16
h e ld t o b e t h e nobles t privi lege of th e English c i ti z en t hat of
repres en ting hi s fellow ci t i z ens Therefore I say t hat besid es
o u r duty to vindi c at e t h e pri n c ipl e o f c ivil and religious libe rt y
i t is most im por t ant t hat th e H ouse shoul d cons ider t h e mora l
I t is —as t he h en member for Po rt smouth is
e ffe c t o f this tes t
neith er m ore n or less than ri gh t i n saying—a purely t heist i c te s t
V iew ed as a t heisti c t es t i t embrac es no ac knowled gmen t of
Provi den c e of Divin e governmen t of responsibili t y or re t ri
I t i nvolves n ot hing b ut a bare and ab st ra c t admi ssion
b u t io n
a fo rm v oid of all pra c t i cal meani ng and con c er n Thi s is not a
w hol e som e b ut an u n w holesome les son
"et m ore I own
although I am now p erhaps going t o inj ure m y sel f by
bri n ging the name of M r Bradlaugh i n t o t his cont rove rsy
I am strongly of opinion t h a t t he p resen t cont rove rsy shoul d
I have no fear of A theism in this House
c o m e t o a c lose
Tru t h i s the e xpression of t he Divi ne m i nd an d however lit tl e
our fe eb le vision may be able t o dis cern t he means by whi ch G od
m ay provide f or i ts preservat ion , we m ay leave t he m at ter in His
hands and We may b e sure t hat a firm and courageous appli c ation
d of j ust i c e i s t he b est met hod we
of every pr i n c iple o f equi t y an
uen ce of t ru t h And I
c an adop t for t h e pr es e r va t ion and in"
m us t pain fully r e c or d my opinion t ha t grave inj ury has been
done t o religion in many m inds —n ot in i ns t ru ct ed minds b ut
i n those w hi c h are ill i nst ru ct ed or part ially ins t ru c t ed and
i n consequen c e of
w hi ch have large c lai m on o u r c on s iderat ion —
unhap pily b een t aken
G reat m is chief has
st eps whi c h h ave
l
b e en done in m any mind s t hrough t h e resis t an c e offered t o a m an
ele cted by t he const it u en cy of Nort h ampt on whi ch a port ion of
W hen t hey see t he
t h e people b elieve t o be u nj ust
o f reli gion an d t h e i nt e res t s of religio n os te nsibly asso ciat e d wi t h
w hat t hey are deeply conv i n c ed is i nj us t i c e
they are led t o
‘
c iat e d
ues
ions
ab
u
religion
i
t
l
f
w
hi
h
t
h
ey
see
o
be
asso
t
se
c
t
o
t
q
with inj us t i ce Un b elief at t ract s a sympat hy w hi c h i t woul d n ot
o therwise enj oy and t he upsh ot is t o impair t hos e convi c tion s
an d that religi ou s f ai t h
t h e loss of w hi c h I believe t o be t he
most inexpressible calami t y w hi ch can f all ei t he r up on a man or
upon a nat ion
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ALL E GE D O VE RL O A D IN G O
MR
.
"SHIPS
.
OH A M BE RL AIN S S PEE CH
’
TT
"
D E P TA TI O N
ON
TH E
O
8 TE
AND
TT T
"S H I PO WN E R S
M A R CH,
,
18 83,
TH E
C O R R E S P O N D E N C E
RE S
WI TH
"L TI N G
"
T H E R E R OM
,
"
O TH E R M A TTE R BE A R I N G O N TH E S BJ E CT
.
M
R
C H AM
.
B E R L AI N S
S H I P O W N ER
E xtract
S PE
’
f
8 ttt
tk e
on
S
T IM E S
m t/ze
ro
to the D E P "T AT I O N
E CH
f
M
til e
o
a r c/z,
M
t
h
9
1
883
art /t ,
I
O
"
.
883
.
Yesterday at the O ffices o f the Board of Trade Mr Cham
b erlain m ade an important speech to a deputation from the
Chamber of Shipping o f the United K ingd o m w ho had waited
upon him to propose alterations in the existing law
The
deputation introduced by Mr Tennant M P was from all parts
and various local Chambers were rep re
o f the United Kingdom
sented b y leading Shipowners and the Members of Parliament of the
boroughs and towns and among others there were present Lord
Claud Hamilton M P Mr Norwood M P Mr Whitley M P
Mr Gourley M P Mr H Corry M P Mr Alderman Lawrence
Mr S Williamson M P & c
M P
Mr LA I NG President of the Cham b er of S hipping o f the
United Kingdom stated that at the last Meeting of the Chamber
resolutions were passed concerni ng the right o f appeal from the
decisions o f Courts o f Inquiry the desertion of seamen the
advance note question and the load line question Mr Laing
expressed his hearty concurrence with the words spoken by the
President the night b e fore at the Mansion House as to the great
progress o f trade achieved with very little aid from the State and
with very little assistance from any Government and also the
“
President s remarks upon the beneficial results of the free play
allowed in this country to individual effort and private enterprise
Mr R ay b ourne of Glasgo w then addres sed the President on the
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su bj ect o f a ppeals being allowed from Courts o f Survey and Courts
of Inquiry and Mr Kennedy of Liverpool on the subj ects o f
the desertion o f seamen and advance notes adducing as an
instance of the trouble caused to Shipowners the case o f the
Cunard ship Bothnia fro m which I 7 men deserted a few days
ago Colonel Hill Mr Hall Mr Kennedy and Mr Glover also
spoke on the various subj ects in which Shipowners are interested
such as desertion powers of arrest and the load line tables
M r C HAM BE R L AI N commenced his reply by stating that he
was very glad to have the advantage of conferring with the dep u
tatio n whose representative character he thoroughly recognised
and he hoped that Mr Glover did not stand alone in saying that
such meetings were useful and were calculated to have a good
result "
to have the freest
o r his p art h e was most anxious
communication on all matters which came under the administration
o f the Board over which he had the honour to preside and if there
should be any di fference of Opinion it would only be a fter both
sides had been heard and after there had b een a complete dis
The gentlemen who had spoken had b een
c ussio n o f all points
very frank in their comments upon the administration o f the Board
and in their relation o f their complaints
o f Trade over shipping
and grievances Before he sat down they on their part would
find that he reciprocated their outspokenness and they should have
no fault to find with him o n the score o f frank and free speaking
As to the questions generally which they had b rought b efore him
he might point out that his position in regard to these questions
was o ne o f great impartiality He might state that a gr eater mistake
could not be made than to suppose that the Board o f Trade w as
prej udiced against any class o f questions and if the Board had any
ay o f saving trouble — it would
feeling it would naturally be in the w
certainly not be in the direction unnecessarily, to raise questions
which would have the e ffect o f drawing forth the opposition o f a
very powerful and organised interest The tendency o f a depart
m ent of the State was rather to avoid evils than to press their
remedy upon those to whom they were due and he could assure
the deputati o n that they were upon all occasions certain to be
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5
impartially received by the Department and to have their re pre
scu tations impartially considered Now with regard to the right
o f appeal the deputation had asked fo r
Mr R aymond seemed to
confuse two cases—the appeal in the Court of Survey and the
appeal against the Wreck Commissioner s decisions so far as these
decisi on s affect the Shipowner It had been pointed o ut that the
O ffi cers of a ship had the right o f appeal from the Wreck C o m
missioner s decision but the O wners had not and [re w as quite
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I nqui ry
But it was a very different thing when they sought to
have the right of appeal from the Court of Survey decision and t o
grant that would be to make almost futile the powers vested in the
Board o f Trade in regard to stopping ships Then Mr Kennedy
and Mr Glover had demurred to the approximate tables o f free
board and Mr Glover had suggested that the Board should adopt
Lloyd s Ta b les
Mr GL OV E R interrupting said t h at he suggested that no ships
which had been loaded according to Lloyd s Tables should be
stopped
Mr C HAM BE R L AI N — I do not see any practical difference b e
tween M r Glover s requirements and my view that not to stop ships
loaded according to Lloyd s Tables would be to su b stitute Lloyd s
Tab les for those in use b y the Board o f Trade In the present state
o f information of the Department I am not prepared to go so far
I agree that there are points to b e considered 3 and at present it is
impossible to lay down an absolutely satisfactory and definite load
line which shall b e compul sory in all cases I am very grateful to
Lloyd s for what they have d one and I believe that after a little
more experience their work will be extremely useful and suggestive ;
—
b ut I look upon Lloyd s Tables as I look upon ours as approximate
tab les but not to b e accepted as rules which cannot under any
circumstances be departed from
With reg ard to abolition o f
advance notes O n coming into o ffice I found a Bill drawn which
was strongly approved by my predecessor and by the various
representative organi zations of Shipowners and not merely by
philanthro pists and there fore I felt no hesitation in recommending
t
/
z
g
to gi ve tfie
ready
rz
o
a
eal
ro
a
d ecision i n til e Cou rt
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6
it to the House o f Co m mons b ut if it has no t p rove d satis factory
I am ready when opportunity o ffers to reconsider the question o f
With respect
the experience which has been subsequently gained
to the dese r tion o f seamen I understand t hat there is only o ne change
wh ich can b e satis factory to you and that is that the anomalous
power which was once possessed by Shipo wners alone o f all
—
e m pl oyers o f labour that o f ar b itrary arrest without warrant
s hould b e re—
en acte d All I can say is it will not be re enacted b y
me and I will have no part in restoring legislation which I believe
canno t by any possibility be j ustifi ed I know that the repeal of this
law has caused much inconvenience but do not let us e xaggerate
We have to re m ember that all new laws work with friction at first
Taking Cardi ff I find that du ring the
b ut let us l oo k to the fact s
ye ar
sea m en were shipped from that port and the desertions
which w er e
per cent in 1 8 8 1 werereduced to
in 1 8 8 2
I do not see why in the future these figures should not be further
redu c ed Then in P oplar London out of
men only 68
faile d to j oin and in another important port the failur es to j oin were
only
per cent In some of the places as many as 5 and 6 per
n
c
nt
ai
l
ed
to
j
oin
as
in
Liverpool
Greenock
Now
in
r
f
a
d
e
e
p
no oth er trad e is th ere so large a percentage o f wo rkmen who break
their contracts and the fact that this occurs in the shipping trad e
must arise from one o f two causes ; either the contracts are not
satisfactory and p rodu c e discontent or the class o f men engaged as
seamen in the mercantile marine must be the worst class o f ordin ary
English workmen I f it is the latter then we have to look fo r im
provemen t and I am rej oi c ed t o think t hat we have in our hands
the signs that the desired improvement is showing itsel f T his
D epartm en t is making e fforts as you kno w to promot e th ri ft and
pr ovi d ence among the seamen o f the mercantile marine and I may
m entio n that in 1 8 8 2 no less a sum than £ 65 r 00 0 from seamen
was remitted in the
passed through our hands and ,5
I can under
Board o f Trade warrants to the families o f seamen
stand that you think this so far satisfactory ; but that you ask What
are w e to do while the improvement is being bro ught about "Well
I w ou ld in r eply urge you to see what can b e d one with the po wer s
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have be fore you ask for the r e enactment of exceptional powers
against which you will have all the strength of the w orking classes
You Shipowners have as it is very great exceptional and extra
—
ordinary powers now powers which give you a right to convey a
m an forci b ly on board the ship when he has signed to work
No
employers in any other trade have any powers in regard to their
servants which at all resemble these It is true that seamen may
appeal to a Court 3 but the Court can or d er him to b e conveyed o n
b oard an d can also order that the cost s o f his prosecution shall be
a charge upon him Then to o a master when a man has j oined
his ship can make the man for feit his kit and in neglect o f duty a
man may b e brought be fore a Court and imprisoned These powers
—
app ear to me su fficient to make an example of the worst cases if
the powers are exercised Mention is made o f the Bothnia
desertion at Liverpool w hen 1 7 seam
en deserted in a body But
these m en were allowed to leave the ship with their kits go on the
tender and so go on shore If owners and masters will allo w men
to act thus and will not take the means in their power it is ridiculous
f o r them to come here and ask to have further exceptional powers
At Cardiff
N 0 law will help those who will not help themselves
men have been b rought b efore the Courts for not carryi ng o ut their
engagements and the convictions have had the results of lessening
th e desertions to the extent to which I have called your attention
I am now going o n to the question o f general principles which
pro b ably are of the greater public interest Mr Laing in reference
to these general principles quoted some words I used last night with
reference to the desirability o f limiting as far as possible the inter
ference of the State and I think the gentlemen I see before me are
a little under the impression that they are unduly harassed b y this
interference and that they would like to se e an end of it and be
free of control and supervision which in many cases they found to
be extremely irritating But the State has a right to take care that
proper precautions are taken for the due security of the lives and
property which are in you r charge
I might point out that the
inter ference of which you complain has at all events not hitherto
O f all tr ades the shipping tr ade
se ri ou sly a ffected you r pr os perity
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is the most prosperous In the last ten years over
tons
o f shipping have b een built and the shipping is increasing in an
advancing ratio for in 1 8 8 1 there was b uilt an additional tonnage
of
tons I do not think that this therefore can be an
unprofitable trade when capital is thus freely pouri ng into it But
I am sorry to say I must also tell you that interference has not
produced the result it was intended to produce in the security of the
lives for which you and we are in some degree responsible I have
h ad the loss o f li fe at sea taken o ut for the last six years and I am
s orry to say it is an increasing quantity I have excluded loss o f
life from stranding and collision because owners cannot be blamed
for that b ut from other cau ses o f all kinds I find that the average
during the five years from 1 8 7 7 to 1 8 8 1 was 3 6 8 vessels totally lost
and
lives per annum But in the last year— 1 8 8 2 — that
number increased for it was 54 8 ships and
lives 3 and if I add
the lives lost in vessels which were not totally c ast away namely
2
f
1
8
ships
I
get
a
rand
total
lives
lost
at
from
founder
o
s
e
a
35
g
ing casualties in the ships defective machinery explosions
overloading and so o n in a single twelvemonth O r to put
it in another way o f the total num b er o f seamen employed
in 60 met their death last year by drowning
N ow
o ne
—
are y ou gentlemen here present gentlemen o f knowledge and
—
exper i ence going t o tell me that in all these cases I would
mysel f say in a large proportion o f these cases— these terri b le
disasters —are the act of G o d for which no human b eing is
responsible " I do not b elieve it
In 1 8 8 2 there were 65
cases of missing and foundered vessels inquired into be fore
the Wreck Courts In many o f cours e th ere was no record as
—
they had gone to the b ottom with all hands nobody knows h ow
o r why 3 but in hal f the cases b rought before the Wreck Commis
sio ners it w as shown that the ships were either altogether overladen
dangerously laden ; and I am morally certain
o r at all events
after con ferring with men o f practical experience and after
communicating with the Wreck Commissioner that in a c on
pro portion o f these cases the o w ners are directly
sid erable
resp onsi ble for the loss inasmuch as with a view to car rying
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m o r e freight er of saving the expen se
of
r epairs t hey have
ent
the ships t o sea or allowed them to go in an utterly unseaworth y
condition 3 and the result has been that while they themselves
are insure d against all loss under the present Act they are a b le
to escape all crim inal liab ility for the men in their employ who
have been drowned and whose families have been ruined and
reduced to misery and destitution That is a serious state o f
things gentlemen and it is a state o f things which cannot be
allowed to go o n There is no man who occupies my position
who would feel it to be tolerable that this as I believe preventable
loss of li fe should continue unless at all events he has the
satisfaction o f knowing that he has exhausted every possi b le
means o f red ucing it and o f putting an end to the preventabl e
causes o f such disasters And now comes in a point to which
I desire
particularly to draw your attention — o f all these cases
of lost ships no owner has been made amenable to j ustic e "
O wners have been condemned to pay sm a
ll sums as costs b ut
nothing further has resulted I have had every case brought
b efore me and I have ordered prosecution in every case which
presented a chance of conviction
In most c ases l have b een
told that there is no chance o f a conviction and in no shape
has an owner been brought to j ustice It is proved that in
some cases the ships had gone to sea in an unseaworthy condition
that the owners had not satisfied th emselves as to the condition
of the ships but had appointed men to look after the ships who
knew nothing about their business — all this was proved ; b ut no
verdicts have been obtained I f the Wreck Commissioner imposes
a penalty upon a Shipowner who is b rought to the b ar o f criminal
j ustice it is said that the man is b eing punished twice over if he
should be convicted and so he gets off while if the Co m missioner
imposes no money penalty this is taken as a proo f that the case is
not o ne in whi ch there should be a conviction This is a most
unsatisfactory state o f things and a stigma rests upon the trade
through the action of the worst men in it You ask me to render
nugato ry the power the Board possesses of stopping ships going to
sea 3 but if this power had not been exercised I am convinced
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t he re w oul d have b een an enormous increase in the loss o f l ife
I admit that there is a certain amount o f unreason and hardship
in the stopping o f ships as they are going when a hint b e forehand
might have stopped the necessity of the action The cause o f this
has been the fear that the responsi b ility might have b een shifted
from the owners to the Department 3 b ut I have ordered a circular
to be issued requiring the Board o f Trade o ffi cers to give a hint
where they can see that a ship is likely to be overladen I hope
that this will work well and do away with all sense o f inj ustice I
desire to point out that with a vie w to legislation on these
“
questions I urged upon the gentlemen interested that a Shipping
Council should be established representing all the Shipowners
generally representing also the Under writers and representing the
Department This Council might be a Court o f Appeal in difficult
questions and a Court to give advice to the Board o f Trade upon
such questions for instance to the load line leading to some final
conclusion upon that quest i on I had no idea of framing an indict
ment against the whole o f the respectable shipping trade 3 but I
wanted all the respectable and worthy men in the trade to assrst i n
dealing with what is unworthy and disreputabl e and when I asked
your advice I looked to have your cordial and hearty support
But I cannot say that I have received what I looked for I made
this proposition to you gentlemen and I have he re an abstract o f
the replies which were mostly criticisms Liverpool o bj ected to
any legislation
The Clyde obj ected to the proposed Council ;
another obj ected to any load line whatever and asked the Board to
abolish the load line ; while the Chamber o f Shipping o f the
”
United Kingdom see no adequate necessity for any action
N o ade quate necessity when
No adequate necessity
lives
were sacrificed last year to preventable causes
I am ready now
I state again to receive suggestions and I will receive them with
an open and impartial mind But something must b e done for if the
pu b lic mind is directed to the existing state of things it will not rest
satisfied until such changes are made as will enable us to deal with
this deplorabl e condition o f things I propose now to repeat my
suggestion for a Council o f S hipping and I a m di spos ed to am en d
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it in any practical way We have receive d practical suggest ions
and I shall have to consider among other things ho w far the
Shipowner should be made liable to the families o f seamen wher e
the deaths of seamen are shown to b e due to the negligence or
otherwise o f the Shipowner Then something must b e done with
re gard to the question o f insurance ; for I hold it to b e a
discreditab le state o f things where men may lose li fe and property
and make a profit o ut o f it Befor e I make proposals o n these
subj ects in the H ouse of Com mons I will again appeal to yo u for
your advice and counsel But do not answer me with 72072 p ossumus
I urge you to consider the serious nature of the circumstances and
to give me your assistance —it is as much in your interest as in
mine—to remedy what is de fective I hope and believe that I
shall have your assistance but I shall not have discharged my
responsibility unless I make some proposals to deal with these
subj ects to the Legislature
Mr LAI NG in thanking Mr Chamberlain for his courteous
reception said he was sure the Chamber of Shipping would assist
the Department in the direction indicated ; and the deputatio n
withdrew
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E
x tract
f
m t he S P E E C H
f
D O N A L D K E N N ED ")
wN
O
A
E R s
f the A
O
C H AI R M
" TH E
L
IV
ER
P O OL
at
the A nnu a l
h eld
on
the 4 i h A
p
M
(
AN
S S O C IAT I O N ,
ssocia tion ,
o
the
o
ro
R
.
S H IP
M
eetin
g
r i l,
1
8 83
.
I am glad to be ab le to congratulate yo u on the increased
interest which is being taken in all shipping matters by Shipowners
here and throughout the country I think they are b ecoming alive
t o th e fact ( and not an hour t o o soon ) that if they desire to hav e
fair play and that consideration which is due to such an important
interest they themselves must in the first place see to it and next
take care that their representatives in Par liament are fully in formed
regardin g all shipping matt ers and that at least those Mem b ers
who represent maritime constituencies shall take an active and
ou
leading p art in all legislation that affects shipping interest s "
have no dou b t observ ed that at the last deputation to the Board
o f Trade referr e d to in the R eport the President Mr Cham b erlain
then made a speech which has b een the cause o f considerable
remark 3 an d as I had the honour to be one O f your representatives
perhaps expect me to say something
o n that occasion yo u may
ab out it I confess I was rather startled b y some o f the statements
in the speech and astonished at the conclusions founded o n such
statements 3 and I thought a reply was required Acting upon that
impression I almost at once applied through Mr Samuel Smith
o ne o f o ur City Mem b ers
w ho with Mr Whitley Lord Claud
Hamilton and other Mem b ers o f Parliament accompanied the
deputation to Mr Chamberlain for the data o n which he had
founded his conclusions
The right honourab le gentleman was
good enough to direct that ce rtain figures should be supplied to me
b y the Board o f Trade an d I have placed them before your Committee
for consideration
In the m eantime intimation had b een conveyed
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to me as a Member o f the Council o f the Chamber o f Shipping to
which this Association is affi liated that the Chamber intended to
reply to Mr Chamberlain as soon as they coul d get certain
in formation now in the hands o f the Governme nt printers which
fo r the present at least obviates the necessity of my dealing with
the speech in detail 3 but I think it my duty to you to say that
even granted the correctness of the figures S upplied I am sure I
only express the unanimous voice o f Shipowners throughout the
Kingdom in protest i ng agai nst Mr Chamberlain s implied assertion
that nearly all the seamen drowned at sea under o ur flag are
drowned through preventable causes and his insinuations that
the Shipowners are responsi b le for nearly all such causes
Applause
There
is
also
a
special
reference
Liverpool
in
t
o
)
(
the speech of the right honourable gentleman that I should
—
li k e to notice and it is this he complained of the coldness
which his proposal last year of a Shipping Council met from
all the large ports ours included and that w e added to o ur
reply that we did no t think fu rther shipping legislation necessary
Now gentlemen when I tell yo u that prior to the Merchant
Shipping Act o f 1 8 54 there were 1 9 statutes o n the subj ect and
that in and since 1 8 54 we have had 4 6 Merchant Shipping Acts for
o ur regulation which have most o f them been w orse than useless
for the purpose for which they were intended yo u will allow me
r espect fully to remark that I think the right honourab le gentleman
who I hope knew all about these 4 6 acts need not have b een very
—
much astonished at our reply ( H ear hear "
I
was
very
glad
o
t
)
‘
hear Mr Cham b erlain say in his speech that there could be no
greater mistake than t o suppose that the Board o f Trade was
O pposed to the shipping interest and that he himself always looked
at the questions connected with a quite impartial view That is as
it ought to be 3 but I regret very much to have to say and to say
it distinctly that there is a feeling becoming very general with all
Shipowners that it is per fectly useless going for a redress o f any
rievance
to
the
Board
o f Trade or to hope to get a change o f any
g
—
"
olicy
on
e
initiated
ther
Hear
hear
In
saying
this
I
hope
e
c
)
(
p
I t h as b e en my duty in your
I may no t be misunderstood
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interests to wa i t o n the present Pre sident of the B oard of T rad e
here and in London I have always b een received most co urteously
and I have been favourab ly impressed with the desire not only to
secure in formation b ut al so the evident wish not to press too
hardly on the shipping while protecting the public interest 3 b ut
there un fortunately the matter seemed to end
It ha d b een
merely an audience o f the Minister and generally nothing more
came o f it N o w I hav e a sort o f idea that the President of the
Board of Trade has himself come to the conclusion that these 4 6
Shipping Acts I have alluded to have no t b een very suc cess ful in
their results and that if there is to be any more shipping legislation
it must be o n very di ff erent lines and that at least the ad minis
tratio n Of it must be guided and dire c ted b y those whose practical
experience o f the subj ects they have to deal with would make their
decisions and j udgments resp ec te d J —( Hear hear "
If
that
is
s
o
)
then a Shipping Council would b e an unp rovement on the present
most unsatis factory state o f affairs 3 but to b e really useful it must
—
—
r
be a Council o Councils rather that w ould command the
confidence of Shipowners as well as the rest of the publi c —( Hear
hear
O ne would be required in each shipp i ng centre here and
elsewhere having full powers to deal with all shipping matters and
not overweighted with offi cials in the members composing the
Council Mr Chamberlain has asked that his next proposal for a
‘
Council should not be received as the last one was with uou
u
s
s
m
u
s
I
con
f
ess
I
rather
sympathise
with
the
awkward
position
o
p
in which the right honourab le gentleman is at present placed I
think and have long thought that it is most desirable in the interest
of the Shipowners who desire to do right and who form the great
maj ority that there should be some reasonable settlement o f the
load line question and I think I m ay promise gentlemen on your
behalf that when the amended proposals for a Shipping Council are
placed be fore us they will have a fair and respect ful consideration 3
and if on examination they are found to be such as will give
reasonable grounds O f working satis factorily and the prospect of
h elping to reduce the loss of life at sea they will have o ur cordial
support — jH ear hear
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16
f
8
number of lives lost at sea during 1 8 8 1 2 was
o
3
57
these lives were ho w ever lost from strand ings and collisions
which b eing deducted leaves
lives lost or practically the
18
o
u
sam e total
which
stated
the
Deputation
o
t
y
)
I cannot however su ffi c iently express to you the su rprise o f
the Executive Council when they found upon examination o f the
o fficial returns contained in the Wreck R egister for 1 8 8 1 2 that
o
u
u
had
in
order
to
make
o
u
t
the
heavy
indictment
which
o
y
y
laid to the charge o f British Shipowners included in the
lives lost firstly 59 2 lives lost in fishing boats which is a class
Shipow ners as the term is ordinarily
o f property with which
understood in this country have nothing whatever to do Not
only so b ut you have the Executive Council further find included
in the
lives lost no fewer than 7 0 1 lives lost in vessels
registered in Indian and Colonial ports "
o r the loss o f these 7 0 1
lives as also for the 59 2 lives lost in fishing boats in 1 8 8 1 2 the
Executive Council have no hesitatio n in saying that British Ship
owners were no more responsible than you yoursel f were Deducting
however as I am fully entitled to do these figures o f 7 0 1 and 59 2
respectively from the total o f
lives lost in 1 8 8 1 2 I find
that the total loss o f life which by any possibility could be laid to
the charge of British Shipowners such as those wh o m you addressed
with so much severity upon the 8 th March was not
1 8 but
And of this num ber 2 3 5 lives were lost in vessels partially wr ecked
thus virtually reducing the number o f lives to
T o anyone however w ho is practically acquainted with shipping
matters it is at once o b vious that a large proportion of even these
lives must have been lost by causes over which no S hipowner
could possibl y have any control What light do the tables which
have been this month issued from your department throw upon
the causes o f the disasters which b efell British shi ps in 1 88 1 2
—
Permit me in answer to re fer you to one o f them ti e to
Tab le 2 7 o f the Wreck R egister for 1 88 1 2
That tab le shows
that o ut of 7 6 1 total losses of British vessels ( excluding collisio ns )
”
d efects in ship s equipments
abroad 3 4 losses arose from
”
“
“
2 2 0 from
unknown causes and 6 from overload ing or in
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17
ve ssels ( out of 7 6 1 ) were lost by causes for which a Ship
owner might possibly b e held responsible You will observe that
f
for
the
sake
o
my
argument
I
am
taking
the
worst
possible
case
(
)
which could b e made out against Shipowners b y assuming that
“
the 2 2 0 vessels which were lost from unknown causes were
an incredible supposition — lost in every instance from causes
which a Shipowner could have controlled But what does Table
2 7 S how as to the causes o f the loss of the remainder o f the
70 1
vessels referred to in it " It shows that the loss o f 3 0 0 o f that
“
number occurred through stress o f weather ; 1 0 7 from
causes
connected with navigation and seamanship ( or in other words
“
“
2 8 from
from
mistakes
inevita b le
o f o fficers or crew ) ;
“
“
accident ; 2 7 from contact with ice ; 4 from striking upon
”
“
"
want of pilot ; 3 from
oating or sunken vessels 3 1 from
”
“
1 6 from
want o f lights o r buoys o n coasts and S hoals 3
from
spontaneou s combustion
o f coal o r other cargoes ;
1
“
“
fires ;
and 2 from
explosions
In
scuttling 3 1 2 from
other words 50 1 total l osses o ut o f 7 6 1 occurred from causes
which it was impossible for any Shipowner to control
You will also not fail to remark in the ab ove catego ry that the
weather is held responsible for the loss o f no fewer than 3 0 0 out of
the 7 6 1 vessels (referred to in Table 2 7 as being totally lost)
which fact leads me to observe that if the loss o f life in 1 8 8 1 2
was exceptionally heavy it was the exceptional severity o f the
weather and not the overloading of ships which was responsible
It is notorious indeed that the weather in the latter end
for it
and the beginning o f 1 8 8 2 was o f exceptional severity
of 1 8 8 1
Indeed the returns in the Wreck R egister under review co nclusively
establish this Allow me as an illustration o f this fact to direct
your attention to the loss o f life in fishing b oats in the five years
from 1 8 7 7 8 to 1 8 8 1 2 In 1 8 7 7 8 9 3 fisherman lost their lives
at sea ; in 1 8 7 8 9 9 6 ; in 1 8 7 9 8 0 7 9 3 in 1 8 8 0 1 3 3 4 ; whilst in
as I have already had occasion to point o ut to you no
1 88 1 2
No more conclusive
fewer than 5 9 2 fishermen were lost at sea
proof o f the exceptional severity o f th e weather in 1 8 8 1 2 can I
su b mit possibly be afforded than is to b e found in the fact th at in
all, 2 6 0
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the year 1 8 7 9 8 0 only 7 9 fishermen lost their lives at sea as
compared with 59 2 in the year 1 88 1 2
I need not say how deeply Shipowners regr et that there should
be any loss o f life at sea ; but seeing the magnitude of our national
maritime enterprise and the perils to which it is necessarily exposed
a large annual loss o f li fe is I fear inevitable from carrying o n that
b usiness j ust as a large loss o f life is inevitable o n railways in
mines and in manu facturing operations generally
Having now I trust disposed o f the serious allegations which you
brought against British Shipo w ners in your speech to the Deputation
upon the 8 th March I have next to express to you the regret with
which the Executive Council then heard your refusal to gr ant the
very moderate request which the Deputation made to you viz
That you should dir ect the Surveyors O f the Board o f Trade not to
stop vessels from proceeding to sea which were loaded w ithin the
limits o f Lloyd s Tables of free b oard
Had yo u consented to accept the suggestion upon this matter
which this Cham b er then tendered to you the e ffect of your doing
so would have been to strike at once—by the direct and indirect
effects of the measure—at all dangerous loading It was more over
a remedy which yo u could have applied at once 3 which you could
also at any time have at once discontinued if you found upon trial
that it did not work well 3 it was a remedy which did not require to
be sanctioned b y Act of Parliament —indeed a simple circular to the
Board of Trade Surveyors was all that was needed to give it practical
e ffect Upon the other hand your re fusal to accept the suggestion
means very probably a relegation of the settlement o f the load line
question to some possi b ly distant date I t means also practically
the re fusal by you o f the assistance o f such a body as Lloyd s
—
egister
a b ody which enj oys to no ordinary extent the confidence
R
—
Shipowners
Merchants
and
Underwriters
as well as of the
of
proffered help o f this Cham b er in e ff ecting a settlement o f the vexed
question o f the load line Your refusal to act upon the suggestion
upon this matter which the Deputation made to yo u is the Executive
C ouncil desire me to state somewhat hard to reconcile with th e
stat em ents which you have more than once both publicly and
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19
privately made to the e ff ect that you were most anxious to secure
the c o Operation o f Shipowners in settling the di fficult question O f the
load—
line as also other important matters affecting the Shipping
interest
In conclusion I am desired b y the Executive Council to express
to you the satisfaction with which the Deputation learned from you
”
that you were on the first opportunity quite ready to propose an
alteration in the present state of the law so as to give to Shipowners
a right of appeal from the d ecisions o f the Wreck Commissioners
Court ; also that the question of the abolition o f advance notes to
“
seamen should be reconsidered by you ; and finally that you
were prepared to issue a circular to the o fficers of the Board o f
Trade informing them that they might in future hint to owners
o f vessels in cases where vessels are likely to b e overladen that the
Board of Trade will interfere instead o f as heretofore permitting
such vessels to be fully loaded and make ready for sea be fore any
intimation is given to the Shipowner that his vess el would be
stopped
These undertakings upon your part will the Executive Council
earnestly trust b e carried into effect by you a t the ear liest
possible pe riod
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I have the honour
to
be , Sir
,
Your most obedient Servant
J AM E S L AI NG
“
Board of Trade
,
S
.
W April
.
,
— I have to acknowledge the receipt
,
,
P resident
0
3 ,
.
883
1
of
.
your letter o f
the 2 7 th instant relative to the statistics of the loss o f li fe at sea
which I quoted when addressing the deputation from the Chamber
o f Shipping of the United Kingdom at the Board o f Trade upon
the 8 th March last I do not propose to comment o n the tone
which you have seen fit to adopt in your communication The
subj ect is of so much importance that I am willing to dismiss all
“
S IR
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,
,
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.
20
personal considerations and without fu rther obse rvatio n I co m e at
once to the main poi n
t Your letter assumes that I charged British
S hipowners with causing the loss by overloading o f a large
proportion o f the
lives lost at sea in 1 8 8 2 and your reply
consists in showing that the large maj ority of these losses was due
You have misapprehended altogether the b earing
to other causes
and your ans w er
o f the facts which I laid before the deputation
does not impeach the accuracy o f my statements nor does it in any
way qualify the in ferences which are to b e drawn from them I
desired in the first place to call your attention to the magnitude o f
the disasters which it has been my pain ful duty to chronicle during
the past twelve months I pointed o u t that the total loss ( excluding
lives from 1 8 7 7
stran d ings and collisio ns ) which had averaged
to 1 8 8 1 had risen to
in 1 8 8 2 I included the loss in fishing
vessels in this total 3 but if I had excluded them the proportion
s the respective figures in this
would have been ne arly the sam e a
case would have been
for the five years 1 8 7 7 1 88 1 and
—
n
1
8
2
o
t
o
for the year 8
I went
ask the deputation all S hipowners
‘
—
and men o f large practical experience wh ether in all these cases
—I would almost say in a large proportion o f these cases —these
terri b le disasters were th e ac t of God for which no h uman bei ng is
responsi b le
Your committee have had seven weeks to consider
this question Why have the ynot answered it " You in form me
that 2 3 5 lives were lost in vessels partially wrecked b ut this is only
a repetition of my statement to the deputation and you d o not
venture to say that none o f these 2 3 5 deaths were due to preventa b le
causes You say that the Wreck R egister shows that of 7 0 1 ship
wrecks 3 00 were due to stress of weather b ut you do not pretend
that if all ships were well found well manned and properly laden
b ad weather would cause anything approaching to the num b er of
casualties which have now unfortunately to be ascribed to this
cause
O f the other headings under which loss o f ships and
crews is registered I h ave also to point o ut that spontaneous
combustion explos ions and fires may be and Often are d ue to the
neglect o f proper precaution In my remarks to the deputation
from your Cham b er I pointed o ut that the Inquiries in the Wreck
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21
C ourt sho w ed that
cases investigated hal f w ere cas es of
ship s either overladen or dangerously laden
I f this is the p ro
portion in regard to o ne preventable cause it may be feared
that a similar ratio prevails i n other i nstances ; and I am there fore
compelled a fter the fullest re flection to repeat the statement
which I made to the deputation after conference with the Wreck
‘
Commissioner viz
That in a considerab le proportion o f these
cases the owners are directly responsible for the loss inasmuch as
with a view to earning more freight or to save the expense o f
repairs they have sent their S hips to sea or they have allowed them
to go to sea in an utterly un seaworthy condition
When I couple
this state o f things with the fact t hat the loss o f life and property
to which I have found it my duty to call attention may b e and in a
maj ority o f cases actually is attended with profit to the individual
owners concerned who frequently gain more by the insurance than
they could earn b y a safe and prosperous voyage 3 and when I call
to mind that no comp ensation is provided for the families o f the
seamen whose l ives have been sacrificed in the reckless pursuit O f
an unholy gain I am confirmed in the determination which I
expressed to your deputation to do all that lies in my power to call
the attention o f the country and the Legislature to the necessity
for such changes in the law as will adequately meet the urgent
requirements o f the case I am glad to say that since the interview
and the full report o f it which appeared in
o f the 8 th o f March
the papers I have received many communications from some O f
the largest and most respectable S hipowners of the kingdom
confirming from their personal experience the statements which I
made o n that occasion and tendering their support to any efforts
to remove the stigma which now lies on o ne o f the most important
and in assuring you of my intention to carry
o f British industries
into e ff ect the pledges which I gave to the deputation and to which
you re fer in your letter I beg also to confirm my intention
to prepare a Bill to carry o ut those other changes of the law
which seems to me absolutely necessary to diminish the preventable
causes o f loss of life at sea Before closing this letter there
is o ne other point in your reply to which I must advert You are
out o f
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22
‘
p l ease d to expr es s regret at my re fusal to gr ant the ve ry mo d erate
request which the deputation made viz that I should direct the
surveyors o f the Board of Trade not to stop vessels loaded within
the limits of Lloyd s Tab les of free b oard
I have in the first place
to re fer you to the ver b atim report o f the proceed ings from which
f
r
will
see
that
Mr
Glover
speaking
your
Chamber
distinctly
o
u
o
y
disclaimed the suggestion that the Board o f Trade should for
practical purposes adopt the tables p ublished b y Lloyd s I have
further to say that while I am ready to acknowledge the se rvice
performed by Lloyd s in attempting to fix a load line —a feat which
until recently your ow n Cham b er and ma ny S hipowners have declare d
to be impossible — I am not prepared to say that the rules they have
laid down su fficiently guarantee the safety o f all ships I have
however decided with a view to obtainin g further information and
for purposes of comparison to establish a register of all ships which
will S how the actual load line adopted by the owner the load line
as assigned by Lloyd s Tables and the load line as assigned by the
Board of Trade Tables As soon as the register is advan ced towards
completion we shall have a mass o f information o f the most
instructive character which will I believe enab le us with some
confidence to estimate the value o f what has already been do ne and
the necessity for further regulations The in formation o b tained will
be at all times acces si b le to your Chamber and to any other pe rsons
interested in the solut i on of this di ffi cult question
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I
am sir
,
“
Your o b edient servant
A
M
E
S
J
LA I NG
P resid ent
of
,
E sq
of
the
.
,
th e C hamb e r of
"nit
ed
,
C
H
A
M
B
E
R
L
AI
N
J
Signed
)
(
“
,
S hi p p ing
Kingd om
"
.
”
.
24
u h as those fo r which no human b eing is
”
responsi b le " My answer was ( and is) that the great maj ority of
the exceptional losses which un fortunately occurred during 1 8 8 1 8 2
we r e caused by the extraordinary severity o f the weather in 1 8 8 1 8 2
No stronger proof o f the correctness o f my statement upon this
matter is as I remarked to you in my last letter to b e found than
by comparing the loss o f life at sea in fishing boats in the two years
In the year 1 8 7 9 8 0 only 7 9 fishermen were
1 8 7 9 8 0 and 1 8 8 1 8 2
drowned at se a 3 in the year 1 8 8 1 8 2 that number rose to no fewer
than 5 9 2
As regards your statement to the deputation ( to which you
“
re fer in your letter o f the 3 oth April ) that th e Inqu iries in the
Wreck Court showed that out o f 6 5 cases investigated half were
cases o f ships either overladen or dangerously laden I have to
remark t hat if this be the case how came it that with the powers
which the Board o f Trade already possess of stopping vessels
“
overladen or dangerously laden these vessels were nevertheless
permitted to go to sea " With respect also to your remark that
“
losses caused b y sp ontaneous combustion explosions and fir es
may be and o ften are due to the neglect o f proper precautions
I have to draw your attention to th e fact that the Board o f Trade
have laid down rules with a view o f preventing such accid ents and
which are enforced o n board o f all ships under the Britis h "
If
ag
therefore these explosions & c d o unfortunately happen it would
certainly seem that Shipowners (having complied with the Board o f
Trade regulations ) may fairly claim to have used all reaso nable
means to prevent their occurrence
The o ffi cial returns from your department do not show that
many vessels are lost through overloading but to whatever extent
overloading may exist I beg to assure you that it is so prej udicial
to the interests o f Shipowners generally that in self defence they are
strongly opposed to it —no better p ro o f o f which could be given
than the practical suggestion with regard to Lloyd s Tables o f
reeboard which the deputation tendered to you upon the 8 th
"
March last and which you rej ected
“
In y our letter of the 3 oth ult you refer to the tone which I
1
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had seen fit to adopt in my letter to you o f the 2 7 th ult Permit
me to say that my only desire in addressing you was to elucidate
facts and to deal with the su bj ect in such a manner as its importance
deserved
In closing the correspondence which I have had the honour o f
h olding with you upon the subj ect of your speech to the deputation
ecutive Council regret
o n the 8 th March last I must add that the E x
that you should have seen fit to use in your letter o f the 3 oth ult
“
such a phrase as the reckless pu r suit o f unholy gain as applied
to such a b ody as the Shipowners o f the United Kingdom
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I have the honour
to
be Sir
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Your m ost obedient Servant
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J A M E S L A I NG
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P resident
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E
f
xtract
m
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ro
S H IP P I N G
t
M
h
7
f
o
M ER
AN D
a
y
I
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CAN T I L
SS3
E GA"
ET T E ,
”
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the 9th o f March last Mr Cham b erlain in his reply to
the deputation fro m the Cha mb er o f Shipping o f the United
Kingdom startled the shipping community by the assertion that
lives were lost at sea last yearthrough causes which in the
large proportion o f cases are preventable
He emphatically
accused the general body o f Shipowners with b eing directly
responsible for much o f this loss of li fe in consequence o f their
“
vessels having been sent or allowed to go to sea overladen or at
“
all events dangerously laden and
in an utterly unseawo rthy
”
“
condition
said Mr Chamberlain
A re you going to tell me
“
—
that a large proportion of these cases these terrible disasters
are the act o f God fo r which n o human b eing is responsible " I
do not believe it
The motive for which he charged Shipowners
“
with acting in this criminal manner was the desire o f earning more
freight or o f saving the expen se of repairs o r as Mr Chamberlain
“
has since put it the reckless pursuit of an unholy gain
This is
a ser ious and dreadful charge to make against any class o f men
and would not we should have thought have been made lightly or
without some j ustification by o ne in Mr Chamberlain s position
The first question which naturally arises wi th reference to it is
whether it can possibly b e true Mr J ames Laing the President
o f the Chamber o f S hipping in his letter to Mr Chamberlain of the
stoutly denies the truth o f the charges and states that they
2 7 th ult
are disproved by the o fficial figures issued last month by the Board o f
Tra d e We also pointed out o n the z rst April , that a careful and
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un b iassed analysis of thes e figures ab solutely contravenes the sweep
ing asse rtion that a large num b er of the lives lost at sea had b een
sacrificed in overladen vessels Mr Chamberlain stated that 54 8
British ships were totally lost last year excluding cases of stranding
an d collision and
lives in them A further number of 2 3 5
lives were lost in ships not totally wrecked Mr Laing points out
that 7 0 1 out o f the
lives were lost in vessels registered in
Indian and Colonial ports and an additional 59 2 in fishing boats
making a deduction o f
for losses for which it is clear British
Shipowners are no more responsi ble than Mr Chamberlain him sel f
The number o f lives lost in British vessels which are not mere
fishing b oats is thus reduced at once by nearly one hal f Mr Laing
goes on to say that it is obvious to any one practically acquainted
with shipping matters that a large proportion even o f the remaining
lives —using round numbers —must have been lost b y causes
over which no Shipowner could possi bly have any control 3 and the
tables issued by the Board of Trade show clearly that this is the
case O ut o f 44 4 British ships totally lost on the coasts o f the
United Kingdom in 1 8 8 1 8 2 from all causes except collision 2 7 6
’
are recorded to have been due to stress of weath er 5 5 to causes
connected with navigation and seamanship 5 5 to errors of master or
crew 1 4 to inevitable accident and 4 only to overloading Ther e
were 7 6 1 total losses of British vessels abroad d uring the same year
not including collisions and 3 0 0 o f these are Officially attributed to
causes connected with the weather 1 0 7 to bad navigation or
seamanship 2 8 to inevitable accident 2 7 to contact with ice and
2 2 0 to unknown causes
O nly six are attributed to overloading
T h e tab les show that a large proportion of th e foundered and
missing vessels were in b allast o r laden with cargoes of a light nature
t hat could not have immersed them deeply so that no suspicion of
ove rloading could rest upon many of the losses referred to The
general cause O f loss whether it was the act o f God as Mr
“
Chamberlain disbelieves or the unholy act o f man as he asserts
seems to have Operated quite impartially upon S hips in the most
dissimilar conditions of lading Whether as regards vessels carrying
heavy or light cargoes or in b allast the year I 8S I 8 2 was exceptionally
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fatal
to life and property at sea and this brings us to Mr
Cham b erlain s question as to the reason why the large number of
8
ships
and
lives
were
totally
lost
last
year
when
the
average
3
54
o f the preceding five years only amounted to a total loss o f 3 68
ships and
lives N 0 one wou l d imagine even if the Board
o f Trade returns did not conclusively S ho w how few losses could be
attributed to overloading that the practice o f it could have suddenly
increased in this particular year so as to account for the greater
number of losses It will be remem b ered that the year 1 8 8 1 2 was
remarkable not only for numerous and heavy losses at sea but for
weather such as had scarcely ever been known before O ur coasts
an d seas were ravaged b y extraordinary storms at various times and
particularly during the autumn Seven ty eight vessels with crews
making an aggregate o f 660 lives which sail e d at the end of
Septem b er or beginning of O ctober 1 8 8 1 — dates which would bring
them within the fatal in "
uence o f one of the most fearful hurricanes
that has been known in these latitudes for hal f a century— were
never afterwards heard o f A large proportion o f these vessels were
in ballast
This alone will S how h ow the exceptional character o f
the weather in "
uenced the returns for the year 1 8 8 1 2 and that it
applies to ships i n all conditions o f lading and even in b allast It
is impossib le to attri b ute the I ncrease of loss to overloading The
Board of Trade retum s show it to be entirely indepen d ent o f how the
ships were loaded b ut t o be directly connected with abnormal
severity of weather
Mr Chamberlain in his speech to the
deputation from the Chamber o f Shipping and again in his reply to
Mr Laing s letter emphasises his accusations o f general overloading
by the statement that after consultation with the Wreck C o m
missioner he is satisfied that o ut o f 65 cases investigated half were
cases o f ships either overladen o r dangerously laden It is impossible
to appreciate the value of this statement seeing that the rulings o f
the Wreck Courts which it is to be p ersumed were b ased upon the
eviden c e taken do no t bear 1t out If the Wreck Commissioner
has suffi cient grounds for this Opinion it is diffi cult to un d erstand
why he di d not give e ffect to it in his rulings 3 and if the grounds
were not good enough to entitle him to do this it is still more
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di fficult to
how it can j ustify a sweeping and vague denunciation
s ee
of Shipowners
Thirty nine Inquiries in all were held before the
Wreck Commissioner in 1 8 8 1 8 2 respecting casualties not connected
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with stranding or collisions and he only ruled five as having b een
probably due to overloading or bad stowage "
orty nine similar
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Inquiries were held b efore magistrates at home and only
six
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c asualitie s
were attributed to overloading or bad stowage
and out
3
twe nty eight held abroad in British Possessions and Naval Courts
not one was found to be a case of overloading Where then is
of
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the j ustification to be found even in the o fficial figures fo r the
S tatement that half the cases investigated by the Wreck Courts are
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instances
of
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overloading or dangerous loading
,
" We
must refer
,
however to the general character of Mr Chamberlain s reply to
Mr Laing Mr Laing in h is letter wh ich is a very natural proper
and spirited defence of his order pointed o ut clearly that the figures
adduced by Mr Chamberlain do not bear the interpretation he put
upon them He also reminded him that the suggestion o f t he
Chamber o f Shipping not to stop vessels from proceeding to sea
which were loaded within the limits of Lloyd s Tables of freeb oard
had not b een accepted and that had it b een
the e ffe ct O f doing so
would have b een to strike at once by the direct and indirect e ffects
Of the measure at all dangerous loading
Mr Laing pointedly
“
—
adds
Your refusal to act upon the suggestion upon this matter
which the deputation m ade to you is the Executive Council desire
me to state somewhat hard to reconcile with the statements you
have more than once both publicly and privately made to the e ff e ct
that you were most anxious to secure the c o operation o f S hip o wners
in s ettling the di fficult question o f the load line as also other
important matters affecting the shipping interest Mr Cham b erlain s
reply is not calculated to win for him the confidenc eo r respect o f
Shipowners We see in it no indication o f a desire to secure their
he
co operation nor o f the open and impartial mind with which
promised to receive any suggestions they might make to him It
appears rather to be dictated b y error prej udice and ill feeling
Mr Chamberlain re "
ects upon the tone of Mr Laing s letter as
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though S hipo wners have no right to d efen d the m se l ves again st
undeserved and crue l charges when he is the p erson through who m
they are made His own reply is not creditab le either in m anner
He says that Mr Laing has
o r matte r to the o ffi c e he holds
misappreh ende d altogether the bearing o f the facts he laid before
the deputation as is shown by Mr Laing s assumption that he charged
British Shipo wners with causing the loss by overloading o f a large
proportion o f the
lives lost at sea in 1 8 8 2 At the same time
“
—
Mr Chamberlain state s
your answer does not impeach the
accuracy o f my statements nor does it in any way quali fy the
”
in ferences which are to b e draw n from them
He goes o n to say
“
I n my remarks to th e deputation from your Cham b er I pointed
o ut that the Inquiries in the Wreck C ourts showed that o ut o f
sixty five cases investigated hal f were cases of ships either overladen
o r dangerously laden
If this is the proportion in regard
to one preventable cause it may be feared that a similar
ratio prevails in ot h er instances
Mr Chamberlain adds that
he is compelled after the fullest re "
ection to repeat this statement
This being so we fail to see w here Mr Laing is wrong in his views
charges Mr Chamb erlain made This unwarrantable
o f the
assumption — di re ctly Opp o sed to the figures in th e Bo ard of Trad e
returns—
t hat half the cases investigated by the Wreck Courts are
cases o f overloading and therefore preventab le ; an d the inference
that therefore hal f th e losses fr o m other cau ses are also preventab le
is an in stance of the kind of reasoning which is thought good
enough to j ustify a wholesale condemnation o f Shipowners There
are two points in Mr Chamberlain s letter which clearly indicate
the spirit in wh ich he appr o aches this subj ect and it is no t what
would be expected from an open and impartial mind
H e says
that he ask ed the deputation from the Cham b er o f Shipping o n
the 8 th March last whether a large p ropo rtion of th e terri b l e
disasters referred to were the act of G O D for whi ch no human
“
Your C ommit te e
b eing is responsi ble 3 and indign antly exclaims
has had seven weeks to consider this question Why have they
not answered it " Mr Chambe rlain knew all the time or the
o fficials wh o advis e him knew
that the Board of Trade figure s,
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to reb uke their willingness to adopt this standard o f loading by the
charge that they have until recently declared that the fixing a load
line was an impossible feat We regret to se e the spi rit in which
Mr Chamberlain has dealt with this important matter and fear
that it is o f bad omen for the future The worst traditions o f the
Board o f Trade are at present to the fore 3 and the o ne o bj ect o f
the O ffi cials appears to b e the securing o f despotic power fo r the
purpose o f enforcing their o w n obsolete and erroneous ideas
Statistics are employed to unfairly excite public feeling against
Shipowners as o ne means o f doing this
We expe c ted more
reasonable and unprej udiced treatment from Mr Chamberlain
Shipowners must look after themselves and take care that pu b lic
opinion is not improperly raised aga i nst them 3 and must be
prepared to vindicate themselves b y proving what is th e r eal
stat e o f things
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L
EE
A ND
N
I
G H T I N GA L E
,
P R I N TE R S ,
1 5,
NO R T H
J O H N S TR E E T
,
L
IV E R PO O L
.
"
RO D M T
O N TH E M
OT I O N "O R
TH E
S E CON D
RE
AD I N G
"
O
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"TH E
"
C STOM S A N D I N L AN D RE V E N E BI L L
THU R S DAY
,
A
P R IL
" C OM
O
DE LI V E R ED I N THE H O U S E
2 6TH
18 83
,
M O NS ,
.
L O ND O N "
P
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S
.
KI NG
KING
SO N ,
STR
P A R LI A M EN TA R Y
EET
,
W E ST M I N S T E R
1 883
P R I CE
T
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WO
'
P E N CE
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,
S
A GEN C Y ,
W
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