London, June 20, The court of inquiry into the stranding of the Union Castle s. Winchester Castle (20,000 tons), which ran aground near Portland February,17 while nearing the end of a journey from the Cape to England, gave its findings to-day, The court found that the mishap was due to the failure of the master to navigate the vessel with proper, seamanlike care, in that he failed to use the means at his command to ascertain accurately the position of the vessel.
The master was severely censured, and was ordered to contribute £50 towards the costs, The court also found that the chief wireless affeer did not render the assistance that might have been expected from a competent officer his experience.
The mishap to the Winchester Castle, which: was carrying 338 passengers at the time, occurred in a dense fog. A lifeboat, tugs and a destroyer answered a wireless request for assistance. The vessel, which had not suffered any damage, "was refloated three hours later, at high tide, and proceeded under her own power to Weymouth Bay, where the passengers were landed.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.