The Portland daily press., 1886-03-23
Collisions at Sea.
10 the Editor Of the Press:

To the Editor OF the Press:
lido not think the ''rule of the road" gov.
ernihg the conduct of steam and sailing YES
sells when in danger of collision gives suffi-
cient protection to steamships. My sympa-
thy is with the sailing vessels in the strug-
gle for business, but this question not OF
money only but of life. Ordinarily steam
ship is under better control than sailing
vessel, and the rule works, but at other times
as when emerging from fog or When mis-
take of Judgment in regard to the distance OF
lights brings a steam and sailing vessel SO
near together that the steamship cannot get
out of the way, then | would not allow, and
much less oblige the sailing vessel to MAIN
tain the right of way and sink the steamship.
With small steamers this rule may be all that
is desired, but ocean steamships have been
growing during the last thirty years, and
steamship like the Oregon cannot be turned
as abruptly or stopped so quickly as tie
Sarah Sands. / would not require less o. .
steamship than is required now to prevent
collisions and no man fit to command one
would do less or take unnecessary risks, but
when it is out of her power to prevent collis-
ion, | would not allow a sailing vessel to run
her down with impunity. | thought your cor
respondent NJ. I. N. betrayed a little of the
feeling of hostility existing between steam and
sailing vess els, and which makes the master
of the sailing vessela little more tenacious OF
his rights. The schooner which sunk the Tai
lap0osa had the right of way, but as she had
free wind she might have yielded this right,
and put her helm to port and gone clear.
Much fun has been made over the sinking
Of vol uoosa1 hU O coal 6rOOpr 1lIt n
700 ton schooner coal-laden can sink any ves-
sci afioat. When they strike an ocean steam
ship it is not a laughing matter. The sink
ing of the steamship Vile de Havre in mid
ocean by the Loeb Earn is well remembered.
That shocking disaster was. due to the mis-
take of the steamship in misiudging the dis
tance of the Loeb Earns light, a mistake
easily made. When the steamship discover
ed her error it was too late for her to get out
Of the way, and the sailing vessel crashed
into her, and sent her to the bottom with
most of her passengers and crew. AS was
shown at the time the Lock Earn might cas-,
lily have put her helm to the starboard ana
passed under steamers stern and would
have done had she been meeting SAILING
and not a steam vessel. 1t did not restore
life to any of those drowned passengers TO
say that the disaster was the fault OF tne
steamship. 1t must be remembered that
vessel turns, under the influence OF ner ruu- ~
der as sleigh slqes around co[nfb tbe on nivot
| on which she turns. II steamer WeIS coIll-
ing down Congress street and at Brown
street she should sight the Old City Hall as
| three-masted schooner going up it would be
| the duty of the steamship to get out OF the
| way. In putting her helm to port TO so
down Middle street.-The first effect on her
would be to swing her stern over against the
| Prebie House, thus putting herself right
across the course of the schooner and In
creasing her danger of being sunk. The
graater the length of the steamship the great
| er the peril. Is not this giving three
masted Schooner with eight or nine men toe
| much advantage over an ocean steamer with
| eight or nine hundred passengers.
Disasters will prabably occur on the ocean
as long as the water covers the sea- All we
can demand is that preventable disasters
shall be prevented. Water tight compart-
| ments or thicker plates will not make ocean
| navigation safe so long as there is "struetr'
| raj weakness" in the law F. ii. Z.