“WILD DEER.”
Lent by Captain T. S. Angus.
[Larger image] (233 kB)
![[Larger image]](#6242537029064317809_i_p354b_2_large.jpg.id-4948234918861674362.wrap-0.html.html){kind=link}
Patrick Henderson’s Albion Shipping Company.
The chief rival of the Shaw, Savill before the advent of the New Zealand Shipping Company was Patrick Henderson, who owned the Albion Shipping Company. But in the early days he was also in the China and Rangoon trades. His first ships in the New Zealand emigrant trade were fine, comfortable wooden vessels without any special turn of speed, such as the Agnes Muir, Pladda, Lady Douglass, Jane Henderson, Vicksburgh and Helenslee. But he had some very fast wood and composite clippers, which during the sixties were mostly in the Shanghai trade, and later took their turn at carrying emigrants to New Zealand.
The “Wild Deer.”
The fastest of these China ships was the Wild Deer. She was launched from Connell’s yard in December, 1863, being his thirteenth ship; and was composite built with iron topsides, teak planking to turn of bilge and elm bottom. She had a beautiful figure-head of the goddess “Diana,” and was altogether a fine example of an out and out tea clipper.
Her measurements taken from Lloyd’s Register were as follows:—
| Tonnage net | 1016 | tons. |
| Tonnage under deck | 955 | „ |
| Length | 211 | feet. |
| Breadth | 33.2 | „ |
| Depth | 20.7 | „ |