Register (Adelaide, SA : 1901 - 1929), Monday 23 January 1922, page 2


THE ADMELLA WRECK From A. T. SAUNDERS : — The account from the "Leisure Hour' of 1862 in Satur- day's Register is good but not quite accu- rate. Ben Germein, in the Admella's patched-up boat, was the first to rescue people from the wreck, one being Capt. McEwan, who was nearly dead. There were four boats at the wreck, ignoring Ben Germein's own boat, which was useless. These four boats were, first the Semaphore pilot boat, which with her crew, were brought from Port Adelaide by the Corio. Some of the crew hesitated to leave the Corio for the wreck, and were justified in so doing, the weather was so bad, but when the late Hugh Quin and William Wells, both of Port Adelaide, offered to go in the boat, the boat's crew no longer hesitated, but manned her and went. The boat could not get to the Admella, nor back to the Corio, so the crew beached her where Germein and others were. The second and third boats were the lifeboat and a whaleboat brought by the steamer Ladybird from Portland. Both these boats tried on the Friday to reach the Admella, and both failed. On the Satur- day the Port Adelaide pilot boat was launched from the shore, and got close to the Admella, but was swamped. Ben Ger- mein in the Admella's boat, followed the pilot boat, got three persons from the wreck, transferred them to the pilot boat, which had been bailed out, and Germein then went back to the wreck and got another passenger. Meantime the lifeboat from the Ladybird rescued the rest of the people from the Admella. I have been corrected about the Mr. Melville I know. He was not the Mr. H. D. Melville, the Port Robe harbour master, but Mr. John Melville, who was Port Adelaide pilot, harbour master at Glenelg, Port Mac-donnell, and Port Augusta. I had not seen him since 1868, and thought he was the Port Robe harbour master. It was a coincidence that two men named Mel-ville should be so connected with South Australian marine matters, and one should be harbour master at Port Robe and the other at Port Macdonnell. Mr. H. D. Melville, of Port Robe, became secretary of the Forest Board, and I never knew him by sight. Leach's Admella medal (or medals) is in the Museum, and another Admella medal is, I am told, in possession of Mr. Rendall, of the Semaphore.