The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1852-11-23 00:00:00

COUNTY COURT, YESTERDAY

--..,*

On the sitting of the court this morning, his Honour
gave judgment in the following important cases :

THE LATE COLLISION BETWEEN THE STEAMER. NIONA

AND THE UNITED STATES STEAM-SHIP ARCTIC
COTESWORTH V. HAMILTON.

The plaintiffs in this case are the proprietors of the
Liverpool Steam-tug Company, (represented by Mr.
Cotesworth,) and the defendants Messrs. Brown, Shipley,
and Co., of this town, agents for the United States and
Liverpool Mail Steam-ship Company.
His Hoivouß gave judgment as follows :—This action is
brought, by consent, for the sum of £135, the plaintiff
being the proprietor of a steam-tug belonging to this port,

. .
called the Mona, against the defendant, who, for the. pur-
poses of this action, is admitted to be resident in Liver-
pool, as owner of the Arctic, one of the so-called "Collins
lira" of steamers, trading with goods and passengers be.
tween Liverpool and the United States. The sum I have
mentioned is the amoont of the damages occasioned by a
collision between the two vessels in question, and upon
the circumstances under which that collision took place
the claim of the plaintiff is founded. In a case in which I
am compelled to rely on my own judgment, unassisted by
that practical experience to which other tribunals are per-
mitted to resort on such subjects, and where various new
questions, both of law and fact, have been laid before me,
I think it better, for the interest of the parties themselves,
to state the conclusions of fact at which I have arrived, and
the legal inference which I draw from such conclusions,
without entering upon the arguments at home influenced
my own mind. I find, then, that the Mona is a steam.
vessel of 110 feet in length, and seventy horse-power ;
that the Arctic is 295 feet long, and is of 900 horse-power ;
that on the first of January, 1852, the day on which this
collision took place, the Mona was hired by the owners
of the Earl Grey, a deeply laden brig of about 240 tons
hurthen, to take the latter vessel out to sea. That the
Earl Grey, riding flood, was anchored in the River Mer.
soy, about mid channel, or somewhere nearer the Cheshire
side of the river, between the Prince's Pier and Seacombe
wail, and had on board a pilot duly licensed in that be-
half. That about six in the morning of the day mentioned,
the Mona, with the Earl Grey in tow, and with about
thirty to forty fathoms of hauzer, proceeded to take the
latter vessel from the aforesaid place of her anchorage
out to sea, heading, in the first instance, by direction of
the pilot on board the Earl Grey, whose orders were
obeyed throughout by the crew of the Mona, N.N.E.
That it was a fine and clean, but dark morning, it being
about flood tide, with a light breeze from the S.W. That
the Mona had the Admiralty lights, and the Earl Grey a
white light on her foremast. That shortly after the
Mona had started (the Earl Grey continuing to be
towed by her down to the time of the collision) wickets
thrown up and guns fired by the crew of the Arctic,
then, according tto he chart in evidence before mo,
at a distance of nearly three miles, intimated to those
on board the two former vessels that an American
steamer was approaching from the north, and that it was
known to those on board the Mona and Earl Grey that
the moorings of such steamer, to which they knew she
would then proceed, wore near Rock Ferry, a place in the
river, some three miles to the south of that at which the
Mona and Earl Grey had then arrived. That very
shortly, that is in about two or three minutes afterwards,
the three lights of the Arctic, placed as usual, became
visible, and therefore the Mona, by direction of the pilot
of the Earl Grey, ported her helm, so as to cross towards
the eastern or Liverpool side of the river, with the view
of passing between the Arctic and the eastern shore.
That some three or four minutes after the lights of the
Arctic had been seen, as aforesaid, and when the Arctic
was at a distance from the Mona of from about one-third
to half a mile, the red light of the Arctic was lost to the
sight of those on board the Mona and Earl Grey, the
Arctic having then starboarded her helm, being steering
south-east. That upon this, in obedience to such direc-
tion of the pilot as aforesaid, the Mona again ported her
helm and then put it hard a port, and kept it so, she
being then between mid channel and the Liverpool shore,
about 400 yards from the latter, and steering at the
moment, that is just before she ported her helm as
last mentioned, a course nearly parallel with the
Liverpool shore, and one not unnsually adopted by
steam-tugs towing vessels out to sea. That the course
pursued by the Mona for some minutes before, and up to
almost the very moment of the collision, though not un-
usual for vessels similariy circnmstanced, was such as
would have been pursued by the tender of the Arctic,
(the Sampson,) which was known to the parties in all the
three vessels, to be in the habit of running alongside the
American vessels on their arrival, in order to take the
mails off. That the Arctic, continuing to steer steadily
to the S.E., was, when from about 300 to 400 yards dis-
tant from the Mona, hailed several times by the crew of
the latter, who shouted to the crew of the Arctic to port
their helm. That no answer being given from the Arctic,
and no notice taken except as hereafter mentioned, and
each of the vessels holding on her course, the Mona hav-
ing immediately before stopped her engines, but having
some way on, a collision ensued, the larboard bow of the
Mona, near the stern, or the stern itself, coming in con-
tact with the Arctic, between the stern and the fore part
of the starboard paddle-box of the latter, about 30 or 40
feet from its (the Arctic's) stern. That in consequence
of this collision, the Mona suffered damage to the
amount sought to be recovered by the plaintiff in this
action, and was obliged to be breached on the Cheshire
side of the river, with the assistance of the Sampson,
steam-boat, the tender of the Arctic, which came
up immediately after collision. I find further that about
two o'clock on the morning of the Ist of January, the
Arctic took in of Anglesea, a duly licenced and an author.
ised pilot, who thereupon took charge of the vessel, and
whose orders were obeyed throughout down to and at the
time after the collision. That having continued to sail at
full speed until she came to the bell buoy, the Arctic was
reduced to half speed. That about six o'clock she was
abreast of the Reck Light House, a little to the west of
the mid-channel, when guns were fired, and a rocket let
off as before mentioned, and when the speed of the Arctic
was reduced as much as possible, that is, to about four
knotts an hour. That all hands were then on deck, two
instead of one of the ordinary number, being placed at the
helm, the third officer at the , the pilot on the star-
board paddle-box, the captain and first officer opposite the
pilot, on the starboard side of the upper deck, close to the
pilot, to see his orders conveyed immedietely to the engine
room, by wire and bell, (the most efficient niethod,) and
the second officer and the boatswain, with two othersof the
crew, being placed on the top-gallant forecastle as a look-
out, every precaution being so far taken to ensure the safe
progressofthe vessel. That when the Arctic waspursuingher
course towards her moorings, near Rock Ferry, and was
abreast of the magazines, a ship (the San Dusky) which
had no lights on board her, was announced ahead, lying
a little to the west of the mid channel. That in order to
clear this vessel by the directions of the pilot, the helm of
the Arctic was starboarded for not more than two minutes,
her course being thus changed about two points, and then,
by a similar order, steadied. That the Arctic, on the
last mentioned order being obeyed, did not keep as far
as was practicable to that side of the fair way, or mid
channel of the river, which lay on her starboard side,
but did come back within about one point of her former
course. That she was then about 200 or 300 yards to the
east of what she would have been had she not been corn-

pelled to starboard her helm for the vessel in the river,
and that she headed as she continued up to and at the
time of the collision, about south-east, adopting a course

not unusually pursued by such steamers, and one about
parallel with the course of the river at such place. That at
this time a light on the starboard bow being announced
on board the Arctic, the white and green lights of a
vessel (the Mona) were seen about two points on the
starboard bow of the Arctic, and from about one-third to
about half a mile off her. That in about two to three
minutes afterwards, and some three minutes before,
collision took place, the red light of the Mona, along
with her other lights, as well as the hull of the vessel,
were seen by those on board the Arctic, and announced
to the pilot when the Mona was somewhat less than a
quarter of a mile distant. That neither the light nor the
hull of the Earl Grey being then observed by those on
board the Arctic, and the course pursued by the Mona
being similar to that which would have been pursued by
the tender of the Arctic (the Sampson) the lights of the
Mona were supposed br those on board the Arctic to be
the lights of the tender approaching them, in consequence
of which the Arctic held on her course. That about this
time some shouting from those on board the Mona was
heard by those on board the Arctic ; but was not under-
stood by the latter, who believed that their tender was
approaching, that the hailing meant that they should come
alongside, and that there was no danger. That when the
Mona was ahout 60 or 70 feet of the Arctic, the
approaching steamer was for the first time observed to
have a vessel in tow, when orders to stop and reverse
were immediately given, and obeyed, on board the
Arctic, and the pilot of the last named vessel called out
more than once to the crew of the Mona to stop
her and starboard her helm. That almost instantly
after the order to stop and reverse had been so
given and obeyed on board the Arctic, the collision took
place, the Arctic having then but little way on, and going
at the rate of about one knot an hour. I find, further,
upon these facts, that if, when the three lights of the
Mona were first observed on board the Arctic, the former
had starboarded her helm, she and the vessel which she
had in tow would, in all probability, have gone clear of
the Arctic, supposing the latter had continued to pursue
steadily, as she did, the course which she was then steer-
ing ; but that such a course of proceeding on the part of
the Mona was, under all the circumstances, at least doubt-
ful in point of prudence. Thnt if at the same time, (that
is when the three lights of the Mona were first seen by
those on board the Arctic,) the latter had ported her
helm, she would, in all probability, have sunk the Mona,
or the brig which she had in tow. I find, also, upon the
evidence before me, that if, when the three lights of the
Mona were first observed by those on board the
Arctic, the light or hull of the Earl Grey, in tow
of the Mona, had been perceived by them, the colli-
sion, or at least the damage resulting from it might
have been avoided by stopping and reversing the
engines of the Arctic, a course which, under such
circumstances, would have been dictated by ordinary care
and caution. That the light at least, if not the hull of the
E-rl Grey in tow of the Mona, might, if a sufficiently
careful look-out had been kept, have been observed by
the pilot and crew of the Arctic in time to have avoided
the collision, by stopping and reversing the engines of the
latter, and that but for the impression on the minds of
both the pilot and crew of the Arctic that the lights of the
approaching vessel were those of her (the Arctic's) tender,
the Sampson, the light, if not the hull, of the Earl Grey
would probably have attracted their attention in suffi-
cient time for the adoption of such a proceeding as last
mentioned. I find, upon these facts, that both the pilot
and the crew of the Arctic were to blame in not keeping,
under the circumstances, a sufficiently careful look-out,
and that the absence of such look out led to this collsion ;
that the accident did not arise entirely from the fault of
the pilot, but was occasioned by the joint negligence of
the pilot and crew, and that the plaintiffs are, therefore,
entitled to recover the amount claimed.

JOHNSTON AND ORS. V. TETLEY AND ORS.-IMPORTANT

JUDGMENT A

AFFECTING FRIENDLY SOCIETIES.

These cases came I

before the court at the

sitting,

LI his honor to-day

cases actions were brought by the Trustees of a Friendly
Society, established under the 9th and 10th Vic., c. 27,
and other acts incorporated therewith, against membors
who had been excluded from the society for non-payment
of arrears of subscription and fines, to recover those