Several inquests have been held, in the course of the
week, on per- sons who have lost their lives by the upsetting of boats in the Thames, occasioned by the swell made by stearft-boats. Verdicts of Man- slaw:liter have been returned against " the masters of some steam- vessels, whose names are unknown." It is plain that to navigate the Thames in such slight craft as that in which the watermen ply, has become very dangerous. Either the boats must be built on a different plan, or the steam-vessels must be restricted from coming above the Pool. It is in vain to decree that no steam-boat shall sail at a rate beyond five miles, since (were there no other reason against such an enactment) nothing is easier than to procure contradictory testimony on such a point as the rate of a vessel's going through the water.
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