207 



this hole was about 3 inches diameter, and had a sharp pointed hit of hard rock 

 sticking in it. 



The " Taranaki " was divided into three compartments, by watertight 

 bulkheads. The damage took place in the centre one, but the aft compartment 

 seems gradually to have filled. The fore compartment evidently remained 

 unfilled, as will be noticed afterwards. 



The vessel kept afloat for seven hours after she struck, and then went 

 down stern first, burying the stern in the mud, scooj)ing up twenty or thirty 

 tons of soil on to the poop, knocking away the poop rail and stanchions round 

 the stern, leaving the steering gear uninjured, but twisting round and breaking 

 the rudder. The screw propeller had been knocked off on the rock shortly 

 after she struck. 



The boiler was injured when she sunk, and was found to be very seriously 

 damaged, having collapsed from the outside pressure of the water as the vessel 

 suddenly sunk to the depth of 1 7^ fathoms, assisted probably by a partial 

 vacuum formed by condensation of the steam. (See sketch of boiler.) 



The top of the shell, although arched and strengthened by angle iron ribs 

 round the top, with 1 finch stavs from the angle irons to the bottom of the 

 boiler, was forced in 1 8 inches, crushing and bending these stays, and also the 

 gusset stays 1 foot wide by 1 inch, at the angle formed by the top and back of 

 boiler. The If inch stays, from top of boiler to top of combustion chamber, also 

 were broken and bent. In collapsing, the top of the boiler had dragged back 

 the uptake for 18 inches on top, taking the steam chest with it, and also dragged 

 the back of the boiler in towards the combustion chamber, leaving the stays 

 sticking through the back. 



The combustion chamber, the tubes, tube plates, and the bottom and front 

 of the boiler were found uninjured and not moved. 



In the fore deck, over the forward compartment, which seems to have 

 remained free of water till after she sank, ten deck beams were bent down 

 8 inches by the pressure of the water from outside, bending the 3 inch iron 

 stanchions supporting them from the lower deck, and the hatches were found 

 forced inwards. 



The forward watertight bulkhead was bulged in forward about 1 foot. 



Second, the effects accruing from her long retention under water : — 



She sunk on the 19th of August, 1868, and was pumped out, on raising 

 her, on the 26th of September, 1869, — a period of over thirteen months. 



Her hull was completely coated with shelly encrustation, except the 

 bottom, which the marine paint had kept tolerably clean. Her small spars 

 and upper decks were completely worm eaten and gone ; any Teak wood was 

 found sound ; the cabin fittings, whei*e painted, were in general sound. 



The engines were found in working order, all the journals and bearings 

 bright and clean. The wrought-iron starting gear tarnished but not damaged, 

 and the cast-iron work uninjured. 



One of the cylinders was free of water, the other was full. 



Having thus attempted to give a description of the plan of operations, 

 the position of the wreck, and mentioned the piincipal damages she sustained, 

 I shall give some notes of the operation of raising the " Taranaki," interspersed 

 with a few extracts from a journal kept by Mr. Thirkell ; and thus give some 

 idea of the nature of the work. 



On the morning of June 23, 1869, a start was made by the adventurers 

 from Wellington, in the steamer " Ladybird," hired as a tender during the 

 operations, and they got to Picton the same afternoon, and next day launched 

 two of the pontoons and took in the cross logs and moorings. 



On the 26th June, left Picton, and towed the two pontoons to Bowden's 

 bay, where the "Taranaki" lay sunk. From this time to the 10th July they 



