LOSS OF THE WARATAH

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXII, Issue 220, 31 August 1932, Page 5

LOSS OF THE WARATAH

OLD THEORY RECALLED. PASSENGERS WHO LEFT SHIP. An article in the ‘‘Taranaki Herald” dealing with the mysterious disappearance of the Blue Anchor steamer Waratah, which was l° st between Durban and Capetown, recalls an interesting theory of the disaster, states that paper. Among the passengers from Australia to London on the fatal voyage were Professor W. H. Bragg, jiow Sir William Bragg, his wife and family. Professor Bragg occupied the chair of Electrical Engineering at the Adelaide University, and also lectured on physics at the South Australian School of Mines. During the voyage from Adelaide to Durban the peculiar action of the vessel in listing to port at an angle of 15 to 20 degrees and then slowly swinging back to a similar list to starboard caused him great anxiety. Had this rolling been the normal rolling of a ship at sea he would not have worried, but the list would persist for hours at a time. After making tentative inquiries he approached the captain and asked him if he might see a sectional plan of the vessel showing the position of the metacentre and the centre of gravity of displaced water. The captain was either unwilling or unable to show Professor Bragg a plan, so he took some measurements himself. If the centre of gravity ot a floating body is above the centre of gravity ot the displaced water the equilibrium is stable, if they coincide it is indifferent, but if it is below the equilibrium is unstable and the body will turn turtle. An excellent example of the coincidence of the centres is a floating log, for the slightest weight on one side sets it rolling. As the result of his measurements and calculations, Professor Bragg notified the captain that he woulu leave the vessel at its first port of call, which was Durban. This fie and his family 1 did, although they were warned that it might be some weeks before they would get another boat. However, he refused to continue the voyage even as far as Capetown, and left the vessel at Durban. Both he and his son -re now occupying prominent positions m the scientific world in London,, ana there is no doubt in their minds as to the cause ot the Waratah disaster. The vessel’s metacentre was too close to the centre of gravity of the displaced water, and extra loading in'the shape of a heavy sea on the low side, a loading which might have been hundreds ot tons, would roll the vessel over like a log and she would plunge to her doom. The non-appearance of wreckage or bodies on the South African coast would be explained by the swift currents which sweep down to the soutj; past the Cape of Good Hope.