“Turakina” ex-“City of Perth.”
I have left the Turakina to the last, as she deserves a longer notice, being one of the most beautiful little iron ships that ever left the ways. She was built of extra thick plates and launched in May, 1868, for Smith’s famous City Line to Calcutta.
The following interesting account of her in her early days appeared in the Nautical Magazine in 1917:—
I sailed in this vessel when she was three years old, under Captain Beckett, a native of Saltcoats, Firth of Clyde. Captain Beckett would have no foreigners or negroes sail with him, either as officers or sailors, and he was one of the most upright and good-living men I ever sailed under, and I went to sea first in 1858. His policy was the same for the men as for the cabin, with plenty of good food, no allowance, sufficient without waste, and plenty of work to keep the scurvy out of the bones, as the sailors said.
We left the Clyde at latter end of September, 1871, with a general cargo for Calcutta. We soon got out of the St. George’s Channel, and got all the studding sail gear rigged ready for the first favourable wind, and that occurred in lat. 43° N., long. 14° 15′ W. We then set topgallant, royal, topmast, and square lower stunsails, watersails, ringtail and ringtail watersail, Jamie Green and save-alls every place where a sail could be set; wind N.W. but gradually increasing to a gale.
However we kept everything on her. On the second day after everything had been set, about 11 a.m., we sighted a ship ahead of us; by 2 p.m. we were up alongside of her. She was a New York full-rigged ship from the Tyne for California.
The American captain asked us where we were bound from and where bound to. The whole of his crew came and looked at us, and her master cried to our captain that we were the prettiest sight he had ever seen. Our ship was going fully 17 knots when we passed her, and in three hours we had left her completely out of sight.
I have been in many ships in my time, but never one to equal her for speed. She was built by Connell, on the Clyde, and she was certainly that firm’s masterpiece. She was iron, and one of the most beautiful models you could look at in the water. The Thermopylae was the largest of the China clippers. She was 948 tons, but the City was 1189 tons. She was a far more powerful ship. I have been in many cracks, but I never saw anything that could look at her in a strong breeze, and as for running in a heavy gale she would run before the heaviest gale that ever blew.
“TURAKINA” ex “CITY OF PERTH.”
Photo by De Maus, Port Chalmers.
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“OTAKI” becalmed.
Lent by F. G. Layton.
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And he goes on to give the following week’s work from the N.E. trades to Sandy Hook.
Left Calcutta, 16th January, 1872, for New York. Arrived at New York on 5th April, 1872. Below are the position and runs in nautical miles.
29th March, 1872, position at noon, lat. 28° 01′ N., long. 30° 00′ W.
30th March, 1872, position at noon, lat. 30° 40′ N., long. 35° 56′ W. distance 298.
31st March, 1872, position at noon, lat. 32° 14′ N., long. 41° 44′ W. distance 300.
1st April, 1872, position at noon, lat. 33° 55′ N., long. 48° 35′ W. distance 363.
2nd April, 1872, position at noon, lat. 35° 30′ N., long. 55° 39′ W. distance 350.
3rd April, 1872, position at noon, lat. 36° 51′ N., long. 62° 36′ W. distance 350.
4th April, 1872, position at noon, lat. 38° 40′ N., long. 69° 10′ W. distance 345.
5th April, 1872, position at noon, lat. 40° 29′ N., long. 73° 58′ W. distance 342.
Time 170 hours. Nautical miles 2348.
I do not agree with all his distances, but anyhow it is a wonderful week’s work and probably the quickest run into New York from 28° N., 30° W., ever made by a sailing ship.
During the seventies Messrs. George Smith & Sons generally sent one or two of their fastest ships out to Australia for a wool cargo home; and in 1873, 1874 and 1875 City of Perth went out to Melbourne and loaded wool home. Her outward passages ran to over 80 days, but in 1874 Captain Beckett made the fine run of 81 days to the Thames.
Owing to the exporters of wool insisting that her bottom was foul, she was docked, with her cargo on board, in the Alfred Graving Dock the day before she sailed. Her bottom was found to be clean, but Captain Beckett took the opportunity to give her a coat of tallow, and leaving on the following day, 15th November, he caught the February wool sales without any difficulty and eased the minds of the anxious wool exporters. It was his last passage in her, however, for in 1875 Captain Warden took her out to Melbourne in 88 days from the Lizard, but he ran his easting down in 38° S. and did not give her a chance. Again she loaded wool and this time was given a coating of Peacock & Buchan’s patent before sailing.
After this she went back to the Calcutta trade until 1881, when she left London under Captain McDonald for Canterbury, N.Z., and went on to Timaru and loaded wheat. She completed her loading, and on 13th May, 1882, was lying at anchor in the inner anchorage close to the Ben Venue, when it came on to blow with a big sea making.
8.30 a.m. on the 14th found the Ben Venue with two anchors and the City of Perth with three, riding out a furious gale. But the outlook was very bad especially for the little Ben Venue which had a heavy list to starboard, being almost on her beam ends. Four hours later one of Ben Venue’s cables parted and she began to drag, and about 1 o’clock stranded in Caroline Bay.
About the same time City of Perth was also seen to be dragging her anchors and soon afterwards drifted ashore to the north of Ben Venue, but further seaward.
Captain McDonald tried to send a boat ashore, but she capsized and the ship’s second mate and carpenter were both drowned and the mate had his leg broken. Meanwhile great rescue efforts were made from the shore, the lifeboat was launched, but she also capsized and six of her crew were drowned, including the harbour-master of Timaru. The gale had moderated sufficiently by the 19th to attempt towing the City of Perth off, but without success. Her partner in misfortune, the beautiful little Ben Venue, had by this time become a total wreck, and the only gear salved, including some of her spars, was sold for £150.
After the failure to get the City of Perth afloat her cargo was got out of her, and with an empty hold she was at last towed off successfully. She was then surveyed and sold, her hull and gear only fetching £900. She was next towed round to Port Chalmers and docked there on 1st July, when it was found that the rudder was carried away, with about 20 feet of the keelson and keel, besides five bottom plates very much damaged. It speaks well for the ship, considering the pounding she must have undergone, that the damage was not worse. Again she was sold privately for £500, I am not certain whether the N.Z.S. Co. bought her on this occasion or after her arrival in London after being patched up. If they did, they got a wonderful bargain, though they might have had a still better, for whilst she was lying stranded she was offered for sale by auction and only a few pounds bid for her.
After being repaired and refitted, she was sent to Invercargill to load for London; and she left Invercargill on 13th April, 1883, in charge of Captain McFarlane, arriving safely in the Thames on 8th July after a good passage of 86 days.
Here she had a thorough refit, and finally left London on 24th October, 1883, under a new captain, with the name of Turakina on her stern and flying the N.Z.S. Co. house-flag. She arrived at Auckland on 19th January, 1884, 86 days out.
During the next few years we find her in charge of a Captain Power, who was evidently not a sail carrier, for she did nothing remarkable whilst he had her.
In 1885, on her passage home from Otago, she survived another bad dusting. She left Port Chalmers on 9th March, had strong S.W. gales and heavy weather to the Horn, which was rounded at 6 a.m. on the 5th April, 27 days out. On 11th April, when in 44° 46′ S., 40° W., she ran into a perfect hurricane, the squalls being at their worst between noon and 5 p.m. At 2 p.m. the lower main topsail blew away, at 2.30 the foresail was whipped out of her and at 3 the lee quarter boat was washed away. All this time the ship was swept fore and aft by the terrific sea running, and at 5 p.m. the weight of water on her main deck burst the lee topgallant bulwarks. Luckily the wind then began to veer to the S.W. and the squalls began to take off and come up at longer intervals.
The equator was crossed on 3rd May, 28 days from the Horn. She had light trades followed by moderate southerly winds to the Western Isles, then light southerly and easterly winds, with thick fog to the Wight, where she picked up her tug, arriving in the Thames on 11th June, 94 days out.
Like most of the New Zealand clippers Turakina was fitted with refrigerating machinery in the late eighties, and it was as a frozen meat ship under Captain Hamon that she made her name as a passage maker in the New Zealand trade.
In 1892 she left Gisborne and arrived home on 31st May, 78 days out.
In 1893 she left Timaru for Liverpool on 2nd February, but carried away her mainyard on the first night out and had to put back to Lyttelton to repair damages. This spoilt her passage.
In 1894 she signalled off the Lizard on 27th May, only 69 days out from Wellington, and docked in the London River, 71 days out.
In 1895 she made the Wight on 1st July, 73 days out from Port Chalmers.
On her previous outward passage she had distinguished herself by sailing past the company’s steamer Ruapehu. The following account of this incident was given me by one of the officers of the steamship:—
On the 14th February, 1895, in lat. 46° 15′ S., long. 68° 16′ E., the N.Z.S. Co.’s mail steamer Ruapehu was running her easting down under whole topsails and courses, the weather dirty and a strong wind from the norrard, force 7 Beaufort scale. At 9 a.m. a sailing ship was reported astern, topgallant sails up. Shortly after she sheeted home her royals. Orders were given on the Ruapehu to the engineer to drive the ship and topgallant sails were set, the patent log showing a good 14.
At noon exactly the N.Z.S. Co.’s sailing ship Turakina passed along our lee side. She was then carrying all square sail except mizen royal and topgallant sail (probably griping a good deal). She was right alongside and you could distinguish the features of the officers, and see the seas breaking over her—I have a very good photo. She then hauled her wind and crossed our bow, at the same time shortening sail to topsails, reef in mainsail and furled crossjack; even then she held her own with us during a long summer evening light, till 9.30 there she was just ahead on the port bow.
Next day at noon we had run 315 miles. At midnight the wind came aft and she was therefore not in sight from masthead at daylight. It was a wonderful performance and made a man feel glad to be alive to see it.
And the Turakina held her own for 14 days. She covered the 5000 miles between the meridians of the Cape and the Leeuwin, in 16 days, her best runs being 328, 316 and 308.
I am glad to say that the gallant little ship is still afloat under the name of Elida, owned in Tordesstrand.
In 1912 she was in Rio at the same time as the Portuguese Ferreira ex-Cutty Sark. I wonder how many of the shipping people there realized that two of the fastest and most beautiful sailing ships ever built were lying at anchor in their wonderful harbour.
Before leaving the Turakina, I must not omit to give her official measurements from Lloyd’s Register:—
| Tonnage (net) | 1189 | tons |
| Tonnage (gross) | 1247 | „ |
| Tonnage (under deck) | 1160 | „ |
| Length | 232.5 | feet |
| Breadth | 35.4 | „ |
| Depth | 22.2 | „ |
| Depth moulded | 23.5 | „ |
| Freeboard amidships (summer) | 4.5½ | „ |
| Raised quarterdeck | 32 | „ |