The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-06-08

one asked why the quartermaster asked
for an ak, though in the next sentence Wit
ness Carpenter was very certain that the
ship was in no danger until three minutes
before she sank.
| And there is the testimony of Thomas
| Fries, seaman, who said he rushed to life
boat and began cutting off its canvas
covering, at which Mr.. Langhorne, the Sec
ond officer, ran up and called upon Fries
to give him the knife. All this was fifteen
minutes before the Colima gave her last
list to starboard, and while there was, ac-
cording to the testimony OF all the wit
nesses, the most perfect order prevailing
among the crew and officers. Mr.. Carpen-
ter was asked what he and the second
officer wanted of a lifeboat when no one
considered that the vessel was in the least
danger.
Was it the witness, Carpenter, or Fries
who testified, most inadvertently and IN
expectedly: Eyes, there was plenty of time
| to have saved the people--to have gotten
them into the boats and put off before she
! went down. Some did get into the boats,
| but they did not know how to manage
| them and were swamped in the sea?'
| The printed testimony will tell.
| But this was not the kind of testimony
that was wanted, and before the long hand
official reporter could get the words down
they were contradicted fatty by the clever
ness of the questioners, who finally
| brought the witness to admit, in general
terms, that everything possible was done
to save human life. And when the long
| hand report of the witness testimony
was read to him before he signed it those
words OF his about there being plenty OF
time to have saved the people were
omitted from it.
1t was Witness Carpenter who testified
eve were working to save the ship
not then another question stopped
him before he completed the sentence.
And when Witness Hansen was re.
called Inspector Talbot put the question
in this manner, ''Was it possible to have
set sail and have it stand in such a
galeT'
"No, sir" was the answer.
At one stage of the inquiry Attorney
McAllister, who had scrapbook of Han
sens testimony made before the com
pany's officials Thursday, suggested to In
| spector Talbot that he should ask his ques-
tons from the scrapbook. But Inspector
Talbot refused to do this.
Every reader may draw his own infer
ences from the facts of the inquiry. Per-
haps it was a fair and impartial investiga-
ton; perhaps it was not.
At any rate there are many important
witnesses who were not examined, and
who will not beNsummoned by the Federal
inspectors if they carry out the determine
ton expressed by them yesterday. At the
close of the session-when the inquiry was
adjourned until Monday afternoon-In-
spector Talbot was asked if some of the
passengers would not be examined.
"Oh, if they come here and want to tes-
tify we will be glad to hear them, of course, %
he answered. "But we shall not summon
any of them. AS they are not sailors they
could not be supposed to throw any light
upon what really caused this wreck
sBut there were six sailors on board who
4 have not been examined" was pointed out
| to the inspector. "Four of them are at the
Marine Hospital and two of them at the
Mare Island Navy-yard. Will none OF
these be examined 2"
'Not unless they come here and ask to