Page:Federal Reporter, 1st Series, Volume 4.djvu/252

 238 FBDKBAIi BEFOBTEB. �It is obyious that the statements contained in the libel and in the answer are in direct confliet and are utterly irrecon- cilable. The steamer'e case is that the schooner was ap- proaching her on the port bow, exhibiting her red light. The schooner alleges that she was approaching the steamer on the starhoard bow, exhibiting her green light. The steamer claims to have been going to starhoard to get further away from the schooner's red light. The schooner claims that she waa already on the starhoard side of the steamer, and that the steamer, by going to starhoard, went across her bows and brought about the collision. There was no excuse for any mistake, as the night was starlight, and clear enough to see lights at the distance of five miles, and these two vessels had been approaching nearly head on, and profess to have been observing each other's lights for at least a quarter of an hour. �After examining most patiently the testimony of ail the witnesses on board the colliding vessels, I have not found in the statements of those who testify for either side anything in itself indicative of an intention not to tell the truth. The navigation of both vessels would seem to bave been in the hands of experienced and faithîul men, and it bas been with great reluctance that I have found that a decision of this controversy must discredit witnesses on one side or the other. �There were on the steamer, during the whole time the ves- sels were approaching each other, at least one lookout on duty in the bow, and part of the time two. In the pilot-house there was the second mate, who had nothing to do but to watch the navigation of the ship, and a wheelsman, whose sole duty it was to attend to the steering. So that there were at least three men on the steamer attending to duties not at at ail difficult for men of their experience to perform, and who couîd hardly, without the grossest obtuseness, bave ail escaped seeing the lights of the schooner. That the red light of Bome vessel on the steamer's port bow was reported several minutes before the collision is confirmed, if Captain Kirby's testimony is to be believed, He was sitting in his room ad- joining the pilot-house, smoking. He heard the mate answer "Aye, aye, I see it;" heard him give the order "Port a little." ����