The Press Monday, June 5, 1922. Wreck of the Wiltshire.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 17472, 5 June 1922, Page 6

The Press Monday, June 5, 1922. Wreck of the Wiltshire.

In expressing, on behalf of tlio Government. his "very warm appre< iation of "the splendid efforts' of all engaged in the gallant work of rescuing the Wiltshire's company "under most difficult and dangerous conditions," the Prime Minister spoke for the whole Dominion. During the latter part of last week the thoughts of everyone turned constantly to the catastrophe on the Barrier Island, and the strenuous fight for the lives of the Wiltshire's crew. It was a magnificent fight against great and painful difficulties, and it ended in victory for the courage and endurance of the rescuers. The reproach was levelled against New Zealanders recently that, despite their ancestry, they are not a seafaring people, but the story of the wreck of the Wiltshire has shown that there is no weakening of the fibre of our seamen. The men composing the rescue parties from the Katoa and H.M.S. Philomel deserve- all honour for their splendid work, in which they received such valuable help from some of the settlers on the Great Barrier, and all are to be congratulated most heartily on the success which crowned their arduous efforts. It does not detract in tho faintest degree from their magnificent services if we point out that but for one circumstanoe these might have been, to a large extent, fruitless —that the ship's company of the Wiltshire owe it first to the invention of wireless telegraphy that fchey are all alive to-day. Within an hour or so after their vessel struck, all steamers within a radius of a hundred miles or more heard of the wreck and were hastening to the scene. This meant a great saving of vitally precious time. Though the forepart of the wreck fortunately withstood the battering of the terrific seas to which it was exposed', it is doubtful if all the members of the ship's cobipany could have survived much longer the privations and exposure to which they were subjected, and the delay in sending assistance which must have ensued if wireless had not been available night, as in the oase of the Wairarapa, have extended over a day or two. The actual circumstances of the wreck itself appear to be sufficiently obvious and, in any case, they will necessarily form the subject of official enquiry. But there are one or two other matters in connexion with the disaster which require investigation in the interests of the safety of shipping on our coasts. One gathers from the various reports published at the end of the week that three sets of rocket apparatus were despatched to the scene of the wreck. Of these one belonged to the Philomel, and one, described as being of a speoial character, was actually sent overland by the special train to Auckland by the Wellington Harbour Board, the third set of apparatus presumably being the property of the Auckland Harbour Board. The Wellington gear was evidently superior to the last-mentioned. Surely a port like Auckland should not have to depend for such necessary equipment upon the generosity of a port at the other end of the island. The incident euggesta that an official enquiry into the efficiency of the life-saving apparatus maintained at each of the principal ports of the Dominion might be useful. It is not quite easy for a landsman to understand why every steamer should not carry rocket apparatus of its own. Then the question of the lighting of the islands in the Hauraki Gulf might well be considered by the Marine Department. The existing lighthouses may be thought by experts to be sufficient, but if Lhis is so—and the public have yet to be satisfied on this point—the further question presents itself whether it is not desirable to establish in the sealanes of approach to Auckland that are most frequently traversed by inward or outward-bound vessels, fog-horns or sirens which would give warning of danger in thick weather. On Wednesday night the Cuvier Island light, fituated some twenty-one miles tsouth of the scene of the wreck,' and possessing a visibility range of twenty-six miles, isi said to have been invisible owing to the weather at very much shorter range. It may be said that these suggestions savour of the policy of locking the stable door after the steed is stolen. That is admittedly the case, but the policy is not so foolish as is usually inferred, presuming that there are other horses in the stable. In this case, the number of ooean-going steamers visiting Auckland will increase as time goes on, and the authorities will be worse than foolish if they fail to profit by the lesBons to be learned from the Wiltshire disaster, and to take steys to prevent, aB far as is humanly possible, the occurrence of a similar catastrophe. This' is, of course, no time for spending money unnecessarily, but the charge of wasteful expenditure cannot lie in respect of any measures taken to prevent the loss of valuable vessels and cargoes, and to enbure the safety of those on board. The general satisfaction at the extraordinarily fine save made by the men of the Katoa and Philomel will be increased by the action of the GovernorGeneral. His Excellency was the first to board the Katoa, and with his gift for doing the kind and happy thing he insisted upon carrying off with bim the captain of the wrecked. steamer. Nothing can reconcile an experienced and tiapaibleakipper who after a ion& career

I loses his ship. As a sailor himself. Lord | Jellicoe realises this as landsmen hardly can, and his kind-hearted sympathy should help to cheer up his unlucky fellow-seaman. It was a kind and plea.sant thought, which will not surprise a public that has learned to think very highly indeed of our GovernorGeneral.