STRANDING OF S.S JOHN

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1667, 6 February 1913, Page 7

STRANDING OF S.S JOHN

v ' MAGISTERIAL INQUIRY. Tho Magisterial inquiry into tho strandin® ? . John, on December r i a v °y n 8 0 from Gisborno to . Wellington, was proceeded with yester- : aa/-. ■ : . k'' i> j'iF* A'M., presided,' and on tho Bench .with lum weTO Captains Gillespie and Black. ] Nr. S. Rose 'appeared for the Marino Department Mr. 5. Kirkcaldio for Cnp- , ■5? ti ■? « • e of Hie'vessel; Mr. H. Buddie for the first officer (Mr. W. 11. c Roberts), and Mr.T.M. AVilforcl for tho 3 second office? (Mr. C. B. Atkinson). 1 ■ __In opening the caso' Mr. Rose said that i tno vessel left Gisbdrne for Wellington \ on December 18, and early on the morn- , ■ ln ff of the following day shd stranded * nflar Napier, miles out or her course. i , Captain Holm gave evidenco to the iffoct that he hatl.been in'charge'of the t vessel: Until 7 p.m. on December 39, and . that she was then-off Portland Island. Ho set the : course south west >by 'south ' when the: second officer took charge. lie t went onJtho bridgo again at 8.80 p.m. t when-the first officer was in charge. Tiio f vessel was then steering the course which j to had set, and ho told the first mate , to. steer south by west and half-west when { there, was 60 on the log. When ho 1 awoke at 2,80 a.m. the John was aground. < and ho found out from the officers that j they had steered south-west by west and , half-west, His order as to the course * to be held was a verbal one, and there . was no written entry of it. The first ' and second officers had access to, the f chart for tho purpose of verifying their [ position. ■ : ' ■ • ,■ . ■ To Mr. Kirkcaldie: Tho first officer was . in charge till midnight. ■ To 'Mr; Buddlo: The night of the mis- ' hap was clear.- 'fhe vessel grounded on t Sand, and did not make any, water. Generally, ho had found the first inato ( o careful man. . - To Mr. Wilferd: The entry in the soTap log in First Officer • Roberts's writin?. ' showed sonth-we3t by west and. half-west , to be the ■ course he had been steering, i Roberts knew the coast well, and Atkin- , son had been there onco before as an j officer. In the course of his evidence William ~ Honry Roberts, the first officer of tho ] - vessel,;stated, that .tho-course which ho ;; had given to the second officer was south- | ■west' by west half-west. \ Hi 3 imprav • slort ■ was that that was the course ho ' • had got from the captainj' and he had , • steered that, course ' for.' one hour 50 ' minutes beforo (riving'over control to the i second mate. Ho knew it was an un- | ~usual course,' but • did . not ■ caution the j Eccorid officer; and the night was so clear , ■ that he did not think it worth while to ' ■ look "at--the' chart. At about 2.35 a.m.i 1 ■ the seoond mate called him. and said 1 that ho did not know where ho was. . : i At this stage the inquiry was adjourned till. 2.15 p.m. next .Friday. '. . (