TITANIC DISASTER.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1423, 25 April 1912, Page 5

TITANIC DISASTER.

SENATE INQUIRY. EVIDENCE OF A PASSENGER. DIVED STRAIGHT DOWN"THERE'S NO TIME FOR FOOLING." Bi TalesraDh-Prcsj Asjoclation-Cocyrlehl (Rec. April 2-1, 3.45 p.m.) Washington, April 24. At the Senate's inquiry into the wreck of the Titauic, Frederick Fleet, in his evidence, stated that he was in the crow's nest at t!ie time of tho collision, and hud been instructed to look sharply for ice. Ho saw a large berg, with two small tables. He sounded three bells, and telephoned the bridge. The vessel immediately went to port, but the iceberg got larger as she went along. When she struck it was about fifty feet high. He was not alarmed at the collision, and thought it a narrow shave. Fleet stated that , the look-outs asked Mr. Lightoller, the second officer, for glasses. On tho Atlantic voyage glasses have been provided at Belfast and Southampton. Lightoller said there were none. Fleet opined that if look-outs had glasses they would have been able to give sufficient warning. Fleet took charge of the lifeboat containing three men and twentyfive women, and had orders to pull towards tho light off the Titanic's bow, but he failed to find the vessel, which at one time was abreast of the boat, but slipped by. A PASSENGER'S EVIDENCE. Major Feuchen, Toronto, said that he inspected ('he iceberg, but thought it was not serious; Inter, when showing Mr. C. M. Hays (he iceberg, ho noticed tho ship's list. Mr. Hnys replied, "Tho Titanic can't sink, whatever wo havo struck; she's good.for eight or ten hours." Peuchen then went to tho lifeboats, and was surprised that the sailors were not at their posts. There was a shortago of competent seamen. Thirty-six women were in .the first life-boat." A crowd of stokers camo on deck, but the officer pluckily drove them off the deck like sheep, and called the women to fill the second boat. Mr. Peuchen, continuing, said some refused to leave their husbands, and he thought the failure to sound a. general alarm accounted for nfany women not coming on deck iu time to go in the boats. He wondered why more men were taken. "When lowered, Mr. Lightoller said he could not manage a boat. One seaman asked Peuchen, who is a yachtsman, to slip down the rope and take an oar. The life-boat was rowed as fast as possible to escape the suction. Shortly afterwards they heard the Titanic signal, to return. Those on the lifeboat did not wish to, because tho quartermaster said it was our lives against those on the ship. The married women's protests were ignored. Two explosions followed.

THIRD OFFICER'S STORY. Mr. Pitman, the third officer, in his evidence, stated that a special look-out was kept for ice on Sunday. At first he did not think the collision was serious. When he met Mr. Ismay, who was in a dressing-gown', he said, "Hurry! There's no time for fooling." He told him to get the women and children into the boats. Mr. Ismay helped to launch one, and remained on the Titanic when witness's boat left. Pitman expected to be able to bring the passengers aboard again in a few hours. The boat was not tilled because no more women were about when it was lowered. The Tit.anic settled by the head, then suddenly stood on end and dived straight down. Four explosions like big guns followed. He believed they were the bulkheads. There were many cries of distress. He ordered tho men to get out the oars, and pull towards the wreck to save a few more, as thero were only forty aboard the boat, which could carry sixty. The passengers demurred, saying it wa3 a mad idea. Even the women did not urge him to return. He yielded to the passengers' importunities. Pressed by Senator Smith, Mr. Pitman gave harrowing details. He heard screams like one long, continuous moan, as if it were a. death agony. The cries continued for an hour. He had no personal knowledge of the ship mentioned by Mr. Boxhall.' Senator Smith, suggested that it might have been tho Helligolav, vfhich docked in New York on April 17, and reported having encountered an icebery near where the Titanic sunk.

The public excluded from the inquiry in consequence, of interruptions.

WHAT THE SENATE COMMITTEE INTENDS. Londori, April 23. The "Daily News" New York correspondent states that tho Senate's Committee of Inquiry intends inquiring:— Whether the Titanic's officers disregarded the repented warnings about the icebergs. Whether it was unavoidable that a hundred women perished. Why tho White Star Company was ignorant of the disaster until the evening, though the steamers Baltic and Olympic knew details of tho wreck at noon. Why a Marconi official wirelessed to the operators on tho Carpathia on Thursday:—"Say nothing; hold your story for dollars in four figures." The correspondent adds that there is some talk of a club boycott of the men who left the ship whilo women were aboard; buMt is difficult to criticise these men when boat after boat was lowered partly filled, and nine out of every ten passengers for an hour and a half; believed that the Titanic was unsinkable, and deliberately refused to enter the earlier boats.

THE BRITISH INQUIRY.

BOARD OF TRADE'S INTENTIONS, rOOEEE WITXESPES TO BE SUBSIDISED. London, April 2.3. Mr. Will Crook-'., M.P., moved (ho adjournment of the House of Commons to call attention to the necessity of the Board of Trade preventing the officers and crew and passengers of the Titanic dispersing before giving evidence before tho British inquiry. The Hon. Sydney Buxton, President of I the Board of Trade, in replying, promised to subpoena all the witnesses nonessary, and would subsidise tho poorer witnesses. Lord Mersey had been appointed Wreck Commissioner, and ho would bo assisted by assessors. The Committee would commence the investigation directly. The Government was also convening a meeting of British shipping companies to consider precautions pending a revision of the law. Mr, Crooks withdrew his motion. SAFETY OF SHIPS AT* SEA. COMMITTED TO CONFIOIi. London, April -':!. Lord M,erscy'« Committee and th» M«i> chant Shipp.ius Advisory. Conaniitte* ytff^

meet, txi discus* matins i.nVrliiiK Hi" wiWv ill , ships nl μ-ii. AlhT lln-ir r." polls have been iiuiili'. M<■ ll»»l»» «'ll dl'l'illc ICi 111 llll« CXpedicill'.V 111 llllll'nvMof a fiirllier n:iliniiiil m , iiilcrnalnnul committee or lommissioii '"'"'K ■ V|,l - '''*- Mcnnwl.il.- 1... lias 0r.1.-r.-.l allidavils In be Inlci-n in America nf nlUci-i's, members "I Iho crew. ~r passengers l.y the Tih.nic who arc i.n'l. relurnin;; l« Uiigliiml. kiviiik any nM-fiil informnlinii rcliilinj: I" Hi' , (Usurer.

BOATS AND RAFTS. KOI! Al.l. OX HDAIfI). (K.-r. .April L'-l, 11.i.1 p.m.) London, April -I. A conference nf leading shipping .1111iwiiii'.s including ltit><> in Hi" AtMnliflM trade, iiiformcil Mr. lluxlon. President nf Iho Hoard of Trade, Hint it was divided to provide, lioals nm<l rafts fur nil a'x'ard vessels at. (he earliest possible, dale. A POSSIIU.K MISTAKE. (Rec. April 21. U.2"> p.m.) London, April 21. The opinion is osprew-rd at Lloyd's thai it is pos*il)ln tin* officers of llio Titanic mistook a reflection of fheir own lights from a distant iceberg for an approaching vpSbf'L VALUE OF WIRELESS, (liec. April 21, 0.45 p.m.) New York, April 21. If (lif> freight .steamer Lena had been equipped with wireless she could have reached the. Titanic in time to -arc all those aboard, as she passed within twenty miles of tho sinking liner. A STATEMENT DENIED, (lice. April 24, 11.25 p.m.) New York, April 24. Mrs. Thayer indignantly denies ihe newspaper statement that she said that she would a thousand times rather be dead than be Mr. Ismay. She stales that she lias telegraphed to Mr. Ismay, regretting tho horrible post-mortem to which-he was being subjected, and advising him to have courage. THIRD-CLASS PASSENGERS. (Rcc. April 21, 11.25 p.m.) New York, April 2-t. There were 710 third-class pas-i-ji.sors aboard the Titanic, of whom 277 were women. One hundred and thirty-eight third-class passengers were saved, and of those 106 were women. Twenty stewardesses were also saved. VARIOUS'STATEMENTS. London, April 23. Steward .Nichols states that half the men passengers went back to bed threequarters of an hour after the collision. He saw a passenger using the punching ball in tho gymnasium. The women, he said, had to be coaxed to enter the boats. Mr. Peter Daly, a first saloon passenger, stated that Captain Smith ran to the railing calling to bring the boats back which were only half-filled. The Hoffmann children are sons of a Nice tailor. The mother asserts that the father kidnapped the children a month ago, and disappeared from London. A SENATOR'S IGNORANCE. London, April 23. "The Times" calls attention to the ignorauco of Senator Smith, chairman of tho Inquiry Committee, in asking Mr. Lightoller, the second officer of tho Titanic, whether watertight compartments were intended as a refuge for passengers.

NO ENGINEERS WERE SAVED. New York, April 23. Thirty-two women were drowned among the first and second-class passengers. No engineers were saved. * A hundred bodies have been recovered. Mr. Widener's was among the first to be identified. Bills are to be introduced in Congress to present gold medals to the captain and crew of the Carpathia, and .10,000 dollars apiece to the widows of the Titanic's American mail clerks. A ROYAL SUBSCRIBER. London, April 23. The Queen of Norway has subscribed a r.undred guineas to the Lord Mayor's Fund, which now amounts to .£105,000. Other funds in Great Britain and America total .£70,000. INSTRUCTIONS TO CAPTAINS. London, April 23. The White Star and Cnnard Companies state that their captains' standing instructions are to ensure the safety of lives and ships beforo speed. EVIDENCE AT THE INQUIRY. New York, April 23. Mr. Franklin, .vice-president of the International Mercantile Marine Company, in his evidence before the inquiry, said tho collision had probably opened five or six water-tight compartments. Mr. Boxshall. the Tilanic's fourth officer, gave evidence that the berg the Titanic struck was dark grey in colour, and was thirty feet high. After collision he fired M6rso lights to attract a ship which was five miles away. Tho ship did not answer, though tho Titanic signalled, "Come at once, wo are sinking." He did not know the name of the ship. BOAT ACCOMMODATION. London, April 23. Tha Shaw-Savill liner ZealnnS.i, which has sailed with 1222 emigrants for New South Wales, carries twenty-sis lifeboats. IN THE ENGINE ROOM. THE MEN" AVHO SELDOM GET ' MENTION. (To the Editor.) Sir—Mav 1 ask a little space for a short reference to the terrible marine calamitv that has wrung sympathy and pity from the hearts of every human JC ln S nll reports of tho disaster the bravest men aboard have .-o far not been referral to. On deck the danger and cause of the iHii"<w are apparent to all the oiheers iiml° scami'ii, but to tho-e brave men in the eiieine room .and slokehol. II heir one and onlv course is ahead. 1 hey must •'"land bv"-lhey realise the plight in which tliev are placed, but towering above their heads are the mighty reciprocating engines, thousands of tons ot polished sicel and iron, which must be handled with care and precision till, the engineroom telegraph rings "stop -the ileatlikncll of tlia brnvest. men afloat, mil ot tho ship that holds their pride. Every man to his po?t-the second at. probably, starboard, and the third at the port engine.?, juniors at every pump, the guarantee men -landing by, B ren<*rs hero and there, motionless, but ready lor the In.-t time I" mvoI) a |ii-ton or renew mi oil <=y|Hmii. liverv fireman lacing his lunulas;, trimmers' handling their la 4 barrow «t real, iiiul the stokehoM engineers glancing at aud water dnr.-0.-. Thev face probably an iiwlul end— fcaldwl bv tho toilers thp.v tiunoi Imv*, SKwiyl by tin PVElyuory. taw his «_■

■■"•iv<-<l Ihi-ir every ,ure, ami lias answered In tin- linn nf ii'wri-l, below in the very Imuvi-Is iil j, mighty ship lli<-e brave fellows inviiil I hoi i- lorrible lak'. The dynamos fail, darkness, pitch and bliit-k, cnh'lills i-u-r.viliinj;, anil i-m>l and i-iillectwl flu- Mrond orders a junior to lighl a fi-iv nil lumps, calls iimilher's alli-nlwui to » l<-..1>.v (,'liiml. and <|i,i,.|ly whispers, "(ioodI'Ji , . old man," In thi- «uaranl<'i' man ni<iiigsi(|c. Tin- li-l. W i|>L< rings "Slow ahead" a s:cond lali-r, '■slop" and the last word in I Ik- ™ t ;i,i,.-i< l oio \»g is Ihe liiuil itc-l pi'iloriiii'il by Ih<. bravesl men who go down In Ihe sea in ships.- i am. <•!<•.. l(. It. Hti.WV. l.niu'ljiish, 'Alaslerloii. Apiil 21. I!I12. The Harbour Itoartl. at its monthly iiK'i'liug la>( evening, iillirmed the followinj,- imili<m at the in-t:iiiee of llw chairiimiil-: "That this board ilesires to place on record its profound regret tit the recent (lisaslroiis wreck ~f (he s.s. Titanic, with its appalling 10.-s of life, and to express ils deep sympathy willi tin- relatives and friends of Ihose losl."