The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1914-07-11
Tustenes Found Responsible
for the Wreck of the
Empress of Ireland
BOARD OF INQUIRY
MAKES IT'S REPORT
Question of Why the Ship Sank So
Quickly and the Terrible Conse-
qucnces Which Followed Is Not TAX
en- Up.


qucnces Which Followed Is Not TAX
en- Up.
QUEBEC, July IL. - The Collier
Storstad is held to blame for the En-
press of Ireland disaster in the find
ing of the wreck commission handed in
to-day.
The commission says the disaster
was due to the Storstad S change of
course.
The Empress was sunk in the St
Lawrence on May % with loss Of
more than 1000 lives.
The Golfers third officer found re
spcnsibIe is Alfred Tuftenes. He was
on the bridge when the crash occurred.
MIR. Tuftenes. says the finding, was
wrong and negligent in altering his
course IN the fog as he undoubtedly
did and he was wrong and negligent
in keeping the navigation of the yes
sci in his own hands and III failing to
call the captain when he saw the fog
coming on.
1t is not to he supposed that this
| disaster was in any way attributable
| to any special characteristic Of the St.
| Lawrence waterway 1t was a disas-
| ter which might have occurred any
where under similar circumstances.
Such is the conclusion at which we
/ have arrived on question as to who
was to blame for the disaster, but the
| question of much greater public in
| terest and Importance remains to be
| considered, namely, why the ship sank
| so quickly and what steps, if any. can
he taken to prevent the terrible conse-
| quences which so often follow such
| disasters.
The main difference between the two
stories Of the officers of the Empress
and Storstad is to be found in the dc
scription of the way in which the two
vessels We're approaching each other
at the time the Empress changed hel
| course.
The witnesses from the Storstad say
they were approaching so as to pass
red to red, while those from the En-
press of Ireland say they were ap
preaching so as to pass green to green
The stories are irreeoncilable and W,
have to determine which is the NOR,
probable. Time, distances and bear
] ing vary so much even in the evidence
from witnesses from the same shil
that it is impossible to rely or bas
conclusions upon them. We hav'
: thought it advisable to found our con
elusions almost entirely upon tn
events spoken of by the witnesses an,
upon their probable sequence in orde
/ to arrive at a solution of the diff
II Guilty.
@ Shortly after the ship came into tn
J. position of green to green, as elaine
l,JJ - %
5 claimed by Mr. Tuftenes, the fog shu
! them out from each other and it wa
Il while they were both enveloped in thi
; fog that the course of one or tn
:, other was changed and the collisio
! brought about
: After carefully weighing the evidenc
we have come to the conclusion tina
Mr. Tuftenes was mistaken if he SUI
posed that there was any intention 0
Isl the part of the Empress of Ireland t
Il, pass port to port or that she by ht
II lights manifested the intention of d,
II ing SO, but it appears to us to be
mistake which would have been of II
consequence if both ships had subs
4 quently kept their courses.
# From the evidence produced on beha
., of both vessels it is plain that before fc
and when they last saw each other thel
. was no risk Of collision if each kept h,
: course, therefore the question as to WI
= is to blame resolved itself into the sin
4 pie issue, namely, which of the shir
/ changed her course during the fog? Wit
4 reference to this issue it viii be CONVEX
/ lent to deal first with the evidence COZ
Ilnected with the Empress Of Ireland
There IS in our opinion, no ground t
saving that the course of the Empress
Ireland was ever changed in that Il
wheel was wifully moved, but as Il
Ihearing proceeded another explanatic
was propounded, namely, that the vess
/ changed her course not by reason Of al
] wiful alteration Of her wheel, but in 60
| sequence of some uncomfortable movemer
which was accounted for at one time
1.-THE hypothesis that the steering gear W
out Of order and at another time by t
theory that the area Of the rudder was
sufficient Evidence was called in in 81
III port Of this explanation.