Convinced that Irish traffic would be profitable, the CR acquired two small paddle steamers and operated a service between Stranraer and Belfast from 4 December 1865. The PPR was prevailed upon to support this venture financially; but Irish traffic suffered a severe decline at this time and when one of the steamers suffered damage during a crossing on 21 January 1868, the decision was taken to suspend the ferry operation. Once again the purpose of the PPR—to connect with Ireland—was frustrated. An independent company, the Donaghadee and Portpatrick Steam Packet Company now started a service, with a single vessel making at first two-round trips daily from 13 July 1868, cut back to one daily round trip from 21 September, but then discontinued from 31 October 1868. It appears likely that connecting trains used the ordinary Portpatrick station, not the Harbour terminal. During this period the Government's intentions regarding the use of Portpatrick as a mail terminal clarified: there was now no prospect of this happening, and when the Government offered compensation of £20,000 and the transfer of ownership of the harbour at Portpatrick to the PPR, these terms were accepted as the best that could be obtained. The Caledonian Railway proposed that this be regarded as income of the line, to which they would be entitled. As they had accepted the commercial risk of revenue income which was now lacking, this might seem reasonable; but the PPR successfully argued that this was not provided for in the Working Agreement, and they refused to share the money. From 18 August 1871 another independent operator started a service between Donaghadee and Portpatrick. On 29 August the vessel, named Aber, was rammed in thick fog by an Atlantic steamer and sank in five minutes; the new service had lasted 12 days. As a visible indication of the decline of the port, the Portpatrick lighthouse was dismantled in 1871 and shipped to, and erected in Colombo in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). A final attempt at a regular service started on 7 June 1873, but there was little patronage and it ceased five days later, on 12 July 1873. £500,000 had been expended on the harbour. In October 1874 the rails were lifted and moved to Newton Stewart to be used in the extension of siding accommodation there. If the Post Office was unwilling to support Portpatrick, they were not opposed to taking advantage of