The Sun.
London, England, 1866-09-11 00:00:00

The Great Ship Race from China.

The truly marvellous race between the fleet of
China clipper ships,
from Foo-chow-foo, for the
premium offered by the London brokers for the first
season's teas, and their almost neck-and-neck
struggle during the whole voyage of upwards of
16,000 miles, is an event exciting a vast amount of
interest iii almost every maritime port, both at home
and abroad. It appears there were nine ships engaged
-in the conttstinfid---nOt five-Ai—previously:reported.
They were as follows, together with the time of their
respective departures from Foo-chow-foo

Date

Ton-.
Wher
Names. Captains.
Built'e
Sailing.of
nage
Ada 686 Jones Aberdeen June 6
Ariel 853 Keay Greenock May '3O
Black Prince 750 Inglis Aberdeen June 3
Chinaman
Fiery Cross 689 Robinson Liverpool May 29
Flying Spur 731 Ryrie Aberdeen Juno 5
Serica 7OB Innes Greenock May 30
Taeping 767 M‘Kinnon. Greenock May 30
Taitsing Bl5 Nutsfield Glasgow May 31

The struggle, however, was between the Fiery
Cross, Ariel, Taeping, and Serica. The Fiery Cross
obtained a start of one day over the others ; the
Serica, Ariel, and Taeping crossed the bar of Foo-
chow-foo in company together, 30th May. The
Taitsing started the following day. There was a
fair N.E. wind blowing, which the Fiery Cross kept
to 19 20 N., when they met with a few hours' calm
and southerly wind. N.E. wind, fresh, again set in,
which carried them to the Parcells reef on June 3,
though they were not sighted. The Serica, Taeping,
and Ariel met with similar _weather. The Fiery
Cross saw nothing of them until noon of the 7th of
June in lat. 9 37, when she passed a large ship on
the opposite tack, believed to have been the Ariel.
To the southward of the Parcells they met with
strong south-west winds. As far as we have been
able to ascertain, the ships passed the lighthouse at
Anjer, Straits of Sunda, as follows :—Fiery Cross at
noon of the 18th of June, Ariel on the morning of
the 20th of June, Taeping on the afternoon of the
20th of June, Serica at 6 p.m. of the 22d of June,
Taitsing at 10 p.m. of the 22d of June, and Black
Prince on the 29th of June.

__
At this time the Fiery Cross was evidently hold-
ing the ' lead, while the Taitsing, which left Foo-
chow-foo the day after the others, had caught up
with the Serica, the Fiery Cross heading both by
two days. From Anjer they carried good trade
winds to the meridian of Madagascar.

The Fiery Cross passed Mauritius on the 30th of
June, and the Ariel on the 2d of July.
The Cape of Good Hope was sighted by the Fiery
Cross on the 15th of July at 10 p.m. The Ariel
rounded the Cape the next day, wind S.E. to E.
and N.N.E. The Serica rounded the Cape on
the 22d.

The Equator WVS passed—Fiery Cross 6 p.m. of
the 4th of August, Ariel on the sth, and Serica on
the 19th.

On the 9th of August, in lat. 12 29 N., the Fiery
Cross signalled the Taeping, and continued in com-
pany till the 17th, with wind variable and light. In
lat. 27 53, long. 36 54 W. a fresh breeze sprung up
and took the Taeping out of sight from the Fiery
Cross in four or five hours. The Fiery Cross was
becalmed and was not making one knot per hour for
24 hours. This circumstance is alleged to have lost
her the race. On the 29th she reached lat. 41 5 N.,
long. 35 51 W., and at 10 a.m. of the 6th of Sep-
tember she sighted the Isle of Wight, it bearing
N.N.W. wind W.S.W., blowing hard.
The Ariel and Taeping, which had lost sight of
each other for 70 days, found themselves on Wed-
nesday morning at eight o'clock off the Lizard, run-
ning neck and neck up the Channel under every
stitch of canvas that could be set, with a strong
westerly wind. During the whole day the two ships
kept their position, dashing up the Channel side by
side in splendid style, sometimes almost on their beam
ends every sea sweeping their decks. On approaching
the pilot station of Dungeness the next morning
they each fired blue lights to signalise their posi-
tion. At daybreak the pilots boarded them at the
same moment, and the race continued in the same ex-
citing manner till they arrived in the Downs, where
they both took steam-tugs to tow them to the river.
The ships had to shorten sail to enable the tugs
coming up and picking up the hawsers to take them
in tow. This was about 8 o'clock a.m., the tugs
starting almost simultaneously, and both ships still
neck and neck. The Taeping, however, was for-
turnate enough to have a superiority in the power
of the steam-tugs, and reached Gravesend some time
before the Ariel. The Serica followed closely upon
them.
Ariel
with the same tide which carried the Taeping
upieSlhepassed Deal at noon, and got into the
the riveito the docks, when the result
of
eth.is extraordinary race was declared to be as
follows :

Ist, Taeping, docked in London Dock, 9.45 p.m.
2nd, Ariel, docked in East India Dock, 10.15 p.m.
3rd, Serica, docked in West India Dock, 11.30 p.m.
The Taeping, therefore, was the winner of the
premium about £5OO. The bills of lading of each
ship setting forth that 10s. per ton extra to be paid
if first sailing vessel in dock with new teas from
Foo-chow.

Vie Fiery Cross arrived in the Downs on the 7th,
and was compelled to bring up to an anchor on ac-
inganaged to get into the
where she remained
She, however,
blowing,
ow
m
London
i time.
eDockafter
a vyb
by 8 a
o'clock Saturday morning,
g• The fifth ship, the
Taitsing, arrived in the river yesterday forenoon.
During the past few days the excitement occa-
sioned
nbtyhisthe
greatpr annualobabilit anyocoef
the arrival of the first
race from China was
unprecedented. The friends of each vessel have been
supporting their favourite, by betting considerable
sums. During no previous year has so much in-
terest been centred in the result of this race, and
from the fact of so many Clyde-built ships being
engaged in the competition, Scotchmen generally
have largely partaken in the speculation which has
existed at almost every maritime port, both in Britain
and China. It will be remembered that last year
thd ships Fiery Cross and Serica left Foo-chow for
London together, on the 28th May, both having
been towed to sea by the same tug, and that both
eight simultaneously
vesselsontassage of 106 days.
By a stroke of good fortune, however, the tug sent
out by the owners of the Fiery Cross sighted her,
h l oarrivedth
oi offse
Sept.,ptth. Isleafte
after
ofa
took her in tow, and arrived in London one tide
before her rival, the Serica, the latter having failed
to sight the tug on the look-out for her.
A riel, and Serica
bo., of Greenock.
nstructed on the
Tw
heSreei naTgltlatlebapuriinittgoboyabni‘sdieersvAsersrit.ehsietTwe
eaelreepeainnedgo
composite principle, wood and iron. The Serica is
iron-built.

The cargoes of the ships were, Taeping 1,108,709
lbs. of tea ; Ariel, 1,230,900 lbs. of tea ; the Serica,
954,236 lbs. ; Fiery Cross, 854,236 lbs., and the
Taitsing 1,003,130 lbs.
The time occupied on the voyage by the three
ships has been 99 days, being seven days shorter

The report of the directors states that £5,582,967
had been expended, including £163,034 on various
lines and works during the past half year. The sum
invested in the shares of other companies was
£363,500, making the total expenditure on capital
account to the 31st of July last £5,946,467. The
sum of £13,157 had been expended on the renewal
of the permanent way during the half year, of which
£lO,OOO had been charged against revenue. The
rolling stock had been efficiently maintained, and
considerable additions had been made to it during
the half year. Notwithstanding the unfavourable
state of the money market, the loans falling due
were renewed at 41 per cent. interest. The average
rate of interest on the debenture debt was now £4
2s. Oid. per cent. The construction of a portion of
the line authorised by the " Ayrshire Lines Act,
1865," was being rapidly proceeded with, and the
directors proposed shortly to let the contract for a
further portion to complete the connection with the
main line at Mauchline, thus shortening the line
from Ayr to the south by upwards. of 14 miles.
The junction with the Renfrew line at Paisley had
been opened for traffic, and the Paisley and Renfrew
railway having been relaid, and a second line of
rails added, trains now run direct between Glasgow
and Renfrew. The works on the Govan branch, the
joint property of the company and the Caledonian,
were being proceeded with, and it was anticipated
that it would be opened for traffic early next year.
The contractors were making satisfactory progress
with the works of the Glasgow Union Railway, and
the directors trusted that the Union Company would
be in a position to complete their line and stations
at au early period. The works of the Greenock
and Ayrshire Railway, in which this company was
so largely interested, were being vigorously pro-
ceeded with. The company were authorised in the
last Session of Parliament by one Act to carry out
the arrangement made with the Caledonian Com-
pany, and the promoters of the Ayr and Douglas
Railway, the capital authorised being £lOO,OOO by
shares, and £33,300 by loans; by the other Act
they were authorised to make certain improvements
on the Kilmarnock and Troon line, and the substi-
tution of bridges for level crossings in several cases,
the capital authorised being £26 by shares and
£8,600 by loans. The directors did not contem-
plate any application to Parliament for new works
or extension in the ensuing Session. The total
traffic receipts for the last half-year were £19,112
above those for the corresponding half of 1865.
The passenger traffic showed an increase of
£7,769, and the goods and mineral traffic an increase
of £10,203. The total receipts in the past half
year amounted to £290,153, and the total expendi-
ture to £120,061, leaving £170,092, to which was
added £5,151 surplus from the previous half year,
making £175,244. From this was deducted interest on
loans £27,691, leaving £147,553 available for divi-
dend. The dividend on the 5 per cent. perpetual
guaranteed stocks, Nos. 1 and 2, and on the May-
bole and Girvan 4 per cent. guaranteed stock ab-
sorbed £17,078, leaving a balance of £130,475, out
of which the directors recommended a dividend at
the rate of 7 per cent. per annum on the ordinary
and participating preference stocks and shares of
the company, carrying forward £3,351 to the credit
of next half-year's account. Mr. W. Johnstone,
the engineer, reported that the receipts for passen-
ger traffic per train mile amounted to 3s. 41d., and
the expenses to is. 3d., showing a profit of 2s. I,d.
per train mile. The receipts for goods and minerals
amounted to 3s. 11fd. per train mile, and the ex-
penses to is. 4d. per train mile, showing a profit
of 2s. 64d. per train mile.