Aug. 12.] STRAIT OF GIBRALTAR.--SPAIN.

Tarifa Point.--Bell and Submarine-bell Buoy disappeared.
Position.--At a distance of 2 cables, south-westward, from Tarifa Point Lighthouse. Lat. 35° 59¾' N., long. 5° 36¼' W.
Description.--A bell-buoy with submarine bell.
Remarks.--The buoy is to be expunged from the charts.
Charts affected.--No. 142, Strait of Gibraltar ; No. 3578, Eastern approaches to Gibraltar Strait ; No. 92, Cape St. Vincent to Gibraltar Strait ; No. 2717, Gibraltar to Alicante. Publications.--W. C. France, Spain, &c., Pilot, 1910, pages 771 and 772, Supplement, 1913 ; Mediterranean Pilot, Vol. I, 1913, page 89.

SOUTH AUSTRALIA.

Backstairs Passage.--Yatala Shoal Buoy.

Masters of vessels and others are hereby informed that the Yatala Shoal buoy, which had broken adrift, has been recovered, and will be replaced without delay.

This affects Admiralty Chart No. 2389.

Spencer Gulf.

Masters of vessels and others are hereby notified that a rock has been discovered at a point between Point Bolingbroke and Louth Bay Jetty, on which there is less than 9 ft. of water L.W.S.

The position of the rock is, approximately, lat. 34° 33¼' S., long. 136° 1' E.

This affects Admiralty Chart No. 2389.

Approach to Port Pirie.

Masters of vessels, pilots, and others are hereby informed that on and after the 15th July, 1915, the red perch buoy on the eastern edge of the Sixteen-feet Patch, will be moved to a position clear of the patch in 18 ft. of water, with No. 1 beacon bearing 205° 20' (S. 20° W. mag.), and the clock tide-gauge bearing 302° 20' (N. 53° W. mag.).

A black buoy will be placed four and one-third (4⅓) cables S.E. ½° E. from the red perch buoy.

The deepest water will be between these buoys, and is indicated at night by the white sector in No. 1 beacon light.

Approximate position of red perch buoy : Lat. 33° 4½' S., long. 137° 59½' E.

This affects Admiralty Charts Nos. 403 and 2389.

QUEENSLAND.

Removal of and Rearrangement of Buoys, Cleveland Bay, Townsville.

Notice is hereby given that on the 1st August, 1915, the red buoys marking the Virago Shoal and Pallarenda Spit respectively will be removed.

Notice is also given that the two black buoys, which carry a staff and square topmark, and which mark the Fourteen-feet Channel, will be removed on the same date ; and the red buoy which is at present moored in 18 ft., and lies S. 48° W. 1·5 miles from Hawkins Point, will be removed to a position S. 48° W. 1·8 miles from Hawkins Point, when it will be moored in 13 ft. at low water and will mark the south-east corner of Middle Reef.

Directions for using the Fourteen-feet Channel will be as follows : Proceed as formerly until past the red buoy which lies north of the flag buoy, then steer about S. 57° E. for one mile, passing a red buoy on the starboard hand, about one cable off. When past this buoy a vessel will be clear of Middle Reef. This channel is not marked for night use.

Charts, &c., affected : Nos. 348 and 1102 ; Australia Directory, Vol. II.

NEW CALEDONIA.

Noumea Roadstead.

The frigate captain commanding the “ Kersaint ” has reported that in the sounding operations recently effected in the great roadstead of Noumea, the sounding of 4 metres marked on Chart 1939 about 850 metres in the 345th (N. 15° W.) from the upper line of light of the Island of Nou (position approximately lat. 22° 16' 22'' S., long. 164° 5' 31'' E. of Paris) had not been found, but, on the contrary, a bank had been discovered on which the shallowest soundings were 4 metres 80 cr. at 720 meters in the 335th (50' N. 24° 10' W.) from the same line. The zone in which the inferior depths up to 10 metres were found is about 120 metres in diameter. There is every reason to believe that this bank should have been marked farther north on the map.

A second bank, giving a sounding of 4 metres 80 cr. has been discovered at 1,280 metres in the 348th (15' N. 11° 45' W.) from the same line of heights of the Island of Nou. The zone in which these inferior depths at 10 metres around this point are found is about 60 metres in diameter.

These particulars have been carefully marked by the commandant of the “ Kersaint ” on the chart at the Office of Direction of the Port, where they are available for inspection by navigators and pilots.

Noumea, 12th March, 1915.

Notice to Mariners No. 59 of 1915.

Marine Department,
Wellington, N.Z., 2nd August, 1915.

THE following Notices to Mariners, which appear in the London Gazette of 15th June, 1915, are published for the information of shipmasters and others concerned.

W. H. HERRIES,
Minister of Marine.

NOTICE TO MARINERS.

No. 506 of the year 1915.

NORTH SEA, RIVER THAMES AND ENGLISH CHANNEL.

Pilotage and Traffic Regulations.

Former Notice.--No. 479 of 1915 ; hereby cancelled.

All orders in this notice are now in force, and have been made under the Defence of the Realm (Consolidation) Regulations, 1914.

I. All ships (other than British ships of less than 3,500 tons gross tonnage, when trading coastwise or to or from the Channel Islands and not carrying passengers) whilst bound from, and whilst navigating in the waters from, the Downs Pilot-station to Gravesend, or vice versa, must be conducted by pilots licensed by the London Trinity House.

2. All ships (other than British ships of less than 3,500 tons gross tonnage, when trading coastwise or to or from the Channel Islands and not carrying passengers) whilst bound from, and whilst navigating in the waters from, Gravesend to Great Yarmouth, or vice versa, must be conducted by pilots licensed by the London Trinity House.

3. All ships (other than British ships of less than 3,500 tons gross tonnage, when trading coastwise or to or from the Channel Islands and not carrying passengers) whilst navigating in the waters from Gravesend to London Bridge, or vice versa, must be conducted by pilots licensed by the London Trinity House.

4. The Trinity House Pilot-station at Dungeness having been discontinued, pilotage is therefore not compulsory between the Downs Pilot-station and Dungeness, except for ships bound into or out of the Harbours of Dover and Folkestone.

II. Trinity House Pilot-stations have been established at the undermentioned places, and merchant vessels not under compulsion of pilotage are very strongly advised to take pilots :-

(a.) THE DOWNS, where ships proceeding north can obtain pilots capable of piloting as far as Great Yarmouth, and also pilots for the River Thames, and for Folkestone and Dover Harbours. The pilot-steamers attached to the Downs Station will cruise in the vicinity of a position two miles south-east of Deal Pier.

(b.) GREAT YARMOUTH, where ships from the North Sea bound for the River Thames or the English Channel can obtain pilots capable of piloting as far as the Downs.

The pilot-steamer attached to the Great Yarmouth Station will cruise between the Corton Light-vessel and the South Scroby buoy.

(c.) THE SUNK LIGHT-VESSEL, where ships crossing the North Sea between the parallels of 51° 40' and 51° 54' north latitude, but no others, can obtain pilots for the River Thames and the Downs.

(d.) Pilots can also be obtained at LONDON and HARWICH for the Downs and Great Yarmouth (including the River Thames and approaches).

Note.--The pilots referred to in this notice are the pilots licensed by the London Trinity House, and no others.

III. RIVER THAMES.--All traffic into and out of the River Thames must pass through the Edinburgh Channels, or through the Black Deep south of the Knock John and Knob Light-buoys, and through the Oaze Deep, until further notice.

No vessels are to remain under way in the above-mentioned channels between Southend on the west, and the Sunk Head Light-buoy, or a line joining the positions of the South Long Sand and East Shingles buoys, on the east, between the hours of ll p.m. and 2 a.m.

Vessels at anchor within these limits must not exhibit any light between the hours of ll p.m. and 2 a.m.

All other channels are closed to navigation.