Smyrna times., 1912-04-24
EXPERIENCE ON THE TITANIC
CONTINUED FROM FIRST PAGE


but the officers insisted. Shortly
after our arrival on deck / noticed
that the ship listed a trifie, and
with this realization came that per-
haps the damage was more serious
than l at first supposed. Then
came the order to take to the boats.
Mr.. lsmay was standing near and |
| assisted him in loading the first
two boats with women. The third |
boat was not near full when all the |
latter were accommodated, and the
third officer ordered linen in.
That is how l happened to leave
the wreck so early. The fact of
the matter is both myself and the
other men who were in the boat
were rather angry at being forced
to remain out in the cold in an
open boat for a few hours, as we
thought, and then have to be hauled
aboard the liner again. | can frank
ly say that had it not been for the
insistence of my wife should have
remained on the ship, believing it
the safest place. 1t was approxi-
mataly thirty minutes after the
first crash when the third boat
went over the side, and the danger
soon became apparent. The port
holes along the vessels side were
just even with the water, and we
could see how she was listing.
From that moment the horror of the
Titanic's fate gripped MS. We
realized that she was sinking. As.
we pulled away from the ship we
could occasionally hear a bulkhead
give way with a noise like a slight
explosion. The night was pitch
dark, although the sea was as
smooth as velvet. From our boat
the Titanic was a beautiful sight-a
blaze of light from bow to stern
yet we could not help realizing how
rapidly the icy sea was claiming
her for its own.
Watched Titanic go Down
Three-quarters of an hour later
the lights went out and the vessels
doom was sealed. Everyone realiz-
ed it. While we could see only the
dim outline of the hulk in the dark
ness, we could see it settling.
Sunddenly it lunged forward, settled
back. and a tremendous explosion
occurred. The ship broke directly
IN the middle, the bow sinking
almost instantly, the stern settling
quietly beneath the waves with
scarcely a ripple. The cries of
pain and despair of the victims. as
they struck the water after the stern
sunk will linger in my memory
forever. The sound defies descript-
ion as the unfortunate men and wom-
en- struggled in the ice-cold water.
1t continued for what seemed an
interminable length of time, and
then came a ghostly quiet. We
were left alone-a handful at the
mercy of the wintry ocean. There
was no demonstration among the
women in our boat as the liner dis
appeared from sight. They were
remarkably calm end collected, as.
sisting each other in everyway, un-
complaining. Every eye was gaz-
ing over the vast expanse of ocean
in hope that something might be
sighted. The treatment afforded
US aboard the rescue ship was most
gracious, officers, crew and passen-
gers alike, doing everything in their
power to make US comfortable and
lift the burden of our sorrow. A
number of the men passengers on
the Cunard liner gave up their state
rooms and berths to the women
from the Titanic. Clothing was
furnished and the kitchens kept
running day and night to provide
food for the sufferers. Mr..
Tayor. who is a mechanical engi-
neer. estimates the speed at which
the Titanic was travelling when it
struck the berg at 22.7 rs knots per
hour. He said: Saturday we
travelled $40 knots in twenty four
hours and at that speed the giant
engines of the ships were making
seventy-ive revolutions per minute.
Just before dropping off to sleep
Sunday night, l took out my watch
and timed the revolutions. They
were Identical with the day before. -