Mr. Platt—I am quite ready to go on if your lordship pleases. It snow the duty of the defendants to give their views of the circumstances under which this unfortunate collision took place. My witnesses, as you know, are not here, but when they have come here and you have heard their evidence I shall propose to address you at much greater length than intend now, and I hope I shall be able to convince your Lordship, by pointing out the points. in the evidence adduced on both sides, that the version of the facts as given by the defendants is the correct one and that they are not in any way responsible for this collision which has taken place. It may assist the Court in listening to the evidence if I tell them in as few words as possible what the story as told by the defendants' witnesses will be. It is as follows. The Newchwang is an iron screw steamer of 895 tons burthen. She left Amoy on the 26th of April; she had on board a crew of general cargo; two foreign and twelve Chinese passengers; and on the 30th of April at 2 a.m. in the morning she reached the Lismore lightship, her engines going slow. When she got to the mail-ships' anchorage at Woosung, her engines were stopped, and she drifted through the shipping at anchor there, her engines being stopped. Fust before getting to tie Woosung creek, those on board her saw the green light of a vessel crossing the bar by the Feima channel. They will tell you that they knew that vessel was crossing the bar because it was above the light shown on the Feima lightboat. This green light the Newchwang, crossing its bows, right into the sector of the Newchwang's green light, and green was to green. The Newehwing was then in the middle of the river, with her engines stopped, waiting to see what course this vessel which was crossing the bar, or had crossed the bar, was going to take. That other vessel I will now call the Onwo, as it turned out to be. When the captain of the Newchwang saw the course the Ontco had taken, and the vessels were green to green, he thought that, as the Onto was going to take the Woosung side of the channel, it was not safe and practicable for him to take that channel also, and he considered it advisable that he should let her have that side all to herself and he would take the Pootung side. With that intention he put his engines half-speed ahead, the vessels being green to green. He passed the Kwashing, about 30 or 40 feet on the Woosung side of the Kwoashing—the vessels still being green to green. After he had passed the Kwushing about 200 yards he suddenly caught a glimpse of the red light of the Onico. it was the first time, he will tell you, he had seen the red light of the Onto, and up to that time the vessels had been green to green for the space of about. three minutes. When he caught this glimpse of the red light he immediately thought that the Onwo was steering badly and would recover herself and continue on the course she had been upon. He therefore blew two blasts of his whistle and he stopped.
His Lordship—Again Mr. Platt—Again; a second time. He stopped his engines and put his helm hard a-starboard. He will tell you he could not have ported his helm then because the vessels were too close together, and if the Onwo had been swinging under a port helm and he had also helm the probabilities would ave been that he would have struck the Onwo aft. He, therefore, starboarded his helm. After that the red light was seen, the green light was shut in and the' red alone was visible. Then the collision took place, almost immediately, the Newchwang striking the Onwo'on the port bow, about 10 or 15 feet from the stem. The collision happened, as the captain will tell you, about 200 or 300 yards past the Kuwashing, up the river. "That is pretty nearly the place where it has been put on the map, as I understand it. The force of the collision turned the Newchwang round and her head pointed down stream and the vessels lay side by side. The captain immediately sent the mate forward to see what damage had been done to the Newchwang, and the mate reported a large hole forward. The captain thereupon went to the side of his ship, the two ships being side by side, and shouted out that he was going to beach his ship as she had been badly damaged. He received no reply from the Onwo. He thereupon put his engines full speed ahead and beached his ship on the Pootung side. As soon as he had done so two boats were lowered and manned and ordered away. The first left within five minutes from the time the collision took place. These boats returned in about half-an-hour and reported that they could find no trace of the Onwo. They were kept at the side all night in readiness, but, when daylight broke in the morning, it was seen that the Onwo had sunk a great distance up the river.
His Lordship—Just show me where.
Mr. Platt indicated the spot, and continued—Those, shortly, are the circumstances under which we say the collision took place, and they show clearly that the Onwo when she ceased the Feima channel was forced by the tide for some distance into the middle of the river, and that the vessels were consequently green to green for some considerable time, and the collision occurred through the Onwo trying to cross the bows of the Newchwang and to get to her starboard side of the channel; the collision was also caused by the Onwo taking no steps whatever to avert the collision beyond putting her helm hatd-a-starboard.
His Lordship—Where do you say the Newchwang was when she first saw the Mr. Platt—About here [indicated] just before getting to the Woosung creek. I leave all these facts to be proved by my witnesses, Ihave some witnesses to call now—two experts whom, I will put into the box. There are no questions of seamanship, but just such questions as my learned friend has put to his witness this morning. expert evidence and I can give your Lord Mr. Drummond—I object entirely to
ship reasons.
His Lordship—Mr. Platt, says the same sort of questions as you asked your witness.
Mr. Drummond—I am entitled to ask a witness who is called as a witness of the collision as to his experience, but I submit the law is most distinct on the point that experts are not permitted where there are Assessors on the bench. It is not permitted to call any witnesses simply and solely to explain local circumstances, or questions of seamanship, or anything else. Any amount of examination or cross-ox-amination of witnesses called as witnesses to the case itself of course may be given, but I submit, and I will refer your Lordship to cases on the point, that expert evidence cannot be given.
His Lordship—I am quite with you that expert evidence cannot be given with Assessors on the bench, but as to explaining particular local facts?
Mr. Platt—That is all I wish to do.
Mr. Drummond—But it covers entirely all that; the cases to which I would refer your Lordship go quite as far as that it is
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.