DIE
JET
OMA
MO
DROIT
THE HONGKONG
Government Gazette.
報 門 轅 港香
Published by Authority.
No. 51.
號一十五第日七十二月九年未癸
VICTORIA, SATURDAY, 27TH OCTOBER, 1883.
日七十二月十年三十八百八千一
VOL. XXIX.
簿九十二
GOVERNMENT NOTIFICATION.-No. 344.
His Excellency Sir GEORGE FERGUSON BOWEN, G.C.M.G., Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the Colony of Hongkong and its Dependencies, returned to the Colony on the evening of the 24th❤ instant from Peking
Colonial Secretary's Office, Hongkong, 27th October, 1883.
GOVERNMENT NOTIFICATION.-No. 343.
W. H. MARSH,
Colonial Secretary.
The following Finding of a Marine Court, appointed to enquire into the loss of the British Ship G. C. Trufant, is published for general information.
By Command,
Colonial Secretary's Office, Hongkong, 24th October, 1883.
FINDING.
J. H. STEWArt-Lockhart,
for the Colonial Secretary.
We find that the British ship G. C. Trufant, Official No. 70,696, of which GAMALIEL THOMAS, number of whose Certificate of Competency is 30,189, was Master, struck on the Fiery Cross Reef in the China Sea on the 7th September 1883, at 12.30 A.M., that she was backed off, making water, which, rapidly increasing, determined the Master to run for the shore, and ground the ship. Port Barton in the N.W. part of the Palawan Island was chosen, and the vessel was grounded there on the 11th of September, having about 19 feet of water in the hold.
We are of opinion that the grounding of this ship on the Fiery Cross Reef is to be attributed to the vessel's meeting with an unexpected and unusual South Easterly Current.
We attach no blame to the Master for the loss of the vessel, and we are of opinion that he did all a prudent man could do for the ship and safety of the crew.
From the evidence it appears that the Master left this Port in the British ship G. C. Trufant without having at least one Officer, besides himself, possessing a valid certificate appropriate to the grade of Only Mate therein, or to a higher grade. As the loss of the ship cannot be attributed to this breach of the law of the Colony, it is not for this Court to deal with it.
Given under our hands at Hongkong this 23rd day of October, 1883.
H. G. THOMSETT, R.N., G. W. BALLISTON, WM. G. PEARNE,
W. J. WATSON,
F. W. DESTER,
Stipendiary Magistrate. Navigating Lieut., R.N. Lieut., R.N.R., Commanding
British S. S. Arabic, Commanding British ship
Charles Bal, Commanding British ship
Lothair.
Approved,
W. H. MARSH, Officer Administering the Government.