Master Exonerated from Blame by Naval Court: Abnormal Seas and Currents From Our Oww Connesrowoeir har Tokyo, June 25.
Exonerating the Master of the British freighter City of Naples from all blame and attributing the wreck of the vessel to "abnormal seas und abnormal currents," naval court held at His Britannic Yokohama, declared that the Master had done everything humanly ossible to avert disaster. The Court false put it on record that the crew behaved ina very disciplined manner during the catastrophe, The City of Naples struck sunken rocks while on the way from Kobe to Yokohama, due largely to the poor visibility prevailing on the day the accident. The point where the City of Naples came to grief is 1 known us "Devil's Point" and has been the grave of many a good [Japanese ship.
'The Court consisted of Mr. Hamil. ton Holmes, British consul-general Captain J. Ramsay, Master of the Agapenor; Captain' B, D. Thomas, Master of the Skegness; and Mr. H.
Kent, local manager for Messrs, Butterfield and Swire. The City of Naples was hound from Middlesborough to Yokohama with a cargo lof general merchandise. The entire Jerew was saved, thanks to prompt Jassistance by one Japanese merch-outman and the Japanese Admiralty.
The Master of the City of Naples had no previous experience of thio portion of Japan's rocky coast and was taken into consideration by the Court, The Master of the Glentara further pointed out that, with the bod visibility and abnormal seas running, even one who knew the coast very well might have met disaster. It was fully proved that the vessel was not overloaded and that the cargo was well and properly stowed.
The Court especially directed the attention of the Board of Trade to the signal services rendered by thy: Japanese freighter Chefoo Maru, the Japangse naval training ship Urakaze and the. apanese destroyer Kasuga which ho.ved to rescue the personnel aboard tne City of Naples Captain G. C, Royle, British naval attache in Tokyo, sent a personal letter to the owners of the Chafoo Maru expressing appreciation of the food work rendered by the Japanese freighter which stood by the City of Naples for three days under very, trying conditions. Captain Royle also wrote to Captain Terajima of the Navy Intelligence Department thanking the Japanese Navy for help
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.