Her success led to the building of a number of vessels at St. John for British owners engaged in the Australian trade. Among these the most famous were the _Hibernia_, 1065 tons, _Ben Nevis_, 1420 tons, and _Guiding Star_, 2012 tons. In Great Britain also a large number of ships were built for the Australian trade between the years 1851 and 1854. Many of these were constructed of iron, the finest being the _Tayleur_, 2500 tons, which was built at Liverpool in 1853 and was at that time the largest merchant ship that had been built in England. She was a very handsome iron vessel, with three decks and large accommodation for cabin and steerage passengers. This vessel was wrecked off the coast of Ireland on her first voyage to Melbourne when only two days out from Liverpool, and became a total loss; of her 652 passengers, only 282 were saved. Among the many other vessels built in Great Britain during this period were the _Lord of the Isles_, already mentioned in Chapter XII; _Vimiera_, 1037 tons, built at Sunderland; the _Contest_, 1119 tons, built at Ardrossan on the Firth of Clyde; and the _Gauntlet_ (iron), 784 tons, and _Kate Carnie_, 547 tons, both built at Greenock. All of these vessels were a decided improvement upon any ships hitherto built in Great Britain, and they made some fine passages, among them that of the _Lord of the Isles_, from the Clyde to Sydney, N. S. W., in 70 days in 1853, but the 68-day record of the _Marco Polo_ from Liverpool to Melbourne remained unbroken. The _Marco Polo_ was still a favorite vessel with passengers, which goes to show what a good ship she must have been, in view of the rivalry of newer and larger clippers. She sailed from Liverpool in November, 1853, commanded by Captain Charles McDonnell, who had been her chief officer under Captain Forbes. The passengers on this voyage, on their arrival at Melbourne, subscribed for a splendid service of silver, to be presented to Captain McDonnell upon his return to England, which bore the following inscription: “Presented to Captain McDonnell, of the ship _Marco Polo_, as a testimonial of respect from his passengers, six hundred and sixty-six in number, for his uniform kindness and attention during his first voyage, when his ship ran from Liverpool to Port Phillip Head in seventy-two days, twelve hours, and from land to land in sixty-nine days.” The _Marco Polo_ came home in 78 days, but these were the last of her famous passages, as she drifted into the hands of captains who lacked either the ability or the energy, or perhaps both, to develop her best speed--the unfortunate fate of many a good ship.