Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1912-05-14
CaIifornian'S Captain Admits
He Saw Boat Go Down,
But Gave No Aid.
MIGHT HAVE SAVED
HUNDREDS OF LIVES
Says Doomed Liner Snubbed
His Warning of Danger lust
Before Iceberg Crash.

LONDON, May 14.-The British gov
ernments inquiry into the Titanic dis
aster produced sensational develop
ments today when testimony was in
PRODUCED to show that the Leyland line
steamship Californian was within easy
reach of the great White star liner
when she plunged to the bottom of the
Atlantic off the Newfoundland coast on
the morning of April Is.
The master of the Californian testi-
fed, under oath, that he plainly saw
lights which are believed to have been
those of the doomed ship, from the
time she struck the berg until she set
tied beneath the waves II was esti-
mated that the Californian was from Is
to 80 miles away from the Titanic when
the latter sunk. easily within range to
have picked up practically every one
on the doomed ship.
She Was phantom Ship"
The Californian is thus identified in
! the minds of many as the phantom
ship whose lights the survivors saw
from the lifeboats. Stanley Lord mas
ter of the Californian. told a story Of
the events of the night of the disaster,
part of which was characterized by
Lord Mersey. presiding Judge of the in
quisitorial court. as very important
Lord was a witness before the United
States senatorial investigation which
investigated the disaster in America.
Lords story. told in answer to ques-
tions OF court and counsel, follows:
I'VE sailed for the United States April
5. arriving at Boston on April ~. The
ship carried no passengers, but we had
lifeboats to accommodate 21S persons
On Sunday April ID. we encountered
ice The Titanic was within wireless
range at that time because a message
which we sent out was intercepted by
that ship About 1890 o'clock on Sun
day night the ice became SO thick that
we had to stop andsreverse the engines
Titanic Snubbed Warming
About II o'clock, having remem-
bered the nearness of the Titanic. I told
the wireless operator to send her mes
sage of warning and let her know that
we were surrounded by ice. At the
| time ] did not know whether the II
tanics operator had received the mes
sage or not as he flashed back the re-
ply: Keep out, | am busy with Cape
Race. We could see the lights Of a
vessel coming up and I stood at the rail
until j o'clock watching her approach
About 1t:30 o'clock the lights showed
that the ship had stopped dead.
The third officer of our ship tried
to communicate with her with the
Morse lamp signal, but got no reply
Saw Titanic's Rockets.
AT 1910 o'clock another officer on
our ship met me on deck and told me
that the vessel whose light we had been
watching was in the same position as
she had been when she stopped at
about 1880 o'clock. The second officer
reported that he had seen white
rocket"
Lord Mersey broke in here to sug-
gest that the Californian would he
about fifteen miles away Sir Robert
Finlay. chief counsel for the White Star
line. suggested nineteen miles. Contin
ung. the witness testified that the third
officer had told him he had seen two
masthead lights on the stationary ship
That's very important interrupted
Lord Mersey, for the Titanic had two
masthead lights
The witness declared that he had
only seen one light himself, but he had
taken the word of the third officer that
there were two.
ir Ilttf1s Isaars If the Government
counsel declared that if the third Off
Ger was right the ship must certainly
have been he Titanic.