STAR OF CANADA.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 323, 12 July 1912, Page 2

STAR OF CANADA.

" MONEY IN HER YET." "There is money in her yet," observed one of the men who have been associated with the salvaging operations, when conversing with a reporter on the position of the Star of Canada. <: Of course." he added, "that is if one is prepared to take the risclc. It would mean a lot of money; in fact, it would be a gigantic gamble, But if one were prepared to take the risk it might be done yet." Asked whether it would be possible with the appliances at hand to cut off the damaged forepart of the vessel and salvage the remainder, winch is at present intact, an authority on salvage said that there would be no difficulty in doing that, but assuming that the operation were successful, what could then be done with the vessel? There is no dock in Now Zealand that could bo given up for a whole year for shipbuilding operations; the dock charges in such a case would be exceedingly heavy, and the cost of labor in New Zealand is so excessive as compared with that at Home that it is extremely unlikely that it would be a good financial proposition to attempt to reconstruct the vessel. The vessel could, of course, be towed to Sydney and dealt with at 'Mort's Dock, which has ample capacity to deal with such a big job, but it is probable that before allowing the after part of a ship to be lowed to sea the-New Zealand (luvernment would impose such restrictions as to make the journey impracticable. Already the safeguards- that have to be taken in the case of the towage of vessels involve considerable cost and difficulty, and it that is so in the case of sound vessels, the restrictions arc likely to be more severe in the case of any attempt to tow the hinder part of a ship from New Zealand to Australia.

TIOW THE SHIP'S ('AT CAME ASIIOKK. The Star of Canada, like every other vessel, boasted, a ship's cat, which rejoiced in the beautiful name of \linky, and Miuky and her progeny were, the joy of the crew's hearts. Therefore it is not astonishing to learn that the cat and her kittens were carefully collected and packed up in a box the day when the erew received orders to unit the vessel, and were handed into the loud, r care of a friendly lighterman, and so wi re actually the first of the ship's complement to leave the stricken vessel.