The Nenana daily news., 1919-05-27
SOPHIA REPORT DISAPPOINTMENT
 ID AMERICANS

In so far as the Canadian gov ernment is concerned, the Sophia
 wreck is a closed incident. The re- port of the investigators was sub mitted to the Commons, at Ottawa, last month and was promptly tabled, the lawmakers apparently being en- tirely satisfied with the findings of the commission appointed to conduct the inquiry.
 i The report of the commission holds that Captain Locke, master Of the Canadian Pacific liner, was un- der no restraint, dictation or inter ference in the navigation of his shp, either from the owners of the vessel or their agents.
 ] The Princess Sophia, says the re- port, during the time she was wis ible appeared to be resting firmly on an even keel As near as can be aseertained, taking the wireless mes sages as a guide, the ship must have been forced off the reef about 5:10 p. m., October 25, it being then dark and the snowstorm at it's height, when she apparently found cred immediately, leaving no sur vivors. ! Next morning, the 26th, her posi- tion, says the report, was indicated by a few feet of her foremast pr)- jecting above the surface of the water, a short distance from the south end of the reef. There being no survivors it is entirely a matter of conjecture, according to the re- port, as to how she came to leave the reef after being firmly held thereon for some thirty-six hours, l during which there were two periods i after high water and each succeed 1 ing tide was getting appreciably 1 lower.
 Abnormal High Tide However, this much seems to be reasonably ascertainable from a i study of the meteorological and tidal conditions prevailing at the time in the North Pacific and in the vicinity of Vanderbilt reef, that there was an abnormally high tide arising from various causes. There had been a recent success sion of southeast gales in the North Pacific, says the report, causing an influx of water into all the narrow waters of this locality. The north easterly gale blowing at the time down the Lynn Canal when the Sophia struck would have a tendency to raise the level of the water at Vanderbilt Reef, in seeking an out let through and in the canal.
 Another fact that would con tribute to the ship being lost, is that her bottom, when she struck, may have been so damaged where she carried her oil fuel, as to cause the oil to leak out. When she struck it was almost the top of the high tide with a rising barometer, the reef being submerged at that period of the tide.
 Swept Off Reef.
 The margin of water required for absolute buoyaney, the ship being light, would not be very great. It seems, therefore, having regard to all these circumstances and condi tions, says the report, that at high water on the afternoon of the 25th iof October, the water rose to a sufficient level for her to become water-logged and she was swept off the narrow reef on which she had been resting, sinking immediately on the opposite side of the reef 1 to that on which she struck. ! The report says it was impossible ! to say whether any of the boats got away from the ship with pass engers aboard. It was remarked that the passengers included officers and crews of several Yukon steam boats and a number of men engaged in mining, and it is reasonable to assume that their views would prevail in forming any decision as to the desirability of landing the passengers during the afternoon of ] Octnher 24