The Metagama, of the Canadian Pacific Line, outward bound from Glasgow for Quebec and Montreal, and the cargo steamer Baron Vernon, inward bound from Italy, collided in Clyde waters near Dumbarton Rock on Friday night, 25th May 1923, between nine and ten o’clock. On board the liner there were fully 1100 passengers, most of whom had retired to rest.

For a while the vessels remained locked together, and, when the liner backed out, the Baron Vernon heeled over, having, been, holed below the water line; her port bows were stove in, and she was thrown stem first towards the north bank of the river. Realising the danger of the situation, the captain of the cargo steamer beached his vessel, grounding her in the mud at a point off Helenslea, not far from the Garmoyle light. The damage to the Metagama was comparatively slight. She had one of her plates broken on the port bow, about nine feet above the water line, supposed to have been caused by the anchor of the Baron Vernon. No injury to anyone on either vessel resulted from the collision.

The Metagama returned under her own steam to Glasgow Harbour for examination, and she arrived shortly after midnight. She was towed into Prince’s Dock later, and a diver was sent down to report further as to damage. Another ship of the same service, the Montrose, which is outward bound for the St Lawrence, has been, diverted from Liverpool, and will take off a portion of the Metagama’s passengers. Other passengers may proceed to Southampton and sail from there by another of the C.P.R. steamers during the current week.

Metagama and the sunken Baron Vernon on a later visit of Metagama to the Clyde

A twin-screw reciprocating engined vessel of 12,420 tons gross, and 16 knots speed, the Metagama and the sister ship, Missanabie, were built by Messrs Barclay, Curle & Co., Whiteinch, in 1914, and the former has been employed for several years in the passenger service between Glasgow and the St Lawrence ports.

The Baron Vernon, a cargo steamer of 2603 tons gross, is owned by the Kelvin Shipping Co. (Messrs H. Hogarth & Sons), Glasgow, and registered at Ardrossan. She was built in 1922 by Irvine’s Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, West Hartlepool.

The Clyde Collision

Metagama to sail to-day, May 29th, 1923.

The Canadian Pacific liner Metagama, which was in collision with a cargo boat on the Clyde, off Dumbarton, on Friday night, is to resume her voyage to Canada to-day. Some 160 of the Metagama’s passengers were taken down the river on Sunday, and placed on board the same owners’ liner Montrose, which had come from Belfast for the purpose. Arrangements have now been made or the remainder of the passengers embarking on the Metagama this forenoon, and it is expected that the vessel will make her departure during the day.

The damage to the vessel caused by the impact was found not to be so extensive as was at first feared, a plate in the port-bow having been rifted. Diving operations showed that the under-water damage was practically negligible.

The Baron Vernon, which was in collision with the liner, is badly damaged and still lies in the mud off Helenslea. Her stem is high on the bank, but the bows are well under water. Operations for lightening the vessel of her cargo are proceeding and it is expected that she will soon be towed off the bank and taken to the repairers. Fortunately traffic on the river is uninterrupted by the disabled vessel.

Departure of the Metagama For Canada

A four days delay

Metagama in Princes Dock

The Canadian Pacific liner Metagama, which was delayed for four days through her collision with the Baron Vernon on the Clyde off Dumbarton, on Friday night last, left Prince’s Dock, Glasgow yesterday, forenoon, 29th May 1923, on her voyage to Canada

Much public interest, as a rule, is taken in emigrant sailings, but the circumstances of the delay in departure of the vessel attracted more attention than ever, and, in addition to many friends of the immigrants, a considerable crowd assembled to witness the liner leaving the dock.

Glasgow Steamer Goes to Rotterdam for Repair on August 21, 1924

Under tow by a Dutch tug, the steamship Baron Vernon left the Clyde yesterday morning for Rotterdam. It will be recalled that the steamer was in collision with the Metagama in the estuary of the river, off Langbank, in May of last year, and lay half submerged. Great difficulties were experienced in salving her. Salving was begun on May 26, 1923 with her cargo of iron ore and esparto grass discharged into lighters but was abandoned on June 6, 1923 when she sank further into the mud. Ultimately she was raised on June 24, 1924, and some six weeks ago she was brought up to Glasgow. The vessel was disposed of to Mr David C. Dawson, of Messrs Dawson Brothers & Rowan, Glasgow. A wooden section has been built on to the bow to enable her to proceed to Rotterdam, where she will undergo thorough overhauling.

Baron Vernon—note the watchman’s hut

The “wreck” was sold by Clyde Navigation Trustees for £5000, for a ship for which Hogarth had paid £40,000 only 2 years earlier. She was lengthened and refurbished to re-enter service as Dowanhill. The salvaged cargo was sold for £260.

Baron Vernon v. The Metagama

Strangely enough, this case again involves ships. There had been a collision on the River Clyde between two ships, the Baron Vernon and the Metagama, for which the defenders, the owners of the Baron Vernon, admitted being responsible. In spite of this, they refused to accept their responsibility for the subsequent damage to the Baron Vernon. The Baron Vernon had been towed and tied to the beach at one position from which it slipped off and was afterwards tied up at a different position under the supervision of a third party. From this second position it was later carried away by the tide and subsequently sank.

Baron Vernon from a passing steamer

This case is a very nice example of the fact that really the question of remoteness of damage is an aspect of the question of causation.  In the decision it was considered if there was in fact a nova causa, which would have interrupted the chain of causation. This was not found to be the case, however.  Instead it was stated that “the damage is recoverable…if it is the natural and reasonable result of the negligent act, and it will assume that character if it can be shown to be such a consequence as in the ordinary course of things would flow from the situation which the offending ship created.”

Metagama off Gourock

At first glance, this seems to establish the direct and natural consequences test for Scotland. When taking a closer look, though, one notices that the result instead of “direct and natural” has to be “natural and reasonable.” It is difficult enough to determine which results are direct and natural.  However, what kind of consequence could be a “reasonable” consequence? A consequence in the cases were the concept of remote damages comes up, is a matter of fact and no one chose for it to happen – it happened by chance or coincidence. In this context it does not seem appropriate to use the expression “reasonable” to describe such a consequence. On the contrary, the use of this expression hints at the importance of human expectations. Probably, what the judges actually meant to say was that one should only be accountable for results that one could reasonably expect. This way of interpreting the first part of the sentence is actually supported by its ending, because results that one can reasonably expect are exactly those that flow from the situation in an ordinary course of things.

Court Cases

The following court cases before Lord Murray established that the Trustees of the Clyde Navigation had a case against the Kelvin Shipping Company (Limited), 24 St Enoch Square, Glasgow, the owners of the Baron Vernon for removal of the wreck and disrupting the navigation, even though these owners were not responsible for the initial collision. In a subsequent action, the Kelvin Shipping Company, owners of the Baron Vernon successfully sued the C.P.R. who admitted sole responsibility for the accident. The Baron Vernon carried a cargo of iron ore and esparto grass, and after beaching, lay aground until June 1924 when she was ultimately floated, beached, and finally dry-docked on 16th July 1924.

The contract for the removal of the wreck was given to Messrs Thomas Ensor & Son, salvage contractors, Queenstown, who were to be paid £28,000 within fourteen days after the completion of the work. The vessel was sold, and realised a sum of £5500 and the cargo the sum of £260. In addition to the sum of £28,000 paid to the salvors, the Trustees had expended further sums in connection with the marking, buoying, and watching of the wreck and its removal, wages, use of vessels, coals and stores, graving dock dues. &c., including depreciation, interest, insurance, and establishment charges. They also carried out widening operations in the channel in the vicinity of the wreck; while dredging operations necessary were carried out on the other side. The total costs and charges incurred mounted to £47,501. 15s. 4d., which, under deduction of the sum realised by the sale of the vessel and cargo, with interest thereon, amounted to £41,598. 19s. 7d., to which they restricted their claim in the action.

Lord Murray found the Trustees entitled to payment from the defenders of the sum of £28,137. 0s. 7d., together with interest thereon from the date of decree until payment. He also found the pursuers entitled to expenses modified to the extent of one-third. Costs for a number of items such as widening the channel were not directly related to the removal of the wreck and so were not allowed.

In the subsequent case where the Kelvin Shipping Company sued the C.P.R., Lord Murray granted decree for the round sum of £21,500 as reasonably representing, the total loss and damage sustained by the pursuers as the result of the collision.

Text: Contemporary newspaper reports from Scotsman and Glasgow Herald.