Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1889-11-14
WRECK OF A TROOP SHIP.

In 1901 the Chinese had again forced a war
on England. They had chosen a bad time for
q conflict with Great Britain. The war with
Russia had only just ended, leaving England
with an army much larger and better pre-
pared for active work in the field than is
usual In England. A small force was &C
cordingly organized for operations in the
neighborhood OF Canton, with Hong Kong as
Its immediate base My regiment was one of
those selected for this service, and il sailed
from Portsmouth for Hong Kong early in
April, 1851
My company was one of those ordered to
embark in the Transit, a troop ship that had
been purchased, when half finished by the
admiralty, during the Crimean war and tina.
had already become notorious for her many
mishaps. Built by contract, the worst posi-
BILE work and material had been put into her
She had recently been patched up in one of
our royal dockyards, and new engines had
been given her. At the last hour, however,
she had been fitted for sea in a great hurry,
and the result was neither satisfactory nor
creditable TO our system of admiralty admin
| istration.
The anchor was up finally, and amid the
waving OF handkerchiefs, and with hearts
filed with mingled feelings OF JOY and sor-
row, We started slowly away toward the
weather becoming thick and foggy, the cap
tain anchored for the night, intending to be-
| gin his voyage down the channel at sunrise
next morning
The noise Of heaving at the anchor woke
me at dawn the following morning l had
Just turned over IN my narrow berth, enjoy
ing the pleasurable sensation of being of
duty, and so able TO doze away for another
hour, when my soldier servant put his head
into the cabin, and announced in his mellow
Irish brogue that the ship had five feet of
water In the hold.
He did not know how IL came about, but
that she was already very deep In the water,
and that had better get up at once, be was
certain. ! thought some blue jacket had
been pulling his leg, +" so, smiling In what l
believed 70 be my superior wisdom at the Sc
rious manner in which he had taken the joke,
l turned my face from the light, bidding him
| begone, and told him 10 call me at s.
A very few moments only could have
elapsed when he again aroused me from
pleasant dreams Of friends at home This
time he assured me in very excited voice
that the ship was sinking. While he spoks
the bugles sounded our ''regimental cal, !"
and then the assembly" In few minutes
was on deck in uniform, with my company
We had Just got under way, and were
steaming slowly in the gray Of a misty morn
| ing back to Portsmouth. All hands were
ordered 70 the pumps; the steam pumps were
already at work
The captain, fearing that the ship might
go down suddenly. Rugged the shore ali the
way. 50 as TO be able 70 run her aground in
shallow water at any moment, and to save
those on board IL he could not save his ship.
The sun had Just risen as we neared Spit
head and there was no wind even to shake
out and so make visible the signals to the ad-
miral ashore, describing our dangerous posi-
ton. We had a very large quantity of gun
powder on board, intended for our feet in
Chinese waters, also many tons OF ammuni-
ton for the army.
As precaution against dangerous explo-
mons near the dookyards. from time imme-
mortal the positive rule at Portsmouth has
been that no ship shall enter tho harbor until
she has discharged all her powder at Spit
head into special lighters provided for that
purpose. All that We had on board was al
ready well under water, for the leak was in
the magazine. No danger from this harm
less mixture OF powder and water was there
Tore possible; but there was the order sigued
by my lords OF the admiralty, and our cap
tain did not dare to infringe IL.
He could not anchor, for his steam pumps
only worked IN connection with the engines
which drove the screw, so IL the ship stopped
the pumps would stop also, and we should
have sunk In few minutes.
can never forget the absurdity OF the po-
sition. One OF her majesty's ships, crowded
with soldiers, half full OF water, In a sinking
condition, steaming ct full speed round in a
circle at Spithead while the naval authori-
ties were striving TO decipher the signals Of
a.
the signals we're made out by those ON shore,
and formal permission was given for US TO
enter the harbor
After a great deal of clevsrly executed
naval maneuvering we came alongside dock
yard pier. To IL we were dashed with chains
and stout hawsers TO prevent the ship from
moving, while the screw turned at full
speed, its movement being, Us have said, a
necessary accompaniment Of the steam
pumps, whose action was necessary TO keep
the ship aaoat. The troops were transferred
TO an old hulk, which had once been a DASH
ing 1.-TWO decker"
The Transit was locked that evening and
We then verified the suspicion that had been
mooted on board all the morning, but in an
undertone, namely, that we had anchored In
too shallow water, and when the tide went
out, had sat down upon our anchor The eff
feet Of this unfortunate operation was to
make q large hole In the ships bottom,
through which the SEA- had been pouring In
all night, without any one being a bit the
| wiser Indeed 1t was not until the anchor
| was being weighed that any one suspected
that there was something wrong
In few days the damage was repaired
the injured stores and powder replaced, and
| we once more steamed out Of harbor, our
| friends wishing US better luck next timen
Better luck was not, however, in store for us,
for we were no sooner well out in the chan
mel than we encountered very heavy weather,
the ship rolling heavily with every wave
We now discovered that her rigging was
most defective. 1t had been done In a great
hurry by the dockyard workmsn, and not by
the crew, as was usually the case. Our main
mast began to ''wabble" from side to side
with every roll in menacing fashion, the
shrouds being too loose to afford it much sup
port. Indeed, 1t was considered advisable to
him. Vessels did not 20 so fast then as they
do now, and remember that we were just
five months and three days from Phillips
dock, Liverpool
"our freight was gold dust for the return
trip, and the worst OF IL was that we could
| get crew only OF convicts Our own sail
ors caught the gold fever, which was run
ming very high then, and while the ship was
lying at Melbourne ran away ID the gold
fields 20 prospect for themselves These con-
victs were old sailors who had been trans
ported for crime, but who had served out
their terms and wished TO return TO England
by working their passage David-that was
my husbands name-said we could do no
better than to take them, and he hadn't the
slightest fear that they would make any
|