Page:Federal Reporter, 1st Series, Volume 4.djvu/102

 88 '" rBDEKAL REPORTER. �whatever was made of the schooner's conrse until at tîie instant of striking, when, as ail agree, she lufFed. �This testimony from the respective vessels in regard to tha course of the schooner, and the lights she displayed, appar- ently so contradicting, can, I think, be reconciled by refer- ence to the faot, stated by the master of the schooner in the most positive manner, that the side lights of the schooner were placed so that when he stood at the stem he could see both the red and green light at the same time without moving bis bead. �This fact shows that it may bave been possible for those on the steamer to see the schooner's red light, as they say they did, while the schooner's course was held unchanged, as those on the schooner say was the case. In this way, as I ani inclined to think, an explanation is offered of the testi- mony,. and statements otherwise wholly irreconcilable are harmonized. But this explanation convicts the schooner of fault for carrying lights so arranged as to mislead an ap- proaching vessel in regard to the course she was pursuing. This fault on the part of the schooner does not, however, in my opinion, absolve the steamer from fault. The steamer saw the schooner displaying a green light, and so near that, aceording to the testimony of the master of the steamer, it was uot safe to attempt to cross the schooner's bows, accord- ingly the engine of the steamer was immediately stopped. But afterwards, and aceording to the master, as soon as he was satisfied that he saw a red light, the steamer was started agaiu at half speed. �This act of starting the engine of the steamer after it had once been stopped was the immediate cause of the disaster, for the method in which the two vessels came together indi- cates that the schooner would have passed ahead of the steam- ship, although close at hand, if the steamship's engihes had not been started., To start the engine under such circum- stances was a fault. Assuming it to be true that the green light of the schooner disappeared and her red light became visible, as the master of the steamer states, such a change of ����