This was an enquiry into the ciroumstances attending the sinking of the tugboat Rocket at Woosung on the 3rd of May, and into the conduct of the Captain and crew on that occasion.
Cuances Horcmincs MeCastrs, sworn, i—I was in command of the Kocket on the 3rd May Inst. She was a tug-boat, in Shanghai waters. was at anchor east of Woosuvg Creek at half past on that evening when Mr. Van Corbach, pilot of the Gleneagles, came on board. He engaged me to go alougeide of the Gleneagles, as she wanted to come off by that night's tide. We proceeded at once alongside the Gleneagles, and made arrangements with the Captain to tow him the following tide. The Captain also stated that he had wired up for another boat; and £ told him there would be no extra charge for another hi We got the hawser out and made it ready, and having no Manila rope largo enough, we took wire rope—fifty or sixty fathoms, I made arrangements with the pilot to get the Rocket clear of the ship as soon agit became slack water, The pilot informed me that we would be there an hour towing before the ship would float. We leit the ship's side at ten v'clock—they were just striking four bells as we left; in jeaving the ship's side the eddy lo caught us and we went to starboard instead of port, up on to the spit; but she recovered in about fifteen or' twenty minutes, and we opened out on the port bow of the Gleneagles. I got the boat into position and kept her there waiting give mo four blasts of the ip was tloating and that 1 was to tow. She tivated three quarters of an hour before we caloulated that she would. [noticed that the Rocket was making stern board, and I yave the order har starboard" and told the engineer togo alittlefaster ahead. In about five minutes s! d right over and filled As soon as I saw that not recovering herself and coming up again I sang out to the Gleneagles to lip tie hawser, It being wire, we could not slip it from our hook, We had an axe but we could not cut it, I was ten minutes from the sang out to them till we went down When f found that the vessel was sinking, Long out to the fireman to come out of the fire-room on to the wheel-house, and they all came out, I knew that the house could not yo under, in that shallow water. All the crow got up on the wheolhouse and round the smoke-stack. 1 went forward to see that everything was shut up, and finding everything shut [returned aft, and assisted the Nu. 1 Firemav, who was afterwards drowned, to get on to the wheelhouse. The boat had already down aft, and by the time I got the man up, the Boat went down forward, and The carpenter drifted He had taken to pon the wheelhouse He called to me, and I took hold of 4 ladder for a few moments; but J found it would not support both of us, and know: ing the carpenter could wot swim, I let hit have it. We were then about thirty foet away from the boat. I swam back, got hold of the fish-davit, or anchor duvit, avd hung on there for twenty minutes or half an hour. At this time the tugboat Ful-lee came up to us and have me, but 1 could not get hold of men were still on top of the houses, and Twas calling out to them all the time to clear away the boat that was resting on skids on top of the mess-room. They cut the falls, and three of them tried to get into it, bot capsized it—so I was told ufterwards, but L did not aco it, About time the Gleneagles' boat came up close m to put out an oar to me; but instead of that the officer in charge ofthe boat made them pall in their oars, end the bout drifted by me. 1 could not hold on avy longer, and had to let and just then some grating came floating by, and I got hold of it, Idrifted away L suppose about three hundred yards, when the Gleneagles' boat picked me up. "About this time the /ub-lee's boat came along with the carpenter in it. 'They had picked up from the ladder. 'The uh-lee took the Gleneagles' bout in tow after taking me on board, and than went to the Rocket and took off the men who were still there—three sailors, three fire-
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.