Mr. Holt now directed his energies to the Far East, and in 1865 despatched his first vessels in the China service, the AGAMEMNON, AJAX and ACHILLES. These were the first steamers to apply the principle of compound engines to long over-sea voyages. These engines were in use in the ships of the Pacific Steam Navigation Company prior to this, but only in those steamers employed on the Pacific coast. The performances of the Holt steamers had been hitherto considered impossible, and even now in the twentieth century would be considered remarkable with boats of a similar size. Starting from Liverpool, they steamed down the South Atlantic, rounded the Cape of Good Hope, and so on to Mauritius, a distance of 8,500 miles without stopping. From thence they proceeded to Penang, Singapore, Hong Kong and Shanghai. These three pioneers of the Anglo-China trade were each of 2,270 tons gross and 1,550 tons net register, with engines of 300 nominal horse power, and their principal dimensions were—length, 309 feet; beam, 38½ feet; depth of hold to spar deck, 28½ feet. On July 16th, 1869, one of them (the ACHILLES) sailed from Foochow for London _via_ the Cape of Good Hope, and arrived on the 16th September, having been under steam 58 days 9 hours, during which time she travelled 13,552 miles, maintaining an average speed of nearly 9¾ knots throughout the whole voyage. This was one of the last voyages made by the Holt steamers round the Cape, as two months after the arrival of the ACHILLES at London the Suez Canal was formally opened for the merchant steamers of all countries, and from that date all the steamers of this company have passed through that waterway on their voyages to and from China. The earlier steamers of the fleet were square-rigged on the fore and main masts, a good rig when it was desired to take advantage of the favourable trade winds and monsoons, which can always be depended upon for a voyage round the Cape, but found to be unsuitable when the route was altered to the Suez Canal. The square sails of the three steamers named were, therefore, removed, and the subsequent steamers have been constructed with pole masts only. Although the fleet is styled the Ocean Steamship Company, it is popularly known as the Holt, or “Blue Funnel” Line, and has only recently been formed into a limited company. The Holt Line steamers do not carry passengers between Great Britain and China, but they are great favourites with the Moslem pilgrims, of whom they carry large numbers on their journeys to and from Mecca. About 1891 the Ocean Steamship Company established a monthly service of mail and passenger steamers between Singapore and West Australian Ports, and in 1901 a direct service of steamers from Glasgow to Australian Ports was opened by the despatch of the steamer ORESTES.