The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1863-02-17 00:00:00

HARBOURS OF REFUGE.

All that can be said for harbours of refuge was
well said by Lord Ravensworth in a very tempe-
rate, well-reasoned speech. on Thursday night
last: The annual loam of property caused by
wrecks upon our coast, which was as much s loss
to the nation as the burning of so many stacks
of born, was, upon an average of six years,
£1,500A10, and SOO lives were lost every year
from the same cause. During the late gales
which visited our coast, many flue and well
equipped vessels had foundered, among which
was the Lifeguard eettuier, which had been
utterly lost, with all her passengers and crew.
It was more than irobiable that if a harbour of
refuge existed. a allip of this class would have
been saved. In the report of the National Life-
boat Institution, whose great services were well
known, it was stated that within the last twelve
years 7.640 lives bad been lost upon our coasts,
while in the last six years 16,110 lives had been
saved by the boats and other appliances of the
institution. It was also stated that the wrecks
had increased from 1.141 in 1835 to 1.404 in
1861. These facts proved that, notwithstanding
all the efforts of private benevolence, other
means were required to meet the increasing risks
which our enlarged commerce entailed, and the
only means that could be suggested was that
Government should take steps to provide har-
bours of refuge upon the most exposed portions
of our muds." There was, however, a link
wanting in the noble lord's argument. Out of
these 8410 lives lost in our seas annually
not 80 are referable to stress of weather, and it
is not certain that that small proportion could
have been much diminished by harbours of
refuge. The centinou causes of shipwreck are I
inumaworthy vessels, worn out sails and tackle,
bad anchon and cables, overlading, and weak
handed crews. In the coal trade, for example,
old tubs are often sent to sea that are fit for no-
thing. Their owners insure them, and when the
insurance covets the risk they care little what
beret them. Such • thing as • worn•out ship
being broken up is hardly known—the vessels
being used until they sonic day go to the
bottom : and in that way the lives of crews are
sacrificed. Now if the coast was studded with
harbours of refuge, it would not always happen
that a place of shelter would be close under a
distressed vessel's lee. We UM a statement a
few days ago, that in the recent gales twelve
colliers had foundered, but that happily all their
crews had been raved in their boats. Is not here
a fact full of significance? The vessels went
down in seas in which their open boats could
live! If they had been tight, well-found, and
well-handled vessels, this could not have hap-
pened., and they would have weathered easily
what their open boats could weather. In wrecks
by stranding the case is different. A vested that
has the misfortune to get ashore, even in weather
not actually tempestuous, will beat to piece.
in seas in which her boats may live ; but if •
ship founders when her hosts can swim, the feet
argues some unseaworthy condition, either above
deck or below her water line, probably both. A
harbour of refuge might possibly, but not cer-
tainly, have saved those dozen colliers, but is it
fair that the country should be put to the ex-
pense these harbours of refuge would cost to
give safety to craft so badly kept by their
owners as to succumb to weather which their ;
boats cin go through with safety I The Duke of
Somerset, in reply to I ord Itavensworth, said :
—"There was always a good deal of difficulty in
fixing on the best site for such works. Then,
be supposed, the harbours when wads must not

•

be left unoccupied or undefended.. They must
have some fortificatlmm. From his ekperience
of works constructed under water he should say
the expenditure on these harbours would largely
exceed £4,000.000. The noble lord had limited
himself chiefly to the north-east coact of
England, as being the district where most of the
wrecks took place, and a harbour of refoge was
moat required ; bUt tbe retnrni did not allow
'this to be the ease. He bar' before him a cc-
tern of the *reeks which had taken place on the
coast during the last 12 years, divided into dis-
tricta, and he found that from the Fern Islands
to Flamborough Heed the total lois *1 11?. 'Pao
620; from Flembordegh Need to the North
Foreland, 1,066 I but, taking the other side,
from the Reilly Islands to the Mull of Kintyre,
the loss of life was 1,597—a much larger loss
than that which had occurred on the norteast
coast. We had now been for hia4 years
engaged, and at grail expense, in making cer-
tain harbours— Portland, Holyhead, the pier at
foyer, and the harbour at Alderney. He was
happy to say thaw great works, constructed at
the pnblic charge, were now drawing to a dose.
Portland would be finished December, 1885.
Alderney woold be completed in 1884, unless
some new scheme were added to the works.
Holyhead was also in a fair way to be completed.
But something had already been tione which was
really not unimportant. A Liu had been
brought in by the recommendation of the Royal
Comrtisioners, that trading harbours should be
made by means of loans, obtained from the
Public Loan Commissioners, and under that
measure half a million of money had been raised
for trading harbours at Falmouth, the Tyne, And
the Wear. Therefore, not only Were harbours
In eourse of coustrtietion at the places he had
enumerated-, bnt a great many others would in a
short time be in prohees a formation under that
recommenclatien, and he thought it was of great
advantage to the ilonntry that these works should
be ettcuted rather by local exertions than by the
public. (Hear, bear.) If the national (hods
were to be devoted to such a purpose there
would be a scramble on the part of different
piece% to get the largest share. It would, he
believed, be a great mistake se to follow out the
recommendations of the Royal Commissioners
as to make • great many harbours along the
coast at the public expense. He did not think
that such • saving of life and property as some
persons anticipated would be effected by thee°
harbottit All the evidence taken on the subject
showed that, on the contrary, they would lead to
persons continuing to employ very unseaworthy
and badly-found ships." It might be thought
that seamen would refuse to serve in vessels
which they knew to be unseaworthy, but in
their expressive phrase,--exprebsive of their
reeLleas ways, they "chance it," without ever
asking themselves the question whether the end
of their voyage is not likely to be the bottom.
We think the Duke of Somerset did well to re-
mind the Lords, that wherever harbours of
refuge. horrid be provided, fortifications would be
constructed also.