Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), Wednesday 11 April 1877, page 4


NOTICE. DISPATCH OF MAILS VIA GALLE, PER

BANGALORE, FROM MELBOURNE.

,- Mails, containing letters, packets, and newspapers, will he made up at this office, and forwarded per China (s.) to Melbourne on Saturday, the 14th instant. Mails will close as follows: Registered letters at 9.30 a.m. A Unregistered letters at 10 a.m.,

'newspapers and packets at 9 a.m.

'' late letters for the United Kingdom, via Brindisi only, will he received at the General Post Office to 11 a.m.. Late fee, 6d. , General Post Office, Sydney, 7th April, 1877.

' .CtJSTOM-Hot'3E.-Entered Outwards, April 16 : Hero ss.), 851 tons, Captain Logan, for Auckland ; Coorong, barque, 354 tons, Captain McDonald, for Adelaide, via Newcastle ; Dancing Wave, Schooner, 67 tons, Captain Sterling, for Broadsound ; Barrabool ss.), 588 tons, Captain Pain, for Melbourne ; Florence Irving (s.), 626 tons, Captain Phillips, for Cooktown ; Iserbrook, barque, 203 tons, Captain Martin, for South Sea Islands,

The Hero (s.) cleared Port Phillip Heads at 6.30 p.m. on the 5th instant, rounded Wilson's Promontory at 3.45 a.m. on the ' its, passed Gabo Island at 10 p.m. on the same day, Cape St. - iBeorgs at 0.30 p.m. on the 9th, entered the Heads at 12.20 a.m.,

-> and arrived at the Grafton Wharf at 1 o'clock on the 10th. On

the passage round the Hero experienced moderate head winds Jervis Bay, thence to arrival at the Heads fresh head winds, and fine weather throughout.

1 The Barrabool (s.) left Port Phillip Heads at 9.30 p.m. on Saturday, passed Gabo Island at 2.15 a.m. on Monday, and entered Sydney Heads at 1 a.m. yesterday. Experienced light head winds and fine weather throughout the passage.

'' The Alexandra (s.) cleared Port Phillip Heads at 7 p.m. on 7th instant, rounded Wilson's Promontory at 5.45 a.m. on the 8th,

JBaho Island at 4 p.m. on the 9th, entered Port Jackson at 10 a.m. CO the 10th, and arrived alongside of company's wharf at 11 am. same day. Experienced light easterly breeze and fine clear weather to Wilson's Promontory, and light north-east wind and fine weather thence until arrival.

e, The steamships Ly-ee-Moon, for Melbourne ; Balclutha, for Brisbane; Tasman, for Hobart Town; Easby, for New Zealand and James Paterson, for Roîkhwnptos.-took their departures yesterday afternoons

says- I ? "

Tnr Grafton s ) One of the most complete transformations that we have ever witnessed has been carried out by Mr John h Manning on the Grafton (s) so favourably known in the Clarence River trade This vessel, constructed by Laird, of Birkenhead, under the superintendence of the late Captain Wiseman, especially for our bar harbour trade, has a powerful paddlesteamer of most unusual stunts but washes as sot\pciisi\t to work and carried so little the company to which she belonged determined to sell her, and she was purchased by Mr. Manning, with a view to conversion into a twin screw steamer with the most modern class of machinery Owing to the very heavy work to be performed, and the high price of labour,

the alterations carried out have occupied nearly two years but have resulted in the most perfect success in one way The Grafton being originally constructed with her decks flamming out, for the survey mice of live stock, and with a hollow amid-ships for the paddle-wheels, it became necessary to cut out the entire center section of the ship to the water h edge, in order to make ittouespondwitlitheuids this was effected Alldifeeti\e plates and films were removed and the entire ship gutted out, leaving nothing but a portion of her shell She was then fined upon four feet, in a line with the half poop and forecastle, thus forming a fine Hush deck 28 feet wide. Round this lies a angleiron stanchions have been secured with a mainsail of great strength, the object of this unusual solid being to give greater security for the cattle fittings, there being room on deck for some fifty head The decks are of "a Latin, many of the lengths exceeding 60 feet Everything about the decks is finished in a very superior manner, and with her tall trees mg spar-some 95 feet long coppered light up, the Grafton looks homelike yacht than a light draught boat-harbour Steamer

'The accommoiiationtor first-class passengers Every superior, not only is there a large lower saloon, with enclosed state rooms, bath closets, c , all beautifullvventilated, but above, in a deck-house some 40 feet long, there is an elegant dining saloon, with a large party v opening off it Passengers, therefore, who suffer from sea-sickness can remain below without the, to them, disagreeable smell of dinner near them, and passengers who do not suffer in the same manner can have their meals in comfort The Crofton having been fitted out expressly for the internoithern Queensland trade, ventilation has been specially attended to, and it seems to have been made as nearly perfect as possible in the two saloons home 40 passengers can be on their the machinery, constructed at Mort's Dock and Engineering Company's works, is that known as high pressure surface condensing, of 61 horse-power nominal These engines are fitted with the most approved expansion gear, working from 2 inches at the stroke Altogether there are three engines, one giving each screw, and a third working the circulating and other pumps on the condenser The screw engines run at a piston speed of 180 feet a minute with the expansions on, and at that indicate over 460 horse-power, being more than seven times the nominal power 'The two boilers, pressed to 120 lbs, work at a pressure of 60 lbs to the inch, and are fired from underneath they have 72 feet of fire-grate surface, are easily filed by one man, and consume 5 tons coal in the 24 hours The bunkers contain about lions coal There are no less than five a stop-work es, so that in the case of an accident either engine or boiler on be completely disconnected The stilling gear is in a most convenient position on deck, and is handled by one man only The surface condenser has over 20 square feet of cooling surface to the nominal horse-power, which is greatly beyond

the usual allowance, consequently the fine vacuum of 244 inches i is carried The propellers are 7 feet in diameter, with pitch 8 feet 6 inches, running at HO revolutions Owing to the line pitch very slight vibration is caused, and you could hardly tell that

you were in a steamer, even when running at nine knots-the I speed the Grafton has been doing at her trial trips, even in the present foul state of her bottom The steerage is well v collated and very lofty, being 7 feet 4 inches high, in it are berths for thirty-six passengers, and a nice pantry The officers quarters are on deck under the bridge, which is 25 feet long, They are fitted with drawers lockets, and every convenience The measurement of the two holds is near 400 tons and the skin being kept well up and perfectly flat no damage is required and every facility 'afforded for the rapid discharge of cargo We have never seen any vessel that promised a berth even to her owner-beautiful passenger accommodation, roomy decks, good speed, ft 9-knotboat, great economy in working expenses, and withal large carrying capacity on light draught in c understand the Grafton is for sale, and if not disposed of shortly will be placed in the Clarence or Richmond River trade The whole of the alterations to the Grafton, which have cost £18,000, have been carried out under the inspection of the Government engineer and surveyor

The cargo of the steamer Hunter, from the Civil, comprises 1 horse, 5 bags, 3 calves, 40 pigs, 7 coops fowls, 150 bags bark, 30 bags oysters, 135 kegs butter, 2500 feet timber, and sundries A

ship, name unknown, passed Cape Otway early yesterday morning, and a vessel belies ed to be her was outside the Heads at 4 p in Later on it was ascertained that she was the Linguist from Liverpool, and Christie had been quarantined in consequence of small-pox having manifested itself on board during the passage -A[r¡fit%Ji$Ti\ 7 The

P. and Co 's steamer China left "V, llhamstown Docks at 6 15s on the 8th instant, arrived off Quat antine station at 9am, received passengers and baggage ex steamship Bangalore, and proceeded at 11 5 and , cleared Port Phillip Heads at 11 45 a m , from thence to Wilson's Promontory light southerly wind and fine weather, off the Promontory at 3 45 p m

Experienced light variable winds to Gabo Island, which was passed on the 9th A pul st 2 pm, from thence to Port Jackson light N and F winds, with fine weather, entered Sydney) Heads at 12 40 p in April 15th, arrived. at moorings at 3 20 p m after

an excellent passage _

Launch -Thk Yarra Yarra -On the 10th instant Messrs A M'Millan and Son launched from their does yard, at Dumbarton, the Yarra Yarra, an iron sailing ship of 140 tons BM This vessel has been built to the order of Messrs William Gracie and Co. , of Liverpool, and is intended for the Australian and Eastern States The naming ceremony was performed by Miss Porteous, of Ravenspurs, Irvine, and the vessel will be under the command of Mr. Robert Kerr -HW i hell i Jtegt it sr, i i Bruni v 16

L\c_pi"i)R Islands -Fremantle, December 30 Numbers of vessels an proceeding to the above islands to the guano deposits on them These islands are subject to the severe line cones which visit the north-west coast of Australia for five months in the year, viz, from November to Marh inclusive, and the nearest shelter is Beagle Bay The master of the Rose schooner i reports that during a short stay that he had to help his anchor and chain and run for shelter Mitchell's Register, february 16

Rfcovfbi of Sussex Yi-ssbls-Lately Mr Hough read a paper at the Inventors Institute, on " I Recovery of Sunken Vessels " He stated that his plan was first to cover all the openings in the vessel to be raised with the aid of divers, and then small engines of two cylinders, with centrifugal, double acting, of spear pumps attached, should be placed on the upper or lower deck, or against any convenient opening in the side These pfunpulg-enguies were to be driven by compressed air from the surface, and the compressed air could be supplied by an pumps on a small steamer it the surface He contended that his plan would not be affected by the weather, as the work could be suspended and resumed at any stage without disadvantage, and he held ed it could be used successfully to raise the Vanguard The president thought that the great difficulty in the case of the A vineyard would be to stop the portholes, gangways tunnels and hatchways at so great a depth as 75 feet below the surface Dr

Macgregor Croft pointed out the great difficulty was how to deal with the sand which had silted into the vessel Adam at Selwyn did not believe the Vanguard could be raised at all, for she must now be nearly covered with sand Then the deck itself was not strong enough to hear the pressure necessary to lift her A French company had bought the ship, but their dive, after one short decent, had refused to go down again, as the danger and depth were so great Then he did not believe the vessel, even if it could be got up, was worth the expenditure the operation would cost Mr Hough briefly replied, and admitted that if the sand had very much silted up round the ship and got inside her, nothing would lift her. The President remarked that Mr Hou_rfc's plan was no doubt a very good one for ordinary purposes, but the Vanguard was, he thought, beyond its powers