Glasgow Courier. — 1850-09-05 (Glasgow, Strathclyde, Scotland)

THE TRIAL OF THE ORION OFFICERS. (Frox the Mu..)  The verdict cannot but be accepted by the public urn* satisfactory. The persons in charge of such vessels as tie Orion must be made to feel most keenly, that if they neglect the important duties of their charge, they are criminally responsible to the laws of their country. There is net single day throughout the year on which many thousand lives are not entrusted to the keeping of such men as lag Henderson, whether on the rivers or channels of these Islands. In some instances—as, for example on the short but uncertain passage between the French and English math —the officers in command of the steam-ships are models d capacity and attention to their duties; but on many other stations a very different state of things prevails. It might be supposed that the interest of the owners would supply a motive sufficiently strong for the selection of enia. petent persons to place in command of their ships. Pr. tically this has not been found to be a sufficient guar. antee. An accident happens—if the circumstances connected with it are of a very heinous character, it is perhaps sent up for trial, the captain is arraigned for manslaughter, and probably acquitted, or: if found guilty, he escapes sith an admonition from the judge and a merely nominal set. tence. Such has been the usual practice in England, bat the Scotch lawyers have acted with a better judgment, end with a more provident care for the publie safety. it it clear enough that the officers of the Orion had no intention of murdering the passengers on board their ship, but whet they were really guilty of was a "culpable and reales' neglect of a most important duty, upon the suitable die. charge of which the lives of many of their fellow-ern. tures depended. Of this they have been convicted, aid certainly the sentence does not err on the side of se. verity. With such facts as these before us, we tits well wonder at the discussion which took place during the progress through Parliament of Mr. Labouchere's bill fdr the Improvement of the Merchant Navy. We were among the first to hail the introduction of any measure which seemed to offer something like a security for the competence and , character of masters in the mercantile marine, even Met  the abatements which had been rendered necessnry by the acrimonious opposition offered to the bill on the part of a clique of the shipowners. But even if it be true that a very low standard of qualification in a master is all that is to. quisite for short coasting runs, still a distinction should be made tretWeen the cases of passenger traffic and goods traffic It would be impossible to inquire too strictly into the cepa. city and steqffipessof every officer entrusted with the charge of steam-Ships which convey passengers from port to port It may be said that generally in the case of steam.boat accidents they are due rather to the carelessness than the incapacity of the person in command. hut if we look at the evidence given at the recent trial it would seem that Captain Henderson sinned in• both particulars. He cane m .  deck about one o'clock, when the vessel was being steered almost dead in shore under the direction of the second mate; he examined the compass and then went below. Captain Robinson, who had been for years engaged in making a hydrographic survey of Scotland for the Admiralty, was examined upon the trial, and stated distinctly to the Court that "no course consistent with safety would allow the vessel to be so near the coast." The obvious inference appears to be that Captain Henderson was as unlit for his post as he was neglectful of its duties.