§ MR. M'GHEE (Louth, S.)I beg to ask the President of the Board of Trade whether he is in a position to state if it is the intention of his Department to take any proceedings against the owners of the s.s. "Cardinal," which vessel left Pensacola in an unseaworthy, condition, and foundered in the Atlantic?
§ THE PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD OF TRADE (Mr. RITCHIE, Croydon)The case of the "Cardinal" has received the careful consideration of the legal advisers of the Board of Trade, and I am advised that not only does the evidence fail to afford a reasonable prospect of a conviction being obtained, but that it is insufficient, to establish a case to justify even a committal by justices, either of the managing owner or the master of the vessel, under section 457 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1894. In these circumstances, it is not my intention to institute proceedings in this case.