LINER'S NARROW ESCAPE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume L, Issue 15482, 13 December 1913, Page 5 (Supplement)

LINER'S NARROW ESCAPE.

.:••':' JUST MISSES ICEBERG. : : How.another White Star liner was saved V.from the fate of the Titanic was told ' . when 'the Teutonic docked at Liverpool ;,': recently. Only the vigilance and presence of mind of her commander, Captain I James, and his officers and crew saved tho 1-. ship from a disastrous collision with an . i iceberg in mid-Atlantic. '• \"Tho liner left Montreal on Sunday, ■October 18, with nearly 400 second and ■ third class passengers and a valuable gene- ; J ral cargo. After calling at Quebec, she proceeded on her way to Liverpool. Some fog was encountered off the Newfoundland , Banks, and speed wa6 reduced until a clearer atmosphere was reached. The '■:';, passage through the Straits of Belle Isle ? was made in safety, and the liner was reported 172 miles cast of Belle Isle at 1.40 on Wednesday morning. it About this time tho Teutonic ran into a bank of thick white fog, and Captain James slackened speed until tho shin was - barely making headway. A strict lookout- was,maintained by two men in the j crow's nest and an officer at tho forecastle head, in addition to Captain James himself and other officers on the bridge. 1 j ■ The fog, which was so thick that it was impossible to see more than a few yards a'nead, lasted throughout Wednesday. A wireless warning that ice was about was received from a passenger steamer, and the bitterly cold atmosphere confirmed the ' news. , ■ Tho passengers were below in the (saloons, singing and reading, when, about , 3.30 on Wednesday afternoon, the officer posted on the forecastle head, rushed across the deck and shouted that there was an' iceberg ahead. • Captain James, without hesitating a second, ordered " Helm hard aport," and telegraphed the order "Full speed astern" to the engineroom The liner swung to starboard just in the nick of time, as a huge iceberg, towering as high as her funnels, passed silently along her port side, and within three or four yard* of her stern. It was not until the iceberg was almost on top of them that the lookout men sighted it. A member of tho crew said he had never seen a man in a greater hurry than the officer who gave the alarm. Captain James was one of the most cautious skippers afloat. Between Monday and Thursday he spent 36 hours on the bridge with no more sleep than a nap in the chartroom. "When we struck the fog,'' he continued, "on Tuesday night we smelt ice, but on Wednesday morning wo could see nothing, and to walk along the deck was like going through a cloud on the Welsh mountains. The iceberg passed 'so near that I feared it would foul the propellers." When,the passengers heard of the liner's narrow escape they were loud in their praises of the skilful and careful seamanship displayed by Captain James -. and his officers, and before reaching the Mersey they signed a testimonial recording unanimously their appreciation. ';.-.; Tho fog did not lift until Thursday ' morning, when the Teutonic was -able to resume her voyage at a good pace for i; Liverpool. : i - '