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White Wings Vol I. Fifty Years Of Sail In The New Zealand Trade, 1850 TO 1900

The Northumberland

page 335

The Northumberland.

Wrecked at Napier—Driven Ashore in a Gale—Rescue Launch Capsized.

Petane Beach, Napier, has been the scene of several big wrecks, starting with the Royal Bride in 1863, but the greatest disaster chronicled occurred when the ship Northumberland, a vessel of 2095 tons, was driven ashore. There was loss of life indirectly connected with the wreck, but the crew of the Northumberland all got ashore safely, although Captain Todd had a narrow escape. the Northumberland, a Shaw, Savill Company ship, had recently arrived from London via Lyttelton, having on board 1000 tons of English cargo and 4000 bags of wheat and other produce shipped at Lyttelton. It was on the 10th May, 1887, during a terrific gale, that the ship was wrecked. On the evening of the previous day one of her anchors parted and she commenced to drift towards the shore. She was pulled up by the second anchor, and a spare anchor was also put out, and held. At night everything appeared snug. At 4 o'clock in the morning, however, the anchors commenced to drag. All attempts to save the vessel were useless, and she rapidly swept on to the beach and was hurled shorewards broadside on. The Weka laid by to pick up a boat which had been lowered from the ship. This was the only boat lowered, and contained the younger members of the crew. Just then a terrible accident occurred. The Boojum, the Union Company's launch, steamed under the lee of the ship to take the boat's crew on board, but got into the breakers and in a second was turned bottom upward. She was manned by Captain Setter, Engineer J. Martin, and Seaman Keevington, volunteer Seaman G. Bain, a landsman, and Archibald Waddell, a cordial manufacturer. the Northumberland lifeboat, which had just been manned, pulled to the scene of the accident, but succeeded only in saving Martin. A rope was thrown from the ship to another man, who was hauled half up, when he fell back exhausted, and was drowned. By this time large crowds had assembled on the shore, and attempts were made to send the rocket line on board, but the lines proved rotten, and would not carry. The ship was now within a hundred yards of the beach. A plank attached to a light line was floated from the vessel, and secured after great efforts by two men named Forne and Lynam, who went into the surf with ropes round their waists. The light line being landed it was easy to send a strong cable on board, to which a cradle was rigged. About 4.30 the work of rescue commenced, there being then thirty-one souls on board huddled on the forecastle, the sea making clean breaches over the vessel. A difficulty occurred through the cradle lines breaking, and the darkness set in, making the work still more difficult, but by 7 o'clock all were landed, Captain Todd being the last to come on shore. Fires were
Northumberland On The Beach.

Northumberland On The Beach.

lighted on shore, and spirits supplied to the men as they landed, exhausted by their buffeting by the heavy surf. In a very short time the masts of the Northumberland went over the side, and the next morning only a small portion of the ship showing the bowsprit was visible. The hull of the Boojum also came ashore about the same time. During the early stages of the gale four passengers on the Northumberland were taken off in a small steamer.
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After The Rum.

There were some lively scenes on the beach when the wreckage came ashore. Unfortunately some rum was among the first of the flotsam to reach the beach, and some of the large crowd of people that had gone out from Napier and else-where to see the wreck got very tipsy, giving the police a lot of trouble. There was much pilfering, and the Customs officers had a bad time seeing that dutiable goods were not taken away. There is a good deal of the "wrecker" in most of us, if the truth were known, and it is to be feared that some of the people that "lifted" the Northumberland wreckage would have been very annoyed if you called their act by its plain unvarnished name.

The figurehead of the Northumberland was secured by a fisherman at West Shore, and was for many years a
Figurehead Of Northumberland.

Figurehead Of Northumberland.

prominent figure in his garden. Later this relic was taken out to Whakatu, where it again graced a small garden plot. Subsequently it was acquired by Mr. Frank Armstrong, sheep farmer, of Akitio, near Cape Turnagain, and is at present erected in his garden. This will probably be the last resting-place of this interesting relic.

When the Northumberland made her first voyage to Auckland in 1884 all on board were loud in their praise of Captain Todd and his officers, but none had a good word for the charterers of the ship, Messrs. Shaw, Savill and Co., and the Government. The ship brought out 186 cabin passengers and 159 Government immigrants, and on the ship's arrival a complaint was made to the Immigration Officer, who inspected their quarters and reported that they were in a wretched state, there being very little privacy in the emigrants' quarters. It was found they had been housed in the after-hatch in a dark and dingy hole. There were fourteen bunks in a space 12 by 8½. There was practically no ventilation or light in their so-called cabin when the door was closed, and when rain fell or the decks were washed the water came through the roofs and soaked the unfortunates in their bunks. It is astonishing that under the circumstances there were only six deaths during the voyage. When the Northumberland returned to England the berthing accommodation was improved and there were no complaints when she reached Auckland in 1885. There were two deaths during this passage.

The passages made to New Zealand by the Northumberland were:—

To Auckland.
Sailed. Arrived. Captain. Days.
Dec. 10, '83 Mar. 18, '84 Todd 99
Dec. 13, '84 Mar. 25, '85 Todd 102
Jan. 21 Apr. 23, '86 Todd 93
To Lyttelton.
Jan. 3 Apr. 11, '87 Todd 98

There was another ship named the Northumberland, a vessel of about 1000 tons, which visited Auckland in 1861. She left Portland on May 21 and crossed the Line on June 13. On the 24th of the following month, during a heavy S.W. gale the ship's rudder head gave way and was completely wrung off. Captain Hawkins put the ship under easy canvas while repairing damages as well as circumstances would admit. On August 3 the rudder head again gave way during another hard gale which continued for 36 hours. Under the circumstances the ship did well in making the voyage in 114 days.

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