USEFUL PROJECTS. 



851 



From another letter of Mr. Knap- 

 ping, it appears that he began to 

 undertake this embanking about the 

 beginning of the month of April, 

 1801, and that in the month of Sep- 

 tember following the whole was 

 completed; that upwards of 230 

 acres of land were etieetually in- 

 closed and secured from the sea, at 

 a very considerable expence, viz. 

 one thousand pounds and upwards; 

 and that tliis land is already con- 

 verted into pasture, capable of fct*d- 

 ing a great number of sheep, and 

 even bullocks, and is likely to be- 

 come, in the course of a few years, 

 fit for tillage, or any purpose to 

 which land can be converted. 



The above stattment is confirmed 

 by six certificates : — 



T. Ellwood, Curate of Foulness. 



W. Potten, Churchwarden. 



T. Wiggins, Overseer of the Poor. 



Edm. Witton, ] 



F. BaTinister, I Inhabitants. 



W. Meakins, 





Account of the Method used in reco- 

 vering the Dutch Frigate Ambus- 

 cade, of 32 guns., sunk near the 

 Great Nore. Ry Mr. Joseph 

 fVhidbci/, Master Attendant in 

 Sheerness Dodc-Yard. From the 

 Philo.-ophical Transactions of the 

 Royal Society. 



At eight o'clock in the morning 

 of the 9th day of July, 1801, the 

 Dutch frigate Ambttscade left the 

 moorings in Sheerness harbour, her 

 fore-sail, top-sails, and top-gallant- 

 sails being set, with the wind aft, 

 blowing strong. In about thirty 

 minutes she went down by the head, 

 near the Great Nore; not giving 

 the crew time to take in the sails, 

 Dor the pilot or olGctirK n^ore than 



four minutes notice before she 

 sunk ; by which unfortunate event 

 twenty-two of the crew were drown- 

 ed. This extraordinary accident 

 was owing to the hawse-holes be- 

 ing extremely large and low, the 

 hawse-plugs not being in, and the 

 holes being pressed under water by 

 a crowd of sail on the ship, through 

 which a sufficient body of water 

 got in, unpcrceived, to carry her to 

 the bottom: 



The instant she sunk, she rolled 

 over to windward across the tide, 

 and lay on her beam ends ; so that, 

 at low v^ater, the muzzles of the 

 main-deck guns were a little out of 

 the water, and pointed to the ze- 

 nith, with thifty-two feet of wa- 

 ter ryund her. 



The first point I had to gain, was 

 to get her upright. Before I could 

 accomplish it, 1 was obliged to cut 

 away her fore-mast and main-top- 

 mast ; which had no eifedt, until 

 the mizen-mast was also cut away; 

 she then instantly lifted her side, so 

 that at low water the lee-railing on 

 the quarter-deck was visible. 



By proceeding in this manner, the 

 first part of my objedt was obtain- 

 ed, with a secured main-mast, and 

 all its rigging, to enable me, should 

 I be fortunate enough to weigh the 

 ship, to lighten her by it with the 

 greatest possible expedition. 



The ship being in the fore-men- 

 tioned state, gave me an opportunity 

 the next low water to get out her 

 quarter, fore-castle, and some of her 

 main-deck guns, with a variety of 

 other articles. 



I next proceeded to sling her; 

 which was done with two nineteen 

 inch cables, divided into eight equal 

 parts. The larboard side of the 

 ship being so much higher than the 

 starboard, enabled lue^ to clench 



3 I 2 eacU 



