OVERLOADING OF THE s.s.. BALCLUTHA.

Poverty Bay Standard, Volume IX, Issue 1013, 17 December 1881, Page 3

OVERLOADING OF THE s.s.. BALCLUTHA.

The lesson of the late gale is the necessity of a load-line. All British vessels are compelled by law to have a white line drawn upon their hulls, below which they must not be sunk by cargo. No such line is required of Victorian coasters, and our vessels are consequently weighed down to the water’s edge by unscrupulous owners. In this condition the first gust of bad weather dooms all on board to sudden death. There is too much reason to believe that the loss of the Balclutha was due to her cargo of bluestone pitchers being both heavy and dangerous. Several of the vessels injured by the gale are shown to have been more or less overladen and unseaworthy, and it is to these circumstances that the peril of those on board is to be attributed. For it is to be noticed that these accidents took place away from the coast. It used to be held that a tight ship had nothing to fear from any storm so long as she had sufficient sea-room. Those steamers that were not overladen safely weathered the recent cyclone. The inference then is that unless we are to have a similar list of disasters after every hurricane, we must obtain legislation for a load-line a la Plimsoll, for the protection of passengers and sailors in the intercolonial trade. —Melbourne Leader.