The Sun.
London, England, 1867-10-12 00:00:00

THE SITN. LOMA_

100, though it is proof of the recklessness which
chara ctee tses owners and men that they should be
so empit )yecl. We need not, therefore, attribute
the rot Len condition of some of the more juvenile
craft -to actual age, but rather to their utter
unsex v Torthiness. It is not a little singular that,
since the greatest number of casualties almost
alway s occur on our eastern coast, the
colliers of the north-eastern ports have such an
established reputation as the worst vessels afloat.
This Jhas a great deal to do with the loss of life and
shipi gin this direction, and if something could be
done to supervise these vessels the discrepancy
might vet be so great as we find it in the Register.
East coast, 953 ; south coast, 274 ; west coast,
412 ; north-west coast of Scotland, 47 ; Irish coast,
144. St,rne efforts have been made to improve
matters 'with regard to these ships. Mr. LAIRD
and other members exerted themselves to ob-
tain an act to secure the testing of their cables
*and anchors, but the whole shipping trade
of that class is in so unsatisfactory and demoralised
a condition that much remains to be done. The
men employed are so ignorant and uneducated that
they are often not aware of the dangers to which
they expose themselves, and the class of seamen
who can be got to sail in such ships are not likely
to lessen the risks of disasters by good seamanship
or skilful navigation. The standard of qualifica-
tion for masters and mates of our merchant
vessels has of late years been considerably
raised ; if it were generally extended we might
see an improvement by degrees effected in our
coasting trade. It is an inexcusable thing for a
shipowner to send craft to sea which insurance
associations will not admit on their books, yet such
is constantly done, and we may see the result so
plainly inscribed in the Wreck, Register. We are
glad to find that, in addition to the official returns
of the Board of Trade, the statistical committee of
Lloyd's have resolved to issue a tabulated analysis
of the wrecks and casualties of the year. The first
of such reports is now issued for the year 1866, and
it will no doubt do material service in bringing to
light the causes of some of our shipwrecks. That
many of thew are due rather to defects in the ship
and its management rather than to" the violence of
the weather is proved by the fact that 733 casualties
happened when the wind was at force six and under,
that is to say when it did not exceed a strong breeze,
in which the ship could carry single reefs and top-
gallant sails ; 122 happened with the wind at force
7 or 8, that is to say a fresh gale ; and 954, or little
more than half the total number of disasters,
occurred with the wind at a force of 9 or upwards,
from a fresh gale to a hurricane. Another signifi-
cant fact is that the number of ships totally lost on
the British coasts from unseaworthiness alone in 10
years is 423, and the number of casualties caused
through unseaworthy ships, unsound gear, &c.,
and resulting in partial damage in the
same time •is 586. The number of wrecks
among colliers, laden and in ballast, in 1866 was
855, a number altogether out of proportion to the
rest of the shipping. Besides these there were 141
vessels laden with metallic ores, and 154 with stone,
all no doubt to be placed in the same category. The
total number of vessels lost or damaged in the year
was 2,289, and of these only 99 were above 600
tons burden, as many as 977 being 100 tons and
under, and 939 from 100 to 200 tons. It is evi-
dent, therefore, that the number of our wrecks and
losses means something more than the mere in-
crease of our shipping, and good service might be
done to the public by instituting an official inquiry
into the condition of our coasting vessels. Of the
2,289 ships lost or damaged during the twelve-
month, 1,961 are known to have been ships be-
longing to Great Britain and its dependencies. Of
the British ships, 1,409 were employed in the
coasting trade, and 549 in the over sea trades, so
that the question is one of considerable import-