The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1846-06-02 00:00:00

COLLISION. ON THE RIVER.—ADJOURNED
INQUEST, YESTERDAY.
(Continued from page 3.)
the Sea Nymph, I saw her to the larboard of our paddle
boxes. After the word was passed to me from the gang-
way, Peter M'Farlane, the second mate, said—" There are
two lights on our larboard bow ; you must port a little
more, William." After the Sea Nymph was reported,
and before the collision took place, a very short time
elapsed. The night was clear, and could not be called
dark. If I had been leaving the river at that time, and
known it to have been clear, I would have taken cne or
other of the shores.
By Mr. Myers.—lf I bad been for going down the
Rock Channel, I think I would have taken the Cheshire
side. In leaving the Clarence Dock, an hour before high
water, the action of the tide would have the effect of
throwing her head up or across the river for some time.
By Mr. Harden.—Two steamers passed us about the
breadth of a vessel from us as they approached the dock.
One was the Hercules, and the other, I believe, was the
Dundalk. it might have been the Foig-a-ballagh. I was
called out to port the helm before we came up to these
vessels in order to pass them. Did not observe that either
of these steamers had to stop her engines to prevent a col-
lision. There were a great many steamers in the river
that night, but I have no doubt the vessel with the lights
of which I have spoken, was the one which ran foul of us.
Peter M'Farlane (who was examined on Saturday) was
recalled and cross-examined by Mr. Harden.—When the
light ahead was first reported we were about a minute
round the buoy ; at that time we were so close in shore
that we could not go safely any closer. The man at the
helm said he could not port any more without running
the vessel ashore. I was standing close to the side
looking over the quarter, right opposite the helm,
when I first saw the smoke of the Sea Nymph past
the paddle-box. I then saw her starboard light and her
funnel light, and afterwards her larboard light. It ap-
peared to me that she was taking a sheer. She
must have been porting her helm. To the best of
my knowledge, the Rambler was aground at the
moment she was struck ; because, the next day
when the tide was out, we found the head-rail on the
ground, close to the paddle-boxes. We could not tell
whether it was knocked off by the collision ; but there
was every probability of it. The ship never moved after
she was struck ;'she lay with the same list the whole time.
The lead was thrown after we were aground, and not be-
fore. The night was so light there was no occasion for it.
John Walker being sworn, said—l am a fireman on
board the Rambler. Just before the collision, on Mon•-
day night last, I was standing on the crank hatches. It
was my duty to pass the word from the captain to the
engineer. I heard the mate sing out to the captain there
was a steamer coming out from the docks. After that, I
saw her lights bearing on her larboard bow. The captain
cried to the steersman to port the helm ; and, shortly
after, the captain and the pilot, both at the same time,
called out port—hard a-port ;" and shortly after that
the captain ordered the engines to be stopped. I passed
the order to the engineer, and they were stopped. In
about a minute and a-half after, the Sea Nymph struck us.
By the Foreman.—Did not see them heaving the lead ;
but they might be. The engines were not reversed ;
there was no order given to that effect.
James Macgregor, engineer of the. Rambler, confirmed
the testimony of the last witness as to the stopping of
the engines. It was fifteen or twenty seconds from the
stoppage of the engines to the collision.
By Mr. Hassall.—About two minutes after she struck,
I received orders to back her ; and, after about two turns,
the captain ordered her to go on as hard as I could ; and
he came to me and said, " Jem, stand by the engines as
long as you can, we can do no more." I then kept the
engines going until I was up to the middle in water.
John Brodie, a seaman on board the Rambler, con-
firmed the foregoing testimony. He conveyed the word
" port" from the chief mate to the captain, who after-
wards transmitted it, by a sailor named Campbell, to
the steersman.

Thomas Hargardon, pig jobber, a passenger in the
Rambler, described the approach of the Sea Nymph, and
the circumstances connected with the catastrophe. The
only new fact elicited from him was, that the captain of
the Rambler told the captain of the Sea Nymph to take
his vessel off; and that the latter afterwards stood a mo-
ment or two, at a short distance, and it was expected that
she would take the passengers of the Rambler on board,
but she did not.
Some conversation took place between the coroner and
the legal gentlemen, respecting the witnesses to be called,
in the course of which, Mr. Hassell stated that the cap.
tam of the Rambler was confined to his house by the inju-
ries he received, and a medical certificate to that effect
was produced.
William Daniels, pilot, recalled, said—He hove the lead
twice himself; the last time, which was about a quarter
past ten, they were in two and a half fathoms; and after
that another man heaved it and they were in two fathoms.
At the rip-rap it was heaved and the water was three
fathoms deep.
thef
rhoamn d :hoe on
captainboard
ah
ne d Ram-
bler, m
pilot -
tbol eßtrh,oebpassed
helmsman. the Campbell, ord
He r:
snt oee -vp°i fod ret
evidence was confirmatory, differ.
ing only on one point from some of them, as to the vessel
being aground at the time of the collision. He believed
she was not then aground.
Samuel Easter, chief mate of the Sea Nymph, said—
Our steamer's engines are of 350 horse power; she was
bound for Newry, Point Warren, with a general cargo,
and from 80 to 100 deck passengers, and 7 or 8 in the
cabin. We sailed from the Clarence Dock on Monday
night, May the 25th, at 20 minutes past 10. Captain
Joseph Thompson is the commander of the Sea Nymph.
The night was fine and clear, and the tide was about
three-fourths timid. Helf-na,st nine was the time we were
auvertised to sad. After clearing the dock-gates, the
tide turned the vessel's head up the river, and her
helm was put hard-a-port, in order to bring her head
to. We then took our course down the river, so as to
clear the vessels at anchor on the '7:hest:tire side. 1 saw
the coal hulk in the river, which is stationed off the maga-
zines, to supply the New Brighton boats with coal; we
passed her on the larboard side about a ship's length off ;
the hulk is a sort of mark for steamers going out. We
then made for the Rock Light, which was three-fourth of
a point on the larboard bow; just so that we might give
the riprap a buff as we passed her. I was on the forecastle-
head, and shortly after passing the coal hulk I saw a light
coming round the rock, which turned out to be the Ram-
bler's masthead light. I asked the captain if he saw the
light on the starboard-bow ; and he said, " Yes, I do ' • all
right." The light came at a tremendous rate round the
Rock. When I spoke the light was on the starboard-
bow. I stood about 100 feet from the captain, and did
not hear any command given to alter the course of the
Sea Nymph. The next thing I heard was the steam blowing
off. In aboutaminute and a half after I spoke to the captain
I saw the Ramblers white light on the starboard bow ;
and then I became aware that it was a steamer. I had
seen no steam or anything before to make me think so.
I then told the captain it was a steamer, and that it would
be best to keep the helm " hard aport." I did not hear
him make any answer, the steam made such a noise. I
do not know whether or not he heard me. I then saw the
larboard light of the Rambler on our starboard bow, and
I could then see she was porting her helm. I could by
this time see the full length of the vessels hull, and that
she was flying up to the westward with her helm aport.
I could also notice our vessel's head going off to the east-
ward, though it was but slowly, as we had lost a good
deal of our way, and were only going four knots through
the water. I sung out to the captain again that it was
impossible for the vessels to clear, the way they were both
going, both helms aport; I did not hear him make any an-
swer, and in a few minutes the collision took place. We
struck her nearly stem on, on the larboard bow. We
stopped some seconds entangled together, and after we
were clear of her, I went down the forecastle to see if
there was any water coming in. I found her stem and
cutesater and both bows gone. Both steamers were iron.
I told the captain he had better run ashore, or get back
to dock, but he would not do that, and ran our bowsprit
over the mizen rigging of the Rambler, and asked if he
could give any assistance, but I do not know what answer
was given. We returned to the basin. If both vessels
had continued their course, they could have passed each
other, as the Rambler was coming right up the middle of
the river. Our vessel was too broad off to clear the
Rambler, by putting the helm bard aport. If the vessels
had been more ahead of each other, they might have
cleared, by both helms being ported, but as it was there
was not space enough left to get the head of our vessel
properly round. If the Rambler had stopped her engines
at the same time that we did, and reversed them, the
collision perhaps might have been avoided, but its result
could have been very trifling. As we left the dock, the
cargo stage fell into it, because it had not been unhooked
properly. If the captain made any remark, I did not
hear it. I was perfectly sober; I bad not drank a glass
of grog for 14 days. The captain was perfectly sober
also. About four minutes elapsed after we saw the
Rambler, before the collision took place.
By Mr. Harden.—lt was quite possible that the Sea
Nymph's helm should be hard-a-port at the moment of
the collision. It was both porting their helms that
brciught the vessels together. .
Mr. Harden had been illustrating his questions by refe-
rence to two small model steamers ; and the Coroner said,
as he had been given to understand that had both vessels
had their helms ported collision was impossible, the jury
must be kind enough to note the manner in which the
queries were put.
Cross-examination continued by Mr. Harden.—When
I first saw the light by the Rock light, it was going
to the eastward. The Rambler was then making a
broad sweep round the Rock. . At the time I first
reported the light to the captain, no collision was
apprehended. if the Rambler had held on that course,
she would have cleared us by a quarter of a mile.
A few seconds before the collision I saw what was going
to happen, and drove all the people and some of the hands
off the forecastle. I found the mate of the Rambler and
others on board the Sea Nymph. I told the mate that
they might get on board their own vessel if they liked,
when we went up the second time. Our compartments,

which were damaged, were full of. water as high
outside, and if she had not been built in compartments,
she would have sunk and gone down. It was therefore

on the

i when

us to the