In 1881 she went out to San Francisco in 124 days from Holyhead, and coming home to Falmouth in 98 days. Except for an occasional run to Frisco, Calcutta or Rangoon, she was kept regularly in the Sydney trade during the eighties and nineties.
The following is a list of her best sailing records:—
16 knots for 16 successive hours, 10th December, 1871, in 44° 48′ S., 28° 7′ E. 1000 miles in 70 hours. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
16 days (the record) from Cape Horn to the line, under Captain Robertson. | ||||
| 1870 | Liverpool to Hobson’s Bay; | Sept. 9 to Nov. 21 | 73 days | |
| 1871-2 | London to Hobson’s Bay; | Oct. 26 to Jan. 2 | 68 days | |
| 1872 | Melbourne to Calcutta; | Feb. 1 to March 17 | 45 days | |
| 1872-3 | Lizard to Hobson’s Bay; | Dec. 4 to Feb. 11 | 69 days | |
| 1873 | Ushant to Hobson’s Bay; | Sept. 3 to Nov. 8 | 66 days | |
| 1874-5 | Lizard to Hobson’s Bay; | Nov. 22 to Jan. 31 | 70 days | |
| 1876 | Lizard to Hobson’s Bay; | Aug. 7 to Oct. 24 | 78 days | |
| 1877 | Tuskar to Hobson’s Bay; | Aug. 12 to Oct. 27 | 76 days | |
| 1878 | Plymouth to Hobson’s Bay; | June 15 to Aug. 31 | 77 days | |
| 1880 | Liverpool to Rangoon; | April 29 to July 21 | 83 days | |
| 1880-1 | Frisco to Queenstown; | Nov. 8 to Feb. 18 | 99 days | |
| 1881 | Holyhead to Frisco; | Jan. 12 to May 16 | 124 days | |
| 1882 | Frisco to Falmouth; | June 7 to Sept. 13 | 98 days | |
| 1882-3 | London to Sydney; | Nov. 8 to Jan. 22 | 75 days | |
| 1885 | Antwerp to Sydney; | July 25 to Oct. 20 | 87 days | |
| 1886 | London to Sydney; | May 29 to Aug. 16 | 79 days | |
In the later eighties her passages began to slow up for two very good reasons: firstly her sail plan was cut down; and secondly her captain, owing to a very nervous wife being with him, made no attempt to drive her.
Captain Richards had her through the seventies, except for two voyages in 1874-5 when Captain Bloomfield had her, then Captain Archibald Robertson commanded her for half a dozen voyages, he was followed by Captain W. Cross, then Captains Cutler, Davis and Belding took her in turn.
The Thomas Stephens was a lucky ship and kept singularly free of trouble; indeed she had no serious mishap until July, 1893, when she got well battered by a severe gale in 52° S., 130° W., whilst homeward bound from Melbourne with wheat. Her bulwarks were carried away from the fore rigging to abaft the main rigging on the starboard side and her main deck was swept clean. She put into Callao for repairs, but she was not leaking and her cargo was found to be undamaged.
On her following voyage she got into more serious trouble in battling to get to the westward of Cape Stiff. She sailed from Barry on 27th December, 1894, and was partially dismasted off the pitch of the Horn. Put back to the Falklands, arriving in Stanley harbour on 28th February, 1895. Captain Belding, however, refused to agree to the extortionate demands of the Stanley shipwrights, and sailed for Capetown under jury rig, arriving there 14th May, 1895. Here he refitted, and leaving Table Bay on 22nd June arrived at Esquimalt by the eastern route on 24th September.
This unfortunate voyage terminated her career under the Red Ensign, for on her arrival home in 1896 the Thomas Stephens was sold to the Portuguese Government. The Portuguese have a singularly shrewd eye for a ship; and in this year they bought at breaking up prices three of the finest and fastest ships ever built, namely the Thomas Stephens, Cutty Sark and Thermopylae.