SIGNALS OF DISTRESS.

THE terrible loss of the Nbrthfleet, and of nearly 400 human beings, who had en- trusted themselves to her safe keeping, has strikingly indicated the need, which had often previously been felt, of some more definite system of signals of distress, which should, with little likelihood of mistake, tell its own tale, and imply that help from the shore, or from neighbouring vessels, was at once required.

It may seem strange, and undoubtedly it is so, that, considering the enormous in- terests at stake, and the frequency of acci- dents to merchant vessels, more especially on our own dangerous coasts, no such system of night signals should have been long since adopted as would have made it impossible that a large emigrant snip at anchor in the midst of a fleet of other vessels, and within a short distance of the shore, should have thus succumbed, with the greater part of those on board her, without a helping hand being extended to them, notwithstanding their urgent appeals for aid.

Yet so it is; and just as we have been satisfied to require that passenger ships should be provided with Life-boats, with- out defining of what description they should be, so have we also been satisfied that signals of distress, especially in the night, should likewise be undefined.

And thus it has happened that the despairing cries of this affrighted, stricken multitude, brought little or no relief, the flights of rockets which were thrown up by them being, by every one who saw them, supposed to be only signals for a pilot, or as being discharged from some homeward-bound ship, in mere'joyfulness of heart, by those on board, on their safe return to their native land.

So great, however, has been the public excitement caused by this sad disaster, that we may now reasonably hope a simple system of signals of distress will be esta- blished by the Government, and incor- porated in the new Merchant Shipping Act. We propose to make some sugges- tions on the subject.

In the first place, it is indispensable that signals of distress should be few in number and readily distinguishable from all other signals, and especially those shown in the night, since persons, having to interpret them on the land, would in general have no code of signals to refer to, but would have to trust to their memories alone.

Secondly, they should not be of an expen- sive or unwieldy character, or of a kind requiring skilfulness in their use, or they would not be available for all classes of vessels. For instance, guns and rockets would never be efficiently worked on board colliers and other coasting vessels.

Thirdly, it would be desirable, as far as possible, to utilise articles already on board rather than to provide new ones unavail- able for any other use.

Amongst various other systems that have been proposed is one invented by Captain P. H. COLOMB, E.N., consisting of flashes at long and short intervals, the flashes being produced by blowing, through an india- rubber tube, an inflammable powder into the flame of an ordinary spirit lamp, which flashes are of a very brilliant character, and would be visible from a distance of many miles. Or, again, apparent flashes of less brilliancy would be produced by merely showing a light of momentary duration by means of revolving or other screens concealing it or exposing it at pleasure. This system is in use in the British and other war navies, and has, we believe, been found to work well, officers and signalmen being trained and practised in its use. We consider, however, that the case would be quite different in the circumstance of signals made to the shore by merchant vessels in distress, since the local boatmen could not be trained or practised in their use. Besides they would, we believe, be frequently misled by them, more especially when seen from a flat shore in rough weather, when, from the motion of the intervening waves, all lights within a few feet of the water have neces- sarily a flashing appearance, being only seen at intervals.

Again, the Board of Trade, after con- ferring with members of the Trinity Board and other authorities, have proposed the following system, by which it will be observed that nothing more is attempted than to distinguish between signals of dis- tress and signals for a pilot:— SIGNALS.—PILOTAGE AND DISTRESS.

1. Signals to be made by Skips wanting a Pilot.

In the Day-time.—The following signals, num- bered 1 and 2, when used or displayed together or separately, shall be deemed to be signals for a pilot in the day-time, viz.:— 1. To be hoisted at the fore, the Jack or other national colour usually worn by merchant ships, having round it a white border one-fifth of the breadth of the flag; or 2. The International Code Pilotage Signal indi- cated by P.T.

At Night.—The following signals, numbered 1 and 2, when used or displayed together or sepa- rately, shall be deemed to be signals for a pilot at night, viz. :— 1. A blue light every 15 minutes ; or 2. A bright white light, flashed or shown at short or frequent intervals, just above the bulwarks, for about a minute at a time.

2. Signals of Distress.

In the Day-time.—The following signals, num- bered 1,2, and 3, when used or displayed together or separately, shall be deemed to be signals of dis- tress in the day-time:— 1. A gun fired at intervals of about a minute.

2. The International Code signal of distress in- dicated by N.C.

3. The distant signal, consisting of a square flag having either above or below it a ball or anything resembling a. ball.

(The Ensign Union down has been advisedly omitted, because many foreign flags are the same whether right side or wrong side up; and because it is hoped that the signals now suggested may be- come international.) At Night.—The following signals, numbered 1, 2, 3, and 4, when used or displayed together or separately, shall be deemed to be signals of distress at night:— 1. A gun fired at intervals of about a minute.

2. Flames on the ship (as from a burning tar barrel, oil barrel, &o.).

3. Rockets of any colour or description, fired one at a time at short intervals.

4. Blue lights, burned one at a time at short intervals.

Board of Trade, 30th January, 1873.

We acknowledge that special distress signals should be, for the reasons above given, as limited in number as possible, and that signals defining the particular description of help needed, such as a steam- tug, anchor or cable, boats and hands to discharge cargo and lighten ship, medical aid, &c., should be left to the ordinary means for signalling, in the day-time, by the mercantile code of flags, which at present exists. We do think, however, that night signals should go to the extent of defining whether the danger existing, and the help needed, affected human lives or property only. For not only may it be reasonably supposed that, at least as far as Life-boats are concerned, greater and prompter efforts would often be made to afford the required help if it were known that lives were at stake, but the very large expense which is often incurred by the unnecessary launching of Life-boats, when property only is in danger, would frequently be saved.

In such cases, on the Life-boats of the NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION arriv- ing at the spot whence signals of distress have proceeded, their crews are frequently informed by the Master that he has no need of their services and only requires a pilot, or a steam-tug, or other aid; in fact, in several instances, they have been treated with great rudeness, not being allowed to go alongside, and even being threatened with violence, apparently from the fear that some claim would be made for payment.

A very simple means of mating this distinction would be by the use of coloured lights, to be used in conjunction with the ordinary signals of distress hitherto adopted, and being supplementary to them, but not to supersede them: and as no other colours would be necessary than those already required to be carried on board every ship, viz., red and green, nothing new would have to be provided.

"We have been given to understand that the authorities of the Board of Trade have expressed their strongest disapproval of the use of coloured lights in conse- quence of those lights not being seen from so great a distance as uncoloured ones. The same reasoning, however, would naturally discard the use of the red and green lights, as bow lights which are now required by law to be carried on board every English vessel, viz., the red on the port and the green on the starboard bow, and which have been adopted, we believe, by all other nations. We therefore think it a mistake to discard, on principle, the use of coloured lights.

We do not propose to condemn as un- suitable the signals above proposed, by the Board of Trade. On the contrary, we think that the distinction of a difference of interval between the time of discharge of blue lights, according as they might be signals of distress or for pilots, a very good one; the minute gun, which had become a mere practical expression, being returned to, in conjunction with its sister rocket, as the signal of distress, and the longer interval of about fifteen minutes being adopted as the signal for a pilot.

Let this system be in part adopted; yet inasmuch as that the smaller class of vessels, including all descriptions of coasters, will carry neither guns nor rockets, and would never put them to satisfactory use if they had them, and as it is to that class of vessels that disasters most frequently oc- cur, it would only apply to vessels having guns and rockets on board, and whose crews knew how to use them and could make them available in times of emer- gency.

But, in addition to all distress signals now in use, or thus proposed, viz., guns, rockets, and blue lights at minute intervals when available, burning tar-barrels, flares (tow or oakum steeped in turpentine and ignited), and ordinary lights, which should simply imply distress and help needed, we propose that when lives are in danger, as in the case of the Northfleet, the red or port bow light should be exhibited in the direction from which help might be expected; whilst, if the danger was to property only, the green, or starboard bow light should be shown.

In the former case, if the signals were made to the shore, it would be at once known that the services of -a Life-boat were required, and in the latter case, that any available means for saving property, such as a steam-tug, ordinary hovelling boats, &c. were alone needed.

As an exemplification, of the suitable- ness of such an arrangement, we may quote the case of'the Northfleet, which, had it been in existence, would only have had to show her red light to the sur- rounding vessels, in accompaniment with her rockets, when a general alarm would have been given, and boats would have flocked to her from all directions, includ- ing a Life-boat belonging to the NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION, from the land.

But should such a system be adopted, its success need not be limited to the dis- tance to which the red and green bow lights would be distinguishable, since there is a portable and cheap pyrotechnic light, ignited by percussion, and therefore in- dependent of fire or matches to ignite it, made of various colours, and as brilliant as an ordinary blue light, which is ad- mirably suited for the purpose. Twenty of them, half of them being red and half of them green, together with the handle by which they are ignited, could be kept in a small tin box, a few inches long in the Master's cabin or in other readily ac- cessible place, and their cost is only eight- pence each; the handle, which is inde- structible, and by striking which on the palm of the hand, or elsewhere, they are ignited, costing 3s. &d. These lights are manufactured and patented by Messrs. DYER AND ROBSON, Woolwich Eoad, Kent; they have been some years in use by the NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION, and are found to answer in every respect.

In a metal box they will keep several years without deterioration, and not one of them has ever been known to ignite spontaneously. In their use of these lights, and of DYEB and ROBSON'S rockets, bursting with a single red or single green star, the Institution has made the red colour (as being the colour of blood) to signify danger to life, and the green to signify help afforded, and danger no longer existing.

In conclusion, we will observe, having reference to the loss of the Northfleet, that we think it most desirable that every merchant vessel should be required to carry a bell, of moderate size, hung in a frame, on the upper deck, and a little above her bulwark or side, so that nothing should intervene to prevent its sound being heard at some distance from her.

On occasion of fire on board, or any other serious danger, or of contact with an ap- proaching vessel being feared, it being instantly, loudly, and rapidly rung, as is a fire-bell on the land, would give imme- diate alarm, both to those on board the vessel, and to any other vessel near. Had the night watchman on board the North- fleet had such a bell within his reach and at on'ce rung it, possibly it might have been heard in time on board the Spanish ship which ran into her, but if not it would have at once alarmed those below, and being repeated from ship to ship, a chorus of alarm bells would have quickly sounded on board the whole fleet which surrounded her, and quickly boats from all directions would have been speeding to the aid of her drowning passengers and crew.

We earnestly commend full considera- tion of this question to the Board of Trade, and trust that they will not too hastily discard the use of colours in signals of distress.