STORSTAD’S OWNERS FILE COUNTER SUIT
An unexpected development came in the Empress of Ireland disaster on Wednesday, June 3d, when the Storstad’s owners entered a counter claim against the Canadian Pacific Railway for $50,000 damages due to the collision, contending that the Empress was at fault and alleging negligent navigation on her part. This complicated the case still more, and counsel on both sides busied themselves searching for precedents in Canadian courts. There is a case, heard in Prince Edward Island in 1892, when the liability was limited to $38.92 for each ton of gross tonnage. On this basis the total liability of the Empress of Ireland would be $552,313 and of the Storstad $234,609.
CHAPTER XIV
Parliament Shocked by the Calamity
ST. LAWRENCE DISASTER DISCUSSED IN THE COMMONS—AN APPALLING SHOCK—FATE’S HEAVY HAND—BORDEN AND LAURIER EXPRESS SYMPATHY
GOVERNMENTS may seem a little aloof from their people in times of prosperity; but not so in times of trouble. The Canadian Parliament met on May 29th under the shadow of a great disaster. No other business was discussed.
The extras issued early in the morning had been read by members, and when the orders of the day were called the Premier rose with a paper in his hand.
“I would like to say just a word,” he said, “respecting the disaster, tidings of which have been brought to us to-day in awful suddenness, and in a dreadful toll of human lives taken. The disaster is one which brings a shock such as we in this country have never felt before. I am speaking of the earlier reports. Later reports are more reassuring. I sincerely hope they are true. That this ship, only a few hours out from Quebec, in the dead of night, and with 1,400 passengers on board, should be so badly damaged as to sink in ten or twenty minutes comes to us in this country and this House as a most appalling shock.
“I do not believe, from reports which have come in, that this is a disaster which could have been averted by anything the country could have done in rendering the navigation of the St. Lawrence more safe. It came in a fog, and could not have been prevented by any safeguards to navigation. In view of the magnitude of the disaster it is fitting that something should be said in this House; that we should express our deepest regret for the disaster and our profound sympathy for those bereaved.”
“The hand of fate has been heavy against us during the past few months,” said Sir Wilfred Laurier. “This is the third disaster on the St. Lawrence route since navigation opened two months ago, and in loss of life it has surpassed anything since the wreck of the Titanic. In proportion to the number of passengers carried, the loss of life in this event exceeds the Titanic itself.
“It is premature to express an opinion on the disaster, but it is difficult to believe that such an accident could take place in the St. Lawrence so near to Father Point and not be prevented. I will not pass judgment, and I hope it will turn out to be one of those disasters which could not have been prevented by human agency. The sympathies of all will go out to the victims, and perhaps in a more substantial way later on. I will join with the Premier in extending to the families of those who have been lost our sincerest and deepest sympathy.”
CHAPTER XV
Messages of Sympathy and Help
NEARNESS OF THE EMPRESS OF IRELAND CATASTROPHE—MESSAGE FROM THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL—GRIEF IN ENGLAND—LORD MAYOR OF LONDON STARTS FUND—SYMPATHY EXTENDED BY KING AND QUEEN—PRESIDENT POINCARÉ REGRETS LOSS—THE UNITED STATES SYMPATHIZES—AMERICAN RED CROSS ACTS—TANGIBLE SYMPATHY
WHAT we do not see does not hurt us.” We can endure a Balkan war or a Calabrian earthquake or a Kieff massacre with composure because the black print on white paper does not bring it alive before us. We have to be taken to the scene to realize it, and even then, unless we are trained observers, we stand with dull wits, not comprehending the full meaning.
Yet so far as we can we seek to picture the calamities that happen even in the most distant parts of the world, and to express our sympathy for those who are in trouble. In the case of the sinking of the Empress of Ireland, which the president of the Canadian Pacific Railway describes as “the most serious catastrophe in the history of the St. Lawrence route,” the task is not so difficult because the scene of the disaster is comparatively near, and because, perhaps, some of the unhappy passengers were known to us. Canada, England, the United States—these were the countries most deeply affected and the first to extend sympathy and offers of assistance.