The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1859-11-01 00:00:00

THE

GREAT EASTERN IN THE GALE.

HOLTHLAD, Oct. 27.
During Tuesday and Wednesday last the Great
Eastern has been most sharply tested, and has had to
weather as heavy a gale as has swept into the harbour
of Holyhead for years past. Most fortunately the
tempest was of short duration, or none can say what the
consequences would have been. While it lasted, how-
ever it equalled in violence any of the fiercest Channel
storms that ever strewed our coast with wrecks. On
this part of the coat, indeed, we already know that the
destruction of life and property has been great and wide
spread, for, though brief, the gale was one of terrific
violence. A large part of the breakwater works at
Holyhead have been destroyed, and vessels achored far
inside and sheltered, compared to where the big ship lay.
have either gone down bodily, or been driven high
and dry ashore. For one hour or so the Great Eastern
herself oas as near destruction as she is ever likely to
be, and nothing hut the our:axing vigilance and long
experience of Captain Harrison and the officers under
him could hive saved the vmsel from driving ashore
with tho others.

For some days past the weather has been breaking
and unsettled and as unfavourable as can well be con-
ceived for water excursions of any kind, and the visitors
to Holyhead seem to have been quite alive to this most
unpleasant discovery. Each day during this and the
last week liaa shown • considerable diminution in the
number of venturesome tourists who have put off to the
great ship, and when all the circumstances were taken
into consideration, the wonder was not that there were
leas, but that there were any at all. On shore the wee-
ther has been sloppy and damp, at sea the air was raw
and keen. During the greater part of this and last week
little squalls, with hail and sleet, have occuried at short
intervals to vary the monotony of Holyhead harbour,
to which the Welsh mouutaitis now thick with snow,
m for a dreary and elieerlesa background. The season
for excursions, whether by land or sea, was evidently
over, and more than enough had been seen of the Great
Eastern's present anchorage to show that Hclybead was
no place for her to winter in. She could uot come
inside the moat awkwardly constructed breakwater, but
lay abreast of its eastern extremity, exposed during a
north-easterly gale to • heavy sea, and with what Was
supposed to be but indifferent holding ground for •
vessel of such size and with such an area for the wind
to act on. Both these circumstance. told strongly to
her disadvantage during the late most fearful storm.
From 8 o'clock Captain Harrison never left the deck
or bridge, bus was either sounding the lead overboard
to Fee if she dragged, giving directions about the steam,
or watching the chain cables, as under the strain they
rose up out of the water like bars of solid metal. Every•
thing that could be done under the circumstances was
done, and there was nothing for it but to hold on aml
wish for daylight. At last, after a moat anxious night,
the cold dawn broke in a thin gray light, with sky and
sea mingled in a doubtful haze, till it was hard to say
where the water ended and the clouds began. Above,
all was thick and gloomy: below, the water seemed
lashed to fury, and the waves came hissing and writh•
ing in, "curling their monstrous heads," and breaking
Upon the rocks like avalanches of snodr. It was, in
truth, a very wild and dreary scene. Over the light-
house on the inner pier-head the waves seemed to surge
almost unimpeded, while the breakwater itaelf was so
completely hidden that the tremendous jets of spray and
Goma which cloaked it from end to end isore resembled
in their distant bootu and snowy clouds the constant
discharges of heavy artillery than the break of waves,
however dangerous.
At 6 o'clock there were symptoms of the storm break-
ing, and, as usual, the last gusts were the worst, and :he
situation of the Great Eastern was a matter for deep
anxiety on the part of Captain Harrison and his officers.
There was scarcely room to steam out, yet it was evi•
dent thaS, if the gale continued, it would be impossible
For her to remain much longer where she was. Inside
the breakwater the sea ran high, with waves of a deep
yellow hue, while the ocean without reFembled hills
of muddy half-thawed !MOW, reflecting their whitish
glare upon the clouds above, as if the very laws of nature
had been reversed and light came from below. Both wind
and tide were rising, and as the great billows mode dash-
ing in upon the massive framework of timber which
marked the end of the breakwater, it became a nice cal-
culation which would yield fir.t, the timbers or the gale.
The whole harbour was covered with rafts, till their
black masses showed up like reefs of rock in all direc-
tions. Still the storm swept on as wild as ever, and
where the breakwater makes that moat injudicious
inward curve and forms • concave surface for the sea So
act on the waves broke high and fiercely, even here
damaging the cranes upon the high scaffolding, and
threatening a clean breach into the harbour.
_-•••• • • •

'This seer; of destruction was, for the time it lasted,
as grand and awful& eight as can well be conceived. The
great waves not only looked irresistible, but showed
themselves to be so in sad and sober earuest, and every-
thing went down like sand before their terrific onset.
Matters now began to look very had, and such treineo-
dons evidences of danger on the iiart of the wind and sea
were by no means overlooked by those on board the
Great Eastern. In fact, it was with most considerable
anxiety that Captain Harrison saw the turn affairs were
taking, for the wind WAS now dead from the north-east
and the whole sweep of the channel was pouring into
the harbour.

Towards 8 or 9 o'clock the wind went round more to
the N.E., sending in a beam swell, to which the Great
Eastern began to roll very heavily. As the surge swept
in, the position of the veeel hourly became worse, and
at last, at 10 o'clock, Captain Harrison had no &Rene-
five but to try and raise the heaviest anchor, get the
vessel's bead more under the lee of the breakwater, and
then let it go again. This was a difficult and most criti-
cal task, for every part of the harbour was now so com-
pletely covered with drifting beams that the screw
could only be used with the utmost caution. The pad-
dles, Indus in case of a most dangerous emergency,
could not be used at all, as the timbers would of course
knock the Boats to pieces. Gradually, therefore, the
Great Eastern was brought up to her stuboard anchor,
though with the utmost difficulty. Before the screw
could well get play I; was fouled and had to stop.
Directly this occurred the steam from the screw boilers
was let into the paddle engines, which in turn went
ahead, till the propeller was free and able to work
again. At last, after some time, the anchor was under
the bow, the slack chain hove in, and the huge mass of
iron got up to the bow ready for letting go again in a
better berth. But the wind now allowed no choice of
situations. The vessel had partly swung off into a beam
sea, which was then sweeping over and past the
breakwater with awful force, cud the Great Eastern
I began to roll quickly and heavily. In spite of the relief
afforded by the screw, the cable of the remaining
anchor kept tautening more and more, until at last,
at about half-past 10, it sprang up like a cord out
of the water, and in another moment the Great
Futern was adrift, rolling and tumbling like •
drunken ship tooter& shore. So quiet and orderly was
everything when this most alarming incident took place,
that very few knew what had really happened, though
all could pretty well puss by the heavy lurches of the
vessel that something had indeed gone wrung. t'aptain
Harrison and Mr. Kett were forward, and in an instant
all was ready for letting go • second heavy anchor,
while word was passed to go ahead with the screw, for
the great ship, lurching from aide to side, was making
rapidly for shore. The second anchor was let go and
the screw moved ahead, but the vessel had now great
way on her, and could not be easily stopped on what
seemed her road to destruction. Just as the screw
began to tell an iininenae mass of wreck wood fouled it
and brought the machinery to a dead stand. Not a
second could be lost in waiting till it cleared, so the
steam was at once turned into the paddle engines,
which were driven round at speed, through the floats
got hurt among the mass of wreck, and the great iron
work of the wheels was bent in many places. To avoid
this and the serious damage it might occasion the screw
was set to work again the instant it was freed, but it
was seldom able to revolve more than • few moments
without becoming jammed again, when the paddles were
again resorted to. But for the Great Eastern'sdouble
engines very little could have hien done. The
anchor which was let go "bit" at ono*. and as
much scope was given to the cable as dare be let
out when the vessel bad driven back No far and the
lee shore loomed so close astern. Still, for a time, the
position continued dangerous in the extreme, as, in spite
of both wind and steam, the great ship lay open to the
sea rolling dangerously for such a place, and making way
as if nothing would hold her. At last she brought np,
though she seemed to make desperate efforts to break
from the grip of her new 1101.1 feet—tugging and rolling
to her chain as though she would pull up • mountain.
Fortunately both chains and anchor held fast, as they
did before in heavy weather at Portland, when two
screw colliers, each with 800 tons of coal on board, two
brigs, two dummies, and a large galliot, all hung on to
the Great Eastern, riding at the mauls single chain
and anchor. After one or two more ineffectual efforts
' to break away, her head at last swung round, and she rode
lightly to the gale as before. In this last struggle some
of the links of the chain cable were actually dragged out
' one-third longer. and one which pared under the sharp
' bows of the vessel was bent nearly double. The cable
' on the port bow was then hove in, whet it was found
that the shank of the anchor, after bending considerably,
' had been torn in half about a foot below the crown,
showing good anchor and holding ground both.
In the evening the wind went round to the north-west,
, and then:llheltered by the breakwater, the Great Eastern
rested quietly, though still with all steam ready. On
Thursday the weather was fine and mild, and steamers
I were again able to ozone alongside. 011 shore the gale
, appears to have done considerable damage, and, as we
are informed, chimneys were blown down and houses
; unroofed at Holybftd.