The _Avalanche_ was another Shaw, Savill ship which took down all but three of its company. She was outward bound to Wellington with 60 passengers, under Captain Williams, in September, 1877. At 8.45 p.m. when off Portland, she was on the port tack, the wind blowing strong from the S.W., when a red light was sighted on the starboard bow. The officer of the watch gave the order “hard up” and “brail in the spanker,” but the other ship, which was evidently running up Channel, came straight on, and as the _Avalanche_ fell off struck her right amidships on the port side. Three of the crew of the _Avalanche_ managed to clamber aboard the other ship, which was the _Forest of Windsor_, Nova Scotia, and these three, the third mate named Sherrington and two A.B.’s, were the only ones saved. The _Forest_ also sank, but managed to launch four boats in safety. These were picked up by fishermen the following morning and landed at Portland. [Illustration: “WILD DEER.” _Photo by De Maus, Port Chalmers._] [Illustration: “WILD DEER.” _Lent by Captain T. S. Angus._] Patrick Henderson’s Albion Shipping Company. The chief rival of the Shaw, Savill before the advent of the New Zealand Shipping Company was Patrick Henderson, who owned the Albion Shipping Company. But in the early days he was also in the China and Rangoon trades. His first ships in the New Zealand emigrant trade were fine, comfortable wooden vessels without any special turn of speed, such as the _Agnes Muir_, _Pladda_, _Lady Douglass_, _Jane Henderson_, _Vicksburgh_ and _Helenslee_. But he had some very fast wood and composite clippers, which during the sixties were mostly in the Shanghai trade, and later took their turn at carrying emigrants to New Zealand. The “Wild Deer.” The fastest of these China ships was the _Wild Deer_. She was launched from Connell’s yard in December, 1863, being his thirteenth ship; and was composite built with iron topsides, teak planking to turn of bilge and elm bottom. She had a beautiful figure-head of the goddess “Diana,” and was altogether a fine example of an out and out tea clipper. Her measurements taken from Lloyd’s Register were as follows:— Tonnage net 1016 tons. Tonnage under deck 955 „ Length 211 feet. Breadth 33.2 „ Depth 20.7 „ Her poop was 42 feet long, and her foc’s’le-head 31 feet. She came out in 1863 with Cunningham’s patent single topsails, but owing to her dismasting was one of the earliest ships to send aloft double topsail yards. The following are the original spar measurements of her mainmast:—