WRECK ENQUIRY.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 2864, 30 May 1882, Page 2

WRECK ENQUIRY.

An enquiry into the circumstances connected with the loss of the ship City of Perth, was held this morning, before Mr G. 33. Cooper, Collector of Customs, and Mr B. Woollcombe, J.P. Nautical Assessor. ’ The following evidence was taken : Colin Macdonald—l produce my e'ertificato of competency, No. 25976, as master. I was master of the ship City of Perth, I have been 27 years at sea • over 12 years ns master. I arrived hero on 20th April last. Captain Mills brought me to an anchor. I came up in tow froov Lyttelton. I was brought up in 5 fathoms at low water. My anchorage was about a quarter of a mile from the Breakwater, a little south of its linn. I was then drawing 13ft 4in. My loaded draught is 20ft Sin. I should not have completed mj> loading where I (hen lay, there being not water enough. 1 was not moved after my arrival. I had 208 tons of cement and 6 tons of salt, which I kept as ballast. I took in about 8000 bags of grain. Nothing remarkable occurred uutil the time of the accident. The ship was well found in everything. She had two common stock anchors, 38cwt each; ono Trotman’s patent, 42cwt; ono stream, 12cwt; and two kedgo anchors; 150 fathoms of thirteen-sixteenth inch chain, and 150 of If, with 60 fathoms of mooring chain. I had also a coir hawser, and 108£ft of Manilla. The ground tackle was supplied at North Shields. The Ifinch cable was tested in December, 1880, ot Glasgow. Everything about that time was brought on deck and examined by Lloyds’. The ship was of iron, 1189 tons register, built at Glasgow in 1868. She was classed Aa I w . She was last overhauled in 1877, and sustained her class. Her official number was 60,352. The sea began to rise from the S.E. about midmight of Saturday, 13th May. The ship was then riding by 120 fathoms of starboard chain, at the 38cwt anchor (starboard bower). The sea was continuously, the ship being sometimes broadside on, sometimes stern on. While she. was stern on, between one and two in the morning, she broke some of her stern windows, and I feared her stern would be broken in altogether. She continued in .this condition till daylight. I had my crew on deck then, and two men at the wheel. I was afraid the rudder would be injured. She then began to head the sea, and I observed her moving down towards the Benvenue. I therefore let go the port anchor, and paid out all the starboard chain I had on deck, and put a spring on the starboard one. This gave 135 fathoms in the water, I then let go the third anchor with a 13-inch coir hawser on it. The spring was lashed to the cable and passed aft to the bits near the break of the poop. The port anchor had about 45 fathoms of chain down. I put the third anchor over the starboard bow. The sea was coming over the forecastle head, and the men had sometimes to take to the rigging. There was no wind at this time, a very slight breeze sprang up for about half an hour. I then set the fore topsail and the ship came up to her anchors a little, but the breeze died away and I had to lower the topsail. The ship then commenced to swing and the chief officer reported that she would foul her hawse. I ordered the port anchor to be hove up. As they were catting the anchor the cable broke. I put on a preventer of two parte of 8£ inch hawser besides the stopper and catfail. The starboard chain then got over the fluke of the port anchor, owing to the pitching of the vessel. When she stretched the starboard chain, the port anchor was dragged away from the bow, carrying away catfail and stopper, and putting a tremendous strain on tho hawser. The man was standing near the whisker when the hawser jammed both his legs against it. He would have fallen overboard had not one of the men caught him ; we carried him to the cabin. I examined him and found his right leg broken. He was afterwards convoyed to the Hospital, where he has since died. I went on deck, after attending to th% mate, and found ray starboard cable vi as gone.* Then all the strain came on the hawser. I ordered the lifeboat to be swung on the davits, and had everything prepared for leaving the ship. The mate was placed in the lifeboat before she was lowered from the davits. Everyone left the ship. Before leaving I went forward twice to inspect the state of the hawser. I could see it was not to be depended upon. I then judged it advisable to abandon the vessel, for fear of losing life if I remained. It was 2 o’slock when we all left in two boats. After great exertions we reached the Breakwater.

[Witness here], narrated all the cir cnmstances connected with his return to the ship, as detailed by him at a previous enquiry.]

When ho again left the ship my boat and the two , others capsized, and there were twenty of us in the water - We were an hour and an half in the water, until the shore life boat came to us. Four of my own crew were in her. Of these, two were drowned, viz., the carpenter and the second mate, Mr D. Maclean, and Mr Robert Gardiner. I do not know exactly how many lives were lost. I was myself much injured and bruised. While picking up those in the water, the shore life boat capsized. I was holding on to something in the bottom of the boat. She righted, and I caught hold of the life line, and swung myself in. After reaching the shore I have no remembrance of what took place, but the vessel now lies on the beach, abandoned by the underwriters. The ship has collision bulkheads, right fore and aft. They were quite sound, and had sluices. X had no reason to believe the chains that, parted were defective. William Service of Glasgow, is sole owner. The ship was insured. Ido not know the Company or the amount. She was worth, say, £IO,COO and cost about £18,030. I think a steam tug would have been useless to the ship .on that day, even during the lull. I have been towed down the Hoogly River in the Monsoons by a steam tug of 500 horse pgwer. These steamers are among the most powerful in the world, but they never attomp to take a ship in broken water. No master of a tug would have attempted to tow a vessel on the day my ship was lost.

C. Macdonald, recalled—The C. F. Funcb, barque, was lying about an eighth of a mile to seaward of us at the time of the disasters. She seemed to be always steadily stern on, and she had not such heavy seas as we had. <|ohn Lynch, boatswain of the City of Perth—l have been 27 years at sea. The ship was well found in every respect. I remember what happened on Sunday the 14th. The first thing I know was that at 10 o’clock on Saturday night the sea was rising, and the ship was rolling heavily. From 3 - 30 to 7on the Sunday morning the sea was breaking over us. Sometimes she was slewing round and sometimes she was head on to the sea. She was then riding by 120 fathoms of cable on the starboard bow with a spring. The spring was lashed on, and it was taken on to the after bits. There was a tackle on it also. From seven o’clock she got into the trough of the sea. About ten we thought we were nearing the Benvenue. The captain of the Benvenue sung out that we were driving on him. The Benvenue was astern of us. Two other anchors were let go from us, about 10.30 on Snnday morning. We gave the port bower 30 fathoms of chain. The other anchor was a patent one. She had 120 fathoms of coir hawser. The hawser was over the forecastle, secured to the riding bits. It was leading over the bulwarks, a paunch'mat, well greased, being round it. This, was to keep it from chafing. We afterwards hove the port anchor up, to prevent the ship fouling her hawse. When we shackled the anchor it was 'foul. It was foul of the starboard chain. We catted it. We rove a preventive, 10 inch ring stopper. I was going to clear the anchor, when the ship was struck by a sea and everything was torn away. The cable had parted before. At that time when everything was torn, our chief officer’s legs were broken. The ship then swung head to sea again. I was on the forecastle head when the the starboard cable parted. Afterwards I saw two strands of the hawser had parted. We made sail when a light breeze from the land sprung up. The wind failed after a short time. After we had drifted, the boats were got ready, We then left the ship. When I last saw her she was driving towards the shore. I have since seen her on the beach. I have been towed out in a heavy sea, on the Irish coast. We were then lying in brokpn water, with two anchors down and onr distress signals flying. The sea there was not so heavy as this, but it was breaking over us. The tug that took us was a Liverpool one, very powerful. A 250 horsepower tug could have saved us on Sunday, lam sure of that. It was a link in the hawse pipe that parted. This would be about fathoms from the anchor, the chains* being foul in bights. The hawser parted about 30 fathoms from the anchor. It seemed broken by a heavy strain. To Captain Macdonald —The compressor was left open. [Captain Macdonald here remarked that the .witness’ account of the time occupied In these things was incorrect, but the Court stated that every allowance was made for natural confusion- of details of time, and the enquiry was to elicit what was done, not the exact lime of every occurrence.] Examination continued—Everybody was obeying the Captain’s orders. There was no confusion.

John Houlihan, A. 8., belonging to the City', of Perth, said he remembered Sunday, May 14. The plugs in the hawse pipes were washed out, and the sea began making. The ship swung about. All hands were called on deck at 4.30 a.m. or so. We prepared to let the port anchor go. Two men were sent to the wheel. I was there till eight o’clock. Afterwards I worked on the forecastle head. We were drifting towards the Benvenue. Soon after, the third anchor was lot go. There was 30 fathoms given to the port anchor. The compressor was left open to admit of her having more, if needed. On the third anchor there were 80 or 90 fathoms. The 'ship was then riding heavily, and the sea was sweeping the decks. We often had to take to the rigging. The port anchor was hove up about 10.30 in the mornieg. When we sighted the anchor we saw it was foul. I went down [in a bowline and hooked on the cat-block. When we got a strain on the cat the chain snapped.close to the pipe. We hove the anchor up to the cathead. We rove the ring stopper and preventer. We were then told to lower a fish tackle to get the strain off the fluke of the anchor. At this time the chief officer was giving directions, and he put his foot in the hawser. This caught his leg. A heavy sea struck the ship, and the strain of the anchor was all brought on the hawser. I called out for an axe, to release the mate, but before it came the hawser parted. We carried the mate into the cabin, and he was afterwards conveyed to the Hospital, where he has since died. About 11 a.m. the starboard cable parted. The chief officer was put into the lifeboat before lowering it. The Captain ordered the men to get into the boats. We stood by the ship for a long time, about half an hour. The captain then joined us, and we pulled ashore. I did not see the ship go ashore, as I was in the life boat, I have seen her on the William Collis and another witness were examined, but their evidence revealed nothing new.

The enquiry then terminated, and the evidence will be transmitted to Wellington.