THE WRECK OF THE BIRKENHEAD.

NZ Truth, Issue 98, 4 May 1907, Page 6

THE WRECK OF THE BIRKENHEAD.

A Protest.

TO THfc EDITOR.

Sir,— Kindly permit me to express ■my. disapproval of the laudable and heretical- praise you bestow upon the' o3icei-s and men-.oE the ill-fated ship Birkenhead. Sir, 1 consider there is no case parallel with this most disastrous case, where to my mind there was such carelessness and want of good judgment, with arrant coward-, ice, as was shown by the 1 ' "officers and men on this ship. This was a large sailing-ship with heavy wooden masts and yards, carelessly driven, as was found at the. enquiry, against some rocks within two miles of the coast of Africa, m a calm sea. There were nearly six hundred soldiers besides women and children on board. I am amazed that after the women and children were sent away m the boats that the ship's officers did not order the men to cut down the masts, and form rafts with, the large amount ,of material at their command, and try to save life. And also at the action of the military officers causing the bugle to call to the craven soldiers to stand shoulder to shoulder while the vessel filled with water, and they were engulfed m the sea- After the foundering, of the vessel the sea was covered wjth floating wreckage, proving how, tyith good judgment, nearly all the lives could have been saved. 1 notice m our city, and through the colony applications are open for our young men to join the Navy. I do trust ,the young men of this colony will never be made such docile creatures, under Imperial idiots of officers, as was the case m this ship. And Sir, I would like you to show m your paper the large amount of injury and total loss which is continuously occurring to our war vessels, and the large proportion happening to them m comparison to our mercantile vessels, clearly showing,' to my mind, that it is not the best heads that have command of our Navy. And I would like the Education Department, which have the selection of matter for our school bo o ks, not to allow false teaching to our children.— l am, etc. CHAS. SIMMONDS.