WARATAH MYSTERY.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 747, 21 February 1910, Page 5

WARATAH MYSTERY.

A REMARKABLE STORY.

BY AN OFFICER.

WAKEFIELD'S FURTHER SEARCH.

By Telegraph—Press Association—Copy r I ctlt. Melbourne, February 19.' The Premier of Natal,. Mr., Moor," has cabled to Mr., Murray, Victorian Premier, that the steamer Wakefield" will," leave Durban 'on'.the-'morning' of February 22 to eearcli for the Waratah. • He adds that Lieutenant Seymour and the captain of- the - Wakefield, after .consultation, consider' that owing to Marion and Prince Edward Islands having lately been . frequently visited, and seeing that the Kerguolen Islands are permanently inhabited, the , time occupied in' searching them would be better occupied in visiting : MDonnld and Heard Islands. From there the search could' be continued according to instructions. •

bQDIES SEEN.

STATEMENTS BY TOTTENHAM'S . CREW. QRDERS FOB SILENCE. ' ■ (By- Teloeraph.—Preps Association,l , ■ Westport, February 19. A statement has been ' made 'to the Press Association's, agent by a. member of: the': crew remaining, in--.Westport of the s.s.- Tottenham, Which recently called •at Westport' for biinlter coal, and has now gone'to Ocean'.'lsland; Ho says:— . ■ A,■ Little Girl Floated By. "The Tottenham left Durban' about ten days after, tho Waratah, and steamed over'the same, course bound to Antwerp. While , off .East . London at noon one day .an apprentice : at the wheel' ireported'.to the third: officer in charge of

the .bridge that'' he saw float past the ship the, body of a little girl clothed-in a red .dressing gown. ' The third officer looked round, but did not see the body, Ho, • however, went dpwn to the chartroom, wlioro the captain , and second officer, were laying .off 'the ; ship's■ position, and. reported that some bodies; had just floated past; the vessel. ;. ; : "'; v

"The captain and. second officer. rushed up on to the bridge, and the second officer stated; he saw something, white' floating on ' the water.,. . The .captain gave .the order, 'hard a, starboard,' and the vessel steamed round in the vicinity, of floating' objects, .but .did not catcli sight of the body .'previously reported as being fully dressed. However, they, saw what appeared . ; tp be . portions ofhuman bodies..' The weather being so heavy, the steamer was unable to . 'pick up the floating l objects to make a. thorough; ■exnmination,.. so. proceeded on Her ; ,yoyago,

A Negativo to the Naval Inquiry. "On : arrival oft the Cape of Good Hope, the sea. being- s so rfoarfully high, the master deemed it advisable to turn back and go to Simon's ' Bay. ':' Arriving - there,. a • bp»t.put. off from, H.H.S; Forte with an ■offioer. 'aboard to. make inquiries .whether the'. Tottenham had seen'anything; of , the Waratali, and reply was given by the chief officer that tnere .was nothing \ to report that evening. -The second' officer, signallipg -with' a' Morse lamp, inquired of-H.M.S;' Forte if 'she had'got' any fur-; thpr ' news of the Waratah, .and was, inlormbd; that'; the! s.si. Director and s.s. Incozwa, l which had; left . Durban;': about the same time, as tho Tottenham, - had reported seeing • bodies- floating .about off East .London,;'and, that the man-o'-war had orders to proceed to the; vicinity and ascertain what these -bodies were.. ■ ... ; .

Dead Fish Seen, Floating. "It will be remembered that the Forte aftorwards reported', that she had seen , some largo fish- floating, 'and' that it ,',was '. surmised that these were what: the captains of -tho Director and Insizwa had seen,- but," emphatically man now- in Westport, "tho chief and second officers of- the Tottenham stated to' me and others on board the ship that they saw the }body, 'of a' little - girl reported;, by. the apprentice,: rand- 'could stako ; their i lives that it was that of a girl 10 or ,12 years-.;of ago', ,and ; not fish;" -;'. . ,'The - second engineer. also, stated' (continued thevspeaker)' that ho saw the body of a woman, also- the trunk of another body close to the Bhip.The .seas, were running mountains high when tho Tottenham was .proceeding on her; voyage, and the conclusion come to aboard l the ship was, that the Waratah -took a head sea,; and before; she had, time to. recover, took. another,' which stove; in the fore-' hatch, and causedi.her to,'founder'.; INSTRUCTED -TO SAY NOTHING. FURTHER DETAILS. (By Telegraph.—Press. Association.) . Westpffrt, February 20. • ~ Mr. Day, 'ex-second' officer of. the mer Tottenham, which last, week for Ooean, Island, supplies further details of tji« story he, gave 'the Westport ' "News", reporter, on Saturday ■ morning concerning.the bodies .seen floating about off : liast' Loudon shortly after the Waratah was,: reported-missing.,: Mr.. Day . is an Englishman :.of an old. North 'of England family, and-, left: the : Tottenham -at Westport,. receiving, f ropi Captain Cox a olpan discharge- and . credentials, stating that he had - always found Mr.-Day a reliable . officer-"and strictly sober. 1 ;-Mr. Day says he is speaking from memory- as to the exact dates, - as, he .unfortunately left his notebook- on tho Tottenham: when she left Westport. . : ■< - The Tottenham arrived : at, Durban about midnight on, Saturday, August 7, 1909, and anchored in the roadstead,' signalling her. arrival to the lighthouse. Th? steamer Insizwa- also anchored in - the roadstead, and at about 1 a.m. Mr. Day, who was .then on . watoh;-received a signal from the, Insizwa asking if ho know I anything about, the missing liner'.Wara-1 tali. Mr. Day replied in the negative, 'stating that": the '-Tottenham had just I come fropi Port Pirie, 29.• days' steam.' j The Insizwa then supplied some details. Ordered to Keep a look-out. . At .8 a.ml'on Sunday the. Tottenham proceeded into port, arid took up the berth just vacated by the Direotor. ; The officers of tho Tottenham then got fuller news of. the missing liner from other ships and people oshoro. After taking in bunker coal the Tottenham- was to have proceeded to - sea on Monday . morning, but owing to the rough state of ,the weather she remained in port until tho next morning. - : At ; 8 a'.m. on Tuesday she left Durban, bound for Antwerp,. re-' deiving' instructions on leaving port to keep a diligent look-out for the missing liner. The sea at the timeVwas very high. When off F,ast London the incidents previously described .took place. - At noon . an apprentice .first reported that lie had seon the-bodylof.il little'girl, clothed in a red dress, with her hair, floating, in the water,' fliat past the' vessel, and tho chief and : second engineers said they had soon, portions of bodies and the body of a woman in . a nightdress floating about-in -the . water. •, ; Partially Submerged Bodies. When the captain' and Mr. Day wore summoned from tho chart-room and; arrived ou deck, Mr. Day states that ho pointed out. an albatross sitting on some- • thing, and the . steamer was brought round-to make an examination! with the result that-Mr. Day states . that he was fully convinced that the object on which tho albatross was perched was tlio trunk of a body. They' did not 6eo any of the bodies previously reported as having been observed by tho approntico and engmoors, but Mr. Day states that portions of bodies wero floating threo or four, feot deep in tho water over a big area of sea, with a flock of-birds, hovering around.. For somo reason or other, which Mr. ; Day can mei'cly surmise, this was not reported to the Eoutenant o£ H.M.S. Eirte,

when the : latter put off in" a boat in Simon's Bay,, (into: which the Tottenham had. run {or' shelter) to • make. inquiries whether the Tottenham had seen any sign' of the Waratah.' Mr. Day says that strict instructions were given on tho Tottenham to say nothing of the affair,: and that he overheard the apprentice, by request, give an account of what he hod 'scon to a gentleman whom he believed to be tha agent for the Tottenham, or who had something to do with the ship's cargo at Melbourne, and that .the apprentice was then advised ito sayinothing; of .the affair as it might Cause' friction. - ('No Longer Under Orders to Hold His ' Tongue." "Let me here remark," added Mr. Day, "lest people think this a book, or* that -I bear prejudice against anyone, that ,sucfi suggestions, if thoy are made, are absolutely - incorrect. ■ I -deny ■ any prejudice, and any statement I have made herb I am willing to make on oath. 1 ' ; , "My reason for making: this statement now 13 that.V while .'I .was on the/vessel orders were given to keep the thing quiet, and now I am off the vessel I am ireo to speak my-mind in regard to what 1 saw and what others on the ship told me they saw. I: have clean discharges _and credentials from all the ships on .which' I havo served."

Alleged Confirmation by an-Engineer. , Three gentlemen in Westport;state that they heard the story :of what was seen from the Tottenham from the, second enginoer, who is reported as stating that- he is positive: he saw the body of a child .float past tho ship. Tho Tottenham carried Chinese firemen, one of whom is reported as having remarked at ■ the time, "Plenty' people. in sea.". ' , , The Tottenham left Westport last Wednesday for' Ocean Island,'.about ten days' steam. "She stays 'there for,a' menth to six weeks, and then leaves for Lahu&n> Borneo, en route for Europe. ■