Wreck Report for 'Ariel', 1882

(No. 1618.)

"ARIEL."

The Merchant Shipping Acts, 1854 to 1876.

IN the matter of the formal Investigation held at Yarmouth, on the 18th, 19th, and 20th December 1882, before H. C. ROTHERY, Esquire, Wreck Commissioner, assisted by Captains METHVEN and VAUX, and Captain KIDDLE, R.N., as Assessors, into the circumstances attending the stranding and loss of the sailing ship "ARIEL," of Newcastle, on the Scroby Sand, and the loss of the lives of her crew of 9 or 10 hands, on the 24th of October last.

Report of Court.

The Court, having carefully inquired into the circumstances of the above-mentioned shipping casualty, finds, for the reasons annexed, that the said vessel "Ariel" was in a good and seaworthy condition when she sailed on her last voyage, and that there is every reason to think that she struck on the south spit of the Scroby Sand and went to pieces, with the loss of the whole of her crew.

The Court is not asked to make any order as to costs.

Dated this 20th day of December 1882.

 

(Signed)

H. C. ROTHERY, Wreck Commissioner.

We concur in the above report.

 

(Signed)

R. METHVEN,

 

 

 

H. C. VAUX, R.N.R.,

Assessors.

 

 

JAMES KIDDLE, Captain R.N.,

 

Annex to the Report.

This case was heard at Yarmouth on the 18th and 19th days of December instant, when Mr. Mansel Jones and Mr. Howard Smith appeared for the Board of Trade, and Mr. Diver for the owners of the "Ariel." Nine witnesses having been produced by the Board of Trade and examined, and the deposition of a further witness having been put in and read, Mr. Mansel Jones handed in a statement of the questions relating to the loss of the vessel upon which the Board of Trade desired the opinion of the Court. Mr. Diver having been then heard on behalf of his parties, Mr. Mansel Jones requested that the Court would reserve its judgment until it had heard the evidence relating to the manning of the Yarmouth lifeboats. This having been done, judgment was given in all the cases on the 20th instant. The circumstances of the "Ariel," so far as they relate to her loss, are as follow:—

The "Ariel" was a wooden barque belonging to the port of Newcastle, of 358 tons gross, and 343 tons net register. She is said to have been an Italian vessel, but when or where built the register does not shew. She was the property of Mr. William Thomas Pitt, of East Donyland, in the county of Essex, master mariner, of Mr. Lawrance Smith, of Newcastle-on-Tyne, master mariner, and two other gentlemen, Mr. Septimus Dunn and Mr. John Bell, also of Newcastle-on-Tyne, each of whom owned a fourth part of her. She left Hartlepool on the 20th of October last for Southampton with a crew of 9 or 10 hands, and a cargo of 512 tons of coal; and the next that we hear of her is from an affidavit made by Captain John Cummins, the master of a vessel called the "Sophia," which left Hartlepool two days after the "Ariel," and picked her up at about 10 a.m. of the 24th October, five to seven miles south of Aldborough. The "Sophia" continued to gain upon her, and at about 4 p.m. they were about half way through Yarmouth Roads, between St. Nicholas Lightship and Corton, when Captain Cummins' attention was taken off her, owing to his having lost two of his sails, and being busy with his own ship; but he tells us that she was then under close reefed main topsail and fore topmast staysail, and was setting her main staysail. At about 5 p.m. he again caught sight of her, and observed that she had lost her main and fore topmast staysails, and had only a close reefed lower main topsail standing. In the meantime the wind, which had been from the south to S.S.E., had gone round to W.S.W., and he lost sight of her again until about 6 p.m., when he saw a flare-up coming from the direction in which he supposed she would be. He was then about a mile or a mile and a half from her, and thought that she had struck on the south end of the Scroby Sand. He tells us that she seemed to be handled with seamanlike care and skill, that he was well acquainted with the captain, having known him for many years, and that he was a good seaman. As confirmatory of Captain Cummins' statement, we have an entry in the log book of the St. Nicholas Lightship, which is in these words: "At 5.20 p.m. signals of distress seen bearing S. by E.; fired two guns and rockets, repeated every half hour until 7; at 7.15 p.m. distress signals last seen bearing S.S.E." The bearing of S.S.E. from the St. Nicholas Lightship would put the vessel on the south spit of the Scroby Sand. We have also the evidence of the coastguardsmen at Yarmouth, and of the coxwains of the two lifeboats, that the signals were seen from them a little north of St. Nicholas Lightship, which would also put her on the Scroby Sand. Two days afterwards the stern-board of a boat, with the name "Ariel" painted on it, was picked up at Corton and handed to the Receiver of Wreck at Lowestoft, and only quite recently a tin box, containing a copy of the register of the "Ariel" and some other papers belonging to that vessel, has been picked up by one of the coastguardsmen at Corton and delivered to the Receiver of Wreck at Lowestoft. I think, therefore, that there can be no doubt that the vessel seen by Captain Cummins, the vessel seen by the crew of the St. Nicholas Lightship, and the vessel seen from Yarmouth shewing signals of distress, was the "Ariel," and that she was then ashore on the south spit of Scroby Sand, where she went to pieces, with the loss of all her crew.

These being the facts of the case, so far as they relate to the loss of the vessel, the first question which we are asked is, "Was the 'Ariel' when she left Hartlepool on the 20th October 1882 in a good and seaworthy condition?" It seems that the late owners purchased her in the year 1873 for the sum of 1.250l., and that since then they have spent about 1,600l. or 1,700l. upon her. From 1873 to 1878 Captain Pitt, one of the owners, commanded her, and during that time the whole management of the vessel was left in his hands, and he told us that he always kept her up in good condition, and that in 1876 he spent no less than 600l. upon her. From 1878 to the time of her loss she was commanded by Captain Lawrance Smith, another of the owners, and during his time the vessel was left entirely in his hands. What was done to her during the time she was under his management we do not know, but a number of bills have been brought in shewing extensive repairs to have been done to her during that period, and that during the present year a sum of 1451. was spent on her at Elsinore. She seems to have had two best bower anchors and a spare anchor, weighing from 18 to 19 hundredweight each, besides two kedges. She had two chains 1 1/8 inch thick, and each 125 fathoms long; two boats, a long boat and a jolly boat, both good. As to her sails, according to Corrigan, who was mate of her from the 20th Jane to 19th September of the present year, she had three new topsails, and a new foresail, whilst he was in her; he said also that her staysails were in good order, and that be had himself repaired the mizen topmast staysail, the old canvas having been replaced with new. As regards her cargo; we are told that she had room for 50 tons more in the fore hold, and for about eight tons in the after hold, and that she had a freeboard of about 4 feet, which would be ample for a vessel of her dimensions, whether we estimate it by the Board of Trade rules or by Lloyds'. We have therefore no doubt that when the vessel left Hartlepool she was in good and seaworthy condition, and that she was not overladen.

The second question which we are asked is, "What was the cause of her loss?" We are disposed to think that when the two vessels, the "Ariel" and the "Sophia," had got about half way between the St. Nicholas Lightship and Corton, and found the wind heading them, they endeavoured to put back and run for shelter to Yarmouth Roads. In doing so, however, the "Ariel" lost two of her sails, and thereupon fell off to leeward, and grounded on the south spit of the Scroby, where she soon afterwards went to pieces, and was lost, together with the whole of her crew.

The Court was not asked to make any order as to costs.

 

(Signed)

H. C. ROTHERY, Wreck Commissioner.

We concur.

 

(Signed)

R. METHVEN,

 

 

 

C. VAUX, R.N.R.,

Assessors.

 

 

JAMES KIDDLE, Captain R.N.,

 

L 367. 1390. 150.—1/83. Wt. 171. E. & S.