Page:The Strand Magazine (Volume 4).djvu/52

 been erected upon her, thus making the hull so much higher, and bringing the level of the scaffolding and false deck above the water. Upon this superstructure pumps were erected, capable of pumping 70 tons a minute.

All being ready, the pumps were set to work, pumping the water out of the area enclosed by the ship and its superstructure and casting it over into the sea. This was begun at seven in the morning of July 8, and the pumps had been going fully an hour before any movement was observable. The morning was a fine one, and the bay was crowded by all sorts of craft filled with sightseers, crowds of whom also occupied every available view-point on shore. When, soon after eight o'clock, it was seen that the vessel had righted from her list, and that her masts were upright once more, much enthusiasm was manifested. Then after some 3,500 tons displacement had been effected by the pumps, the ship, with its great superstructure, slowly began to rise.

The stern lifted first, and, by ten o'clock was 9 ft. above the water. Then the bows began to rise, being slowly dragged from the soft bottom in which they were imbedded. Now, as the water left the interior, and, with the rise of the vessel, the decks became visible from the scaffolding, the ship was slowly towed in toward the shore. A view of some parts of the superstructure at about this time is represented in the photograph reproduced.

At eleven o'clock a strong wind sprang up, and pumping had to be suspended for a while. It was resumed, however, and by the end of the day the Utopia had been raised from a depth of 57 ft. of water to one of 38 ft. only.

After this the superstructure (which was 310 ft. long) was taken down, and the pumps were transferred to the deck. A photograph, which we reproduce, well represents a scene on the deck at this stage of the operations, a winch and cable-chain clogged with weed and rust, and the temporary structure in course of taking down.

With the pumps on the deck then, the Utopia was entirely pumped out, and was towed into shallow water and beached on a suitable shoal for clearing out. The decks, and such of the inside of the vessel as was visible from them, presented an extraordinary and weird spectacle. It was at first impossible to descend into the lower parts, where lay many dead bodies, on account of the deadly gas generated by these and the decomposed cargo. To get rid of this,