CHANNEL COLLISION

Dominion, Volume 21, Issue 130, 1 March 1928, Page 3

CHANNEL COLLISION

EVIDENCE AT INQUEST RUSSIANS COULD HAVE DONE MORE London, February 28. Giving evidence on the Alcantara disaster at the inquest on a body found, the captain of the Russian ship Tovaristch declared that the Alcantara struck his ship on the port side. Asked how the Alcantra’s lantern was found hanging on his bowsprit, be said that the bowsprit must have hit the Alcantara’s foremast. Asked why he did not launch lifeboats, he said that lie did not realise that the Alcantara was sinking. He had to consider the safety of his own crew.—A.P.A. and “Suu.” The Coroner, giving a verdict of death by drowning owing to collision at sea, declared that be. was uot satisfied that the Russians by any means did all they ought to have done to help men drowning under their very noses. It was incomprehensible why nothing was done to save their lives. The Tovaristsch is a steel four-masted barque of ‘2172 tons gross register. Built in 1892 by Messrs. Workman, Clark and Company, at Belfast, she sailed for many years under the British flag as the Lauriston, by which name she was well-known to the older generation of sea-farers. In 1901 site was bought by Messrs. George Dunean and Company, of London, owners of the Empire Line, and when they disposed of their ships a few years ago, the Lauriston was bought by Russians. The. tragic sinking of Hie Alcantara by the Tovaristsch recalls many cases of collisions between sailing ships and steamers, in which the latter came of second best The most dreadful tragedy was that in which the British ship Cromartyshire figured. While bound from Dunkirk to Philadelphia, on July 4, 1898, the Cromartyshire collided with the French passenger liner La Burgogtie, which sank in 10 minutes, 580 out of 739 souls on board being drowned. Of her 184 first-class passengers, not one was saved, and only 51 survived from the second-class and steerage. Though tlie Cromartyshire had her bows crushed in, not one of her crew

was hurt. She was (licked up by the Allan liner Grecian and towed into Halifax, Nova Scotia, three days later. At that time she was commanded by Captain Henderson, who a few years before the war made two visits to New Zealand in the steamer Largo Law. During the war his ship was torpedoed, and Captain Henderson was taken prisoner by the German submarine, subsequently dying in Germany. Jn the summer of 1906 the four-masted barque Kate Thomas sank the big caigo steamer Blanefleld otf Beachy Head. Four years later the Kate Ihonias, when under tow from Antwerp to Port Talbot in ballast, was sunk off Land s End bv the steamer India. The master and the mate, with their wives anc sixteen of the sailing ships crew were drowned. . , , . , In 1908 the barque Forfarslnre collided with the Dutch steamer Scheldestroom off Folkestone. The barque was badly damaged, but suffered no casualties among her crew. Ihe master and six men of file steamer were drowned when trying to reach the shore tn one of her boats. In 1906 the British steamer Ashford and tbe German barque Pirat collided in the English Channel, the (ormer vessel being sunk. Another disastrous collision was that iu which the P. and O liner Oceana was sunk with great loss of life by the German four-masted barque I’isagna, off Beachy Head. A rear or two later the German tiveniasted ship Preussen was run down bv a cross-Channel steamer, and became a'total wreck after being beached near Dover.