The Butler weekly times. (Butler, Mo.) 1881-1918, 1912-04-18
IS. o. s." SPELLS BIG MONEY

A Fortune h wea By the First Vesse
to Put . Hawser Aboard q Craft in
III Danger-Saves Lives and Pas.
II sage Money, Too.
II To the landsman it recalls the finest
| traditions of the sea when he reads a
heart stirring story like that of the
disaster to the White Star liner Titanic
and the efforts made by all the craft
within steaming distance to reach her
and effect rescue. He is apt to tell
himself that it is only on the sea that
unselfishness and heroism still exist
in this commercial age.
Here were vessels hundreds of miles
away turning out of their courses
when the wireless flashed to them the
IS. 0. S." call and racing for the
point of danger. Captains who were
using every pound of steam to main
tain their transatlantic schedules and
deliver precious freight and impatient
passengers at their destination turned
their ships prows from the beaten
path, with no thought of the thous-
ands of dollars of loss it meant to
their owners. What does the most |
precious merchandise and the most
timely market amount to when
weighed against thousand human
lives? Thus reasons the landsman.
A Race for-Salvage
Now, as matter of fact, human
nature at sea is not very different
from human nature in port, and sea
law is not so different from land law.
Both are very distinct touching the
rights of property and the CONNER
cial value of a human life. The
Titanic, not to put too fine point on
it, probably was the richest prize that
ever offered opportunities of salvage
since men went down to the sea in
ships-and rescued each other from
drowning. The Virginian, which
raced all night in the direction of the
IS. 0. S." call, was racing to save
life and property, but it also was
racing to beat the Carpatha in saving
it. To the vessel that first put
hawser aboard the Titanic it meant
lien against every pound of her cargo,
against every penny of the passage
money paid by her thirteen hundred :
and against the total value
Of her hull. The Virginian could
well afford to abandon her course to
make the race.
The principle of salvage has been
recognized in maritime law from the b
earliest times. There is good sized
fleet of stanch sea going tugs plying o.
the coast of every great maritime
country that count their yearly profits at
IN little else than salvage. They
push out from harbor in the teeth of or
storm and range the highways of
incoming vessels on the chance of of
'icking up disabled tow, and if one he
S brought into port with such assist
nee sea law always gives the salvor pc
he benefit of the doubt and holds err
hat the assisted craft could not other
wise have made haven. an
A Kind of Nautical Loot. VI
Salvage still is to sailormen what W.
Dot used to be to soldiers. CON- o
lercial salvage is almost as profit ,.,,
S sea prize to privateer in time g.; g..
+ war. Only, sea law gives the dis O.. c.
bled vessel this leeway, it takes no ~ ~
ccount of offered assistance if it is Y"
OF accepted, and if the crippled YES -.
81 makes port without taking a line ~,
board it makes no difference how Va, va,
ing the salvor stands by or how fer w, w.
ent his appeals to be permitted to 'og :
nd hand. -
Sea traditions? Sure, they furnish . 81 :;
me fine, inspiring sentiments, but : a.. :.
e loftiest of them are not always >''1 >
with the salving of vessels =
distress.-k. C. Star. "g