A favourite round in the latter days of the Liverpool soft-wood clippers was from Melbourne across to Auckland and from there over to the Chincas to load guano. From this the survivors gradually descended to the Quebec timber trade. By the early seventies I find Marco Polo, Red Jacket, Ben Nevis, and other well-known ships already staggering to and fro across the Atlantic between the Mersey and the St. Lawrence, whilst in June, 1874, the Flying Cloud got ashore on the New Brunswick coast, when making for St. John’s, and was so strained that she was compelled to discharge her cargo and go on the slip for repairs. Here misfortune again overcame the grand old ship, for she took fire and was so gutted that she was sold for breaking up.
It is curious how many of the old American-built soft-wood ships were destroyed by fire, their number including the James Baines, Lightning, Empress of the Seas No. 1, Blue Jacket No. 1, Ocean Chief, Fiery Star, and second Sovereign of the Seas.
The Burning of “Lightning”.
The Lightning was burnt on 31st October, 1869, whilst alongside the pier at Geelong loading wool, and she already had 4000 bales of wool on board when the fire was discovered at 1.30 in the morning in her fore hold. From the first the ship seemed to be doomed, and it was feared that the wharf might catch fire. She had an anchor out ahead, and an attempt was made to heave her clear of the pier, but the flames soon drove the crew from the windlass; however, on the mooring lines being cast off, she drifted clear, and swung to her anchor, the whole fore part of the ship being now in flames. The foremast, which was an iron one, melted in its step owing to the heat and soon went over the side. An attempt was made to scuttle her by the desperate means of bombarding her from two 32-pounders, and to a modern gunner the result was astounding to say the least of it, for at only 300 yards range most of the rounds missed the Lightning altogether, whilst the few that hit her did more harm than good by giving the wind access to the fire and thereby increasing its fury. After burning all day, the famous old ship sank at sundown.
“LIGHTNING,” on Fire at Geelong.
From a photograph belonging to F. G. Layton.
The cause of the fire on the Lightning was agreed to be spontaneous combustion. A very different reason was given for the burning of the second Sovereign of the Seas. This ship had just arrived in Sydney with emigrants in 1861 and was discharging at Campbell’s Wharf when the fire broke out, and at the coroner’s investigation the jury found “that the ship Sovereign of the Seas was wilfully, maliciously and feloniously set on fire on the 10th September, and that there was sufficient evidence to commit one of the ship’s sailors, then in custody of the water police, on the charge.” The Sydney fire brigade fought the flames for a whole day without avail; then half a dozen ship’s carpenters attempted to scuttle her, but all in vain, and she was left to her fate.
The Ocean Chief, which was burnt at the Bluff, New Zealand, was also said to have been set on fire by her crew.
The first Empress of the Seas was burnt at Queenscliff on the 19th December, 1861, three months after the Sovereign of the Seas had been set on fire at Sydney.