The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1875-11-18

This week has been crammed with marine
horrors-the laundering of the Pacific, the
burning OF the Waco. the wrecking OF the
bark Toronto, the mutiny on the British
ship Lennie, and several other disasters.
The loss of life involved is fearful to con-
template when one psuses long enough to
let the imagination picture the terror and
anguish Of brave men, frsil women and
helpless children as they gaze at the pitiless
sea beneath and the pitiless sky above, and
give themselves mp, not without struggles
and prayers, to be swept into eternity
through the terrible gates OF flood or flame.
This loss of life Is worse than loss; it Is
waste, criminal waste, for with proper pre-
cautions large portion, il not all, might
have been prevented. Ships can be
20 built and 30 managed as to render their
loss next to impossible, and so equipped that
in case OF unavoidable accident, all on
board would have fair chance to escape.
But safety ia the last thing considered by
ship owners and builders. Cheapness and
speed are the great essentials, and to insure
these short vessels are heightened, as in case
Of the Europe and LAmerique, Of the
French line, which were lost over year
ago. Old unsesworthy ships are sent out
with rotten cables, injured anchors and Ill.
hitting rigging; good vessels are overloaded
or filed with contraband inflsmmable ma
terial, and all are but scantily supplied with
means for escape. ALI these facts were pre-
sented and commented upon by the press
last summer, at the time Mr.. Plimsoll Gre
akad an inomansa Sansatinu IN tho Rritiah
House of Commons by his fierce denunci-
atoms of "ship owners of murderous ten
dencies." The recent disasters, so far as can
be learned, are due to the criminal reckless
ness Of these same ship owners, who insure
vessel and cargo, and have no concern as to
what becomes OF the crew and passengers.
The Pacific leaked continually the first
day out. so il is stated, thus showing unsea-
worthiness, and was so poorly supplied in
the matter OF boats that, although the night
was not dark or the sea rough, but two sur
vivors out of the two hundred on board
have been found. There is something dit
ferent in the way of life-bosts needed. They
usually prove useless at the moment OF
danger, either immovsble, small or unsup-
piled with oars; or IL launched, easily up-
set. Evidently, low, broad, roomy RATS,
easily launched, and strong enough to breast
the toughest seas, should be substituted and
always kept in readiness. Had the Pacific
been sound or well supplied with boats, it Is
altogether probable that her crew and pas
sengers would be now living. The Waco
was loaded with three hundred cases of pc
troleum, which it had no right to carry, anO
to this criminality on the part of its owners
Is due the awful calamity. "Going down tc
the sea in ships' is perilous at the best, snC
among the many reform movements OF the
day there is none more importunate thar
one which would bring about Legislation
compelling the destruction of unsesworthy
vessels, the employment of skilled crews
and sound ships, and the furnishing of thu
best means of protection and escape from
accident.