relatives of the deceased. It is remarkable that of the many women who visited the sad temporary •morgue none showed any weakness in <the actual death chamber, but many having once got outside utterly broke down and sobbed convulsively. strong men, too, were prostrated, and some were leaning up against th? fences in Bucklestreet trying with indifferent success to appear unconcerned. In some cases In)th men and women were led a wav by friends whose physical .support was necessary. There were tense moments when some of the numerous undertakers undid It he sewing of a cover in order that an inquirer might see the features beneath and decide, if possible, whether they ■were those of the dead friend he sought. FUNERAL OF THE VICTIMS. WELLINGTON, Tuesday. The narrow streets round the Drillshed In Binkle street were parked this morning with people anxious to see the public funeral accorded to the victims of the Penguin disaster. First in order was a lorry with four coflins containing the remain-, of the Maguire children. On the lorrv was -.rated a lift I? boy, the only one left of the family. It was [receded ■by a band, and followed by a large number of personal friends. Behind came five lorries, each with two coffins, all covered in flowers. These fourteen were all that started from the Hall, I mt numerous private ftiperals are arranged tor at the same time, and also a t other hours throughout the day. The Government was represented by Dr. Findlay. The Mayor of Wellington and the officials of the Union Company were also presentA long cortege of cabs, expresses, and people on foot made up a train half a mile long. The day is bright and warm. The following caskets left the Drill? 6hed:— E. Gale. J. Rafferty, Miss Rich•rds, Welluni Ernest Vrooke, Keith Cape

Williamson. Barnes 11. Wood, T. Woodford, Felix Woodward, and four ottiers, making fourteen in all. Through crowded streets, headed by the Mission Band, the procession went. After the band was a lorry drawn by two horses bearing four w trite coffins draped with colours and decked With wreaths. Five waggons succeeded each other, bearing two black coffins, also shrouded in naval ensigns. These were chiefly members of the crew lost in the wreck. They were followed by their sailor friends, bareheaded. The procession was brought up by a large number of eabs containing leading citizens and relatives of the deceased. Many people followed afoot, and many walked alongside. The large crowd was very quiet, very orderly, and intensely sympathetic. At the Cemetery several thousands of people had gathered, and the police had considerable difficulty in keeping the way clear for the cortege. The burial services were extremely brief, the whole ceremony being carried out as quickly as possible. A TRUE PHILANTBOPIST. WELLINGTON, Monday. Mr McManenrin, the owner of Terawhiti sheep station, is a truly philanthropic man. He gave all the spare clot lies he had to the Penguin's survivors on Saturday morning, and now only possesses one suit. He has not even a pair of boots to his name. When seen by a "Times” reporter yesterday, at the homestead, lie mentioned casually, not thinkfitg that it would be published, that the pair of slippers he was wearing was the only footwear he now possessed. The Inion .Steamship Company, Mr McManenrin said, deserved great credit for the expeditious manner in which they sent out food, spirits, and blankets. Captain Naylor should also be commended for his unselfishness amongst the survivors. When those who were rescued came up to the homestead all the clothing and boots that could be scraped together were placed at the men's disposal, but the captain refused to take a stitch until everybody else was satisfied. “I would like yon to give the captain a notice about it,” he said. “I think lie deserves praise. - As to the police, they did excellent work, especially the two mounted men, Sims and Gardener, who were the first to arrive. They kept at their task all day Saturday, mid had the heaviest of the work done before the other men arrived from town. I really can’t speak too highly of the mounted police. Late on Sunday night one of them rode down to Oterangi station for me, with a message, and that was a big job for a piteh-black night, along five miles of treacherous beach.” Asked where he thought the Penguin actually struck, Mr McManemin said ‘ I'll tell you where I reckon it was—certainly not on Tom’s Rock. The wreckage was going to far south for that. I consider it was Luna Rock. This rock was named by Captain Fairchild, of the Government steamer Luna. A lot of people say no such rock exists. It is certainly submerged at all times, but I think it is there all the same. It lies to the north of Sinclair Head, between that point and the Karori Reef. She could not be on Karori Reef —the wreckage shows this to be. the case. If she got on to Tom’s Rock some of the wreckage would have drifted against the wind, ami tide to get where it was washed up. so that explodes the Toni’s Rock theory. There is plenty of wreckage south of Tom’s Rock, and with the south-easter it could never have got there if she had struck that point.” Speaking about boat operations in the surf at the homestead. Mr Manemin said the beach could only be worked in dead calm weather or in a nor'-west wind or a very light southerly. He emphasised the fact, however, that no matter how rough the weather or what the direction of the wind, surf boats manned by experienced men could always get out when the tide was receding. “I consider.” he concluded, ‘‘that the boats could have worked the lieaeli on Sunday when the tide was running out.” EXPERIENCES OF A RAFT. WELLINGTON, Monday, Mr. G. Bridge, one of the passengers who was saved, in the course of an interview, said: — “I, with others, went aft to the poop deck, and assisted in getting the longbeat out, under directions from an offi-

cer. This was done successfully, and the boat, with the rest of the women passengers and the stewardess was lowered without accident. Just after they, push ed off, however, those in the boat discovered that there was no bucket with which to bale if necessary, and they sang out to us to throw them one. We could not in the darkness find one, and just then it was plainly manifest that, the vessel was sinking fast, being already very much down Ly the head, so that the boat had to go oft’ without one. We then turned our attention to the rafts, which were on the poop deck. All hands gave their attention to the port raft first, and hauled it clear of the rigging and then threw it over the side into the sea. Some 20 persons, including an officer, then jumped into the sea after it, but only 11 of these, as was afterwards proved, could have got aboard, the rest ■being drowned. ‘‘This left eight of us aboard, exclusive of the captain, who, I think, was on the bridge. We all cut the lashings of the raft, but there was a heavy list to starboard, and we found we could not shift the raft, as it was too heavy for us, so we all hung on to the raft by any means available, such as lifelines, etc., I myself clutching the woodwork of it, All of us knew that the vessel would founder in a few minutes, but before even this short period had passed the ship suddenly shot forward and downward and sank. As the vessel lurched forward the raft slid a yard or two and got caught in the starboard rigging, and as we took the water the raft was pulled under and capsized, throwing us all into the sea. We were at once sucked down in the vortex, but as tl.e vessel dived down in a slanting direction by the bows it took away the full force of the suction aft, so that though we seemed to go down an awful distance, still with the force of the suction removed our lifebelts brought us up again. I came up, together with one of the crew, underneath the raft, and we kicked and struggled together till we got dear, and were able to come to the-sur-face, a yard or so away front the raft, when we both soo ngot aboard it, and then helped others to do likewise until we were all accounted for. “Gradually we lost sight of the other raft, the boat, and all wreckage, and ■huddled together, 12 of us, on our narrow raft, all the while dinging on like grim death. We drifted in a north-west direction, towards Terawhiti, and out to sea, all the time battered by tremendous seas, which broke continually all over us. After a while, some of us sang a bit to cheer the others. Fortunately, as it turned out, after what seemed a fearful long drift seawards, a special current, or a turn of the tide, brought us once more in towards land, and eventually we sighted land, and shortly afterwards some outstanding rocks. “Almost immediately afterwards a ire. raendous sea upended the raft towards the land and threw us all into the water ■once more, leaving us to battle .for life. We all regained the raft, and got on board, but. one man would have been lost but for a rope hanging behind the raft, which had been turned right side up again. This rope floated out towards him. and cheered by us all Ke managed to grab it. We then haulgd him aboard. That sea and capsize, however, really saved our lives, for it brought us into calmer water inside a reef, but we lost our plank, and so had to drift over ledges of rock and on to small reef ends until we came right longside the main line of rotks, connecting with the ,shcre, alongside o fwliich was deep, still water. One of us got on* to these rocks, and held raft by the rope, when the others got safely ashore, one by one, there being no bustling or hurry, as we felt we were now perfectly safe.”