The Washington times., 1912-04-19
|SMAY DECLARES
TITANIC WAS NOT
!. TRYING FOR SPEED
Testiies That No Women
Were In Sight When He
. 10. Got Into Lifeboat.
Continued from First Page.)

We're put into the boats on the deck,
and the boats were dropped into the
water. All the boats were on the upper
deck. i don't know how many Of the
crew We're In each boat. There were
several in my boat. one a quartermas-
Z" Women and children first, was the
order given. 1t was followed. so far
sengers We're In the boat with me, prac-
fically its full capacity. The first three
boats were also well filled.
Saw No Struggling.
was there any struggling or jostlIng
or attempts by men to get into the
boats" asked Smith significantly.
II saw none," Ismay replied, In a
iower tone of voice, fiddling nervously
with his glasses. 1--WE simply picked
the first women we could lay our hands
on; I helped put some in myself"
senator Smith then quized Ismay re-
garding the report that the women were
sent OF without any oarsmen, and were
forced to pull the boats themselves.
DID You see any life boat without its
complement OF seamen?"
None that / saw was undermanned. ="
Is is said that the women in the
second boat had no oarsmen, and were
forced to row from II 80 at night until
dawn" Smith said
declared.
did you see any passengers on the
Titanic just before she sank asked
~ saw them. but did not recognize
any Of them"
did you, see Charles M. Hays, or
know OF the presence of any other
prominent American or Canadian on the
boat prior to the sinking?"
s,.I M knew Hays was on board. but
Senator Smith then asked what were
ri q mo ,lal. \, Lei
the Titanic.
Opposite Last Boat.
Il was Immediately opposite the last
boat which the sailors were trying to
lower. There was untitled space in the
boat. The captain asked Are there any
more women There was no answer
The acptain said: There are no more.
There were no other male passengers
on that part of the ship. Just before
she was lowered stepped in
Ismay said he did not know where the
Titanic was struck by the. iceberg, but
that he had been told it was between
the breakwater and the bridge.
"All the men passengers" continued
Ismay, that l saw, were provided with
life preservers. When l entered the life
boat from the starboard side. there were
struggle, no confusion. saw no one
lump into the sea from the Titanic.
When the lifeboat struck the water we
saw a light some distance off and We
tried to- make it. We were in the open
sea in the iifeboat about four hours.
There were other lifeboats in that
vicinity. We hailed one, but got no
answer. There were no RATS on board
the Titanic. Some years ago the White
Star. line discontinued their, use, con-
sidering them unsuited. There were
twenty lifeboats on the Titanic--sixteen
wooden and four collapsible. When we
reached. the Carpathia we walked up
not know what happened to he life
boats. did not look to see after we
left the Titanic whether she had brok-
en- in two. I did not look to see. If
there was a panic. After I left the
bridge I did not see the captain"
Full Complement of Boats.
Ismay was asked If the Titanic had
been equipped with her full complement
OF lifeboats.
"she must have been," he replied "or
else she could not have sailed from a
British port"
There has been a suggestion" said
Senator Smith, that there had been an
explosion before the ship went down.
II know nothing of it," replied Ismay
IT would have known. believe, had
such a thing taken place"
He said that had the Titanic struck
the iceberg head on, in all human prob
ability she would be afioat today.
THE ship was especially constructed
compartments full of water. believe
very few ships today would float under
this, condition When we built the IT.
tantc we had this in mind"