By John McKechnie AO, KC
It was a fine and cool Friday evening on the 29th of August 1889 as the SS Centennial set sail from Darling Harbour in Sydney en route to Wellington, New Zealand. Many of the 52 passengers were on deck to bid farewell to Sydney. Others were in what was described as first-class passenger accommodation and a magnificent saloon filled up in the best modern style. The Centennial slowly steamed towards the Heads.
The Centennial never made it.
There is a fundamental law of the sea: Give way to starboard, keep to starboard. (Starboard of course is right, represented by a green object or light. Port is left, represented by red).
Inbound that evening was a collier, fully laden with coal, the SS Kanahooka. The collier was correctly keeping to the starboard channel as it made its way up Sydney Harbour.
The Centennial was not. Instead, she had strayed from her correct channel directly into the path of the SS Kanahooka.
When Captain Charles Gottlieb Lessing, master of the Centennial, saw the Kanahooka loom out of the night, it was too late. Despite his best efforts, both ships collided. Desperately, Captain Lessing steered for the shore hoping to beach the stricken ship at Taylors Bay. There was no time. Within 6 minutes the Centennial sunk off Bradleys Head.
All the passengers were saved by the SS Captain Cook and the Kanahooka which, although heavily damaged, remained afloat. The crew were also saved except the ship’s cook and a fireman who were both below at the time of collision and drowned.
Later at the Seaman’s Home, the survivors made a forlorn group, huddled together in blankets and borrowed clothes.
A marine board of enquiry immediately convened. Captain Lessing gave evidence and blamed a mysterious ferry that had strayed into the Centennial’s path forcing him to change course into the starboard lane. The skipper of the ferry soon debunked that explanation. He and other witnesses proved the ferry was nowhere near the Centennial at the time of the collision.
On the 2nd of September 1889, Captain Lessing’s licence was suspended for a year. That was not the end of his troubles. He was indicted for manslaughter. After a short trial, Captain Lessing was acquitted after a jury deliberation of only an hour and a quarter.
Meanwhile there were discussions about what to do with the wreck. It had sunk in 7 fathoms of water so salvage was a real possibility. Divers quickly went below and recovered some of the passengers’ luggage and personal effects including a considerable amount of money.
It was at first thought Centennial might be raised with slings and ropes. The idea was rejected and the underwriters declared the vessel a total loss.
Six months after it sank, Mr Lumley proposed that he could raise the Centennial by a novel method of approach using inflatable airbags. He even had a pump manufactured in Melbourne for the purpose.
For his trouble Mr Lumley was sued in the court of Equity for allegedly pinching the idea from someone else. His efforts at salvage eventually proved unsuccessful.
On board the now submerged Centennial were tons of cargo and coal. Much but not all the cargo was recovered by divers. Among the cargo not recovered was a quantity of fruit. My Joyce, an orchardist, had consigned fruit valued at 93 pounds to be delivered to Wellington. A steamship such as the Centennial was ideal as it was far quicker than sail. Mr Joyce had signed a bill of lading for the carriage of his goods. A bill of lading sets out the terms on which cargo will be carried and is a contract between the carrier and the shipper of goods.
The owner of the Centennial, Mr Ellis, was disinclined to pay. Mr Joyce sued in the NSW District Court and lost. He appealed to the Supreme Court but had no better success. You see, the bill of lading contained a clause that fruit and all kinds of perishable property to be carried on deck or below at owner’s risk. That clause trumped any claim of admitted negligence on the part of Captain Lessing. Justices Windeyer and Foster had no difficulty in rejecting the appeal. Justice Foster would have known all about the collision as he had earlier presided over the manslaughter trial of Captain Lessing.
Parts of the Centennial were eventually destroyed by dynamite as a danger to shipping. However, you can still dive on the remains of the wreck which lies off Bradleys Head in about 13 metres of water. I would not advise eating any fruit you may find there. The ‘best before’ date has long passed.
Adapted from Joyce v Ellis (1890) XI N.S.W.R 68 and articles from Trove and Wrecksite EU.
