The Detroit times., 1914-07-28
SEA DISASTERS
SHOW NEED OF
NEW FOG RULES
Thousands of Lives Have Been
Lost Because Signals Now in
Use Are Confusing
NEW INTERNATIONAL CODE
SURE TO BE ADOPTED SOON
New Yorker Devised One Long
Ago, But Foreign Nations
Dropped Ii

NEW YORK, July -. The recent
series OF collisions caused u.s. tog II
sea, opening with the Empress Of
Ireland catastrophe which cost q
thousand lives and Coutiuuma with
the collision OF The Kaiser Wilhelm
IL. and the lncemOre and the ram
ming OF the New York by the Pre-
tOria, have once more brought arg
oLtly before public aattontiou q Ques
ton that has kseuly Interested mas
ter mariners for many years and has
been debated In an the seas Of The
world-the question OF rcylslDa the
international rules for fog signals 90
avoid confusion and togaa5.c q Ehlp
tc notify others of her approximate
course as well as her position
Under the present sSs'em rDI inter-
national rules as Well as the rules af
most nations governing their own In
land waters. which have been n
feet with slight notifications since
the seventies, a steamer under way
in fog is required 10 sound az ater.
walls OF one minute, one blast az bar
whistle II shells stopped and has NO
way upon her she must sound two
lasts
At the time OF the Empress 6t
Ireland disaster much was made OF
fact which has been iCplCr6a oN
many American sed captains for
many years that These signals are
identical with those given aE steamers
meetlng and wishing To pass. When
two steamers meet az sea- and are
passing near enough % involve risk
az collision one sounds one blast 0t
her whistle TO say i am directing nay
course 10 starbo8rd" The other then
puts her helm aport or else She stops
and toots her whistle soverai times %
show that for some reason she cam
not pass in the direction indicated II
on the other hand the first steamer
sounds two blasts, that means she Is
turning 10 port and the other must
turn accordingly or foot her whistle
by way Of protest
As long aEo as the early eighties
ship captains were calling the atten-
ton of the government authorities 70
the possible confusion Of these signals
with the fog signals In thick weather
and appealing 20 congress 10 take
steps TO effect a change Very IT.
tie attention was paid 70 these re-.
guests at first, but the matter was
cor tinually agitated in American
shipping circles, and when in 1889 an.
International marine conference was
called by treaty in Washington tO
consider the subject among others.
CT the lewiston OF the international
rules Of the road" the American del
egates were charged with the duty of
lringing up this question Of FOG sig.
nails
1t was then the unanimous opinion
of the American delegates that net
only was il desirable 70 alter the FOE
signals 10 prevent their being con-
fused with navigation signals bur
that ii was both practicable and de
sirable 10 adopt new code for
steamers in foe which would Indicate
the approximate course on which
they were steering
II was pointed ont that for hum
dreds Of years sailing ships in foc
have been signalling their approxi-
mate course. a sailing ship in fog on
the starboard tack sounds one blast
each minute on her fOrhorn. on the
port tack, two blasts, and running be.
fore the wind. three blasts Another
ship captain hearing this and know
ing the direction Of the wind can
calculate closely enough for all pos
sible purposes not only where the
stranger is relative to his own ship
but what course she Is making.
In comparison with this the din
Guilty OF q captain who hears
steamers whistle near him i'm a for
Is far more serious He hears the
whistle somewhere ont there on the
starboard bow But for all he knows
the ship which carries IL may be-
parallel with his own ship or right
across her bow And he knows the