The Wreck.

On her eighth voyage to Auckland, the "Ida" was under the command of an old favourite in Auckland, Captain Sellars. After discharging passengers and cargo, she sailed for Napier to load wool during the month of February, 1868. She had taken in a portion of her cargo, when, with very little warning, she was driven ashore at low water about noon; at 4 p.m. the masts went overboard, and two hours later the ship was a hopeless wreck, the crew having a narrow escape of losing their lives.

Fortunately for the port of Napier prior to the building of the breakwater, "a black north-easter," such as that which blew during the night of February 26th and the morning of the 27th, 1868, was of rare occurrence, but when it did come, the danger to shipping lying in the roadstead was imminent. True it is that substantial moorings were laid, and they no doubt stood in good stead in saving many a fine vessel from the fate that befell the Ida Zeigler. It was during the night of February 26th the gale started which drove the "Ida" ashore. The following morning it increased with, heavy squalls. The ship had no anchor down at this time; she was attached to the moorings only by one chain, on which was fifty fathoms of cable, as well as forty-five fathoms of the mooring cable. The ship rode on the single cable till 9 a.m., when, finding the wind and sea increasing, Captain Sellars let go the port anchor, and veered away on both with about eighty-five fathoms on the starboard chain, and thirty on the port. During a heavy squall the ship parted her starboard cable. Efforts were made to heave this cable in, but while this was being done the ship struck the ground heavily aft five or six times. Captain Sellars had taken soundings both before and after letting go the port anchor, and had found the depth to be 4½ fathoms. The ship was drawing over eighteen feet. Referring to the disaster, the "Auckland Star" published the following details:—"It was during the night that the gale rose to its greatest intensity, and the morning showed the bay a mass of foaming waves, which were breaking high over the vessel till 11 o'clock, when she was observed to be drifting shore-wards. An attempt wag made to run her bows on to the beach, but it was not successful. Immediately on striking, the "Ida" turned broadside on to the shore, and being then at the mercy of the waves, speedily went to pieces.page 220 During this time rain was falling heavily, and the surf could be seen from the Spit to be dashing mast-high over the doomed vessel as she was rocking from side to side, until at length she held over on to the beach, and became fixed on her broadside.

"Captain Sellars and the first and second mates were the last to leave the vessel. A line was connected with the shore, by means of a hen-coop and a line, and Captain Sellars was hauled through the surf, being the last to leave the wreck. The ship's chronometer, valued at £100, was lost. The remainder of the crew arrived on shore by means of the main brace. The wreck was sold in five lots, the total amount realising £52 3s. The cargo was valued at about £45,000. the Ida Zeigler was insured in England, and the New Zealand Insurance Company had a risk of £5,000 on the cargo.

"Salvage operations commenced as soon as possible, and some portion of the wreck and about 400 out of 2,500 bales of wool were saved. Owing to a change of wind to the south, the greater portion of the wreck and her cargo was driven out of the bay. Mr. J. Robinson, while assisting in the salvage, was carried out to sea and drowned.

"At the official inquiry, the following decision was given:—the Ida Zeigler was lost in the roadstead owing to an error in judgment of the Harbourmaster in mooring the ship in too shallow water at the Government moorings, also in not shackling both ship's cables to the moorings, and his neglect in not examining the buoy and moorings, and taking soundings previous to the wool season."