660 197 FEDERAL »REPoR*rE1:
helm,. or perhaps; under a hard aport. helm. In consequence of the
change, the schooner’s red light was shut in from thesteamer, and
her green light brought into view; It is likely that the steamer was,
when it noticed the change, still running under its port helm, and
that its first maneuver after discovering the probable peril was to
- put its helm hard aport. It then concluded that such maneuver was a
mistake, and put its helm hard astarboard. It may be, however, that
the helm was hard aport when the schooner’s green light was sighted.
In that case the steamer’s helm was at once thrown hard astarboard.
_ In any event, I believe that this was done earlier than the steamer’s
witnesses testify. Upon the theory now being stated, the schooner
never saw the steamer until after the steamer was under its hard
astarboard helm. The schooner’s lookout and the captain made the
steamer out as it crossed the schooner’s bow. —
Enough happened on board the schooner after the steamer was
sighted to satisfy me that the two vessels were then farther apart
than the steamer’s testimony indicates. When the schooner’s captain
first saw the steamer, he was standing at his port rail. He walked
forward to the poop of the quarter deck, and watched the steamer for
awhile, then walked aft on the port side and across to the starboard
side, thought the steamer would clear, then realized it would not, called
out to the steamer, and ordered his own helm hard up;
I think that these incidents did happen. If they did, the time which
must have elapsed between the sighting of the steamer by the schooner _
V and the collision could not have been less than from one to two min-
utes. In other words, when the steamer put her helm hard astarboard.
it was probably nearly half a mile away from the schooner. This
theory, it is true, is inconsistent with the testimony of the schooner’s
‘ witnesses that its change of course was made from six to ten min-
utes before the steamer was sighted. Such estimates of time are,
however, from the nature of things unreliable, even when made by
the most truthworthy witnesses. Nor can the assumption now under
consideration be reconciled with the evidence of thoseon the schooner
that they saw the steamer’s green light on their starboard bow, and its
green light only, for an appreciable time before theysaw both its
side lights. If they had seen tl1e green light and not the red, no col-
i lision could have happened, unless they had deliberately changed their
course so as to run into the steamer, or it had changed its so as to
run into them.
Upon these findings of fact, it follows that both were at fault-
the schooner for its change of course, a change which would probably
not have taken place had the steamer seen the schooner as soon as
it should have done. The steamer is to blame because it continued,
after seeingthe danger, with unchecked speed. It must have had
time after it saw the schooner to materially reduce its speed. Such
reduction would almost certainly have avoided the collision.
A reference may be had as to such items of loss and damage as to
which the parties may not be able to agree. I