"Sceptre" landed crew of the sunken Russian schooner "Stars"

From "The Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald" dated 7th March 1913

The Glasgow cargo steamer "Sceptre," owned by Messrs. Maclean and Macintyre, landed at Ardrossan on Friday the crew of the Russian schooner "Stars," with which she had been in collision off Ailsa Craig in the early hours of the morning.
The schooner, which went down after the mishap, was bound from Ayr to Casablanca with a cargo of coal.

Rescued Russian crewmen from "Stars" landed at Ardrossan

From "The Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald" dated 7th March 1913

The Glasgow cargo steamer "Sceptre," owned by Messrs. Maclean and Macintyre, landed at Ardrossan on Friday the crew of the Russian schooner "Stars," with which she had been in collision off Ailsa Craig in the early hours of the morning.
The schooner, which went down after the mishap, was bound from Ayr to Casablanca with a cargo of coal.

New Life-saving appliance for ships

From "The Irvine and Fullarton Times" dated 25th July 1913

Official tests of a new life-saving appliance for ships were carried out by the Board of Trade experts at Albert Harbour, Greenock, on Monday.

The new device, which has been invented and patented by Captain Alex. McTavish of the Glasgow and South Western Railway Company's steamer "Jupiter," is in the form of an ordinary deck seat fitted underneath with tanks, which on the immediate pressure of water opens out as a raft.

Under normal circumstances the appliance could be in use as a seat and so would not occupy any additional space, while should disaster overtake a vessel and she should be in danger of sinking, the raft would automatically spread out.
Locking hinges fitted on the ends ensure rigidity, and the raft would not require preliminary attention of any kind to make it ready for use, an obvious advantage in moments of crisis.

It is also claimed for the new appliance that the arrangement of the tanks, made to Board of Trade standards, will prevent any possibility of the raft overturning.

The seat used for the tests measures when opened out 7ft. in length by 4ft. 6in. in breadth, and it supported a weight of 6cwt. 56lb. in the water, equal to about 21 persons.

The tests were made by Mr. Harris, Chief Surveyor, Board of Trade, Glasgow, and Mr. Erskine, Chief Inspector, Greenock.
Mr. Fraser, Marine Superintendent, Glasgow and South Western Railway Company; Mr. Daniel McPhee, superintendent engineer of the company; Captain McTavish, and others were also present.

Huge shark caught at Irvine

From ?The Irvine and Fullarton Times? dated Friday 15th August 1913

HUGE SHARK CAUGHT AT IRVINE

During the past week or two a number of sharks of fairly large dimensions have been encountered by fishermen in the Firth, and several have been brought ashore at various points.

A monster which outclassed in size all such fish recently met with in this vicinity, and which was one of the largest, if not the largest, caught in the Firth for many years, was captured at about 3 o?clock on Wednesday morning in Irvine Bay, about a mile and a half off the Stevenston shore, by the motor-driven fishing boat ?Guiding Star,? owned by Mr. James Jeffrey, a well-known Irvine fisherman.

This boat, which was manned by Mr. Hugh Anderson, skipper; Mr. Alexander Jeffrey, and Mr. Anderson?s son, a lad of about 13 or 14, was engaged at the time in drift net fishing for mackerel when this enormous shark became entangled with the nets.
On being brought to the surface with considerable difficulty, it appeared to become sick, and this enabled the crew, with the aid of their halyards, to get it out of the water.
It died shortly after being taken from its native element, and the fishermen brought it into Irvine harbour at about five o?clock in the morning, where, in spite of the earliness of the hour, huge crowds of townspeople flocked to the wharf to see it still hanging from the halyards of the boat.

Four years ago a boat belonging to the same owner caught a large thresher shark near Irvine and brought it ashore, where it was handed over to some parties who thought they could dispose of it to their advantage.
This, however, proved to be impossible, and the getting rid of the monster was ultimately tackled by the sanitary inspector.
On Wednesday morning the fishermen obviated any trouble in this direction by getting the dredger ?Irvine? to take the carcase out to sea and drop it along with the river dredgings.

This shark is by no means the only monster of its class in the Firth at present.
In the course of an interview, Mr. Alex Jeffrey stated that on Tuesday morning while fishing within a short distance of the rocks at Brodick pier, a distance to which a good swimmer would quite readily have come out, they caught a very lively five or six feet long shark, and on bringing it to the surface in the nets it struggled so violently that it broke through and got away; and about a month ago they encountered a somewhat larger one off Lady Isle, which also did considerable damage to their nets, and was specially noteworthy on account of the horrible rows of teeth which it displayed when opening its mouth.

The monster of Wednesday morning was caught on a sandbank in fourteen or fifteen fathoms of water, and was of enormous weight.
It took the crew of the boat exerting themselves to their utmost to raise it from the level of the water with their halyards, and had the fish not become sick their position would have been a very awkward one, to say the least of it.
He (Mr. Jeffrey) and other fishermen in the Firth had suffered considerable loss recently on account of the manner in which their nets were torn and destroyed by sharks.

This huge shark was probably of the Parbeagle or Beaumaris species, which is a common frequenter of British waters.
The type associates in small companies in these northern latitudes in search of its prey, and is often troublesome to mackerel fishermen, becoming entangled in and causing great damage to nets.
About nine months ago a specimen, measuring 14 feet in length and weighing between seven and eight cwt., was caught in Loch Fyne.
In warmer seas these sharks abound in large numbers, and while hunting in groups they would appear to be more courageous and are dangerous to human life.
Individually and in smaller groups, however, such as those found in the waters around our coast, they evidently display more timidity and are said to be somewhat easily frightened by any splashing or commotion in their native element.

Motor Boat "Blossom 11" launched at Ardrossan

From The Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald dated Friday 21st February, 1964

From the files of 50 years ago, 20th February 1914

Last Thursday a large motor driven boat built to the order of Mr. John Garrett, Stranraer, was launched from the yard of Mr John Thomson, Ardrossan.
The vessel was christened "Blossom 11," the naming ceremony being performed by Mrs Thomson.

Alfred Holt's Blue Funnel liner HELENUS at London March 31

Elder Dempster's BENIN from Bassein for Ymuiden, passed Algiers March 31

Elder Dempster's AGBERI left Sekondi March 31 for Liverpool

Blasts from the Past at the beginning of April 1914

ANCHOR LINE

 SCINDIA from Glasgow and Liverpool for Bombay, passed Perim April 2

MARWARRI left Calcutta April 1 for London and Glasgow

CASTALIA from Glasgow for Bombay, left Gibraltar April 1

ALLAN LINE

 ALSATIAN from Halifax for Liverpool, 912 miles west of Liverpool at 2200 on April 1 and due Liverpool 2200 April 3

SARDINIAN from Glasgow for St John’s (Newfoundland) and Philadelphia, at Liverpool April 2

CORSICAN left Liverpool at 1430 April 2 for Glasgow

VIRGINIAN left St John (New Brunswick) at 1600 April 1 for Liverpool 

CLAN LINE

 CLAN MACQUARRIE left Glasgow April 2 for Liverpool

CLAN FORBES left Liverpool April 1 for Cape Town

CLAN STUART from Chittagong for London, passed Gibraltar April 1

CLAN GRAHAM left Bombay April 1 for U.K. and Continent

CLAN GRANT left Antwerp April 1 for Glasgow

CLAN MACNEIL from Liverpool for East London, left Algoa Bay April 1

CLAN DAVIDSON from Australia for London, Swansea and Liverpool, at Dunkirk April 1

DONALDSON LINE

 SATURNIA left St John (New Brunswick) April 2 for Glasgow

KELVINGROVE left Glasgow April 1 for Montevideo and Buenos Aires via Liverpool

CUNARD LINE

CARMANIA at Liverpool April 2 from New York

IVERNIA on Mediterranean cruise, from Athens at Venice 0800 April 2

LACONIA from the Mediterranean, at New York 2300 April 1

CARONIA cruising in the Mediterranean, left Naples for Alexandria at midnight April 1

MAURETANIA on passage from Liverpool for New York, 945 miles east of New York at midnight April 1

DOMINION LINE

MANXMAN from Portland (Maine) at Avonmouth April 2

TURCOMAN from Avonmouth, at Portland (Maine) April 1

WHITE-STAR LINE

OCEANIC left Queenstown April 2 for New York

ADRIATIC left New York April 2 for Liverpool

CRETIC left Boston April 2 for the Mediterranean

PERSIC left Liverpool April 2 for Australia

PACIFIC LINE

OROPESA left Callao April 2 for Liverpool

ELDER DEMPSTER LINE

BORNU left Liverpool April 2 for West Africa

ELOBY left Sekondi April 2 for Liverpool

APPAM at Sekondi April 1 from Liverpool

ELMINA left Sierra Leone April 1 for Liverpool

BENIN from Bassein for Ymuiden, passed Algiers March 31

AGBERI left Sekondi March 31 for Liverpool

OCEAN LINE

ORESTES from Glasgow, at Sydney April 2

PHEMIUS left Rotterdam April 1 for Newport

DIOMED left Port Said April 1 for Amsterdam

HELENUS at London March 31

CHINA MUTUAL LINE

OANFA left Singapore April 1 for Genoa

YANGTSZE at Marseilles April 1 for Liverpool

LAMPORT AND HOLT LINE

TINTORETTO left Partington April 1 for Brazil

CLAN DAVIDSON from Australia for London, Swansea and Liverpool, at Dunkirk April 1

Dominion Line's TURCOMAN from Avonmouth, at Portland (Maine) April 1

Elder Dempster's APPAM at Sekondi April 1 from Liverpool

China Mutual Line's YANGTSZE at Marseilles April 1 for Liverpool

Brocklebank Line's MARWARRI leaves Calcutta (India) for London and Glasgow

DATE is correct but ACTUAL TIME is not known - any TIME SHOWN is our estimate for guidance only

Anchor Line's CASTALIA leaves Gibraltar for Bombay (India)

DATE is correct but ACTUAL TIME is not known - any TIME SHOWN is our estimate for guidance only