Wreck of the "London."

by Anonymous

Too soon, however, the newspapers brought the sad and affecting story before the eyes of all, and never did story of shipwreck, however thrilling, excite a grief more sincere and wide-spread. It needed no artistic craft to make the story tell, and to take it straight home to the hearts of unnumbered thousands. “This awful wreck,” said Mr. O’Dowd in commencing the inquiry directed by the Board of Trade, “has been the theme of many a pen, and the topic of many a conversation since its occurrence has been made known. Though the sympathies of our hearts ought to recognise no grades of social position, nor any distinction of education and intellect, we yet must feel the pang embittered by the loss of some of the passengers, with whose names, accomplishments, and virtues the public are now painfully familiar.”

As, day by day, the harrowing details became more accurate and complete, the regret became more and more poignant, and almost assumed a national character. Men soon thought little of the ship, magnificent though she was, or of the cargo, valuable as that was; both ship and cargo became insignificant in the presence of the vast sacrifice of human life by which the wreck of the London had been accompanied. And then came tales of heroism and self-denial, of a lofty courage and sweet resignation on the part of her passengers, officers, and crew, that made it harder still to realize that the men and women who had been capable of such noble behaviour had been buried beneath the foaming waves, and that the world now was all the poorer and more desolate, for their absence from it. Both the pulpit and the press gave touching and eloquent expression to the grief which prevailed on every side; and while the mourning relatives of our own land received every mark of sympathy and consideration, those belonging to the colonies, and on whom the news will burst like a terrible thunderbolt, were not forgotten, either in the earnest prayers that were offered on behalf of the bereaved ones, or in the words of genuine kindness and commiseration which the knowledge of their heavy loss elicited.

It has been thought that there is much belonging to the Wreck of the London which entitles it to a more convenient place of record than the newspaper, and that many, both in England and Australia, will be glad to possess a simple, connected narrative of the ship’s doings, and especially of her passengers’ behaviour from the day they left our shores until the day of their foundering in the Bay of Biscay.

There can be no question that the heroism and piety displayed on the occasion, demand a most distinguished place in the annals of the brave and good. Unhappily, shipwrecks of the most disastrous character are of only too frequent occurrence; but it is seldom that a Message from the Sea has borne the character of that mysterious and sublime one which the sinking London wrote ere she went down. Many, too, will perhaps be glad to possess portraits of those whose names will now be historical for their behaviour amid the distressing circumstances in which they were placed.

It is also in the sincere hope of administering some balm of consolation, however slight, to the hearts of thousands mourning in our own country and elsewhere, that we would now, avoiding, as far as possible, technical terms and details, invite the reader’s attention to the narrative of the Wreck of the London, first of all, however, looking at the ship herself, her Captain, and her list of passengers.

CHAPTER II.
THE IRON BEAUTY.

The London was the property of Messrs. Money Wigram & Co., the eminent shipbrokers at Blackwall, to the extent of fifty-six shares, Messrs. Franklin and Charles Morgan being owners of two shares each, and Captain Martin, her Master, of four. She was a screw steam-ship, and was built at Blackwall in 1864; she was therefore a new vessel. She had two decks, three masts, was ship-rigged, and clincher-built. She was 1752 tons register, and her engines, by Messrs. Humphreys and Tennant of Deptford, were constructed on the most improved modern principles: they were 200 horse power. Her length, from the fore part of the stem, under the bowsprit, to the aft side of the head of the stern post, was about 276 ft., and her main breadth to outside of plank was about 35 ft.; her depth in hold, from tonnage deck to ceiling at midships, was 24 feet.

The materials used in the construction of the vessel were all of the best quality, and the best workmanship was used. The materials were an angle iron frame, iron beams, stringer plates and kelsons. She was double rivetted from keel to gunwale, and all her fastenings were sound and good. Her masts were iron, with the exception of her topmasts, which were of wood. Those who superintended the progress of her building from the laying of her keel until the day of launching, have spoken in terms of the most unqualified approbation of her entire construction; and those who officially examined her before she put to sea, reported her in the best trim, and having all the equipments necessary for the voyage. Sails, compasses, boats, anchors, rockets, signal guns, life buoys, in short, all that she was required to carry to be officially pronounced seaworthy, the London did carry; and, previous to her last voyage, after undergoing a series of examinations, she was said to be as fine a vessel as ever left the Port of London, and she presented to the eyes of her admirers a perfect picture of combined elegance and strength. She was built according to Lloyd’s rules and regulations, and was indeed of greater strength than Lloyd’s rules required.

On account of the melancholy disaster connected with them, the reader’s attention must briefly be directed to the engine-room of the vessel, and the hatchway over it. The engine-room was 36 ft. in length, and on either side of it, fore and aft, were bulkheads, to one of which there was a communication from the engine-room. Over the engine-room went the hatchway, the dimensions of which were about 12 ft. by 9 ft. The hatchway was a saddle skylight in a wooden frame, having plate glass half an inch thick, and covered with gratings of galvanized iron. According to the judgment of those who surveyed the ship, the engine hatch was deemed of sufficient strength to meet any weather.