Huzza! huzza! you know what that means.... I made up my mind to stop her at the edge of low water, and then examine and secure all that might discover itself. The tide rose to 15 feet 8 inches. She rose therefore easily over the rock, but was clear of it by only just five inches, which shows how near a squeak we had—it was a most anxious affair, but it is over. I marked 170 yards in the sand and on our warp, and at that extent I stopped her.... I have no doubt that to-morrow we shall see her free.
The following day they started for Liverpool. One hundred and twenty labourers were hired to work at the pumps, but only thirty-six came on board, and their services were unavailable, as they spent their time in discussing how much they were to be paid. Consequently, when the ship was taken in tow at 4 A.M. on the 28th there was 6 feet of water in the engine room and 5 feet in the fore hold, and she was making 16 inches an hour. Men from Her Majesty’s ships ‘Birkenhead’ and ‘Victory,’ which had been sent by the Admiralty to assist, were drafted on board, and the influx of water was reduced to four inches an hour. It was evident that Liverpool could not be attempted, so they made for Strangford Lough. A dense fog came on when they were off the entrance, and they pushed on to Belfast Lough, where the ship was grounded. During the night she was cleared of water, and the next day she started for Liverpool. The landsmen who had been hired the previous night to work the pumps were incapacitated by sea-sickness; and the ship was only kept afloat by the exertions of Captain Claxton and the dockyard hands who had been sent to assist in navigating her across. When she arrived at Liverpool she was placed over a gridiron, on which she sank when her pumps were stopped.
Notwithstanding the successful result of the efforts made for her rescue, the stranding of the ‘Great Britain’ in Dundrum Bay led to the ruin of the Company; and she was some time afterwards sold to Messrs. Gibbs, Bright, & Co., of Liverpool, by whom she was repaired, and fitted with auxiliary engines of 500 nominal horse-power. On a general survey being made, it was found that she had not suffered any alteration of form, nor was she at all strained. She was taken out of dock in October 1851, and since that time she has made regular voyages between Liverpool and Australia.
She is known as one of the fastest vessels on that line; and remains to testify to the ability and wisdom of those who, more than thirty years ago, were daring enough to build so large a ship of iron, and to fit her with the screw propeller.
NOTE ([p. 255]).
| Dimensions of the ‘Great Britain’ Steam-Ship. | ||
| feet | inches | |
| Total length | 322 | 0 |
| The length of keel | 289 | 0 |
| Beam | 51 | 0 |
| Depth | 32 | 6 |
| Feet of water | 16 | 0 |
| Tonnage measurement | 3,443 | tons. |
| Displacement | 2,984 | " |
| Dimensions of original Engines, &c. | ||
| Number of cylinders | 4 | |
| Diameter of cylinders | 88 | inches |
| Length of stroke | 6 | feet |
| Weight of engines | 340 | tons |
| Weight of boilers | 200 | " |
| Water in boilers | 200 | " |
| Weight of screw-shaft | 38 | " |
| Diameter of screw | 15 | ft. 6 in. |
| Pitch of screw | 25 | ft. |
| Weight of screw | 4 | tons |
| Diameter of main drum | 18 | feet |
| Diameter of screw-shaft drum | 6 | " |
| Weight of coal | 1,200 | tons |
CHAPTER X.
STEAM NAVIGATION. INTRODUCTION OF THE SCREW PROPELLER INTO THE ROYAL NAVY.
A.D. 1841—1844. ÆTATIS 36—39.
APPOINTMENT OF MR. BRUNEL TO CONDUCT EXPERIMENTS FOR THE ADMIRALTY WITH VARIOUS FORMS OF THE SCREW PROPELLER, APRIL 1841—TRIALS WITH THE ‘POLYPHEMUS’—OPPOSITION TO MR. BRUNEL’S EXPERIMENTS—TRIALS WITH THE ‘RATTLER,’ OCTOBER 1843-OCTOBER 1844.
SOON after Mr. Brunel had taken the bold step of recommending the adoption of the screw propeller in the ‘Great Britain,’ he was asked to send a copy of his report to the Admiralty. He did so; and in the course of a few months was invited to attend the Board on the subject of some experiments their Lordships proposed to make.