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White Wings Vol I. Fifty Years Of Sail In The New Zealand Trade, 1850 TO 1900

The Tweed

page 136

The Tweed.

A Famous Clipper—Built out of a Steamer—Stories about Captain Stuart.

On more than one occasion the celebrated Tweed has been credited by writers in the New Zealand Press with having made the record passage to New Zealand. This is not borne out by facts. the Tweed, originally built for the East India Co., and named the Punjaub, was purchased by John Willis. She was a beautiful ship and greatly admired by all nautical men. She was built throughout of teak, and all her fittings were in teak and greenheart. Like the
The Slipper Tweed On The Thames.

The Slipper Tweed On The Thames.

Thomas Stephens, her rival in the Sydney trade, she was tremendously sparred, her mainsail being 98ft on the head.

When the ship was purchased by Willis in 1863 Captain William Stuart was given command, and he made many remarkable passages to Sydney and Melbourne, and occasionally to India. He became a general favourite with passengers and shippers. Captain Stuart remained in command for fourteen years, and during all this time he never met with any serious mishap. He left the Tweed in 1877 to take command of a new clipper ship, Loch Etive. This vessel also made splendid runs to Australia, and in 1891 she sailed from the Clyde and anchored in Hobson's Bay, Melbourne, in 70 days.

In 1874 the Tweed was still owned by John Willis and Son, and was chartered to convey 639 passengers to Dunedin. She left Gravesend on June 16, and had a good run down the Channel, clearing it on the 18th. She passed Madeira on June 23, crossed the Equator on July 8, passed Cape Leeuwin on August 22. Stewart Island on September 2, and arrived at Port Chalmers on the following day at 8 a.m., making the passage in 79 days, anchorage to anchorage, and 74 land to land.

the Tweed as late as 1880 under Captain J. M. Whyte made the run out to Sydney in 75 days. On this occasion she averaged 240 miles a day from the Equator to the South Cape of Tasmania, which was passed on the sixty-seventh day out.

the Tweed came to grief in 1888. Mr. Basil Lubbock, in his interesting book the "Black Ball Frigates" states: "During this year the Tweed left Sydney for China, and loaded a cargo for New York. On July 18, when off Algoa Bay, she was dismasted. She was towed to Algoa Bay, but had received such injury and leaked so badly that she was not considered worth repairing, and was broken up. Her frames and timbers may still be seen forming the roof of a church in Port Elizabeth."

page 137

A Sailor's Memories.

A Taupaki correspondent, who unfortunately forgot to sign his name, sends me a most interesting account of the Tweed. He says:—

"The E.I. Company built her and a sister ship, paddle steamers, with Indian names. Willis bought the pair for £44,000, resold one for £40,000, and the machinery and boilers out of the other for £12,000. Then he had her cut in two and 90ft built into the middle of her, and renamed her the "Tweed." Just then happened along Captain Stuart, who, after an hour's study of her, went straight to Willis and said, 'Let me rig her. I'll take command afterwards.' I do not know what Willis thought of the cheek, but he gave Captain Stuart the job. the Tweed was heavily sparred. Her mainsail was 98ft on the head. Stuart's only trouble afterwards was to get a mate who would drive her.

"It used to be a regular thing, in the mate's watch, for the captain to go below, and five or ten minutes afterwards to pop up and find the mate shortening sail. Then there would be language and to spare, and the sail reset. Of course, the mate would say the wind had freshened; more language, and the poor mate would sulk for days. On six consecutive voyages he had six new mates. Then he shipped a mate who liked to get the best out of a vessel, and, besides, he had heard of the trouble aboard the Tweed. Well, they got away down channel, and in the new mates first watch after losing sight of the Lizard the old play began, but only got as far as the skipper's popping up again, for this time he found them setting the main royal, although under like conditions few vessels would have carried a main topgallant sail. Captain Stuart carried this mate six years, and only parted with him in Singapore on a cable from the 'White Hat' ordering the mate to go to Manila and take command of the Coldstream, a slow old cart, most unlike the Tweed.

Dog Island Lighthouse, At Foveaux Strait.

Dog Island Lighthouse, At Foveaux Strait.

"I think the Tweed's greatest sailing was on a passage from Hongkong to Singapore, in about 1874, which she made in five days six hours, beating the then mail boats by six hours. On four of the days she did, I think, over 400 miles, not knots, to the 24 hours. Captain Stuart was very sore because he could not better 68 days Home from Sydney, which was his time with the Tweed on three occasions, on two of which he made quite extraordinary runs to the Horn, and afterwards had light winds in the Atlantic, and on the other the reverse happened.

"Although the Tweed had fine passenger accommodation, 90ft of a poop, she got none to carry in the last few years of Captain Stuart's command, as her name for racing became too well known. On one occasion the Tweed gave the Patriarch, as a smaller ship, 24 hours start from the Downs to Sydney. Captain Stuart stood watch in hand, and to the tick they broke the anchor out and got away in chase. She spoke five ships on the passage, none of which had seen the Patriarch, and they hove-to close in to Port Jackson Heads half-an-hour before dawn one morning. When daylight came, there was the Patriarch, about eight miles off, where she had lain since dusk the previous evening. The Sydney tug took the nearest (and biggest) first, so Captain Stuart won £100 from the skipper of the Patriarch, but it was a bit of a fluke.

"I am sorry I have forgotten the dimensions of the great Tweed. Her registered tonnage was 1760, but she did not carry well, being too fine at the ends. Her figurehead was Dandy Dinmont, with a broad bonnet over 3ft across. She was originally fastened with copper all through, and Willis used to say he made money every time they repaired her, as they took out copper and replaced it with iron."