Report of The Court

Serious damage to the s.s. "Heraclides" was not caused by the wrongful act or default of the master, or of Mr. Richard John Noal, the assistant marine superintendent. It was caused to some extent, when the vessel became unmanageable, by an error of judgment on the part of the pilot, Mr. Thomas Owen, as detailed in Answer No. 4; but that the vessel became unmanageable was due to the fact that she was so light, and in such a trim, that she was not in a fit state to encounter (at all events in narrow waters), the sudden squall which struck her when nearing the Crosby lightship.