Heritage | The Emu Incident 1860 |
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Charles Rooking Carter 1822-1896, Wairarapa member of the General Assembly (Parliament) 1859-65, was on the Emu that October day in 1860. The following notes are taken from his description of events recorded in vol 2 of his 'Life and recollections of a New Zealand Colonist' published in 1866. Thank you to DoC archives for the pic of the Emu about to berth at Wynyard Wharf, Auckland.
'We left Wynyard Pier at 9.15am, 40 gentlemen and 15 ladies including the Governor's wife, Mrs Gore Brown. It was a showery day and continued showery though warm enough when we landed at Motutapu Island. We clambered up a bank and after walking for about an hour arrived at Home Bay as the weather cleared and the sun shone. Robert Graham had farm buildings at the Bay alongside of which, under spreading trees, an appetising cold collation had been laid out on tables. There was turkey, chicken, duck, ham, tongues, beef, tarts and pies. Sherry, port, brandy and champagne were also in abundance. After lunch there were games on the green, mostly middle aged men behaving like boys. There were superintendents, premiers-expectant, Mr Speaker, young MP's, elderly statesmen, grave senators shooting at caps in the air, throwing stones at bottles, running races bareheaded and in shirtsleeves and Sir Charles Clifford, Dr Isaac Featherston and Fox playing leap frog. We boarded the Emu again at 5.00pm all merry and gay then journeyed to Kai Morira, another part of the island, to pick up Mrs Gore Brown and others who had walked over there. As we neared the Bay a little squall blew up and suddenly the boat shook from stem to stern. The paddle wheels whirled but the boat was stopped still. The engines stopped and the boat moved from side to side as if settling itself into bed. It was apparent we had struck a rock. I looked down into the engine room and saw the floor covered in water. Shortly afterwards the vessel started to heel over a little. Our commander Captain Kreeft gave orders very coolly. We had been towing a small boat in our wake. This was used to first convey the ladies to the shore, about a third of a mile. Next the gentlemen were landed. We had hit a rock at high water in about 20feet of water. If the Emu hadn't stuck fast on the pointed rock then she would have gone down and many lives would have been lost. At low water she was perched high and dry on the rock with a great hole in her bottom and her engines broken up. She was later sold as a complete wreck; all members of the party later each contributed 5 pounds to Captain Kreeft On shore we all sheltered under a very large spreading tree, seemingly growing out of the cliff, and lit a driftwood fire resolving to prepare to camp out the night. The only available boat on the island was sent to Auckland with Mrs Gore Brown and her personal friends to get assistance. On the beach, tea was made; brandy was had but no bread to eat. The ladies sang duets and the gentlemen sang songs and glees and told anecdotes. At 2.00am, a sail was sighted and a fire wood barge put in to the shore and we all boarded. The floor of the hold was spread thick with coarse gravel. A little later a cutter from Commander Loring's H.M Ship 'Iris' arrived and took on board some of us off the barge including myself. We tacked and tacked but the wind was against us. The barge returned and collected the 16 of us off the cutter. At 5.30am we arrived back at Wynyard Pier. I caught a chill which nearly cost me my life. Charles Rooking Carter was a well known and successful businessman and politician in Wellington and Wairarapa circles. The town of Carterton is named after him as is the astronomical observatory in Wellington the building of which was provided for in his estate. It is sobering to reflect on what might well have been a major disaster for the young colony. 80% of members of the General Assembly* were on the Emu that day, 27th October 1860, including a number of future Prime Ministers. The rock that the paddle steamer struck is now called Emu Rock and the wreck is also remembered in the names of Emu Bay and Emu Point. The wreck itself lies just off Emu Rock in five to seven metres of water.
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