THE TITANIC WRECK.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 10441, 22 April 1912, Page 2

THE TITANIC WRECK.

LADY DUFF-GORDON'S STORY.

NO REALISATION OF DANGER.

PASSENGERS JEST AS BOATS > PUSH OFF.

THE FINAL SCENE.

CONTINUED CHORUS OP ! UTTER AGONY.

THE SENATE'S INQUIRY.

• United -Press. Association—By Electlio -> .Telegraph—Copyright, (fteceived April 22, 9.5 a.m.) LONDON, April 21. Lady Duff-Gordon's narrative of tha Titanic diEaster is published in the " Daily News." It is as follows:'— '' I was asleep when the crash occurred, ..but we.had been previously watching the fields of ice. An officer pointed* out one iceberg apparently a hundred felt high and several miles long.

" I was awakened by a long grinding crash and aroused Cosmo (her husband), and he ran to investigate. He returned and said that we had hit a big iceberg. . . "We adjusted our life-preservers and went on deck. There was no cxcit#. ment. The ship had listed slightly, but nobody dreamed that she could sink.

" There was little alarm, even when the officers came running and announcing that the women and children must go to the boats,, this being thought an ordinary precaution.

'' our boat was the twelfth or thirteenth to be launched, and it contained five stokers, two Americans, named Solomon and Stengel, ,two sailors, Cosmo and myself, and Miss Frank, who is an English girl. " Numbers of men, standing near, joked with us because wo were going out on the ocean, saying ' You'll your death of cold out amid the ice.' " We cruised around for two hours, and then suddenly saw the Titanic give a. curious shiver. There were no lights on the ship except a few lanterns. We heard several ipistol shots and a great screaming from the decks. ' ,

" The Titanic's stern was lifted in the air with a tremendous explosion. Then another explosion occurred, and the whole forward part went under and the stern rose a hundred feet in the air like an enormous black finger against tho sky. Little figures Thung to the point of the finger and then dropped into the watpr. " The screaming was agonising. I never heard such a continued chorus of utter agony. *

" A minute or two later, the. Titanio'a stern slowly disappeared, as though a great hand was pushing it gently under the waves? As she sank the streaming of the poor souls aboard

seemed to grow louder. "We were two hundred yards away and we watched her go down slowly, almost .peacefully.

"For a moment there was an awful silence-. Then, from, the water where the Titanic had been, arose a bedlam of. shrieks and cries of men and women clinging to the wreckage in * the icy water. -"It was at least an hour before the awful chorus of shrieks ceased, gradually dying into a moan of despair. The very last cry was a man's: 'My God Imy God!' cried monotonously in a dull, hopeless way. "There was one iceberg, possibly the one the Titanic struck, which seemed to pursue us. The rowers made frantio efforts to get past. "At last the morning came. On one side of us were icefloes and big bergs, while on the other we were horrified to see a school of tremendous whales. Wo then caught sight of the Carpathia, looming in the distance and heading straight for us. "Wo were too numb with cold and horror to utter a sound.

" There were more than fifty women who lost their- husbands, including fifteen brides.

" The gloom on the Carpathia was ghastly. I buried myself in a cabin and did not come on deck till New York was reached."

THE SENATE'S INQUIRY.

SURVIVING OFFICERS' EVIDENCE.

1 SPEED TWENTY-ONE OR TWENTY' ! TWO KNOTS. MR BRUCE ISMAY'S PROTEST. (Received April 22, 8.5 a.m.) NEW YORK, April 21. The special committee of the Senate re-examined Mr Bruce Ismay and the surviving officers of the Titanic at some length. According to their evidence, the Titanic was following strictly the southernmost track for west-bound liners. ~ She encountered no ice before the disaster. A vigilant look-out was maintained and the boat was proceeding at full speed, but with reduced coal consumption. Probably her speed a t the time of the disaster was twentyone or knots an hour.

-'Mr Lightoller, the second officer, stated that when the first boat was lowered the deck was 70ft above water. "When the last boat was lowered the deck was only a few feet above the water.

Mr Light-oiler continued that though ice was reported he did not think an additional lookout was necessary. Ha heard the captain's last command to put the women and children in the boats and lower away. Mr Lightoller added: "Whenever I saw women, I put tlielri. aboard, except the stewardesses."

Alfred White, an oiler, said that it was so black that the iceberg was difficult to see. They made coffee aftci the vessel struck.

The committee at first refuser? to allow Mr Isniay or any of the officers and crew to retui'n to ■ England. ■ Afterwards it declared that Mr Ismay, the four .officers and twelve of the crewshould remain. Mr Ismay, in an interview, said that the committee was brutally unfair. " My conscience is clear," he declared. " I took the opportunity to escape when it came- I did not seek it." MILLIONAIRE HERO. "WE WILL GO DOWN LIKE GENTLEMEN." James Ettchas. a steward, said that

he assisted Mr Guggenheim and his secretary to get dressed and put lifebelts and sweaters on. Ho afterwards found them in evening dress, helping the women. Mr Guggenheim said, "We will go down like gentlemen. Tell my wife I tried to do my duty." THE MAILS. POSTAL CLERKS DO DUTY. NEW YORK, April 21. Survivors state that the five postal clerks continued carrying sacks of registered letters, of which there were 200, to the upper deck until the very last. None of the clerks was saved. | NO BOAT DRILL. I STATEMENT BY MEMBERS OF CREW. • The survivors of the Titanic's crew, " except those subpamaed by the Senate's rommittee, sailed in the Lapland for England. Interviewed before leaving, they stated that they had had no boat drill during the voyage. When the boats wore being launched they believed they saw the lights of fishing smacks five miles away. Some of'the boats rowed desperately "in that direction, but failed to find the fishing boats. ";'"V ' SAVED BY SUPERSTITION. Superstition saved the life of Mrs Fison, ft resident of Vancouver, who •was visiting Englaud. Reading in an, almanac that a great sea - disaster was" likely to'occur in the middle of April, she refused to return,. although her husband urged her to go aboard tho ■Titanic;, ' * m SAFETY PRECAUTIONS. LIFEBOATS FOR~ALL ABOARD. Instructions have been issued that steamers belonging to the International Mercantile Marino Company must be equipped with lifeboats and rdfts sufficient to accommodate everyone aboard. The International Company was the combination, formed in 1902, including the American,, Atlantic Transport, Dominion, Leyland, Red Star and White Star Lines, together representing a total of 132 steamers, aggregating 1,169,704 tons. The Hamburg-Amerika and Canadian Pacific Lines have decided to provide fot* all the passengers and crews on their ships. ' ... BEN TILLETT'S PROTEST. WERE THIRD-CLASS PASSENGERS SAVED? LONDON, April 21." Mr Ben Tillett, on behalf of the Dock and Wharf Workers' Union, has issued a manifesto protesting that a vicious class of antagonism was shown in the refusal to permit the third-class passengers to be saved. He declares that the treatment of these passengers was '' a disgrace to our common civilisation." Various newspaper correspondents protest that Mr Tillett's letter is a foul insult, made in order to gain cheap notoriety. FRENCH STEERAGE PASSEN-< GERS. The steerage passengers included 120 from Marseilles. 1 THE RELIEF FUNDS. The subscriptions in Britain total £IOO,OOO and in New York £20,000. REFERENCES IN THE CHURCHES. In numerous churches and chapels references were made to the disaster, the "Dead March" was played and muffled ipeals were rung on the bells.

CAPTAIN AMUNDSEN INTERVIEWED. CONCERNING ICEBERGS. [Pkr Press Association.] AUCKLAND, April 22. Captain Amundsen, interviewed regarding the Titanic disaster, remarked that one account said that the berg met with was one mile in length. This Account- was surely exaggerated. It was more probably a line of bergs that was encountered that was a mile or BO in length. Nor did it seem to him probable that very little of the berg *5? h&v© been showing above water. If one could depend upon the cablegrams, tons of ice had fallen on the deck, sinking the liner, which was itfielf particularly high out of the water. It was exceptionally early in the year to meet icebergs off the coast of Newfoundland. He could only account for their presence by suggesting that there had been an abnormally heavy wind in the north for several weeks previous to the disaster. Questional as the facilities for ascertaining that icebergs were, in a given vicinity Captain Amundsen declined to say much on that point. One method was to the temperature of the sea One thing was certain when the inquiry was concluded it would be found that the captain and his officers had done their duty. . . ( CAPTAIN SMITH. A POPULAR OFFICER. Captain Smith was well known to a lady now resident in Ohristchurch, Mrs J. who knew both Captain Smith and Mrs Smith while they were living in Liverpool prior to the alterato°n of the White Star timetable, which made Southampton the • port of 1 departure for mail steamers. Captain Smith then moved his residence there. Mrs Dicker was unwilling to speak for pubnregardmS the late Captain omith. She remarked that he was a v«ry well set up man, who certainly did not look more than sixty. He was very good-natured tttlt [ popular, and she scouted the idea that he could have committed suicide. Mrs Dicker has in Mr possession a small table cover work* ed With the names of a number of her Ji'lj'l'f l T frl | nd .'!', <?, nd imong them is Smith," familiarly known M Ted Smith, Captain of the Titanic Mrs Smith s signature and that of her Matter are also worked on the cloth. Captain Smith leaves a widow, and one daughter, aged about, eighteen,, years,.. ICE AT SEA. ~ WARNINGS FPOM LLOYD'S CALENDAR." Under the heading " Ice as an Obstruction to Navigation," "Lloyd's Calendar," an annual publication prepared by the Committee.of LJoydJ.s for the use of officers of the mercantile marine, says:—• . "On this subject, only general directions can be given to seamen, when and where to expect ice obstruction. ft must be borne in mind that seldom two ■winter seasons are alike; several inBtances are recorded of places being blocked during one winter, and being quite open the next. " When in the supposed vicinity of ice a good look-out is essentially neces--BaTtf-, Even in a fog or at night the position of an iceberg may bo recognised b.T a peculiar whitening of the fog—known as ice-blink—which frequently renders it visible at some distance. "No reliance can he vilnrerl on any warning conveyed by diminution of temperature either of air or sea on approaching ice. Such lowering of temperature has been sometimes observed, but more often not. The indications of the thermometer should, 'however, never be neglected. ' " Vessels should, if possible, alwavs pass to windward of floating icebergs, tb avoid the loose ice floating to leeward.

' " gating ice has only one-eighth of ■ its entire mass above water. 'ln the route of vessels crossing tlia

Atlantic from England to the Canadian or American ports, bores and compact fields of ico will probably be encountered from April to August, both months inclusive, although bergs have been met with all seasons of the Tear, northward of 43 degrees north, and occasionally as far south as 39 degrees north. \.ln latitude. 47 degrees N.. bergs have been met in 40 degrees W., and in 39 degrees N. they have been seen in 45 degrees W., ami instances of nil exceptional nature are recorded of their being met with about sixtv miles W.N.W. of Cnrvo Island in the Azores. Tbo harbours and const of Labrador are completely blocked from November to July. Hudson St r ait is sometimes navigable by specially constructed steamships from Julv to September, and probably a part of October.

" Belle-isle Strait is not navigable between November and June except by specially built vessels. "The large bays on the east coast of Newfoundland, and the heads of those on the south coast, are blocked from December to April or May. St John's Harbour is rarely blocked, and then for only a short time, when a berg drifts into the narrows. Except with strong easterly winds, there is always a lane of clear water between Cape Spear and Cape Ray. " Cabot Strait never freezes entirely over, but vessels built in the ordinary way cannot navigate it in safety between January 1 and May 1, on account of heavy drift ice. " The St Lawrence river is closed for considered unsafe navigation from about November 2n to April 25, and occasionally until May. The southern part of the gulf is not considered safe aft?r the first week in December till after April 1." WHITE STAR LINE. GROWTH OF THE GREAT FLEET. Tho Oceanic Steam Navigation Company, Limited, better known as the White Star Line, was founded in 1809 by the late Mr T. H. Ismav. Mr Ismay had taken over the management of the company two years earlier, when only sailing vessels were employed. Iron clippers took the place of the wooden sailers,' and tfieu Messrs Harland and Wolff, of Belfast, were commissioned to build the first of the White Star steamers. In August of 1870 was launched the first Oceanic, which made the oldfashioned rub their eyes in surprise and shake their heads ill distrust. For the Oceanic.threw convention to the winds, aild set going an entirely new order of things in the steamship world. Her immense length in proportion to her beam (42011 by 42ft) at once attracted attention, and it was also noticed that the old heavy bulwarks were done away with. In this vessel■ the saloon ■passengers for the first time in steamship construction were placed amidships, and forward, of the machinery. An improved type of watertight doors was introduced* oil instead of candles was used for lighting, and revolving armchairs were used in t-lle saloon instead of forms. The Oceanic was in her time the fastest liner afloat, and attained a speed of 14jf knots. She had a tonnage of 3808 gross; This initial success was followed up by, the building of the Britannic ana Germanic irt 1874. As originally built, the Britannic was fitted with a propeller which could work at differentlevels, aft it Was hoped that by lowering it to the level of the keel the racing of the screw in rough weather could be avoided. The arrangement was not 'a success. These two vessels had each a tonnage of 5000 toils gross. The Britannic broke tho record of her sp;ed of sixteen knots. In 1872, in the Adriatic, the company had tried gaslighting, but abai doned it. Fron: 1673 to 1884 the White Star fleet was the fastest on the Atlantic. In that year, however, cam© tho Cunard liners Etruria and Umbria, with Hi average ocean speed of 18} knots, and it was not until 1889 that the White Star Line regained the blue ribbon with the Teutonic and Majestic. The tonnage of these vessels was about 10,000 and one of the innoyar tions in them was the overlapping twin-screws. The Germans in 1897 took up the running with the Kaiser Wilhelm der Grossej a vessel of 14.000 tons gross, attaining a mean soeed of 22.81 knots. This ship had to run a trial trip across the Atlantic before the company took her from tho builde r s. The British reply to tho Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse came in size, but not in speed, with the building of a new' Oceanic by the Whito Star Company in 1899. This vessel was tho first to exceed the Great Eastern in length, and is about 13ft longer, though 14Jft less in the beam. She has a tonnage of 17,274 gross a length of 706 ft. over all,a beam of 68.4 ft. a draught Of 32£ ft. and an average sea sneed of 20 knots. Two other of these " intermediates" were added tf> the White Star fleet in 1901 and 1903 respectively. They were the Celtic (20,880 tons gross) and the Cedric (21.034 tons gross), with a speed each of 16 knots. The Gprmans retained the blue ribbon for speed until the Lusitania of the Cunard Line, came on the scene, and the White Star Line has not since attempted record-breaking times. Tho company, meantime, pursued its nolicy of building large vessels of moderate* speed. The comparative profitableness of the latter vessels mav be gautred from the fact that the Baltic of 1904. with her 24.000 tons and sneed of 16} knots is said to require onlv 260 tons of fuel a day, whereas the Majestic of 1889. with her 10,000 tons and speed of 19 knots, consumes 316 tons of coal. In 1902 the White Star Line was merged into tho Morgan combine, otherwise known as tho International Navigation Company, Limited.