はじめに

　鯉魚門は、香港に拠点を置くデント商会がテームス鉄工所に発注し、ジェームス・アッシュの設計により1859年に完成した蒸気外輪クリッパー船である。完成後、最も美しく高速な船舶の一隻と謳われていた。この船は1863年に幕府に買い取られたが、明治維新後、明治政府からコリン・アレクサンダー・マクヴェインの手に渡った。

　明治政府測量師長のコリン・アレクサンダー・マクヴェインの伝記を執筆するために、マクヴェイン文書をくまなく解読しようとしたが、その中でどうしても分からない単語と写真がいくつかあった。その一つがLyemoonという単語で、日記の中に3回、それを含んだ広告文が一通あった。私は、1995年に香港に半年ほど住んだことがあり、この単語が九龍半島南端の鯉魚門であることはすぐに分かったが、それがマクヴェインとどのような関係にあるのかはまったく想像できなかった。

　鯉魚門を一字ごとに英語で表記するとLy-ee-moonとなり、バリー著『造船経済と海軍力(Dockyard Economy and Naval Power, 1863)』から、それはデント商会所有の輸送船であることを知った。すると、芋づる式にいろんな資料が出てきて、1863年、急速に海軍力を整備しつつあった幕府に買い取られ太平丸となったことが分かった。以下は、この名船の出自から消滅までの物語である。

（１）出自

　デント商会は、19世紀中葉、東アジアにおいてジャーデン・マセソン商会と肩を並べる貿易会社であり、イギリスが香港植民地を獲得すると、九龍半島南端の鯉魚門に拠点を置いた。デント商会は、アジア間貿易だけではなく、喜望峰経由でアジアとヨーロッパを高速で貨物を結ぶために、1857年にイギリスのテームス造船所に新船の建造を発注した。既往文献ではアヘン貿易に用いるためと書かれているが、それは間違いである。1860年前後、デント商会は経営拡大のために多大な投資をし、それが倒産の原因になったらしい。

Introduction.

  The Ly-ee-moon was a steam clipper ship commissioned by the Hong Kong-based Dent Trading Company from the Thames Iron Works and completed in 1859 to a design by James Ash. Upon completion, she was heralded as one of the most elegant and fastest ships ever built. The ship, however was bought by the Shogunate in 1863, but after the Meiji Restoration, it passed from the Meiji Government into the hands of Colin Alexander McVean.

  In order to write a biography of Colin Alexander McVean, surveyor in the chief of the Meiji Government, I tried to decipher all the McVean documents, but there were a few words and photographs that I just could not understand. One of these was the word Lyemoon, which I found three times in the diary and one notice letter containing it. I had lived in Hong Kong for six months in 1995, and immediately recognised the word as the Lyemoon at the southern tip of the Kowloon Peninsula, but I had no idea what it had to do with McVean.

  From Barry's Dockyard Economy and Naval Power (1863), I learnt that she was a transport ship owned by the Dent Trading Company. This led to the discovery that the ship was bought by the Shogunate in 1863, which was rapidly developing its naval power, and became the Taihei-maru. The following is the story of this famous ship, from its origins to its demise.

 (1) Origin

  The Dent Co. was a trading company comparable to the Jarden Matheson Trading Company in East Asia in the mid-19th century, and when the British acquired the Hong Kong colony, it established a base at the southern tip of the Kowloon Peninsula at Lyemoon. The Dent Co. ordered the construction of a new ship from the British Thames Iron Works in 1857, not only for the inter-Asian trade, but also to link Asia and Europe via the Cape of Good Hope with cargoes at high speed. Although existing literature states that the ships were to be used for the opium trade, this is incorrect: around 1860, the Dent Co. invested heavily in expanding its operations, which apparently led to its bankruptcy.

　設計は、当時船舶設計の名手と知られたジェームス・アッシュで、15年間の間に20隻ほどを手がけた。鯉魚門は全長86メートル、総トン数991トン、マスト3本と煙突2本を備え、外輪には鉄製覆いが付いていた［Barry：299頁］。最高速度17ノットを誇り、この後に登場するカティサーク（86メートル、936トン）やサーモピレー（64メートル、991トン）を越える規模と性能を有していた。3本マストのクリッパー船としての優雅さに加えて、蒸気機関による無風時航海や急旋回といった長所も持ち合わせていた。1859年に完成すると、その姿は多くの新聞雑誌に紹介され注目を浴びた (Fig.1, 2)。

  She was designed by James Ash, a well-known ship designer at the time, who worked on some 20 ships over a period of 15 years. The Ly-ee-moon was 86 metres long, with a gross tonnage of 991 tonnes, three masts and two chimneys, and an iron covering on the outer rings [Barry: p. 299]. With a top speed of 17 knots, she surpassed the later Cutty Sark (86 metres, 936 tonnes) and Thermopylae (64 metres, 991 tonnes). In addition to her elegance as a three-masted clipper ship, she had the advantages of steam engines for sailing in no wind and making sharp turns When she was completed in 1859, she attracted much attention and was featured in many newspapers and magazines (Fig.1, 2).

（２）デント商会から幕府へ

　1861年にアメリカ合衆国で南北戦争が勃発すると、鯉魚門は一時大西洋航路にかり出された。香港拠点に戻ると、船主であるデント商会により東アジア開港場を結ぶ貨物船として用いられた。1861年8月、幕府の外交顧問であったフィリップ･フランツ・フォン・シーボルトは遣欧使節団の計画案作成に際して、「乗船として汽船を購入（デント商会鯉魚門号、1000トン、30万ドル）し、自国船として使用すれば、日本商品を舶載しネーデルランド通商会社の援助をえてヨーロッパで販売し、その入金で兵器･機械を購入でき、また航海･鉱山･海軍軍事学の教師を雇い、船上で海軍の学校を始めることができる」［長尾：512頁］と書いている。シーボルトは幕府に鯉魚門の購入を勧め、デント商会横浜支店Ｅ．クラークとの交渉を始めたが、幕府は軍艦購入を望んでいたため実現しなかった。

　1863年、再び横浜に寄港した際、幕府は代理人を通してデント商会に買い取りを打診し、今回はすんなりと19万5千ドルで売買交渉がまとまった［勝海舟：344頁］。幕府は海軍増強を急務とし、またデント商会は経営に行き詰まっており、両者の思惑がすんなりと一致したのであろう。デント商会は1865年頃には倒産し、開港場に所有して不動産も売却し、同社長崎支店事務所はイギリス領事館として使われた［泉田1990：95頁］。

　鯉魚門は長崎海軍伝習所出身の肥田浜五郎や荒井郁之助が操縦し、幕閣を乗せて江戸・大坂間を数回往復した。ほどなく太平丸と改名され、機関が故障すると、幕府海軍はそれを修理できず放置されてしまった［神谷：145頁］。1865年に幕府はフランス政府の支援により横須賀と横浜に製鉄所の建設を始めたが、いまだ未完であった。幕府は30隻を越える艦船を所有しながら、それを修理する施設も技術工をもたなかったのである。

(2) From Dent & Co. to Shogunate Navy

  When the Civil War broke out in the United States in 1861, Ly-ee-moon was temporarily chartered for transatlantic service. On her return to Hong Kong, she was used by her owner, the Dent Co. as a cargo ship between East Asian ports. In August 1861, when drafting plans for a mission to Europe, Philip Franz von Siebold, the Shogunate's diplomatic advisor, wrote: "A steamer is to be purchased for embarkation (Dent Co.'s Ly-ee-moon, 1,000 tons, $300,000) and used as a ship of her own, If the ship was used as a home ship, Japanese goods could be imported and sold in Europe with the help of the Netherland Trading Company, and weapons and machinery could be purchased with the proceeds. [Nagao : p.512]" Siebold recommended the Shogunate to purchase the Ly-ee-moon and began negotiations with E. Clarke of the Yokohama branch of Dent Co., but this did not materialise as the Shogunate wanted to purchase warships.

  In 1863, when the ship made another port call at Yokohama, the Shogunate approached the Dent Co. through its agent to purchase the ship, and this time the negotiations were easily concluded for $195,000 [Kaishu Katsu: p. 344]. The Shogunate urgently needed to strengthen its navy, while the Dent Co. was at a standstill, and it is likely that the intentions of the two parties coincided easily. Dent Co. went bankrupt around 1865 and sold its property in treaty ports, and the company's Nagasaki branch office was used as the British consulate [Izumida 1990: p.95].

The Ly-ee-moon was piloted by Hida Hamagoro and Arai Ikunosuke, both graduates of the Nagasaki Naval Academy, and made several round trips between Edo and Osaka carrying the Shogunate's ministers. Soon afterwards she was renamed Taihei-maru, and when her engine broke down, the Shogunate Navy was unable to repair it and left her behind [Kamiya: p. 145]. 1865 saw the Shogunate begin construction of ironworks in Yokosuka and Yokohama with support from the French Government, but these were still incomplete. Although the Shogunate owned more than 30 ships, it had neither the facilities nor the engineers to repair them.

　新政府は倒幕に成功するものの、幕府軍の一部は江戸を離れ箱館に拠点を移して抗戦を続けた。この反乱は1869年半ばに鎮圧され、降伏者は謹慎期間中に『遊撃隊起終南蝦夷戦争記』といった反乱の顛末を記録に残した。絵画に秀でた者は、前記『附録戦地写生図』（市立函館博物館蔵）を描き、その中に鯉魚門と太平丸の二枚の絵がある。わずかばかりの攻撃能力を備えるために、太平丸の両側面に砲撃のために数箇所銃口が開けられ、また後部に２階デッキが設えられた。降伏者の中で鯉魚門から太平丸の改造を知っているのは、幕末に軍艦操練所頭取を務めていた荒井郁之助であり、この絵の製作に具体的助言したと考えられる。

（３）明治政府からヴァルカン製鉄所へ

   鯉魚門は、1869年に外の船舶とともに新政府の所有となり、修理のために横須賀製鉄所に運ばれた［JWM1870］。

"YOKOSUKA ARSENAL, Japan Weekly Mail on October 1870.

--The Mail reported how the Yokosuka Arsenal was found and managed, and was going to execute works. A large number of projects was in waiting list, No.9 of which was "No. 9 - An inlet - (the second in our previous enumeration.) An old steamer, the Ly-ee-moon, formerly belonging to Dent & Co., lies there in 28 feet of water. There is accommodation here for six large vessels."

　横須賀・横浜の両製鉄所は新政府民部省が管轄し、初代担当官になったのがイギリス帰りの山尾庸三であった。マクヴェインは、1868年7月、技師長リチャード・ヘンリー・ブラントンと副技師アーサー・ブランデルとともに日本の灯台建設工事に雇われたが、翌年9月に燈明台掛を辞職した。すぐにルーシー社経営のヴァルカン鉄工所を購入し、横浜外国人居留地で船舶の修理や建設業を始めた。明治政府の横須賀と横浜の両製鉄所にも出入りし、そこでスコットランド訛りの英語をしゃべる山尾と出会い、急速に親しくなった。山尾が技術研修を受けたというグラスゴーは、マクヴェインの故郷に近く多くの知人親戚が住んでいた。父親を通してグラスゴーでの山尾の活動を確認してもらうと、彼が言うとおりネピア造船所で熱心に働いていたことが判明した。

Donald McVean's Letter to Colin dated 15th Nov. 1870

My dear Colin & Mary,

(earlier omitted)

  I cannot find Yokosha [Yokosuka] - the place of the Arsenal & where Yossu [Yuzo Yamao] is in the Map. I wd have written to Brown at once for a letter of introduction had you not said you were to call for said distinguished official & introduce yourself. I find by your letter now to hand, though you had not done so - you still intended to go without waiting a formal introduction. Brown anticipated from his fine frank Scotch like character - you would if you found him, get a very cordial reception form him by merely mentioning his name tho’ he told me there was a mystery about their not having heard from him which he could not understand.

(later omitted)

　マクヴェインは1870年と1871年の2年間日記をつけておらず、1873年日記の1月になって鯉魚門が初めて登場するが、1870年後半に横須賀で山尾と出会い、鯉魚門購入の交渉を始めたことは間違いない。購入金額は不明であるが、ブランデルと二人で資金を出し合い、修理工を雇った。

（４）ヴァルカン鉄工所からハドソン・マルコム社へ

　1873年1月22日のマクヴェイン日記には、鯉魚門の修理が終わったらしく、関係者数人と横須賀に検分に出かけたとある。同行したスペンスは、ハドソン・マルコム社横浜事務所員であることから、鯉魚門の購入に積極的であったようだ。マクヴェイン文書にはハドソン・マルコム社の旅客募集の公告があることから、同社はマクヴェインから鯉魚門を購入し、イギリスに送るつもりだったことがわかる。スペンスは有名な日本古美術収集家であったことが、大英博物館の調査資料から判明する。

The McVeans' Diarｙ 1873

--Wed. 22 Jan. [Colin} Went to Yokosuka with Spence Stevens Waters & Mr Dond - to hold a survey on Lyemoon.

--Saturday 25 Jan. Sent Bill for $650 - by Stevens to be paid in to my acc. - C. M. B. money from Blundell for 1” cable of 625 - on Lyemoon shares.

*Edwin John Spence, 1840-1918. Foreign employee in Yokohama, working for Aspinall, Cornes & Co. 1862-68 and then the insurance agency Hudson, Malcolm & Co. 1869-72. In 1870, married Annie Jane Layton (b. 1850, Newington, GB) at Bromley, Kent. Left Japan for New Zealand in 1872; had two sons, Percy Layton Spence and Cecil Layton Spence, both born in New Zealand, but who also travelled to Japan (The British Museum).

  Although the new government succeeded in overthrowing the shogunate, part of the shogunate army left Edo and moved to Hakodate, where they continued to fight. The rebellion was suppressed in mid-1869, and those who surrendered recorded the events of the rebellion in their Yugitai ki jishu minami-ezo sengenki (Records of the war in southern Yezo) during their period of house arrest. Those who excelled at painting painted the aforementioned 'Appendix: Sketches of the War Zone', in which Ly-ee-moon and Tahei-maru are shown. In order to provide a slight offensive capability, several gun ports were opened on both sides of the Taiheimaru for gunfire, and a second deck was provided at the rear. Among those who surrendered, the person who knew about the remodeling from the Ly-ee-moon to the Taihei-maru was Arai Ikunosuke, who was the head of the Warship Yard at the end of the Edo period, and is thought to have given specific advice on the production of this picture.

(3) From Imperial Navy to the Vulcan Foundry

  The Ly-ee-moon became the property of the new government in 1869, along with the outside vessels, and was taken to the Yokosuka Ironworks for repairs [JWM 1870].

"YOKOSUKA ARSENAL, Japan Weekly Mail on October 1870.

--The Mail reported how the Yokosuka Arsenal was found and managed, and was going to execute works. A large number of projects was in waiting list, No.9 of which was "No. 9 - An inlet - (the second in our previous enumeration.) An old steamer, the Ly-ee-moon, formerly belonging to Dent & Co., lies there in 28 feet of water. There is accommodation here for six large vessels."

  The Yokosuka and Yokohama ironworks were under the jurisdiction of the new Ministry of Civil Affairs, and the first officer in charge was Yamao Yozo, who had returned from Britain. McVean was hired to work on the construction of a lighthouse in Japan in July 1868, together with chief engineer Richard Henry Brunton and deputy engineer Arthur Blundell, but resigned as lighthouse keeper in September the following year. He soon purchased the Vulcan Iron Works, run by the Lucy Company, and started a ship repair and construction business in the Yokohama Foreign Settlement. He also visited the Meiji Government's Yokosuka and Yokohama ironworks, where he met and rapidly became friends with Yamao, who spoke English with a Scottish accent. Glasgow, where Yamao had received his technical training, was close to McVean's home town, where many of his acquaintances and relatives lived. When we asked him to confirm Yamao's activities in Glasgow through his father, we discovered that he was, as he said, working diligently at the Napier Shipyard.

Donald McVean's Letter to Colin dated 15th Nov. 1870

My dear Colin & Mary,

(earlier omitted)

  I cannot find Yokosha [Yokosuka] – the place of the Arsenal & where Yossu [Yuzo Yamao] is in the Map. I wd have written to Brown at once for a letter of introduction had you not said you were to call for said distinguished official & introduce yourself. I find by your letter now to hand, though you had not done so - you still intended to go without waiting a formal introduction. Brown anticipated from his fine frank Scotch like character - you would if you found him, get a very cordial reception form him by merely mentioning his name tho’ he told me there was a mystery about their not having heard from him which he could not understand.

(later omitted)

  McVean did not keep a diary for two years, 1870 and 1871, and the Ly-ee-moon first appears in January of the 1873 diary, but there is no doubt that he met Yamao in Yokosuka in late 1870 and began negotiations to purchase the Ly-ee-moon. The purchase price is not known, but he and Blundell financed the purchase together and hired a repairman.

(4) Vulcan Foundry to Hudson, Malcolm & Co.

  McVean's diary of 22 January 1873 states that repairs to the Ly-ee-moon had apparently been completed and he went to Yokosuka with a number of interested parties to inspect it. Spence, who accompanied them, appears to have been active in the purchase of the Ly-ee-moon, as he was a member of the Yokohama office of the Hudson Malcolm Company. The McVean document contains an advertisement for passengers for the Hudson Malcolm Company, which indicates that the company intended to purchase the Ly-ee-moon from McVean and send it to England. Research documents from the British Museum reveal that Spence was a well-known collector of Japanese antiquities.

The McVeans' Diaries

--January 22, 1873. [Colin] Went to Yokosuka with Spence Stevens Waters & Mr Dond - to hold a survey on Lyemoon.

*Edwin John Spence, 1840-1918. Foreign employee in Yokohama, working for Aspinall, Cornes & Co. 1862-68 and then the insurance agency Hudson, Malcolm & Co. 1869-72. In 1870, married Annie Jane Layton (b. 1850, Newington, GB) at Bromley, Kent. Left Japan for New Zealand in 1872; had two sons, Percy Layton Spence and Cecil Layton Spence, both born in New Zealand, but who also travelled to Japan (The British Museum). 

　マクヴェインは公務のために1873年3月末日本を出発し、イギリスに10ヶ月間滞在した。同年11月21日付けの日記によれば、共同出資者のブランデルに鯉魚門が1万2千ポンドでハドソン・マルコム社に売れたことを手紙で伝えた。

The McVeans' Diary 1873.

--Friday 21 Nov. Wrote Blundell informing him that the Lyemoon was sold for £12000.

--Tuesday 2 Dec. Letter from Hudson Malcolm & Co particulars as to sale of Lyemoon.

--Tuesday 9 Dec. Recd letter from Hudson Malcolm & Co

--Wednesday 24 Dec. Wrote Blundell inclosing letter of explanation of sale of Lyemoon per H.M. & Co.

　ハドソン・マルコム社は保険代理店であり、同社はこの鯉魚門を取引のあるどこかの海運会社に売却したのであろう。マクヴェインは1874年5月に一時帰国から日本に戻ってきて、同年暮れに横浜に来航してきた鯉魚門をジョイナーとともに見に行った。次に述べるように、鯉魚門は約一年をかけて、蒸気機関もろとも外輪駆動からスクリュー駆動に改造され、極東航路に用いられることになり、途中、横浜に寄港したのであった。この時マクヴェインらが見た鯉魚門は、マスト3本を備えているものの帆はなく、もう帆走することはなかった。

The McVeans' Diary 1874.

--Wednesday 23 Dec. [Mary] Colin & Mr Joyner went to Yokohama by the 2.30 train to see the Stevens who have just arrived by the Lyemoon.

（５）オーストラリア航路

　1875年中の活動は不明であるが、1876年になり鯉魚門はオーストラリア・ユナイテッド・スティーム・ネビゲーション会社（AUSN又はASN）に買い取られ、シドニー、メルボルン、ブリスベーンを結ぶ航路に導入された。シドニー湾に浮かぶ鯉魚門を『マーキュリー』誌は次のように紹介している。

Mercury, Wednesday Morning, June 21, 1876. Australia

  Ly-ee-Moon is Thames built, and her dimensions are as follows : Length, 272ft.; beam, 27ft. 6in. ; and depth of hold, 18ft. Her draught when loaded is 13ft. 6in, and her displacement at draught is 1,540 tons. The cabins are all on the main deck, and, there is a flush upper deck more than two-thirds of the length of the vessel, which forms a splendid promenade. The saloon is well forward, and although somewhat limited in extent, is gorgeously furnished, and there is a very commodious ladies’ saloon, fitted up in similar style. The plan of the saloon is considered well adapted for the China seas, but it lacks the imposing appearance of the P. and O. Company's fleet, or of those of several of the intercolonial steamers. The sleeping cabins, however, are very large and well-ventilated, and furnished with all the requisites for making passengers comfortable.

  There is berthing space for 36 first-class, 24 second class, and 40 third-class passengers, and if required there is accumulation for 300 in the tweendecks. The third class space is arranged in two divisions, so that the sexes can be kept separate if need be. In addition to all this, there is stowage for 1,350 tons of cargo. As the Ly-ee-Moon depends mainly on her steaming, she is lightly rigged, as a three-masted, schooner, and her appearance aloft is rather bare and scant. On the passage from Sydney here she had to steam against fresh S. and S.W. and westerly gales, and when off the Promontory the engines were slowed on account of thick weather. The steamer ran up her signal off Cape Schank, and kept then displayed for some time, but there was no answer. To-day the Ly-ee-Moon will be berthed at the Sandridge railway pier, and opportunity will be allowed the public for inspection.

McVean left Japan at the end of March 1873 on official business and stayed in England for ten months. According to his diary, dated 21 November of the same year, he wrote to his co-founder Blundell that the Ly-ee-moon had been sold to the Hudson Malcolm Company for £12,000.

The McVeans' Diary 1873.

--Friday 21 Nov. Wrote Blundell informing him that the Lyemoon was sold for £12000.

--Tuesday 2 Dec. Letter from Hudson Malcolm & Co particulars as to sale of Lyemoon.

--Tuesday 9 Dec. Recd letter from Hudson Malcolm & Co

--Wednesday 24 Dec. Wrote Blundell inclosing letter of explanation of sale of Lyemoon per H.M. & Co.

  Hudson, Malcolm Co. was an insurance agent, and the company probably sold the Ly-ee-moon to some shipping company with which it did business. McVean returned to Japan from a furlough in May 1874 and went with Joiner to see the Ly-ee-moon, which arrived in Yokohama later that year. As will be described next, the Ly-ee-moon was converted from an external wheel drive to a screw drive, including the steam engine, over a period of about a year, and was used on the Far Eastern trade, stopping at Yokohama on the way. The Ly-ee-moon, which McVean and others saw at this time, had three masts but no sails and was no longer sailing.

The McVeans' Diaries

--December 23, 1874. [Mary] Beautiful cold morning. Watched the sun as it rose, about two or three of its own breadths to the left of the godown on Ataga Yama. I watched it from our bedroom window. Colin & Mr Joyner went to Yokohama by the 2.30 train to see the Stevens who have just arrived by the Lyemoon.

(5) Australian Service

  Activity during 1875 is unknown, but in 1876 the Ly-ee-moon was bought by the Australian United Steam Navigation Company (AUSN or ASN) and introduced on the route between Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. The Mercury described the Ly-ee-moon in Sydney Harbour as follows.

Mercury, Wednesday Morning, June 21, 1876. Australia

--Ly-ee-Moon is Thames built, and her dimensions are as follows : Length, 272ft.; beam, 27ft. 6in. ; and depth of hold, 18ft. Her draught when loaded is 13ft. 6in, and her displacement at draught is 1,540 tons. The cabins are all on the main deck, and, A there is a flush upper deck more than two-thirds of the length of the vessel, which forms a splendid promenade, The saloon is well forward, and although somewhat limited in extent, is gorgeously furnished, and there is a very commodious ladie’ saloon, fitted up in similar style. The plan of the saloon is considered well adapted for the China seas, but it lacks the imposing appearance of the P. and O. Company's fleet, or of those of several of the intercolonial steamers. The sleeping cabins, however, are very large and well-ventilated, and furnished with all the requisities for making passengers comfortable.

   There is berthing space for 36 first-class, 24 second class, and 40 third-class passengers, and if required there ia accumulation for 300 in the tweendecks. The third class space is arranged in two divisions, so that the sexes can be kept separate if need be. In addition to all this, there is stowage for 1,350 tons of cargo. As the Ly-ee-Moon depends mainly on her steaming, she is lightly rigged, as a three-masted, schooner, and her appearance aloft is rather bare and scant. On the passage from Sydney here she had to steam against fresh S. and S.W. and westerly gales, and when off the Promontory the engines were slowed on account of thick weather. The steamer ran up her signal off Cape Schank, and kept then displayed for some time, but there was no answer. To-day the Ly-ee-Moon will be berthed at the Sandridge railway pier, and opportunity will be allowed the public for inspection.

　もともとは貨物運搬用の高速蒸気外輪クリッパー船であったが、1874年にロンドンでの改造の際、駆動方式だけではなく、客船専用となったことがわかる。そのため重量も300トン以上も増加した。1等36人、2等24人、3等40人以外に、甲板間デッキに300人を収容できた。

　1877年11月5日、鯉魚門はAUSN社のピルモント埠頭で修理整備中のところ、火災事故を起こしてしまった。地元新聞は次のように報告している。

Sydney Moring Herald, Nov. 5, 1877

This splendid clipper steamer, which was recently purchased by the Australian Steam Navigation Company, and employed by them in the Fujian trade, and which has lately been lying alongside the company's works at Pyrmont, has just suffered from a dreadful casualty by fire, which has gutted the vessel, and entailed a heavy loss upon the enterprising owners. All appeared to be perfectly safe on board the steamer till about midnight on Saturday. All the persons on board at the time were the carpenter and boatswain, and one of the savers. About 1 o'clock on Sunday morning, the watchman on the A.S.N. Company's works observed a more than ordinary light shining through the cabin windows. He immediately went on board and gave the alarm to the boatswain and others on board, stating that he thought he had perceived the smell of fire on board. The boatswain and carpenter made their way to the steamers saloon, but on bursting open the doors they were forced back by the flames, which rushed out on them. Within ten minutes from this the ship was in flames in the whole from this the ship was in flames in the whole of the amidships sections.

  Originally a fast steam outer-wheel clipper ship for carrying cargo, it can be seen that during her conversion in London in 1874, she was dedicated to passenger ships as well as the drive system. Her weight was therefore increased by more than 300 tonnes and, apart from 36 first-class, 24 second-class and 40 third-class passengers, she could accommodate 300 passengers on the interdeck decks.

　On 5 November 1877, the Ly-ee-moon was undergoing repairs and maintenance at the AUSN's Pyrmont Wharf when she caught fire. Local newspapers reported the following.

Sydney Moring Herald, Nov. 5, 1877

This splendid clipper steamer, which was recently purchased by the Australian Steam Navigation Company, and employed by them in the Fujian trade, and which has lately been lying alongside the company's works at Pyrmont, has just suffered from a dreadful casualty by fire, which has gutted the vessel, and entailed a heavy loss upon the enterprising owners. All appeared to be perfectly safe on board the steamer till about midnight on Saturday. All the persons on board at the time were the carpenter and boatswain, and one of the savers. About 1 o'clock on Sunday morning, the watchman on the A.S.N. Company's works observed a more than ordinary light shining through the cabin windows. He immediately went on board and gave the alarm to the boatswain and others on board, stating that he thought he had perceived the smell of fire on board. The boatswain and carpenter made their way to the steamers saloon, but on bursting open the doors they were forced back by the flames, which rushed out on them. Within ten minutes from this the ship was in flames in the whole from this the ship was in flames in the whole of the amidships sections.

最後に

　1886年5月29日午後、メルボルンを出航した鯉魚門は、翌日夜9時頃、グリーン・ケーブで座礁事故を起こしてしまった。乗組員と乗客を合わせて70名が亡くなり、船体は海の藻屑と消えてしまった。グリーン・ケープ灯台が点灯していながら、なぜこのような事故が起きてしまったのか、海難史のミステリーとなっている。

June 4, 1886, Australian Register, Adelaide

Total loss of the steamship Ly-ee-moon. Seventy Lives lost; Only Fifteen Saved.

  The Australian Steam Navigation Company’s steamer Ly-ee-moon, which left Melbourne for Sydney and Brisbane at noon on Saturday, May 29, struck on a reef under the lighthouse on Green Cape on Sunday night at half-past 9 o’clock, and became a total wreck. There were a large number of passengers on board, but only fifteen persons, including several of the crew, were saved.

Last.

  The Ly-ee-moon left Melbourne in the afternoon of 29 May 1886 and ran aground in Green Cave at around 9pm the following night. A total of 70 crew and passengers were killed and the vessel disappeared into the sea debris. How such an accident could have occurred while the Green Cape Lighthouse was lit is a mystery in maritime history.

June 4, 1886, Australian Register, Adelaide

Total loss of the steamship Ly-ee-moon. Seventy Lives lost; Only Fifteen Saved.

  The Australian Steam Navigation Company’s steamer Ly-ee-moon, which left Melbourne for Sydney and Brisbane at noon on Saturday, May 29, struck on a reef under the lighthouse on Green Cape on Sunday night at half-past 9 o’clock, and became a total wreck. There were a large number of passengers on board, but only fifteen persons, including several of the crew, were saved.

　19世紀半ば、蒸気機関による外輪船やスクリュー船は実用化されていたが、途中寄港することなく長距離航海するにはクリッパー船が有利であった。しかし、大型クリッパー船を操作するには多数の熟練した人員が必要とされたが、幕末の日本にはまだいなかった。幕府は鯉魚門を購入し江戸・大坂間に数回使用したが、機関が故障すると修理できず、明治政府の下でマクヴェインに売却されることになった。鯉魚門を操縦したことのある荒井郁之助は、箱館反乱軍指揮官としての処罰を受けた後、開拓使を経て内務省に入る。そこでマクヴェインは出会うことになるが、この二人は鯉魚門で結ばれていたことを知るよしもなかった。明治政府はやっと横須賀製鉄所を完成させたが、船舶を十分に修理改造することはできず、鯉魚門はマクヴェインの手を経てイギリスに渡り、最後はオーストラリア航路で華々しく活躍した。

Reference:

(1) 泉田英雄, 明治政府測量師長コリン・アレクサンダー・マクヴェイン, 工部省営繕, 測量, 気象観測への貢献, 文芸社, 2022年. ISBN-10 ‏: ‎ 4286234304

  Hideo Izumida, Colin Alexander McVean, Surveyor in Chief, Contribution to Public Buildings, Survey and meteorological Observation, 2022.

(2) P. Barry, Dockyard Economy and Naval Power, Sampson Low, Son, and Co., London, 1863.

(3) 長尾正憲、福沢屋諭吉の研究、1988年. ISBN4-7842-0517-9

(4) 泉田英雄, 東アジアの初期イギリス公館建築の営繕について その1, 建築史学15, 1990年.

(5) 勝海舟全集９ 海軍歴史Ⅱ, 1975年.

(6) 神谷大介、幕末の海軍　明治維新への航跡、吉川弘文館、2017年。ISBN-10 ‏:‎ 4642058591

  Kamiya Daisuke, Bakumatsu no Kaigun (Japanese Navy at the end of Shogunate period), 2018.

(7) Graeme Barrow, Who Lies? The Ly-ee-Moon Disaster and a Question of Truth, 2010. ISBN : 9780977532834

(8) Phillip Masaad, Rusting Relics, 2020. ISBN : 9781925908770

(9) NSW Environment and Heritage, "Ly-ee-moon."

   https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/maritimeheritageapp/ViewSiteDetail.aspx?siteid=1029

(10) Bill Brown, Mystery of the Ly-ee-moon Shipwreck, 2014.

   https://www.abc.net.au/local/photos/2011/07/0/3261634.htm

  In the mid-19th century, steam-powered paddle and screw ships had been put to practical use, but clipper ships were advantageous for long-distance voyages without intermediate port calls. However, a large number of skilled personnel were needed to operate large clipper ships, which were not yet available in Japan at the end of the Edo period. The Shogunate purchased the Ly-ee-moon and used them several times between Edo and Osaka, but when their engines failed, they could not be repaired and were sold to McVean under the Meiji Government. After being punished as commander of the Hakodate Rebellion, Ikunosuke Arai, who had piloted the Ly-ee-moon, joined the Ministry of Home Affairs after serving in the Kaitakushi-Hokkaido Development Agency. There, McVaan would meet him, but he had no way of knowing that the two had been linked by the Ly-ee-moon. The Meiji Government finally completed the Yokosuka Ironworks, but was unable to adequately repair and rebuild the ship, and the Ly-ee-moon passed through McVean's hands to England, where she ended up with a spectacular career on the Australia route.

Reference:

(1) 泉田英雄, 明治政府測量師長コリン・アレクサンダー・マクヴェイン, 工部省営繕, 測量, 気象観測への貢献, 文芸社, 2022年. ISBN-10 ‏: ‎ 4286234304

  Hideo Izumida, Colin Alexander McVean, Surveyor in Chief, Contribution to Public Buildings, Survey and meteorological Observation, 2022.

(2) P. Barry, Dockyard Economy and Naval Power, Sampson Low, Son, and Co., London, 1863.

(3) Masanori Nagao, A Study of Fukuzawaya Yukichi, 1988. ISBN4-7842-0517-9

(4) 泉田英雄, 東アジアの初期イギリス公館建築の営繕について その1, 建築史学15, 1990年.

  Hideo Izumida, Early British Diplomatic and Consular Buildings in East Asia Part I, Journal of Architectural Historians in Japan, Volume 15, 1990.

(5) 勝海舟全集９ 海軍歴史Ⅱ, 1975年.

  The Complete Works of Katsu Kaisyu History of Shogunate Navy Part II, 1975.

(6) 神谷大介, 幕末の海軍 明治維新への航跡, 吉川弘文館, 2017年. ISBN-10 ‏:‎ 4642058591

  Kamiya Daisuke, Bakumatsu no Kaigun (Japanese Navy at the end of Shogunate period), 2018.

(7) Graeme Barrow, Who Lies? The Ly-ee-Moon Disaster and a Question of Truth, 2010. ISBN : 9780977532834

(8) Phillip Masaad, Rusting Relics, 2020. ISBN : 9781925908770

(9) NSW Environment and Heritage, "Ly-ee-moon."

   https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/maritimeheritageapp/ViewSiteDetail.aspx?siteid=1029

(10) Bill Brown, Mystery of the Ly-ee-moon Shipwreck, 2014.

   https://www.abc.net.au/local/photos/2011/07/0/3261634.htm