The Elingamite.

Waimate Daily Advertiser, Volume IV, Issue 290, 2 December 1902, Page 4

The Elingamite.

TH ! 2 NAUIICAL ENQIHRY,

Auckland, November 28.

At the enquiry into the loss cf the Elingamite the Crown Prosecutor, in opening, said there was room for serious and possibly grave charges regarding providing the lifeboats and rafts with water and provisions, and the delay in launching the boats. Captain Atwood deposed that at inoon on Saturday, November Bth, [when 262 miles from Auckland, the patent log fouled, and on Saturday afternoon showed 40 miles instead of 48, but was corrected immediately. The weather was clear at noon. The steamer kept at full speed (twe've knots) till 10 a.m. on [Sunday. At noon she was two or Ithree miles out of her position to | the northward. Captain Atwood attributed this to bad steering rather than to ocean currents. He believed the beakers were kept full of water. There were no compasses in the boats. Each boat had a lantern. They started to provision the boats just after the steamer struck. He made a true course that should have taken him six or seven miles south of the Three Kings. Just before the vessel struck he saw breakers on the port bow, and rushed to the telegraph to ring " Full speed astern." He He ordered the helm hard aport, land rang three or four times. The telegraph responded from below to his first ring, but the engines did not seem to be in motion. He rang again, and Scott, the third engineer, came on the bridge and reported that the engines would not move. Witness said it was too late, the ship was broadside on the rocks. He told Scott to instruct the chief engineer to bring all from below on deck and save themselves. He did not know why the engines did not move. Had the engines been reversed when the first order was given the ship would then have escaped. The fourth engineer was on duty at the time. The rocks were about two ship's lengths away when he saw the breakers. Four of the boats had not been swung since he was on the ship. No. 1 boat and the after boats were lowered at boat drill freely before the wreck. He had never seen the rafts disturbed since he was on the ship, though there was water in the beakers on the rafts. Hesaid that there were ample lifebelts for all. They started to put provisions in the boats just after the vessel struck. No special inspection of the boats was mad* by himself to see that they were properly provisioned. All the boats were out within a quarter of an hour. The minimum time in ordinary circumstances would be four minutes. There was a difficulty in getting the boats on the port side launched owing to the steamer's heavy list. Witness ascribed the cause of the casualty to a north-east set, which deflected the vessel from her proper course. It was an exceptionally strong set and must have deflected the ship five or six miles. The current he experienced was an unknown current. After further evidence witness stated that if placed in the same position to-morrow, he did not think he would go so far as he did, or he would perhaps go outside the Kings altogether. The Court then adjourned. November 29»

At the enquiry into the lo»s of the Elingamite, Captain Atwood stated that the last occasion when he ordered the to be reversed was before leaving Sydney on the last trip. The order was the* readily responded to. In the previous report an exactly contrary ctatement was erroneously made. Mr Morrison, fourth engineer of the Elingamite, deposed at 10.45 a.m. on Sunday, November 9, he got the order " Full speed astern." He reversed the engines, which gave a half turn, and then stopped. Then heard the ship scraping on the rocks. It seemed to be the after part of the vessel which had struck. When the engines refused to reverse, the chief engineer tried to remove the engines ahead, but they would not more. He attributed this to the propeller being stopped by something outside the ship. The engines went all right from Sydney. The reversing gear was in good order. Forty seconds after the order came to go astern the water from the after tank came into the engine room, and they plugged the air pipes to keep the water out.