THE WAIRARAPA DISASTER.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2738, 15 November 1894, Page 4

THE WAIRARAPA DISASTER.

Auckland, Nov. 12. The Wairarapa inquiry was continued to-day. James Pipe, a saloon passenger, said he waß on the quarter deck the greater part of Sunday, and spoke frequently to Captain Mcintosh. The Captain did not take his meals as usual. He smoked a lot of cigars, and seemed anxious to sight laud, being continually on the look out. The witness asked him whether the fog would make any difference to him. The captain laughingly said " 1 don't think so, but it is a great nuisance." The captain was quite sober. Mr Pipe was questioned as to the conduct of the officers on the rocks, and he said the chief officer seemed to show utter indifference to anything going on. The passengers Beemed to do all the work. The purser took hold of the rope once. He (witness) did not notice what the second officer did. The witness was asked whether anything could have been done by the officers which was not done. He replied : There were Dunlop, Fraser, Kendall, and one or two like them, who came out prominently, but they appeared to have no leader. He could not say that the officers should have saved more lives, but had someone been in command the people would have been brought ashore in better condition. Replying to another query the witness said the captain appeared to be very carefully attending to his duties. Frank William Varley, after describing his experience till the time the bridge was washed away, said : I saw neither captain, officers, nor crew, the whole of the time, nor did I hear any order given except by one of the stewards about putting on lifebelts. When daylight broke I saw the chief officer in the foretop. A little below him were the second officer and the purser. Dunlop had swum ashore. The officers appeared to have done, very little. It was remarked on the rocks that all seemed to have been done by the passengers and one of the stewards. I saw nothing of the third officer,' Sinclair, till he came round with the Maoris. It is impossible to speak too highly of Dunlop, who risked his life to save MiBS Flavell. He showed far greater heroism than any other when he reached the rocks, as he at once assumed command until disabled by being dashed on the rocks in attempting to save Miss Flavell. I do not think more could have been done than was done after the officers got on the rocks. Captain Clayton : If people were lashed to the rail on the forecastle would they have been safe ? Witness : I think so, but ifr is doubtful if they could have held on. Mr Northcroft: Could that have been done 1 Witness: Yes, if anyone had thought of it. Mr Chapman, a passenger, said that he was above the chief mate in the rigging until after daybreak. The mate superintended the ropes and gave orders to young Leighton to get the signal halyards, which the mate made fast to a buoy. The chief and second officers both assisted in trying to float the buoy ashore. The evidence of Daniel Roberts, and Owen Monaghan, other passengers, was also taken. It was to the effect that the the captain waß in his usual condition: perfectly sober. As to the conduct of the officers the evidence was conflicting, some stating that no general word of command was given or energy shown; others that the officers did their duty bb far as possible. Nothing important was elicited. Among the bodies identified by the police at the wreck of the Wairarapa ware those of Messrs Loris Ryan, Patrick Burke, seaman Aitken, Holmes, the cabin steward, and John McLeod, a seaman.

j November 13. i The Union Company have received i from the Sydney office a list of passengers ; who left Sydney by the Wairarapa, about » as correct as it is possible to make it. The ; following is the list of lost:—Saloon—- > Mr and Mrs Hill and Mr and Mrs W. *' Scoular, Mrs Levesque, Mrs Skews and ' three childred, Mr and Mrs West and two '_ children, Mrs Baldwin and child, Mrs . Brown and two children, Mrs H. Hollis, 1 Mrs Fyf e, Mrs Manderson, Mrs Ray ward i, and two infants, Mrs Rhodes and infant, 3 Mrs Ryan, Mrs Smith, Mrs M. Smith, fc Mrs Stewart, Mrs Waterhouse and child, e Misses Arkle, Scoular (2), Barton, Flavell, t Glen,Knight, Rowbotham, Read, Sullivan, Williams, Messrs A. Bray, J. Bowker, - Chick, S. Dunckley, D. Dryborough, Hoheke, A. Kelly, McKinnon, L. Bunting, Warry, T. Spencer, J. C. White, F. C. B White, Whaley, J. Talbot, A. Mills, Rev. B S. Mclvor. Steerage:—Lost—Mr and s Airs T. Butler, Mr and Mrs Courtney and D infant, Mrs Vorback, E. Martin,Rosmergy, J. Tucksworth, Miss A. M. Pitcher, Messrs B J. Beregar, G. Bird, F. Bromwell, J. ) Bailey, George Brown,-J. Clark, M. i Dickson, T. Davis J. Donovan, A. Gordon, a Heavy, T. Hastie, T. C. Howland, W. 1 Johnstone, G. Lyon, J. L. Mackay, James 9 Melicie, W. Manderson, J. McKenzie, D. . McMillan, W. H. Sinclair, W. Stanley, r F. Veneke, Mr and Mrs Crowthers and child, Misses Rosmergy and T. F. Nichols, Chang Wang, and Wong Chan Joe. Some Chinamen, John Cree and . John Dean, were said to be aboard by the fore-cabin steward, but their names are not in the Sydney and Melbourne lists, j In all 100 passengers, j At the enquiry Dr Harris in his < evidence stated that he was on the i raft with one sailor belonging to the Wairarapa. A life boat took '' off the sailor. They had no desire ' to take him (Harris) on board, but he ' insisted upon it. So far as his knowledge went, tthe crew were quite prepared to defend themselves in any possible way to the exclusion of the passengers. He thought that the proportion of crew to passengers saved would corroborate the same statement. Dr Harris highly praised the conduct of the stewards and stewardesses. Joseph L. Clarke, the second officer, jaid the course marked on the chart iu court He believed iu** this was to bo «Pl"«>ed , by a strong westerly that the captain continued t_ J _*l course to give the Poor Knights a go«T berth. According to the log they should have been abreast the Poor Knights at between 9 and 10 p.m. The captain did not run mych too far, but was carried 13 to 15 miles out of his/course by a. current. Had* the Bteamer slowed down when the fog came on at 6 p.m., that would have avoided the casualty. Wellington, November 13. j The Wairarapa relief fund now amounts o £760. t Chbistchtjrch, Nov. 12. i The amount of the Wairarapa relief i '■l'id, at present in the han.Js of th" <Miyor, amounts to £2,)0. The Governor ; .in forwarded a donation of £25 to ihe Mayor of Auckland. t Dpnedin, Nov. 12. i The Union Company have replaced the 1 Wairarapa by the Mouowai, which is withdrawn from the San Francisco service, | ')einjj replaced therein by the Arawa. 1 She takes up the running on the 26th. I'he Mouowai, which lenes for Sydney v on tho 17th, alt mates with the Mararoa a in the Sydney-Auckland service.

Out of 117 bags of mails shipped by the Wairarapa at Sydney, 109 have been

recovered. It is believed' thai &U letter! have been recovered aud delivered. Many newspapers and. other packets are much damaged, and are without addresses. They are now in Auckland, and applications for missing packets will be duly attended to.