Samuel Plimsoll and the Waterline

　In the nineteenth century, nearly a thousand sailors drowned annually while working on British merchant ships. The deaths were mostly the result of ships being loaded with too much cargo, increasing the chance that the vessels which were usually in poor condition would sink in rough seas. These tragic disasters ( 29 ). Many of these so­-called coffin ships were heavily insured, and a ship’s sinking would result in a significant insurance payout. Many of the ships were therefore overloaded in the hope they would wind up at the bottom of the sea.

　Wanting to save lives, reformers led by a merchant and politician named Samuel Plimsoll began promoting the use of “waterlines,” which were horizontal stripes painted on ships’ sides to indicate whether they were overloaded. If the lines were visible, it meant ( 30 ). This idea had been used successfully on other countries’ ships since the Middle Ages. When ships were overloaded, they sank deeper in the water and the waterline would be covered up, so it was immediately obvious if there was a problem.

　Shipowners resisted the introduction of the waterline by using their considerable influence in Parliament to block legislation proposed by Plimsoll. ( 31 ), Plimsoll was sued repeatedly over accusations he made against various members of Parliament and shipowners. He did not give up, however, and by attracting widespread public support for his campaign, he was able to get legislation passed that required waterlines to be painted on all British ships. As a result, Plimsoll is still remembered today as “the sailors’ friend.”