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December, 1913 as a body was recovered and identified it was expressed home. Meanwhile a disaster fund was started and con- tributions were immediate, so that within a few days over $75,000 was pledged for the relief of the bereaved families. During the natural excitement that prevailed after the results of the great storm became definitely known, con- siderable criticism was leveled against the warnings issued by the weather bureau.. There is no sound reason, however, for criticizing the weather bureau, as it had sent out its custom- ary storm warnings, and there is no reason to believe that the bureau could have foreseen the unprecedented sit- uation which existed in Lake Huron. The storm sprang up in that lake with THE MARINE REVIEW water also found its way by this means into the engine room. Vessels heading into the sea stood in danger of carrying away their pilot houses, and it was absolutely impossible to go either forward or aft on any of them, owing to the heavy seas contin- ually breaking over the vessels. As usual, there was much criticism from uninformed sources concerning owners who sent their boats out in such perilous weather. As a matter of fact, no owner givés sailing orders to his master. The navigation of the ship is left entirely to the master's judgment and it is neither expected nor desired of him that he should put out if weather conditions are unfavor- able for safe navigation. No language could be plainer than the following, 433 that she will have plenty of buoyancy for the fall gales." Similar instructions are practically issued to the masters by all of the leading companies on the Great Lakes. The heavy loss of life and property was undoubtedly due to the unprece- dented character of the storm. All sorts of theories are advanced as to the cause of so many vessels foundering, but obviously everything is as yet conjecture. The vessels de- stroyed represented not only the best of lake practice, but of English and Scotch yards as well. Three of the vessels were British-built and while the Regina was constructed after the lake model, the Wexford and Leafield were typical British tramps, designed to go anywhere in the world. There THE STEAMER JAMES CARRUTHERS, WHICH FOUNDERED IN LAKE HURON. THIS SPLENDID STEAMER WAS BUILT DURING THE PRESENT YEAR AT THE YARD OF THE COLLINGWOOD SHIP BUILDING CO., COLLINGWOOD, ONT. great suddenness and violence and while its direction was generally from ' the northwest on other lakes, it ap- pears to have struck Lake Huron from a north or northeasterly direction, ap- parently changing direction suddenly as the wind was frequently blowing one way while the sea was running another way. Masters of vessels that lived through it all testified that it was the worst storm in their experi- ence and that their ships were never pounded so before. Heavy seas were constantly breaking over the vessels. Vessels coming down the lakes were continually boarded by following seas which tore away the after quarters or kept them constantly flooded to a depth of several feet, sweeping every- thing portable overboard. Considerable which is taken from a fleet circular let- ter issued last September: "Do not overload your vessel. See to it that you always have an abund- ance of fuel on board. Be careful that your hatches are properly secured and your ship is seaworthy before leaving port, even though you might suffer some delay doing so. Remember, I am relying upon your judgment as to when to seek shelter. "The safety of the lives and prop- erty entrusted to your care must be your first consideration. See that you have oil bags and a supply of sea oil on hand for fall weather. "T want to caution the masters of all our vessels, particularly the smaller steamers and barges, not to overload them. Keep your boat at all jimes so is this point to be considered, that so violent a storm is not usually so pro- longed. It was cyclonic in character with an average velocity of 60 miles an hour, accompanied by frequent spurts, in which the wind reached a maximum of 79 miles an hour. This condition continued well over 12 hours, whipping up tremendous seas, such probably as have never been en- countered on the lakes. One theory is that the vessels were gradually blown into the trough and that they rolled so heavily as to capsize through shifting of cargo. Another theory is that water may have got into the hold through the hatches or. sufficient ad- mitted through sprung rivets as to cause the vessels to finally fill and founder. As all of the casualties on