AN EXPENSIVE COLLISION

Grey River Argus, 19 January 1912, Page 3

AN EXPENSIVE COLLISION

A bill of costs amounting to mora than £100,000 has been incurred" in consequence of the collision between H.IU.S. Hawke and the White Star liner Olympic. When a cruiser, which cost, the nation mor>2 • than £400,000 to 'build and a great liner whowj floating value probably, exceeds £2.000,000, meet in collision and are both damaged, the bill is an enormous one on both - sides. Not only ava there the heavy costs of replacing the Hawke's crumpled bows and of repairing the' hole in the side of the Olympic, \Vlrich altogether will amount to more than £50,000, but there is the heavy daily expense of demurrage -and of transferring 2000 passengers, who have paid in -fares and expenses something like £40,000, to other iioats. Some of the expenses incurred during the second when the warship and the liner met will approximate as follows : Co.«fc of docking and repairing Olympic £25,000; incidental expenses," £10,000; cost of repairing H.M.S. Hawke and loss of services, £30,000; cost of special trains, £300; cost of housing and entertaining held -up passengers, . £800 ; loss to passengers and crew of the liner, £10.000. When the White Star .Company of fared vhree days' pay to the members of the 'Olympic's ci'ew who were being paid oc, the men claimed that as ths vessel was lot aVwreck, they were entitled, under the Merchant Shipping Act, to wages for the full voyage. The mat-tor will possibly form the subject of litigation, when a definition of the term wreck will be asked for. A ruling on this point would be cf considerabel importance to the shipping vvoi - ]d.