The Sun WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 18, 1929 LOSS OF THE MANUKA

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 849, 18 December 1929, Page 10

The Sun WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 18, 1929 LOSS OF THE MANUKA

PERIODS wrecks are so rare along tlie New Zealand coast that an occasional bad one inevitably assumes the character of a calamity. Fortunately, the loss of the Union steamer Manuka does not come within that tragic category. After a full quarter of a century’s excellent and reliable service the popular vessel, it is true, is done with the sea and has been given involuntarily to the shattering forces of the tides. She lies impaled and broken on the jagged rocks inshore along the south coast of Otago, and is so deeply submerged aft as to be irretrievable. “Three hours after tlie Manuka first struck she made her final plunge back into deej) water. . . . When she came to rest only the forward part of the hull and the foremast were above the water, the stern portion being so deeply submerged that only the tip of the mizzenmast was showing.” Such was the sombre picture as revealed to an eye-witness in a misty dawn. That, in itself, represents a maritime tragedy, but there is no cause in it for poignant sorrow or lamentation. There was no loss of life, ' and the manner in which the passengers and crew of the stricken steamer were restored to safety, with no consequences more grievous than serious material loss, softens the disaster, as far as the public is concerned, though it may not modify the cause of it nor responsibility for the regrettable wreck. As to cause and responsibility, however, there can be no comment at the moment. These questions will be considered in due time by a court of nautical experts, and it alone must deal with the technicalities of investigation. All that commentators may say just now in circumstances that are open and privileged without prejudice to anyone is to note with every observer of the Manuka’s loss that the destructive mishap occurred during a thick fog and in a notoriously dangerous place. Public interest will be concentrated on the conditions and circumstances that prevailed after the well-found Vessel had struck her doom. And the expression of that interest only can take the form of unqualified admiration. Bach narrative of the disaster confirms the common evidence as to lack of panic or hysteria and even any shadow of suspicion about inefficiency or slack discipline. From tlie sensational moment a violent fate 1 gripped the steamer, her master, his officers and crew, with spontaneous precision, maintained a steady command, and did everything possible to safeguard the lives of the hundred and fifty passengers in their charge. It was the good fortune of all that neither the weather, though murky, nor the sea was at its worst in the locality, but apart from that appreciable fact a remarkable achievement. stand* to the credit of the Manuka’s master and his competent crew. The boats were lowered with notable promptitude and manned and managed with admirable efficiency throughout a long ordeal in fog and upon a heaving tide. One boat was smashed, but its occupants were saved quickly, as also were Captain Ross Clark and two officers who, having remained on board to the last second of prudence, had to leap into the sea. The plight of the passengers and crew in the open boats was severe enough to be memorable, but happily suffering endured only for a short night. It would be easy to imagine what a catastrophe there might have been in more violent circumstances, but such morbid possibilities may be forgotten or ignored in the joy that all was well in the end with the two hundred and sixty persons who experienced the misery of shipwreck. The praise that has been bestowed on the luckless captain of the battered ship and his men by the passengers will be echoed everywhere throughout British communities. Disaster did not shake courage in the hour of fateful adversity, and the coolness in command and in the practice of traditional discipline sustained the passengers in dire circumstances. And observers everywhere also will note with proud gratitude the quick kindness and comforting hospitality of the people in the South Clutha district. An American passenger on the Manuka has paid a great tribute to a kindly folk, and his reference to the ship’s master and crew is complete: “God bless British seamanship.”