BURNING OF THE NEW ZEALAND IMMIGRANT SHIP COSPATRICK.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume II, Issue 98, 13 March 1875, Page 7

BURNING OF THE NEW ZEALAND IMMIGRANT SHIP COSPATRICK.

The San Francisco mail steamer Cyphrenes which arrived at Auckland on Monday, brought papers containing full accounts of the terrible catastrophe which occurred on the 17th November hist when the fine ship Cospatrlck, with some hundreds of immigrants on board, bound for Auckland, was burnt at sea. The following telegraphic account of the disaster was published by the daily papers on the arrival of the mail steamer :— Tfl e following- is a copy of the deposition of Henry Macdonald, bctore the Receiver of Wrecks :— He was second mate of the ship Cospatrick. The vessel was supplied with a fixed fire engine on the forecastle head, with suction pump up and down, steam moveable nre engine with rubber suction hose, and also a considerable quantity of delivery box engines. They were in good order, and were employed m the endeavour to put otit the fire, and threw laro-e quantities of water. The vessel was well supplied with fire buckets, with lanyards attached. The vessel proceeded on her voyage, and met with fine weather and light winds. Two births occurred at i A m " ° n I'tll1 ' tll Novemi3 er. During the voyage the master's hat blew overboard, and the port boat was instantly lowered to pick it up, and returned to the vessel in a very short time. On Tuesday, 1/th November, 1874, at noon, the vessel was in lat. 37.14 S. At 12.20, the weather was fine, with the wind blowing a light breeze. The > deponent had charge of the first watch, and was relieved at midnight by the chief officer. The vessel was barely steering. About a quarter of a.n hour before midnight deponent went carefully round the upper deck, over the poop and forecastle. All was well, and there was no smell ©f fire or any other matter to attract attention. Deponent had been below about three-quarters ot an hour when he was aroused by a cry of fire. He jumped out ot liis berth and rushed on deck undressed. He met the master at the cuddy door in liis shirt. The master ordered deponent forward to enquire the cause of the alarm. Deponent rushed forward and ' saw a dense smoke coming up from the fore-cabin. The chief I onicer was getting the fire-engine to work, and the passengers and crew were all rushing on deck. The ciy was that the fire was coming up from about the boatswain's locker. Deponent returned and assisted the master to endeavour to get the ship about, but she had no steerage way. In a few minutes flames came up the fore- I castle, and the foresail was hauled up. The vessel now came up head to wind, which drove the smoke aft, the flames bursting up the fore-hatchway. The master sent for deponent, and asked if it was possible to get volunteers to see where the nre was. It was impossible, as the smoke was suffocating and deponent asked the master if he should put the boats out, and the master said, " No, but ,do what you can to put the fire out." The foremast boats by this time caught fire, and the flames were now coming up the main hatchway. Deponent sent men to clear away the boats on the sides. The starboard quarter boat was now lowered, and about 80— mostly women— put in. The davits bent with their weight, and as the boat touched the water, she turned over, and the people were all drowned. Hencoops and other moveables were thrown over, but it was of no avail to save their lives He now stationed two men at the port boat to prevent anyone lowering it except by the master's order. The officers now made an attempt to get the long boat overboard, but there was too much confusion to get proper help. Her bows caught fire and she was abandoned, and there was a rush for the port life-boat, which was lowered, and about 30 or 40 people got into her. Deponent slid down and got on board by the fore tackle. The boat was kept clear of the ship. The chief mate and a female jumped overboard and were picked up. By the time the boat got to the rear of the ship the the mainmast fell overboard. Shortly afterwards the stern blew out, then the inizzen mast fell. After first speaking to the master, deponent got the signal ammunition thrown overboard. At daylight the starboard lifeboat was found full of people. Deponent heard shouts from the officer to take charge of her. He got alongside and took charge. Thomas Lewis, A.8., Edward Cotter, 0.5., and Bently, an emigrant, also got into the boat with deponent. The gear of the remaining boats was divided between them, deponent's boat gettiooone oar and a broken one. The two boats kept company, hoverin" round the burning ship the whole day, until the afternoon of the 18th, when the ship sank. There were 30 people in deponent's boat. Deponent then kept to the north-east for the Cape of Good Hope, as did the othc • boat. The boats kept company all the 20th and 21sb of NovemL -. When it commenced to blow they separated They were without provisions or water, mast or sail, and had , uo an oar and a half. Thy wind was southerly, and by taking one of the foothnes they managed to rig a sail with the «nrl't petticoats, and so keep the boat in her course. One boat contained Baker, the emigrants' cook; the three A.B's., oneordinary seaman, and twenty-three passengers, with deponent— in all niakina- thirty people. The other boat contained the chief mate, with four ABs an ordinary seaman, the butchers, and six passengers, including one baby aged eleven days. The people rapidly sank from want of food and water. By the 25th they were reduced to eight in number, and three of these were out of their mind. On the 26th before daylight, a barque passed, which they hailed but were unseen On Friday, the 27th, they were picked up by the ship British Sceptre, of Liverpool, and the five people then remaining alive were received on board and treated with every kindness. Two, however, Eoberfc Hampton and one passenger, died

before they reached Sfc. Helena, leaving deponent, Thomas Lewis, and Edward Cotter. So far, he knew only three survivors. Deponent considers all the gear was regularly kept in the boat, and niust have got thrown out in the confusion. The oils used for the j side lights, for the lights in the cuddy, were kept in the port quarter galley. The crew, including deponent, had lucifers, which they used to light their pipes and lamps with, when necessary. The boatswain was tho only person having access to the boatswain's locker, of which he kept the key. Nothing was kept there but the stores already enumerated, and deponent does not know whether the boatswain had been there that day. There was one ordinary seaman told off to go into the coal hole every day to fill baskets, which were hoisted by the emigrants. No other person was allowed to go into the coal hole, and deponent, who used frequently to talk to him about the coals, heard no remark as to their heating or smell. He did not know how the fire originated. Signed, Henry M'Donald. Kowan Lewis, quarter-master, gave corroborative evidence, and said the boat in which he escaped remained two days by the burning vessel. They were much exhausted from thirst, and having no water or provisions, rapidly sank. He could not account for the fire. Edward Cotter deposed that when the ship caught fire, the emigrants formed a line and passed water along. The emigrants got tin dishes, and everything that could hold water, but the fire burned very fast. When the deck-house caught fire they were panic striken, and ran away, the smoke stifling them. When ' lowering the boats people were sliding down and falling into the water. In the boat after leaving the ship, all they did was to lend each other a hand about. In the boat there was not much talk. The biggest, fattest, and healthiest-looking went off first. It was not from them that blood was obtained, but from other men. Witness only ate twice ; he drank whenever a vein was opened, and felt better the last two days in the boat than before then. His great thought was of being picked up. It was cold during night, but very hot in the day. They had escaped with barely clothes to cover them. _ The ' Evening Star's ' Auckland correspondent furnishes the fol ( lowing additional particulars :—: — Tremendous excitement was caused in London by the Cospatrick news. Telegrams were received some time before tlie arrival of the steamer Nyanza with the survivors ; and when that vessel was due at Plymouth, the London journals despatched special reporters to await her arrival. These chartered special steamers, and endeavored j to board the steamer before, the Customs officer and secure a monopoly of the news. Mr Forbes, ' Daily News ' reporter, who was the first man in Paris after the siege, succeeded in first boarding tho Nyanza ; and when the others got aboard, ib was found thab Mr Forbes had disappeared wibh the survivors. When the latter turned up again, ib was found thab he had entered into a contract with them, giving the male J2IOO and tho two seamen £25 each for a monopoly of their statements for the ' Daily News.' The sailors Fold tho St. Helena papers, with a brief account at from £o to dBIG per copy. The 'Standard's' special offered Cotter, one of the survivors, <£100 to act on behalf of his journal, but the • Telegraph' held him to his agreement. Lewis, a weatherbeaten sailor, was the salvation of the party ha the boat by Ms indomitable energy. He divided into nine portions tl'e dreadful food which sustained thorn. Cotter was some time ago in the coastj ing trade of New Zealand, and was working his way out again. He j was six months on the Jane Anderson, at Port Chalmers, then on I the steamer Paterson, and afterwards worked ashore for M'Kenzie ( Bros, on the Port Chalmers and Oamaru Sailway. Shaw, SaviU's | office from Thursday .to Monday lay unopened, owing to the Christj mas holidays. The ' Star's correspondent considers that Captain I Elmslie's coolness was affected through his having his wife and family aboard. He was so agitated that he allowed some boats to burn, before his eyes, and made no attempt to provision others. i Since this catastrophe, attention has been paid to the Tintem Abbey, bound to Canterbury, of which the ' Times' says if anythinghappened to her not half the passengers could be saved.