The Titanic.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLVII, Issue 23, 5 June 1912, Page 8

The Titanic.

ENGLAND AND THE NEWS. (From Onr special correspondent.) LONDON, April 21. You will have had all the particulars of the Titanic wreck long ere this, but there is one point that perhaps has not been emphasised at your end. In the belief of her builders and owners the Titanic was practically unsinkable. This has not been questioned since the disaster. Certainly everything that human ingenuity has been able to devise was applied to her to make her so. her system of eleetrieally-contr«lle<l watertight doors being the most complete imaginable. These giving communication between the various boiler-rooms and the engine-room were arranged on the drop system. They were uf massive construction, and were provided with oil cataracts governing the elcoing speed. Each door was held in the open position by a friction clutch which could be instantly released by means of a powerful electric magnet controlled from the captain’s bridge, so that in tre event of aeeideut the captain could, by simply moving a switch, instantly close the doors throughout, and it was claimed that this made the vessel practically unsinkable. In addition, each door eould be immediately closed from below by a releasing lever fitted in connection with the friction dutch. As a still further precaution floats were provided beneath the floor level, which, in the event ef water accidentally entering any compartment, automatically lifted and dosed the doors opening into that department, if they had not already been dropped by those in charge of the vessel. It is, however, very doubtful whether any precautions could ensue that a ship should be unsinkable by such a terrific shock as that caused by the impact upon a huge iceberg of a mass of 60,000 tons moving at even a moderate speed. In all probability the shock of the Titanic hitting what would be to her a practically nnmova-bte object would produce extensive internal dislocations which would render it impossible to completely elose the watertight doors. In alt probability the Titanic was moving at a fairly high speed, as at the time she struck she had practically cleared the zone within which icebergs are usually to be found at this time of the year. AMERICAN “STORIES. One striking feature of the terrible Titanic catastrophe was the utterly confusing and contradictory nature of the news cabled from America during the first 24 hours after the original intimation that the leviathan liner had collided with an iceberg. This came to hand on Monday evening, via Montreal ami New York, in the shape of a wireless message from the liner “Virginian,’* which reported that she bad picked up a message from the Titanic announcing the collision and requesting assistance, and that she was hastening to the rescue. A little later Cape Race reported that the wireless operator on the Titanic reported weather calm and clear, and New York reported that a number of vessels were hastening to the liner’s assistance; whilst still later Cape Race reported that the Titan e

was sinking by the head, and that the women were taken off by the lifeboats. New York next reported that most of the passengers had been put into the lifeboats, that the sea was ealm, and that the White Star line officials in New York stated that the Virginian was standing by so that there was no danger of loss of life.

Then the Exchange Telegraph Company sent out a message from Halifax stat.ng that all the passengers were taken off the Titanic at 3.30 a.m. (10.30 English time), and Halifax sent per Montreal a report that the Titanic was still afloat and making her way slowly to Halifax, with her forward compartments full of water, but was expected to make port. Next New York reported, through from the Virginian, that the Titanic was sinking, and Boston came along with a message from St. Johns, Newfoundland, to the effect that the stricken liner was struggling slowly towards Cape Race. Later still, Reuter’s from New Y’ork, reported that the Titanic had sunk at 2.20 a.m. (Monday), and that no lives were lost, but quickly following this up with a White Star official statement that “probably a number of lives had been lost, but that no definite estimate could be made until it was known positively whether the Parisian and Virginian had any rescued passengers on board.” Within five minutes of despatching this wire, Reuter’s New York man cabled an official statement from the White Star Company to the effect that “Captain Haddock, of the Olympic, had sent a wireless message that the Titanic sank at 2.21) a.m. on Monday, after all the passengers and erew had been lowered into lifeboats and transferred to the Virginian, and that the steamer Carpathia, with several hundred passengers from the Titanic was on her way to New York.” At 5.40 p.m., Reuter’s reported from New Y’ork an admission by the White Star officials that many lives had been lost, and Cape Race simultaneously reported a wireless message from the Olympic to the effect that the steamer Carpathia "Reached the Titanic’s position at daybreak, but found boats and wreckage only. She reported that the Titanic foundered about 2.20 a.m. in lat. 41deg. I6min.. long. 50deg. I4min. AH the Titanic’s boats are accounted for. About 675 souls have teen saved of ths crew and passengers. The tatter are nearly all women and children. The Leyland liner California, is remaining and searching the vicinity of the disaster. The Carpathia is returning to New York with the survivors.”

At 9 p.m. the “Times” own correspondent intervened with the following:—“The International Mercantile Marine Company has received a private message from the Olympic that the Titanic foundered at 2.20 this morniing, and that the Carpathia is proceeding to New York with passengers. Vice-President Franklin positively refused to give out the full text of a private message, whieh leads to the belief that possibly there has been loss of life. Later, Mr, Franklin sa d that he eould not state with certainty that everybody had been saved.” Half an hour later Reuter’s reported that Mr. Franklin admitted that there had been “horrible loss of life,” and stated that be had no information to disprove a Press despatch from Cape Race which stated that only 675 passengers and erew had been rescued. A quarter of an hour afterwards, Reuter's sent the evil tidings that the White Star people frankly admitted that probably only 675 out of the Titanic’s passengers had been s-ved.

Even later messages were in a great measure conflicting, and it was not until late on Tuesday evening that we were in receipt of what we eould accept as really authentic news concerning the disaster. From what has now transpired, it would appear that many of the earlier messages received from America must have been purely imaginative efforts, or that the wireless messages received at the Cape Race station and elsewhere from the various liners hastening to the rescue of the Titanic, got terribly mutilated or mixed up with one another. The air within a few hundred miles of Cape Race would seem to have been alive with wireless messages from a dozen liners all seeking to obtain or impart information. And to make matters worse, it appears that a number of amateurs possessing private wireless installations were taking advantage of the occasion to test their apparatus, with the result that serious interruptions to official messages were caused. Whether these things in any way added to the disaster ewnnot yet be stated, but it is clear that in certain

eases it might have such a result, and the question arises whether the time is not yet ripe for an international convention regulating the sending of wireless messages. " LIES—LIES AND AMERICA* NEWS.” 1 he false news sent from America was by no means confined to the first day of the disaster. During Wednesday and 1 hursday all sorts of utterly unreliable matter was poured through the cables. Much of it has proved so flagrantly wide of faet as to suggest that it waa deliberately invented to serve some special purpose. One message received from New York gave what purported to lie a description of the foundering of the Titanic as received by wireless from the steamer Bruee. It is now absolutely certain that the Bruee was never even in touch with the Titanic or with any steamer near the scene of the disaster, and that no one on board ef the Bruce sent any wireless message to anyone anywhere concerning the catastrophe. By the time that faked story eame to hand English people had well night emptied their well of credulity, deep though it i», and had settled down to wait with what calmness they eould muster for the true story which they knew must come ere the week was out. It came to hand yesterday in the shape of a statement said to have been issued to the Press by “a committee of survivors.”

The underwriters at Lloyd’s, by the way, are very sore over the qualify of the Titanie intelligence supplied from America. The market was first shocked by the Lloyd’s true telegram from Cape Race giving the wireless messages from the Titanie, and a rate of 50 per cent was at onee quoted for reinsurance, whieh subsequently advanced fo 60 per eent. That is to say. some underwriters who were not heavily committed, er thought they had reason to be optimistic, were ready to assume the original risk at that rate. Then eame the “news” that the vessel was heading slowly for Halifax, that she was in tow of the Virginian, and that all the -passengers had been saved. FiuaMy, eame Mr. Franklin’s statement that the vessel was unsinkable, and the rate gradually declined to 50, to 45, to and finally to 25 per cent er lower. The rate could hardly have fallen iu a more striking fashion had the “news” been inspired with the intention of deluding the market. According to the old tag there were three classes of lies—“ Lies. lies, and statistics.” -To-day one feels inclined to substitute "American news” for statistics.”