THE KAPANUI DISASTER.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 13099, 12 February 1906, Page 6

THE KAPANUI DISASTER.

CAPTAIN SOUTHGATB CHARGED

WITH MANSLAUGHTER.

VERDICT OF NOT GUILTY.

RECOMMENDATIONS BY THE JURY

The trial of William James Southgate, master of the Kapanui, upon a charge of committing manslaughter by killing Messrs. F. H. Clarke, H. C. Heavey, and J. Fetcher (the three victims of tho Kaqxuiui disaster, whose bodies weie recovered), was continued before His Honor Mr. Justice Edwards at the Auckland Supreme Court on Saturday morning.

. The Hon. J. A. Tole, Crown solicitor, appeared for the prosecution, and Mr. J. O. Martin for (he accused.

EVIDENCE FOR THE DEFENCE. The accused, called by Mr. Martin, said that he hud been a master for over 26 years, and up to the present incident had never met with an accident. He assumed command of the wheel as the Kapanui was Hearing North Head. At that time both 'lights were) burning, On rounding the point he saw the Gael, which he took to be the Claymore, and believing as he did that regulation 25, relating to narrow channels, applied to Auckland Harbour, he should have passed the Gael to port. He did not, however, because there was insufficient room to do so. As he wa,s about to pass the Gael he noticed another boat behind her, and he took it to be the Thames boat. She was showing three lights. It was then reported to witness that bis port light was out. and he immediately gave orders to have it relit. After passing the Gael witness, bearing regulation 25 in mind, altered his course, in order to pass to port of the oncoming vessel, which he now knew was the Claymore. Hearing one blast from the Claymore, he thought she was going to starboard.

Mr. Tole: Why did you not burn a flaie, or do something while your port light was out'.'

Captain Southgate: It was as quick to light up the port light. "You knew, when the vessels were, within 70 yards of one another, that the position was critical, but instead of altering your course you kept on without .stopping or reversing" your engines? —lt was the only thing to do. Why did you not stop, whistle, or do something? Why did you not whistle? — When he gave one whistle I thought he was going the other way. What do you think you should have done now? Should you not have gone green to green?—l did not consider green to green prudent at the moment. It is all very nice for us to consider in the ca,lmness of the Court what I should' have done, but put yourself in the same position. I did what I thought was right. Was not the harbour clear on the port side? Why did you go into danger?— might have been, but I did not think so. His Honor: If the narrow channel rule applies, and he thought the other man was observing it, he did right. Mr. Tole (to Captain Southgate): It might have been all right, but you see you had no light. Now, did you not lose your head?

Captain Southgate: No; certainly not. Do you say that you blundered?My action was correct as far as I know.

Would you do the same aigain?-— do not say that I would do the same again. I say that I think my action was justifiable on that occasion.

Supposing both your lights had gone out. what would you have done?— would have stopped. Mr. Tole: And yet you did not do it. You know that you had no port light, and you deliberately put the remaining one out, throwing yourself into total darkness.

Joseph Rogers, mate of the Claymore. said he saw the hull of the Kapanui 30 seconds before the collision.

William Pearce, seaman on the Claymore, said he only heard the Claymore whistle once.

Alice Scott, a passenger by the Claymore, said that she also only heard one whistle. Charles Morgan, seaman on the Kapanui, and Lawrence Frost, engineer, ga.re evidence regarding the port light. The latter said that when the light was recovered after the raising of the vessel it was found to be intact. •

This concluded the case for the defence. Neither counsel addressed the jury.

HIS HONOR SUMS UP.

His Honor, in summing up. said that the jury had to consider .whether it was true that the wreck occurred from the neglect of the accused to perform what was his legal duty. It was the duty of a master of a vessel to exercise reasonable means for the preservation of the life and property over which he had charge. It appeared from the evidence that the port light in this instance, went out, from a cause for which they ought not to hold the master liable, and that under this and other conditions the Kapanui passed the Gael green to green, the most prudent course to follow, and then suddenly swerved across on to the Claymore's bow, thereby extinguishing her green light. According to the narrow channel rule, vessels should always keep to starboard so far as it was reasonable, but there was a doubt among competent men as> to whether this rule applied to Auckland Harbour. This was a matter which certainly ought to be settled. The prisoner believed that it did apply, and therefore it was his duty to keep to starboard so far as was safe and practicable. There was nothing, on the contrary, to show that he did not act upon this rule, and therefore they must accept it as being true. The prisoner should not have crossed the bows of the Claymore, and in doing 60 committed a grave error of judgment, resulting in a most serious loss of human life. This undoubtedly justified the cancellation of his certificate, but the question was, did it justify sending him to prison as a felon? He did not consider that it did, but it was a matter for them to determine. It was for them to say whether it was beyond all reasonable doubt that the prisoner by omission or neglect, without lawful excuse, failed to perform his legal duty. If they found this, it was their duty to return a verdict of "guilty," but if they found that the prisoner was attentive to his duty, and although he exercised his judgment an accident happened, it was their duty to return a verdict of " not guilty." THE VERDICT. The jury, after half an hour's retirement, returned with a verdict of not guilty,"' and the prisoner was discharged. The foreman (Mr. S. C. Brown) said the jury made the following recommendations: —"(l) Considering the great risk to human life involved, coastal steamers carrying passengers should be more efficiently manned : and (2), that the Marine Department of New Zealand should define the harbours in which the narrow channel regulations should apply." His Honor said he would send the recommendations to the proper quarter.

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