COASTAL SURVEILLANCE by Ian Anderson
CSS HUNLEY
JOINT COMMONWEALTH SOCIETIES COUNCIL OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA

COASTAL SURVEILLANCE
Terrorism on the mainland of Australia has yet to materialize and is open to conjecture. Islamic terrorists have been unable to recruit satisfactorily in this country from either the Muslim population or the Australian population at large. However, it remains to be seen what further terrorist strategies may be, and how they will affect the mainland of Australia.
It is common knowledge both here and overseas that Australia has some of the most remote coastlines in the world and its main population is centred on the eastern seaboard. No doubt this hasn't escaped international terrorists, the infiltration via the sea and our coasts a very real possibility.
The above analysis doesn't suggest complacency by any means, however indicates that time is available to build our own responses to this issue. One response that has previously been mooted but apparently has fallen on deaf ears is the creation of a national coast guard. This should be maintained by the RAN and separately staffed by the Navy Reserve at all levels. Ships and men could be given immediate tasks of maintaining coastal security and the administration of Australian and international laws, such as illegal fishing, illegal immigration and smuggling, the surveillance of coastal shipping, these are but a few tasks that spring to mind. The Navy Reserve as it exists would benefit greatly as it would then be purpose driven, surely a benefit to the Australian taxpayer as well as itself.
It was good to see a report in the Advertiser that an armed vessel is being prepared to combat illegal fishing in the Southern Ocean and approaches to Antarctica. Tooth fishing may take a downturn in the near future.
Ian Anderson

Historical Notes

CSS HUNLEY:
The Hunley was the first submersible to sink an enemy vessel in warfare. (February 1864). She sunk the Housatonic off Charleston, South Carolina, during the American Civil war.
The Hunley was not the first submersible vessel built.
The first one was the Pioneer, mentioned as early as 1861, it was of iron, ¼ inch thick, 30 feet long, 4 feet in diameter with cone ends 10 feet long, a propeller in one end turned by a crank by two people inside the boat. She never saw action and was sold for scrap in 1868 at public auction.
The second was the American Diver, 1863. It was 36 feet long, 3 feet wide, 4 feet high with 12 feet at each end tapered or modelled to make it easy for her to pass through the water. Again there were cranks fitted to turn the propeller by hand, worked by 4 men at a time. The next submersible was also of iron ¼ inch thick, and in order to correct the previous boats faults it was built with square sides, 36 feet long, 4 feet high and 3 feet across top and bottom with ends tapered like a wedge, and driven by a 30 inch propeller. The American Diver was floated in February 1863 but as the weather grew worse the boat was difficult to manage and foundered.
The third attempt was the H.L. Hunley. The boat was launched in July 1863. It was known as fish Boat, the fish torpedo boat, the porpoise, and then the Hunley.
The boat was of an eliptic shape, with modelled ends. Built of iron 3/8 inch thick, 40 feet long top and bottom, 42 inches wide in the middle, and 48 inches high, fitted with cranks geared to her propeller and turned by 8 persons inside. The dimensions vary depending on the historical source.
The boat was twice lost in Charleston Harbour with loss of life and was salvaged both times. On one of these occasions while running submerged the acting vessel commander, Hunley, made a simple error in regulating the water contained within the forward ballast tank and the boat buried its bow in the harbour mud, stuck fast, and partially flooded, killing the entire crew.
After this tragedy the boat was not expected to be used again but a Lieutenant Dixon applied to use it against the Federal steam sloop-of-war Housatonic, a vessel which carried eleven guns and lay at the time in the north channel obstructing the passage of the blockade runners for the Confederacy.
A torpedo was fastened to the end of an iron pipe, about 2 inches in diameter, and twenty to twenty five feet in length, and could be extended in front and withdrawn at ease by guides in the centre of the boat to hold it in place.
On the evening of 17 February 1864,the Hunley set out on patrol. The USS Housatonic was at anchor about 2½ miles off Charleston Bay and after being struck with the torpedo sank in about three minutes.
The Hunley and her crew never returned and its disappearance became one of the sea's great mysteries, remaining unsolved until the wreck was located in 1995 by Ralph Wilbanks, Wes Hall and Harry Pecorelli III.
The H.L.Hunley's attack defined to the US Navy the danger of submersible torpedo craft and demonstrated the vast potential of the submersible vessel in future naval strategy.
April 2004 was Civil War Week in the USA and there was a service held for the CSS Hunley at Charleston.
There appears to be a video available "The Hunley" (1999), and stars Donald Sutherland as General Beauregard and Armand Assente as Lt George Dixon. Some comments about the video are - "remarkable feat of engineering of the time", "unknown story of the Civil War".
Horace Lawson Hunley was a wealthy cotton broker who helped finance the building of the Hunley and he drowned when he made the fatal mistake to take the Hunley down himself.
The recovery of CSS Hunley took place on August 8th 2000.
This information has been extracted from several websites and is compelling reading. Since July 4, 1996, the Hunley page has had 219242 visitors. Ref. http://www.hunley.org. www.hunlevfuneral.org. www.awod.com/gallery/probono/cwschas/hunley.html www. history .navv.mil/brahcnes/org
Jean Gill

JOINT COMMONWEALTH SOCIETIES COUNCIL OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA

NLA-SA President recently attended the AGM of this organisation, and it was interesting to note that Navy League has been involved with this Council since early last century. Your Executive trusts that continued membership assists the spread of our ideals via magazines and newsletters issued to the other Council Member Societies. We also anticipate that newsletter exchange will enable major items of mutual interest, including socials, to be advised to our members. For information, contact details are

THE ROYAL COMMONWEALTH SOCIETY TEL 8223 2907
THE VICTORIA LEAGUE FOR COMMONWEALTH FRIENDSHIP TEL 8223 2914
THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF ST. GEORGE TEL 83836318
THE ROYAL CALEDONIAN SOCIETY TEL 83791949
THE ROYAL OVER-SEAS LEAGUE TEL 8332 9559
THE CAMBRIAN (WELSH) SOCIETY . TEL 8370 6500
THE AUSTRALIA-CANADA ASSOCIATION TEL 8297 1133
THE ENGLISH SPEAKING UNION TEL 83791039
THE CORNISH ASSOCIATION OF SA TEL 8388 2338

As part of this joint council, the League was represented at the Adelaide Lord Mayor's Commonwealth Day celebration at the Town Hall on Friday 5 March and at the Council Reception at Wyatt Hall on Monday 8 March with the Governor of SA as Guest of Honour. We also had some members attend the annual Victoria League Day social on Monday 24 May.