The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1912-05-28

Smith said:
The steamship Californian was
within easy reach of this ship for
| nearly four hours after all the facts
were known to Operator Cottam. The
captain of the Carpathia says he gave
explicit directions that all Official
messages should be Immediately sent
through other ships, and messages
Of passengers should be given prefer.
spector, the apparatus on the Cali
| fornian was practically new and cas-
| ill., tuned to carry every detail of
that calamity to the coast stations
at Cape Sable and Cape Race, and
should have done so.
The course taken was singularly
| in accord with the retiCence of the
officials of the White Star company.
who knew at 2:3O Monday morning"
! said the senator, what was sup.
! posed to have occurred, and vet, at
! T5I Monday evening message
from their own office, Officially sign.
ed containing the positive assurance
! of the passengers, was sent to 4
haif-cra2ed father at huntington W
Va, nearly two hours after their ad.
mitted familiarity with the details of
the disaster. 1t is little wonder that
We have not been able to fix with
deiiniteness the author of this false.
| hood"
Senator Smith reviewed the testi-
mony of Captain Lord, showing that
| the Californian came within four
miles of the doomed vessel and that
! he went to his room to lie down
while signal rockets were being fired
Failure of Captain LORD to arouse
the wireless operator on his ship,
who easily could have ascertained
the name of the vessel in distress
and reached her in time to aver
loss of lie said Senator Smith.
places a tremendous responsibility
upon this officer from which it viii
be difficult for him to escape
Contrast" if you will, the conduct
of the captain of the Carpathia in
this emergency and imagine what
must be the consolation of that
thoughtful and sympathetic mariner
who rescued the shipwrecked ana
left the people OF the world his debt
or as his snip sailed for distan.
seas few days ago by his utter
self-effacement and his own lndffer.
ence to peril by his promptness and
his knghtly sympathy, he rendered
a great service to Humanity. He
should be made to realize the debt
OF gratitude this nation owes to
him, while the book of good deeds,
which has so often been familiar with
| his unaffected valor, would hence
| forth carry the name OF Captain Ros.
| tron to the remotest period of time.
The lessons of this hour" said
Senator Smith in conclusion, ARE,
indeed, fruitless and its precepts ILL
conceived if rules of action do not
| follow hard upon the day of reckon
| ing. Obsolete and antiquated ship
ping laws should no longer cucumber
the parliamentary records of any
government, and overripe administra-
tive boards should be pruned of dead
branches and less sterile precepts
taught and applied"
Senator Smith recommended that
lanes of travel should be more care.
fully defined, strength of ships bows
increased, life saving equipment bet
| tered, and discipline and practice
made an exaction. He said buoys
should be carried to mark tempo
rarily the place of the ships burial
| in case of accident; and men OF
strength and spirit there must be.
won back to a calling already de-
moralized and decadent.
"But 10 per cent of the men before
| the mast in our merchant marine
are natives or naturalized Ameri-
cans" he said Even England, thai
50 years ago had barely 1000 Ori-
entails on her merchant ships, now
carries over 10000 of that alien race.
Americans must .re-enlist in this ser
vice. they must become the soldiers
of the sea, and, whether IN the look
out, on the deck, or at the wheel,
whether able or common seamen
they should be better paid for their
labor and more highly honored in
their calling; their rights must be
respecter, and their work carefully
performed; harsh and severe re-
straining statutes must be repeated,