THE WRECK OF THE ELI WHITNEY.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XLVII, Issue 5010, 10 March 1877, Page 5 (Supplement)

THE WRECK OF THE ELI WHITNEY.

(Sen: Zealand Timet, March 7.) The Coroner’s inquiry into the oiroumstances attendant on the death of Mrs Davoy and her eon, drowned at the time of the wreck of the Eli Whitney, was resumed at the Market House yesterday. The following evidence was taken: Michael Carey: I am a master manner, in command of the s.s. Taupo. On Jo morning of the 23rd February lost cast off from the Queen’s Wharf about ten minutes past twelve Sock to proceed to Picton. It was a dark, , gloomy, and stormy night. Got away from fho wharf and cleared a schooner lying off it, there being no difllcully with the linos. So ■ goon as the steamer flwung from the wharf so . as to point clear af the schooner lot the stern 1 trSS, ZU^“ k .h”«“ oi d h»S, u »f,.7;V,n The engines were at once revcMod to full speed oatorn, and in half » versed to in* p lM cam „ into collision , hufk there being little or no way on with the bum, « hulk for tho flrßt Jlme Bt a“most simultaneously with the mate •n Jher She was struck on the port side, | Boo a La been lying outside of tho schooner in ?. nd «i.h tlmt vessel, so that I could not see w until I cleared the schooner. At the time collision tho hulk was sheering about a ° f deal and seemed to sheer down towards Mamer? I called out" Why, there are no f! 1 board tho hulk). Ho Mid, No, sir, 0 wag on board. I also drew a “ d ® e ®. e f ,- B attention (who was standing by the i th ,° P «nhl to the fact of there being no lights. telegrapn; eu hailed f rom the forecastle Tho “f?imes “Hulk ahoy," and “Is the*. sever “‘ “n board,” and got no answer. I anyone on gteamor astorn> Qn d then we, it backed too k under the hulk’s stern, f or nearly *ls minutes, and then stopped the

•toomor lor some minutes and lot her drift to coward, but got uo answer fron> the hulk, rrom thotlm o tho steamer alruoktho hulk steamed away would bo fully 1C ? r tP minutes. Getting no reply from Iho hulk, and thcro being no light and apparently no life on board, I concluded that no one was there, and steamed away slowly down tho harbour, fully under tho impression that there was no one on board. Tho Taupe did not •how tho smallest damage, and tho shook being •o slight I was under tho impression that tho hulk was not seriously injured. On oxamitmuou subsequently the point was not even rubbod off tho Taupo. In answer to Mr M'Kollur, Capoin Oaroy said that before steaming ahead to leave tho harbour, after tho collision, ho saw tho hulk aporontly all right. She did not look like settling down. Too Juror: Tho hulk was nearly in a lino with Somos Island light and tho wharf. When leaving tho wharf tho stern lino did not part; it was cast of in tho usual way. Findlay M'Arthur, chief mote of tho Taupo, gave ovidonoo in most points corroboratory of that of Captain Oaroy. Tho steamer had still headway on hor when she struck tho hulk, but tho collision was very light, and tho Taupo immediately backed. No light astern could bo seen anywhere on board the hulk, and no answer was received to tho bailings. Ho thought some of tho bulwarks of tho hulk wore smashed, os ho beard a crash at tho time of tho collision, which was somewhere about the mainmast or amidships. Ho did not think that anything serious had occurred. Tho crash was so light that ho did not suspect any damoge below tho bulwarks. John M'Quoon, chief engineer of the Taupo, was examined, and deposed that on tho morning of Fob, 23 she loft the wharf, without confusion, under easy steam. In about three minutes the telegraph rang “ half speed,” and almost immediately afterwards (about half a minute) " full speed astern.” In another half minute tho collision happened, tho shook folt being very slight, so slight that had tho steamer not been going full speed astern ho would not have thought of its being a collision. Tho steamer then wont away easy ahead and easy astern for about 16 minutes, ond then half speed ahead until tho Heads wore passed, at a quarter-past one o’clock. The shook of the collision felt in the engine-room was not sni&cient to induco anyone tboro to go on dock. Henry Woods, tho diver, who had gone down and examined tho wreck of the Eli Whitney, lying in obout 36ft of water, gove evidence as to the damage done, which was about amidships, where there was a small opening made into tho ship only about 18in wide, like a jagged out, and 4or 6ft long. It ran from tho deck downwards, the deck being uninjured, and also tho bulwarks. He went all over the ship, but found no other damage. He brought up some pieces of timber from where tho damage was done, and tho wood was in excellent preservation—quite sound. The jury returned a verdiot of accidental death, no blame being attachable to tho captain and officers of the Taupo. They added a rider—That the Eli Whitney was moored in a wrong and unsafe position, and that all hulks should be compelled to carry a bright light from sunset to sunrise.