THE WRECK OF THE PENGUIN.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2439, 2 March 1909, Page 4

THE WRECK OF THE PENGUIN.

The finding of the Court which inquired into the wreck of the Penguin which is published in this issue is of a nature that will be received with mixed feelings throughout the Dominion. After the publication of the evidence it was generally believed that Captain Naylor would not be called upon to undergo, in addition to the terrible experience which has been his, the stigma of being officially blamed for the deplorable disaster which resulted in the loss of so many lives. Captain after captain had stepped- into tlie the witness box, and with the consciousness that their own reputations were at stake, had stated that under similar circumstances they would have acted as the master of the Penguin had done. . Overwhelming evidence was forthcoming that quite exceptional tides had been in existence at the time of the wreck, and altogether it seemed difficult to the layman to find precisely how the captain could justly be censured. But the fiat has gone forth, and according to the verdict of the Court Captain Naylor is held to have been guilty of neglect of duty as a result of which the Penguin was wrecked. To say that the position of the unfortunate master is unenviable is to mildly state the fact, and he is cei’tainly to b'e pitied for the punishment, however just it may be, which has fallen upon him. As already indicated tlxc merits of the case might to a superficial reader have suggested that Captain Naylor must be freed from blame, but a more careful consideration will lead to the conclusion that the Court has very accurately placed the responsibility. The master of the Penguin prepared to steer for the ojmn sea at ten o’clock,, just about the time the vessel struck. The Court finds that he should have taken this step twenty minutes earlier. The captain on that fateful Friday night had dost sight of all lights or other guides, and in a stormy sea and in waters where the currents are notoriously variable kept his course for Wellington harbor. Until ten o’clock ho had no doubt that his course was absolutely “safe” and" kept the vessel ahead. At ten o’clock he decided that his former course was no longer safe, so he changd. it, but the doubt had arisen in his mind too late. The Court considers that he should have arrived at the same conclusion twenty minutes earlier. We can all be wise after the event, and it seems rather a fine point upon which to test the reputation of an official, but, -after all, it is just such distinctions which mark the difference' between the perfectly “safe” commander and the one who will take a risk. To have attributed the wreck of the Penguin to an accident for which no one was responsible would have been to say in effect that it is unsafe to navigate Cook Straits except in daylight or under most favorable conditions. The Court evidently holds that it is possible to navigate the Straits even on a rough night and with abnormal tides so long as tho captain oxoi*cises the utmost caution throughout his voyage, and wo aro inclined to believe that this i 6 the correct view. Having arrived at the conclusion that 4n equity tho blame for tho disaster must bo laid upon Captain Naylor, the Court proceeded to make his sentence as lenient as possible, and in this respect it will receive .tho unanimous approval of the public. Captain Naylor’s offence was at most an error of judgment for which ho has already paid dearly, and the suspension of his certificate for a year is but a formal record of a penalty, that could not logically be withheld.