Dear Peter, I suspect that this was the 2,421 gross ton Hindustan, built 1893 for Common Bros, Sunderland. Her details were - 2,421 g.t., Official No.99616, length 290ft x beam 38.1ft, built 1893 by Osbourne, Graham & Co for the Hindustan Steam Shipping Co (Common Bros), Sunderland. 1896 transferred to Sydney NSW registry, 1899 re-registered at Sunderland, 1901 sold to Cia Cantabrica de Nav, Bilbao renamed Valmaseda,1.11.1910 wrecked near Vera Cruz while on voyage Cardiff to Vera Cruz with coal. Common Bros tramped extensively worldwide. regards Ted . ----- Original Message ----- From: "Peter Green" <P.Green@latrobe.edu.au> To: <Mariners-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Thursday, May 26, 2011 1:20 AM Subject: [MAR] SS Hindustan in Singapore/Jakarta/Christmas Island late 1890s > > Dear Mariners, > > I am an ecologist with an interest in ships as vectors for the > introduction of non-native species, and this is my first foray into this > kind of forum. Apologies if I've chosen the wrong place for this query! > > Does anyone know of an SS Hindustan operating in the southeast Asia in the > very late 19th century? This ship was supposed to have introduced > non-native black rats to Christmas Island (360 km south of Jakarta) in Dec > 1899, and in doing so introduced a blood-borne disease that caused the > extinction of two species of local, endemic rats. I have searched the > shipping news in digistized newspaper archives (esp the Straits Times from > Singapore) for the period, but cannot find a record of this ship sailing > between Singapore and Christmas Island. > > Its entirely possible the ship sailed from Jakarta. Its also possible the > Dec 1899 date is incorrect, and may in fact be around Aug/Sep 1901. > > Any help appreciated! > > Many thanks, > > Pete Green > > > Dr Pete Green > > Department of Botany | La Trobe University | Bundoora VIC 3086 > T: 03 9479 3675| F: 03 9479 1188| W: > www.latrobe.edu.au<http://www.latrobe.edu.au/> > > La Trobe University - ranked top in Victoria for student satisfaction > (Sweeney Uni Student Report, 2009) > > CRICOS Provider 00115M > > J Please kindly consider your environment before printing this e-mail > > Warning to recipients: > This email and any attachments are confidential and subject to copyright. > If you are not the intended recipient any use, disclosure or copying is > unauthorised. If you have received this email in error please advise us > immediately by reply email and delete all copies. It is your > responsibility to examine this email and any attachments for viruses. Any > personal information in this email must be handled in accordance with the > Information Privacy Act 2000 (Vic). > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > MARINERS-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message > -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 8.5.449 / Virus Database: 271.1.1/3659 - Release Date: 05/25/11 06:34:00