POLICE COURT.—Thursday.

Auckland Star, Volume I, Issue 148, 30 June 1870, Page 2

POLICE COURT.—Thursday.

(Before Thomas Beckham, Esq., R.M., and ~:, G.B.Owen, Esq., J. P.) ;A .-'. DRUNKENNESS. William Crowe and Antonio Nicholson were C':iD.d';ss. and costs, 0r.48 hours',imprisohment, -A:his offence. A'.' ._".' BREACH op municipal police- act. Jamr?: Coupland was charged, on the infor- . tju-.of Thomas Young, with a breach of ■. above Act. ~..■•■. Mr. Wynn appeared oh behalf of the City Board, and said that, as the defendant had done all the Act required from him, he would ask the Bench to inflict a nominal fine. Tie Bench fined. the defendant Is. and costs. • ~y.. ■ BREACH OF MERCHANT SHIPPING ACT. ' *. . . P.S. ROYAL ALPBED V. P.S. WILLIAMS. Thomas J. Wall, captain of the p.s. Williams, was charged, on the information of Henry Scott MoKellar, Collector of Customs, with a breach of the above Act, by not'porting the helm of the Williams on meeting the Royal Alfred, on the 14th June. Mr. Brookfield and Mr. J. B. Russell appeared for the prosecution ; Mr. Bennett appeared for the defendant. Mr. Bennett requested that all witnesses should leave the Court. Mr. Brookfield opened the case for the pro-: secution by quoting from the various Acts. as to the prevention of collisions at sea. Mr. Brookfield said that as the Australian Steam Navigation Company were a rich company, a fine would not be felt by them, and he would ash the Bench that, if the case were proved, he should ask that the defendant be sent to Mount Eden for a short term of imprisonment, as it might be the: .means of making captains more careful. Mr. R,ussell said that he would wish the Bench to know, that because his learned friend had mentioned imprisonment, it was not to be supposed for one moment that that punishment emanated in any way from Mr. Hague Smith, for whom he was there to watch the case.

H. S. McKellar, sworn, deposed : I am Collector of Customs for the Port of Auckland. I know the p.s. Williams, she is a British vessel. I know Captain Wall; he was so on tho 14th June, 1870. I received several letters from passengers by the Royal Alfred, complaining a3 to the manner in which the p.s. Williams was handled on her up passage from Grahamstown on the 14th June, 1870.

By Mr. Bennett: The letters that I received were not complaints against Captain Wall, but as to the manner in which the Williams had been handled the night previous. [The letter from several of the passengers of the Royal Alfred was here put in aud read.] A. VV". Giles, sworn, deposed : I am familiar with sea-faring matters. On the 14th June I was a passenger by the Royal Alfred, from Auckland to Grahamstown. Wo arrived at the Sandspit about eight o'clock. After we got to the Sandspit, I saw a vessel approaching, coaling up from Grahamstown. I was on the port side of the quarter-deck. Captain Jouter and I were walking the deck together. My attention was first drawn to an order given on board the Royal Alfred to " port." I then remarked to Captain Souter, "We must be meeting a vessel. He said, "Yes; it is the • Williams, for she is due now." I then looked over the vessel, and saw some lights. I cannot say how many. It was a beautifully clear night. When the second order to port the Royal Alfred was given, the Williams was broad off our bows. When I first saw the Williams she was right on for our port paddle-box. She was distant several lengths of herself when I first saw the Williams. The Williams seemed to me not to have eased her speed as she crossed our bows. I did not hear the order given to stop the Royal Alfred. I was aft. Had the Williams struck the Alfred, I believe she- would have gone down instantaneously, and all lives lost. In the place where this narrow escape occurred, there are oceans of sea-room. Had the Williams kept her course, we would have passed each other. There was no necessity for either of us to alter our course.

By Mr. Bennett: Ido not know the. course the Alfred was taking when the first order was given. I was on the port side. lam on my oath aud swear positively ■ that the Williams did act in the manner I have described. I believe she blew her whistle after she passed us. When the Williams' ' did pass, she was about three lengths distant. I was very much astonished at the conduct of the Williams. Wiien there is plenty of ocean room steamers do often pass each other on either side. I consider there was a gross piece of neglect on the part of the person in charge of the Williams. I am one of the persons who instigated this inquiry. I have 110 personal feeling in the matterCaptain Farquhar, sworn, deposed : I am master of the p.s. Royal Alfred. I was so on the 14th inst. I was passing the Saiid spit between seven and eight. I was on the bridge of my boat. I have been in charge of the Alfred ever since she was launched. I make it a rule to attend to my vessel myself. On passing the Saadipit in the night in question, I saw the p.s. Williams well a-head, about a couple of miles off, with all h'.'r three lights a little on our port: bow. I was showing my three lights. She kept the same position until she was about three-quarters of a mile off, only a little more on our port. I ported my helm. Had the Williams kept her course she would have passed us all right, but she starboarded her helm, and she was coming right on, to us. I then ported again. The Williams'still starboarded. I then put the helm hard to port. The Alfred answers her helm very well. 1 had stopped the boat before lie crossed our bows. I was 20 or 30 yards from the Williams when sho crossed us. Had I not stopped me boat the Williams would have run us down. From the first time we commenced porting our helm until the Williams crossed our bows it was about five minutes. There was plenty of room for the Williams to pass, the whole frith of the Thames. The drawing produced fairly represents the position of the tWO vessels when, I first saw the "Williams. I hailed the Williams as she was passing, and said, " What do you call that ?" and someone replied, "What's the matter?" I think it wiis Marks, the pilot. It is not the first time he has played pranks like the last one. I speak from experience. I .replied, " If I had you here, I would show you what's the matter." There . were several persons with me on board at this time.

By Mr. Bennett : I have been sixteen years connected with the sea—five as captain of steamers. I passed him on the port side the foßowing.night. I was steering S.E. byE.'i E.,-

on the night in question. I was four points off my usual course after I had ported my vessel three times. After he had crossed our bows, I saw him stop the engine. I swear I did not cross his bow after the Williams had crossed, as he was on our starboard side. Mr. Bennett here introduced two models of steamers, and requested the captain to accurately show by them the position of the two boats when first they saw other, and after they had passed each other. Re-examined by Mr. -Brookfield :'" I was working with one engine.' I believe the Williams was working with two. y ;..' Captain John Macdonald:, I have been connected with the sea twenty-seven years. and am perfectly acquainted with the Merchant Shipping Act. [This:'witness corroborated Mr. Gilles's evidence in every particular.] Cross-examined by Mr. Bennett: The Alfred must have gone four or five points out of her course. William Souter deposed : I have been for sixteen years a master mariner, and have had the charge of steamers. I was on board the Alfred the night of this occurrence. I was walking on the poop, on the port side. I had not seen the Williams when i heard the captain order port the helm. I looked over the port side, and saw the steamer's smoke almost right ahead, a very little on the port, bow. I did not then see any lights. I then heard Captain Farquhar caU out to port a little more. I looked ahead and saw the Williams approaching. I saw the white and red fights. She was still approaching. If the Williams^ had ported she would have gone clear. The, engines were stopped on board the Alfred. T then went on the bridge^ and saw the Williams: had changed her course, put the helm to starboard, and crossed our bow. If the Alfred had not stopped, there would have been a collision. There is plenty of sea-room there,. and ;the Williams was on the seaward side ; she was then going right towards- the land, which was a mile and a Lalf off. Farquhar did the only thing possible to avoid a collision ; he was very cool. Cross-examined by Mr. Bennett: Cannot tell on which bow the Williams was before I heard the order. When the order was given, the Williams was more on the port bow. The Alfred did not go more than a point and a half out of her course. The Alfred answers her helm very quickly. Francis Barsmah deposed : I keep an hotel at Tararu, and was a seaman for twenty-one years. I was sitting on the bridge at the time of this occurrence. I first saw' the masthead light of the Williams, I then saw the red, and after the green light. With lights so disposed, a vessel is coming stern on. She must have been then a mile off. The Alfred then ported her helm. If the Williams had then kept her course, the Alfred would have passed at a considerable distance. The Williams put her helm a-starboard, and gained on us gradually, and we lost sight of her red light. If anything she was a little on the port bow, where I first saw her. '". ■

Cross-examined by Mr. Bennett : I have been two years ashore. The Williams .might be half a mile off when I lost the red light. We were very near" lying in to land to get out of his way. .Charles Bruce deposed : lam second mate of the Royal Alfred. On the night of the difficulty with the Wißiams I was on the look-out. I was right forward in the '" eyes." Saw the Williams coming. Saw the white and red lights on the port bow. If both vessels held their course there would have been a " fouling match." I heard the command given to.port the Alfred, and iagain to port, and I think a third time. I believe the . Williams must have been starboarding as fast as we were porting. There was plenty of room—the whole Thames—for the Wißiams to have passed on her original course. The Alfred answered her helm very quickly. Cross-examined by Mr. Bennett: It was almost as clear as daylight; I could have heaved a small stone on the Williams as she passed. ■ ■' William Benham, deposed.: I am a seaman on board the Alfred. I was at the wheel at the time of the occurrence. I was ordered to put the helm aport; I saw then the Williams' mast-head light two points on our port bow. If the Williams had continued her course then she would not have | crossed. A gentleman remarked that the Williams was coming up to give us passengers for Grahamstown. 1 was twice ordered to port; the Alfred's head went four points from her course. , The Williams came from her side and crossed her bow. Cross-examined by Mr. Bennett: Had.never exchanged passengers -with the Wißiams.' A To Mr. Brookfield: The Williams had crossed our bows on a former occasion. This closed the case for tho prosecution, and the Court adjourned for half an hour. On resuming; rebutting evidence was adduced, but the Court found defendant guilty, and sentenced him to pay a fine of £100.