The Sun.
London, England, 1866-01-30 00:00:00

At 9 a.m, the sea was then running high and the
wind blowing beyond anything recollected by the
survivors. At about half-past 10 a terrific sea,
rose and descended almost perpendicularly over the
engine-room and smashed it in. Every effort was
made to secure the hatchway by the crew and
passengers. At 4 a.m. on the 11th another violent
sea struck the ship and carried off four windows of
her upper or poop cabin. Through the breaches
thus made the sea rushed into the ship with such
violence that the 'tween decks were full of water.
The captain, with the engineer, took soundings, and.
finding there were 14ft. of water he gave up all hope
of saving the ship, and communicated the awful in-
telligence to the passengers, who received it with
calmness and resignation. At about 10 a.m. of
the 11th the captain ordered the boats to be got
ready, and the starboard pinnace, which was of
iron, was got into the water and lost. At 2
pan. the ship was rapidly filling. Another boat
was lowered, and sonic of the crew entered
and called for the captain to follow, but, with a true
courage, he preferred remaining with his ship.
Altogether 19 souls entered the boat. T hey then
pushed off from the ship, seeing she must sink, and
after having gone a short distance they saw the
London go down by the stern. The boat drifted
about for 20 hours, when she was picked up by an
Italian vessel and landed at Plymouth on the 16th.
Having referred to the praiseworthy conduct of the
commander of the vessel who saved the boat, and
which had been already substantially acknowledged
by the Board of Trade, he said it was a just and
and merciful thing to deal tenderly with the dead.
Capt. Martin had no foes ; he was a true seaman ;
he met his death like a hero. It did not follow that
because he had perished that no inquiry should be
made into the navigation ; but he was sure that the
Court would deal as tenderly with the dead as the
ends of justice would sanction. He would now pro-
ceed to call the evidence he had to bring before the
Court.

Mr. George Joseph Gladstone was the first witness ex-
amined. He said—l live at Blackwall, and am shipwright
surveyor to the Board of Trade, and senior surveyor for
the port of London. It is a part of my duty to inspect
passenger steam ships occasionally during their construc-
tion. I go over them from time to time. I am bound to
exercise a very strict superintendence. I saw the ship
London while she was building. She was in frame when
I first saw her. She was the property of the Messrs.
Wigram and Sons. The book I hand in contains the
official entry relative to the ship made by myself. I was
over her four different times during her building. Sho
was constructed of materials, according to my judgment,
of the first quality. She had an angle iron frame, iron
beams, stringer plates, kealson, and plated iron bottom.
She was double rivetted from keel to gunwale. All her
fastenings were sound and good. She had stringer plates
to each deck. She had four bulkheads and four compart-
ments—two before and two abaft the engine. Her
engine hatchway was 12 feet 6 inches by 9 feet 6 inches.
I have no positive recollection of the dimensions of the
engine-room hatch but by measuring the plan I hold in my
hand. I, however, measured the ship when she was new,
and the figures I have given are correct, according to my
recollection. The combings were 16 inches and 5 inches
thick, and they were made of teak. The covering of the
hatchway was a wooden frame, with thick plate glass pro-
tected by a galvanised iron grating. She had three open-
ings on her upper deck before, main and after hatchway,
a scuttle forward, and a companion aft. Her bunker
shoots were flush with the deck. I considered her en-
gine hatchway cover quite sufficient to protect engines
from bad weather.
Mr. O'Dowd—You considered that the bars of the sky-
light were sufficient to protect the engines from a heavy
sea.

Witness—Yes, with a tarpauling cover and battened
down.

Mr. Traill—Don't you think it would be an additional
protection if something was placed under the glass to
prevent the water entering when the glass was broken ?
Witness—Certainly it would.
Mr. Traill—Would it be in the way at all ?
Witness—No, not in the least. You could have a board-
ing underneath of glass.
Cross-examined—There were huge ports for the escape
of water from the upper decks. There were four ports,
two gangways, and five scuppers at each side leading
direct out of the ship. The vessel had a set of tarpaulings
for all the hatchway skylights, a double set of sails, six
life-buoys, and seven boats. Two of the boats wore made

of iron. When they were ready for launching I called
Messrs. Wigram's attention to them. 1 said I didn't like
iron boats, and suggested that large bags of cork might be
placed under the thwarts to make them more buoyant.
Boats, however, do not come under our supervision. My
suggestions were adopted by the Messrs. Wigram. I saw
the bags of cork placed in the boats. Our report of the
London to the Board of Trade was that she was a sea-
worthy vessel, and fit for any voyage. The certificate
granted by the Board of Trade would be in operation for
six months after date. I surveyed her again in June,
1865. I was of opinion that tho London was as fine
a ship as over left the port of London as to material and
workmanship. There was nothing in her proportions that
in my opinion affected her seaworthiness. She had as
much beam in proportion to her length as ships of that
class generally have. Her length was alout 7i times her
breadth. Her height 'tween deck was 7 feet. Her engine--
room was open to the main deck and protected with comb-
ings and rails round.

By Capt. Harris—She had seven stern windows under

••
her poop deck. They were secured by dead lights. Y The
shutters and dead lights were made of wood two inches
thick. I cannot say whether they were deal or fir. The
windows were about two feet square. Five were practical
windows and two were shams. The space between the
windows was about a foot. Supposing she was drawing
20 feet 9 aft, the lower part of the windows would be near
8 feet above the water line. Her topmasts were wood, the
lower part iron. They were regularsort not telescopic ones.
I don't "think the vessel could be said to bo over masted.

Tho after bulk head of the engine room had a covering
which when down was perfectly water tight. The Lon-
don was not fitted with any particular boat lowering ap-
paratus, such as Clifford's. She had the ordinary block
davits and so on. She had no shelter for passengers on
deck. The London is certified to carry 400 passengers.
I should think that the fact of the engine room of a loaded
ship filling with water would be quite sufficient to sink
her. Her rigging was all wire with rope landyards.
Mr. Robert Taplain said—l am engineer surveyor to the
Board of Trade, and I have been so for the last 10 years.
It is part of my duty to examine engines and machinery
of passenger.vessels, also the safety valves and fire holes.
I usually make those examinations twice a year of each
ship provided they are within the port of London. Those
examinations aro made in order that the necessary declara-
tion can be made to procure the Board of Trade certificate
for the ensuing six months. I have surveyed the engines
and machinery of the London threo time; the last time in
December last—l think the 22d. The screw shaft passed
through the after engine-room bulkhead into a leather
washer round it to keep the water from coming through.
There was a sliding dour by the side of it. It was properly
fitted, and I believe perfectly watertight. The plates
round the suction pipes were good and sound. I granted
the owners of the London the usual declaration of the
ship's efficiency. Her engines were high and low pressure,
with direct action. I don't think anything could have gone
wrong to cause the engines to admit such a quantity of
water into the engine-room. Everything was in perfect
order. Her engines were 200 horse nominal, and the
boilers loaded 291 b. to the square inch. The fireplaces
were about 4or 5 feet from the skin of the ship. The
working of the engines in this ship would not have bean
impeded had there been a flat covering to the main hatch-
way of the engine-room under the skylight. It would im-
pede the draught which could be artificially provided for.
I think in this case it would have been advisable to have
had a covering for the engine-room on the main deck. 1
have never served at sea. She was constructed to carry
370 tons of coal. She consumed 16 cwt. of coal an hour.
The engineer gave that item.

Mr. Barber-1 am ono of the shipwright surveyors to the
Board of Trade for the port of London. I have been so
employed for 10 years. I have been for five years stationed
at Glasgow. I don't know the ship London at all. I have
heard the description given of her engine-room hatchway
by the witness Mr. Gladstone, and I have also seen a sec-
tion and drawing of it. I have thought of and considere
plans for the prevention of water going into the engine-
room. In the Clyde vessels with a full poop they origi-
nally had the engine-room skylight on tho upper deck be-
fore the poop—the poop deck has now been prolonged to a
few feet before the engine hatchway, and a watertight bulk-

head has been carried from the main or upper to the

poop deck, so as to enclose the hatchway. I think the
best way of preventing the water rushing down the
hatchway and extinguishing the fire is the plan just
mentioned. The plan adopted in the navy is a very

gool one I think.
By Captain Barber— The simplest way, I think, would
be to have strong shutters for the engine hatchway,
such as is in use in the navy. I am prepared to say
that the shutters fitted to the engine room are for the
purpose of keeping out water, and not to prevent
skulkers going down when the ship is cleared for action.
I know now of two passenger steamships fitted on the
Clyde principle, the &Ilona and the Atalanta, being in
London. I have no experience of shipbuilding in the

Thames.
The inquiry at this point was adjourned until to..

morrow.

lion. Schuyler Colfax has written a letter, in
which ho declines eing considered a candidate for the
United Statessau Ile says that if he continues in pub-
lic life heprefers to remain in the UOll5O.