The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1912-04-30
RISK At SEA-,
SAYS NIXON
Naval Architects View Of the
Titanic Disaster
CHANCES WITH DEATH
TO SAVE TIME IN TRAVEL
Public Demands That Vessels folio"
lane Crossed by IceberSS. NaVai
J..p.rt Thinks-BelIeNea IN Dig
Liners. Bat Declares Their Is NO
such Thing rs Unsinkablc Ship.
(%cH York Evening Post.)

(<cw York Evening Post.)
Lewis nixon, one OF the foremost
American shipbui!Ccrs, when asked
today what lessons, if any, might be
drawn from the Titanic disaster, SAID:
The one great lesson is that men
who go down To the sea III ships take
risks
N.xoD said that if any one was to
blame for the sinking OF the greatest
ship Of modern times it was the traV-
cling public. 1t wasn't necessary tor
ships 70 follow the perilous norther-
~ course. he argued, but the public
demanded ii.
Surprising the company he add
cd had announced hat the Titanic
would cross by way of the Southern
route to avoid iceberSS. DO YOU sup
pose more than oHe-tenth OF the pas
seEgers woui have booked passage?
Suppose you Were going abroad,
would you AXE a ship sailing by the
longer or southern course when you
could get one that went over the
shorter or northern course? OF
course not. 1t is the travelling public
that forces the companies to send their
ships up where the icebergs are
thleheSt'
What Might Have Happened.
-NiHoi i''5 hCi ioSt az III No
liners because Of the THAMES brief
and tragic career. A smaller ship
would have Jared as badly as if not
worse than the giant White Star
liner. according TO Nixon. 1t was no
rejection upon The products of the
shipbuilder's Art. he maintained. hat
the largest ship yet built should have
gone 10 the bottom on her very first
voyage AS far as construction went,
he said, the Titanic was probably bet
ter able TO Withstand the shock OF
collision than any of the smaller
transatlantic liners. Her weakness
might have been what was intended
10 be her greatest strength, however
Her longitudinal girders-steel rib:
running from stem to stern to brace
her-may. according to Nixon, have
made so firm, 50 rigid, as to impair
The force Of the shock not merely tt
the first water-tight bulkhead, but tt
several forward bulkheads, weakening
them all at once
w do not yet know what happen
ed in the collision he explained
But suppose this berg spread on
under water like a reef. and the III
tanic had struck head on. She woul,
then have climbed along the surfac
and probably damaged a large porto
OF her keel forward. A big iceber
is 50 much dead Weigh under waite
h force of the collision would b
terrific. If. as may have been tn
case. the longitudinal girders wer
made 50 strong and firm that the
transmitted the strain to several fol
ward bulkheads, h en not merely tn
first but several Of the waterfall
compartments were rendered useless
There is no such thing as the 'ur
sinkable ship 1t never has bee
built. An unsuitable ship could
built, but it would be good for notl
ing else but keeping atoat. BY tn:
l mean a ship could be quilt Wit
enough double bottoms and doub
sides and Water-tight compartment
To keep her afloat even in such 3
accident as this. but she would n
be the kind Of a boat YOU wou
ever think OF crossin~ the ocean o
A company couldn't afford to II
such a ship.
The Titanic was a development. /;
evolution from the best examples
~shipbuilding afloat. There was not
ing radically different about her co
struction. She was bigger and be
ter able to Withstand the strongt
gales than most Of the ships Of I
Atlantic. Even the Mauretania a,
L-usitanla have to slow down in I
worst gales. Big as they are. IN
are not strong enough to stand +
strain of a gale and high seas.
order to make a ship that can ma
tain high speed in all weather. Won
got TO build her big.
Disagreed With White.
When Sir William White, I
British naval architect. was over h
not long ago. | took exception to
statement that the LuSitania a
Mauretania were the last cry in
shipbuilding. They were not. for
very reason hat l have stated: tt
car not make fast time in a gale
cause they are not big enough
Not only does Nixon regard
ships as more Seaworthy than
Smaller-or less big-oneS, but
maintains that the leading compar
will continue to build them beca