34 STRUCTURE OF VESSELS AS AFFECTED 



ICE. 



Special provision is made in the structure of vessels which are expected to 

 run through ice by means of special framing and plating forward near the water 

 line. Contact with icebergs is a special case of collision, or, as in the case of the 

 Titanic, it may be described as a case of side grounding. 



GROUNDING. 



This is one of the most common dangers from which vessels suffer. In 

 many cases, when the ground is soft, no serious damage is done. But it does not 

 seem feasible to design a vessel so that the bottom plating shall not be punc- 

 tured, or the stern frame broken when the conditions are not so favorable. The 

 amount of leakage into the vessel can be reduced by subdivision into watertight 

 compartments, and the problem which is presented is how best to effect sufficient 

 subdivision without too much cost and without interfering with the service of the 

 vessel. The fitting of an inner bottom for the purpose of storing water for feed or 

 ballast, and recently for the stowage of oil fuel, serves as the most desirable type 

 of subdivision. As bottom damage often extends to the bilge beyond the limits of 

 the standard double bottom, the extension of the double bottom to the upper turn 

 of bilge, now not infrequent, affords an additional safeguard. But while accidents 

 due to grounding often cause the loss of vessels and of their cargo, in remarkably 

 few cases would loss of life seem to be involved. 



COLLISION. 



This source of danger is probably the cause of the majority of fatalities inci- 

 dent to travel by water, and means for minimizing the effect of collision are being 

 given careful consideration by the maritime world, as the result of the loss of 

 the Titanic. Collisions occur in so many different ways that it is difficult to 

 decide what precautions will be effective in every case. Until the collision of the 

 Titanic with an iceberg, it was generally considered that if a vessel would not 

 founder with any two compartments open to the sea, that vessel would be ex- 

 tremely safe. The number of vessels of which so much can be truly stated is 

 very small. 



The safety of cargo vessels does not need governmental regulation, except 

 only in so far as the safety of the crew is concerned, as all questions relative to 

 the safety of the cargo will be settled by the shipowners and underwriters to suit 

 the demands of trade. It is probably true that the precautions which should be 

 taken for the safety of the crew do not need to be as great as for the safety of pas- 

 sengers, for reasons which are chiefly economic. The advantages of not handi- 

 capping trade are so great, that the taking of risks by the people engaged in 

 any trade is accepted. In all building operations there is a loss of life for every 

 so many dollars spent, and while this is to be regretted, there does not seem any 

 remedy which will prevent accidents entirely, except a complete cessation of work 



