CHAPTER XXII.

EARLY STEAMSHIP WRECKS AND THEIR LESSONS. The _Rothsay Castle_—An Old Vessel, unfit for Sea Service—A Gay 297 Starting—Drifting to the Fatal Sands—The Steamer Strikes—A Scene of Panic—Lost within easy reach of Assistance—An Imprudent Pilot—Statements of Survivors—A Father and Son parted and re-united—Heartrending Episodes—The Other Side: Saved by an Umbrella—Loss of the _Killarney_—Severe Weather—The Engine-fires Swamped—At the Mercy of the Waves—On the Rocks—The Crisis—Half the Passengers and Crew on an Isolated Rock—Spolasco and his Child—Holding on for Dear Life—Hundreds Ashore “Wrecking”—No Attempts to Save the Survivors—Several Washed Off—Deaths from Exhaustion—“To the Rescue!”—Noble Efforts—Failure of Several Plans—A Novel Expedient adopted—Its Perils—Another Dreary Night—Good Samaritans—A Noble Lady—Saved at Last—The Inventor’s Description of the Rope Bridge—The Wreck Register for One Year—Grand Work of the Lifeboat Institution

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGE The Naval Flags of the World _Coloured Frontispiece_ Raleigh at Trinidad _To face page_ 5 Sir Walter Raleigh 5 Raleigh on the River 9 Monson and the Biscayan Ship 12 Monson at Cadiz 17 Action in Cerimbra Roads 21 Monson at Broad Haven 25 De Ruyter on the Medway 32 Peter the Great 33 The Imperial Workman receiving a Deputation 36 Old Dockyard at Deptford 37 Saye’s Court, Deptford 39 Commodore Anson 45 The _Centurion_ off Cape Horn 49 Surrender of the _Carmelo_ 56 Anson taking the Spanish Galleon 61 Cape Cod 64 The _Dartmouth_ in Boston Harbour 65 Destruction of the Tea Cargoes 72 Nelson and the Bear 73 Nelson at Copenhagen _To face page_ 76 Lord Nelson 76 The _Charlotte Dundas_ 84 Symington 85 Outline of Fitch’s First Boat 89 Fitch’s Second Boat 89 The _Clermont_ 93 Bell’s _Comet_ 96 Four Great Engineers _To face page_ 97 The _United Kingdom_ 99 Arrival of the _Great Western_ at New York 100 Section and Plan of the Stern of a Screw Steamer 101 The _Robert F. Stockton_ 103 The First Cunard Steamer 105 Cunard Paddle Steam-ship _Scotia_ 109 The Cunard Screw Steam-ship _Bothnia_ 109 Mr. Plimsoll 112 Mr. Plimsoll Speaking in the House of Commons 116 Exterior of Lloyd’s 124 Interior of Lloyd’s 125 The _Great Eastern_ in a Gale off Cape Clear _To face page_ 129 Mr. I. K. Brunel 129 Mr. Scott Russell 129 The Launch of the _Great Eastern_ 133 Arrival of the _Great Eastern_ at New York 136 The _Monitor_ passing the Vicksburg Batteries 138 Peace and War The _Miantonoma_ 140 Interior of a Turret Ship 141 The _Inflexible_ 145 Section of the _Alexandra_ 147 Preparing for Torpedo Experiments at Portsmouth The Old Style and the New (a Three-decker and a Torpedo Boat) Lieutenant Cushing’s Attack on the _Albemarle_ 149 Different Forms of Torpedoes 153 Torpedo Experiments at Portsmouth, with the Electric Light Paraguayan Torpedo blowing up a Brazilian 154 Ironclad The Tower of Cordouan 157 Destruction of Rudyerd’s Lighthouse _To face page_ 161 Winstanley’s Lighthouse 161 Rudyerd’s Lighthouse 161 The Eddystone Lighthouse 168 Portrait of Smeaton 170 Interior of the Light-chamber of the Eddystone 171 Lighthouse on the Inchcape Rock 176 The Skerryvore Lighthouse 178 Revolving Light Apparatus 184 Breakwater at Venice 188 Cherbourg from the Sea 192 Portland 193 Holyhead Breakwater 196 Great Storm in the Downs 200 The Storm in the Thames at Wapping 204 West-Indiamen Driven Ashore at Tilbury Fort 205 A Life-boat Going Out _To face page_ 209 Greathead’s Life-boat 209 Life-boat Saving the Crew of the _St. George_ 213 Loss of a Life-boat at the Shipwreck of the 216 _Ann_ A Life-boat and Carriage—Latest Form 217 Ramsgate—The _Aid_ Going Out 220 “Curly” weather A Group of Life-boat Men 229 On the Coast at Deal 232 Rescue of the Danish Vessel 236 Survivors Rescued from the Rigging of a Wreck Wreckers Waiting for a Wreck 241 Major Warburton at the Wreck of the _Inverness_ 244 A Wreck Ashore Loss of the _Albion_ Lugger 248 Map showing Coast of Ramsgate and the Goodwin 252 Sands Wreck of the _Woolpacket_ on Bideford Bar _To face page_ 253 The Lugger reaching Ramsgate Harbour 253 Ronayne’s Bravery 257 The _Northfleet_ 260 Wreck of the _Northfleet_ 265 The Scilly Islands 268 The Bishop Rock Lighthouse 269 Wreck of the _Deutschland_ 272 Burning of the _Amazon_ _To face page_ 281 The _Amazon_ Steam-ship 281 Rescue of the Survivors of the _Amazon_ 284 The _London_ 289 The _London_ Going Down 292 Getting out the _London’s_ Boats 296 Wreck of the _Rothsay Castle_ _To face page_ 297 The Menai Straits 300 Saved at Last Beaumaris 305 Entrance to Cork Harbour 308 The Survivors on the Rock 312 Rescue of the Survivors of the _Killarney_ 316

THE SEA.