Evening star., 1934-09-16
FIRE-TRAP SHIPS MUST co;
MORRO CASTLE A LESSON
Officials of State and Marine Vow
Tragedy Must Not Ever
Be Repeated.

(Continued From First Page.)
actual cash equity in the MORO Castle
greater than that Of her owners, the
New York and Cuba Mail Steamship
Co. Indeed, totaling the moneys paid
for carrying mail to this ship and
adding to that the S2,700,00 still
owing to the Government on loans
for her construction, Uncle Sam has
paid out to this one company an
amount of money in excess Of that
used to build her.
And, instead of the $4,200,000 in
surance which it was originally re-
ported was carried on the ship, later
reports aver that there is only $780,
900, Of which Uncle Sans own Ship
ping Board Insurance Department is
carrying 100000.
Secretary Roper, as is customary,
moved promptly. He ordered an in
quiry opened in New York and dele
gated Dickinson N. Hoover of the
Bureau Of Navigation-and who, in
cidentally, was one of the honored
guests at the launching Of the MORO
Castle in 1930-to take charge OF it.
Keep Watch of Hearings.
Then he instructed the New York
counsel of the Shipping Board TO
closely watch the hearings. Later
he dispatched South Trimble, jr,
chairman of the Interdepartmental
Committee now investigating the
whole shipping system, to New York
to offer the departments full CO.
operation to District Attorney Martin
Conboy in his grand jury inquiry.
President Roosevelt, always in
tensely interested in maritime affairs,
kept close watch on developments
from the time the disaster occurred.
Then he announced that he would
ask the next Congress for legislation
to assure that not only would ships
be of metallic or -inflammable
construction throughout, but that
furniture and fixtures and even
draperies be mandatorily fireproofed.
That this definite action will be
Forthcoming seems assured; for OBJ
viously there can be no objection to
1t, officials say.
Safety Trail Grim One.
1t has been a grim and curious trail,
this one followed by the American
people in their pursuit of safety on
land and sea. 1t has included a long
series of disasters and a heavy toll OF
human life.
1t took the Bridgeport. Conn, train
catastrophe to bring about steel in
stead of inflammable wooden railway
cars.
1t took the Iroquois fire in Chicago
to bring fire curtains and fireproofed
scenery and decorations to theaters.
Similar tragedies in factories, office
buildings and tenements brought the
automatic sprinkler system, steel and
concrete construction and other aids.
Frequent train wrecks resulted in
adoption of air brakes in the early
days and of the automatic block sys-
TEN in later periods. Step by step, the
safety process has been taken, and
still is.
Sea Disasters Similar.
On sea, likewise a series of disasters
had similar results. The Eastland,
which turned over at her dock on a
holiday in Chicago, is said to have
instigated the adoption Of double bot
toms and ballast tanks.
The old cork life preserver disap-
peared after the Gen. Slocum hor-
ror. Watertight bulkheads came into
being following the fatal kiss of the
Titanic and the iceberg. Fog col
lisions brought about new compasses
and signaling apparatus. The radio
compass arrived likewise and has kept
many a vessel off rockbound coasts.
And yet, while shipwreck and fire
are twin specters of the seas, we have
been more prone to consider the first
rather than the last-perhaps because
while there have been thousands OF
ships burned at sea, few lives have
been lost in comparison with those
who died otherwise.
Fire Usually Less Fatal.
The MORO Castle type of tragedy Is
new to us. Every one has read OF
fires in ships at sea, but somehow they
always either put them out or the
ships made port safely. True, the
CITY of Honolulu burned in mid-Pa-
cific years ago, but the passengers
thereon gaily embarked in lifeboats
and some of them even held Roman
holiday as the flames leaped into the
sky. It was a beautiful night; the
moon was out; no one even was
blistered, and there was great qulp-
ming at the expense OF two lucKless
newspaper men who few all the way
ont from land to make their pic
tures of the burning ship, and, after
making the pictures, discovered tney
were out of gas and had to await
rescue, too. ~ -. tho
latest aids to navigation She was CLe
cuiuination of the progress Oh Une
shinbuilding art since the days Wheh
the FIRST iron ships were simply nuns
cremmed full of wooden inner struc-
tlre.
Once Called Miracle Ship"
All her decks were of steel. There
were nine steel bulkheads across ner'
All deck houses, the bridge, radio room
bulwarks, we're of steel. In 1act' Iiie
whole basic structure was OF steel, SO
much so that in recounting her maiden
trip shipping magazines dubbed her
the Miracle Ship" and SOUNDED her
praises to the skies.
Every practical safety feature
known to the shipbuilding art mas
been applied" said the Marine Review,
every modern device and apparatus
for aiding navigation and the safety OF
life and cargo are installed" averred
the Marine Journal.
Fire fighting equipment? Ger
tainly! Quoting the Marine Journai
again:
Throughout all passenger ana ere"
spaces, storerooms and other depart
ments, an electrical f1re-alarm system
will indicate the presence OF flre on a
centralized panel in the pilot house
Fire doors in fre-screen bulkheads'
hose chemical extinguishers and
watchman's clock system guarantee
every known safeguard"
Safeguards Awaited Naught.
Yet nine days ago little fire de-