Norwich bulletin., 1911-05-20
LONG SEA VOYAGES.
A Bark 33s Days from Port to Port
Ship Blown Across Pacific.

The other day the Italian ship Ninfa
sauntered into the channel with
change of wind and signaIled off
Prawle Point. 1916 days out from AS
reported To the nautical perception
the sea is full of such lonely craft
battering their way round the Horn,
through region of almost perpetual
gales. or idling IN the doldrums to the
irritation of their dispirited crews,
who only find partial consolation in
the reflection that every flap of the
mainsail means half a crown out of
the owners pocket and a correspond
ing addition to their own hard earned
pay.
Within the experience of the deep
sea sailor such passages are nothing
unusual. particularly on the outward
voyage 70 the Pacific, when Cape Horn
has to be weathered and its prevailing
westerly winds won through. On
March 2. 1910. the four-masted bark
Invernesshire, sailed from Hamburg
bound for Santa Rosalia in the Gulf
of California. During a passage which
included such incidents a her tenn
porary abandonment by her crew in
dread of her laundering, she was
forced to put into the F'alklands to
rent and sailed again on her inter-
rupted voyage on September q. From
that time she was neither seen nor
heard of until she arrived safely at
her destination on February 2, 1911,
337 days out from her original port of
departure.
The voyage of the Invernesshire al
most compares with the performances
of the cumbersome craft of earlier
navigators. except no doubt that it
was tedious passage and not en-
ifyened by encounter with carracks
laden with pepper from Malabar, of
which the king of Spain was owner.
a.
der command of Thomas Cavendish, a
gentleman of Suffolk. set sail from
the headlands of California for the
Channel
At break of day, on June of the
following year she fell in sight of
the island of St. Helena; on July she
crossed the line and after holding the
brave trade winds to the limits of 40
degrees north latitude recovered the
long wished for port of Plymouth on
September 7. 1887. Not much better
could be expected from the ships and
their equipment
The sailing master of the Desire
thought it worthy of record that run
ming marrily before the wind under
all the sail she could carry his vessel
comprised 140 miles between noon and
noon, boast which would expose the
modern shipnaster to the derision of
his companions in every shipchandler's
shop of the ports he frequented
Among some extraordinary voyages
made by deep sea sailing craft within
recent years there may be mentioned
that of the Beacon Rock. engaged on
a short coastal trip between two
Australian ports. After all hope of
her safe arrival had been abandoned
she turned up at Talcahu, in Chilli
some 5000 miles from her intended
destination Being in light trim and
consequently with no grip on the
water she hcan II m T.
any progress against a persistent aaG
wind and her master had been COM
PEELED to square yards and make A
fair wind of it across the broad Pa
cific.
: Another large four masted bark. the
Buteshlre, had the remarkable expert
ence last year of cifcling around the
MINDLESS gulf of Panama like a circus
horse until she was obliged to put
ba ok. 80 days out of port and short
of provisions. 70 her pert of departure.
Il may, however, be an exaggera tor