THIS DAY.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 3083, 14 May 1881, Page 3

THIS DAY.

The Court met at 12.45. In giving the decision His Worship the Eesident Magistrate said the Court was unanimous in the decision which he was about to give. It had been their duty to determine if this collision had been the result of inevitable accident, or if it had been caused by a want of judgment on the part of either of the captains of the vessels. Firstly as to the Boojum they were of opinion that the master ought to have informed himself that tho fairway was clear before starting, knowing as he did the difficulties of the navigation, and the strong tide running at the time. Secondly, the master ought to have used a check rope in leaving the cattle wharf so as to comply with the 96th clause of the Harbour Regulations. If he had done this he could, when he saw the Sir Donald, have held on and kept in the eddy until the Sir Donald had passed. Captain Dowell is not, however, seriously to blame in this respect, as he only followed a practice which seems to be universal in this port in regard to vessels of theßoojurn's class, and a practice moreover which appears to have been tacitly sanctioned by the Harbour Master. Thirdly, that the master of tho Boojum, by starboarding his helm, and going up stream, could have avoided the collision altogether, but they considered this to have been an excusable error of judgment under tho circumstances. With regard to the Sir Donald they did not consider that she was bound to wait outside until the Boojum came out, and they found that Captain Quinlan acted, after he entered the inner harbor, in a seamanlike manner, and with good judgment, and that he is not in any way to blame for the accident that occurred. They felt bound to allude to the breach of the 99th clause in the regulations by the Union Company. Owing to the peculiar mode of starting the engines in use on board tho Boojum it was especially necessary in their opinion that this regulation should be strictly complied with. They considered that the seaman Miller was much to blame for not promptly reporting the information he received from Captain Peterson and Constable Harvey to Captain Dowell. If Captain Dowell

had beon informed that the Sir Donald was then coming in it is clear he would not have started from the cattle wharf when he did. The certificates of Captains Dowell and Quinlan would be returned to them. After the conclusion they had come to in reference to tho Boojum they would order that the costs of witnesses, and counsel's fees be paid by the Union Company. The other costs of the Court would be paid by the Government. With reference to the expenses of retaining Captain Dicker as assessor the Insurances Companies had undertaken to provide those, and they could not properly he charged to Government. The amounts to be allowed to witnesses were then agreed to, His Worship remarking that the conduct of the witness Miller had been so bad that he would not allow him his expenses,

The enquiry then closed