THE MISSING WARATAH.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2597, 3 September 1909, Page 5

THE MISSING WARATAH.

'FEDERAL GOVERNMENT SEND-

ING SEARCH STEAMER.

UNITED Pitltfiß ASSOCIATION—COPYRIGHT MELBOURNE, Sept. 2. The Federal;Government has deoided to despatch a steamer to search for the Waratah, and has.sent a cable to the Gape Government inquiring if a suitable Vessel capable of making a long search is available there. The steamer Geelong, which has arrived at Adelaide from the Cape, and the steamer Arawa, which arrived yesterday at Hobart, both kept a sharp lookout for the Waratah, but saw no trace of the missing vessel. ADRIFT FOR 103 DAYS—OPTIMISM OF A WAIKATO OFFICER. Mr. J. A. P. Turnbull, , who , was second officer on the steamer Waikato when she was adrift for 103 days in the same sea as the Waratah is supposed to be, and who is now a resident of Tasmania, supplies to Australian papers the following information: — “Knowing the great anxiety now felt in the Commonwealth regarding the fate of the steamer Waratah, I thought that p erhaps my own experience in the same part of the world might prove interesting. The Waikato was a steamer of about 7000 tons, bound from London to Wellington (N.Z.) On the night of June 5, 1899, we were suddenly aroused bv a terrific noise in the engine-room, the engines (running away with a loud, buzzing sound, and the ship vibrating horribly. When at last steam was shut off, and an examination made, it was found that the tail shaft had snapped in the stern-tube in a place impossible to repair at sea without cutting the stern-tube and tipping the ship, an experiment our engineers would not risk in such a rough and unsettled part of the ocean. “The Waikato carried a fair amount of square-sail on the foremast, and we were able to rig a small jury mast, as mainmast, but it might just as well have been set on a flagstaff, as they were continually blowing away without giving the ship steerage way, and. though several sea anchors were tried, none of them were successful in keeping the ship’s head to sea, and she drifted broadside to seas, roiling continually Luckilv for us, she made such a broad, smooth wake, going sideways, that some of the force of the seas was reduced before reaching us, but it was anything but pleasant to have the big Cape rolls tumbling down on us, looking as if they must roll right over us. However, no serious damage was done. “At the time of the breakdown we were 120 miles from Capo Agulhas, and suggestions were made that a boat should be sent to try to make the coast, but the captain and officers thought that it would be almost impossible to reach land against the strong Agulhas current that runs down the South African coast past Port Natal, East London and Algpa Bay. So there was nothing for it but to wait in hope of being picked up. At night we bad a huge flareup firing, - consisting of a large iron drum on the upper deck, with a coal fire in it. On this at short intervals oil was thrown, which blazed up, lighting up the sea for miles around. The current took us at first in a westerly direction, and then shot us off down south to latitude 40 degrees, the ship drifting as much as 60, 80, or 100 miles a day. Some days, when wo expected to be driven , north by gales, we would find instead that we were miles south of the 'previous day’s position. We were adrift for 52 days without sighting a sail, rolling and wallowing all the while between latitudes 36 degrees and 40 degrees south, gradually working east. On the 103rd day the tramp steamer Asloun hove in sight, and at last our long wait was to- be ended in longitude 60 east, latitude 41 south. After drifting about 2500 mles, and 1800 miles in an easterly direction, going round in squares, circles, and triangles, and crosssing our own track seven times, we were really in tow at last heading for Fremantle (W.A.). , , ' ■ “The Waikato’s hull was undamaged, with the exception of the loss of a good many of our deck fittings. Oil was used with very good effect when the seas were extra high. From our exporience I should think that it woul ch bo almost impossible for a well-found ship like the Waratah to go down, as our packet was a cheaply-built cargo tramp, and she withstood over three months buffeting from some of the heaviest seas found in any -part of the world. It is not improbable that the Waratah hks met with a similar mishap. I think we spoke six sailing ships during our drift, all having been attracted by our flare-up. Judging from our experience I feel confident that, the Waratah would not drift to the north, but m a south-easterly direction, immediately in the track of steamers and sailing ships bound to Australia. In that case there is every probability that she may be heard of before many weeks nave passed.”