Show COLLIER IS BLAMED FOR FOB SINKING SHIP INATTENTION TO SIGNALS CAUSE OF CATASTROPHE SAYS CAPTAIN CAPTAIN CAP- CAP CAPTAIN TAIN OF WRECKED COATI COAT DOAT I Ii i Empress of Ireland Was at Standstill When Run Down by Danish Colher Collier Col Col- tier her and Loss of Lives Charged Against Captain RimouskI Quebec Captain Quebec Captain Henry George Kendall of or the Empress of Ireland on Saturday told his version erslon of the disaster at an Inquiry conducted conduct conduct- ed by Coroner Captain Kendall in substance declared declared de de- de- de dared that he had taken all possible precautions against a collision His ship had been boen stopped he be gave the requisite signals when the Danish Dinish colli collier r which dealt the blow which sent gent the Empress to the bottom bottom bot bot- tom was still two miles away but the collier had kept on through the fog which settled down soon after aCter the two vessels sighted each other and had rammed the Empress of or pf Ireland while the latter was virtually motionless motion motion- less Jess Then despite his plea to the master of the collier that he run his engines on full speed ahead to keep the hole In the liners liner's side plugged with the bow said Captain Kendall the Danish vessel backed away the water rushed in and the Empress sank Following the collision Captain Kendall declared I 1 shouted to the to keep full ull speed ahead to fill the hole bole he had made He then backed away The ship began to filand fill fil fill and listed over rapidly When he struck me I had stopped my engines I then ran full speed ahead again when I saw the danger was so great with the object of or running her on onshore onshore onshore shore to save passengers and ship Almost immediately the engines stopped the ship filling and going over all the time starboard I 1 had in fri the meantime given orders orders orders or or- ders to get the lifeboats launched I 1 along tile the starboard sine sIde 01 os the boat deck and threw all the gripes out of Nos 1 3 5 and 7 1 boats then I went vent back to the bridge again where I saw the chief officer rushing rushIng rushing rush rush- ing along the bridge I told him to tell the wireless operator operator operator oper oper- ator at once to send out distress sig sig- sig- sig nals He told me that this had been done I said Get the boats out as quick as possible That was the last I saw of the chief officer Then In about three to five minutes after that the ship turned over and foundered I was shot into the sea myself from the bridge and taken down with the suction The next thing I remember was seizing a piece of grating flo How Ho Howlong long I was on it I do not know but butI I heard some men shout from rom a lifeboat life lire boat There is the captain let us save him bu |