The Brunswick news. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 1906-2016, 1912-04-21

NEVER HAD THE MEN ON THE
BIG TITANIC BEEN DRILLED TO
MAN THE MANY LIFEBOATS ON
BOARD.

New York, April 20.-Nearly a week
has passed since the Titanic, the
greatest of marine construction
achievements, sank in midocean.
Much of her story is still untold.
The number of survivors is tlxed ae
705 by the report Of Captain Rostron
of he Carpathia. The White Star
Line officials believe the death list
totalled approximately 1885.
The narratives gathered piecemeal
from the liners 705 survivors pay a
tribute without precedent to the cour-
age of the men and women of these
modern days-a bravery of impulse,
unstudied, unassuming and instructive
alike in steerage passenger, stoker
and millionaire.
Ample provision for the needy sur
vivors is rapidly being made. The
relief funds being gathered in New
York and London already total well
up in the hundreds of thousands. Most
of the steerage passengers who reach
ed New York distraught and penniless
have already come to realize the
generosity. and hospitality of America.
Clad, fed and housed, they will be
given ample time to recover from
the shock Of their experience, and
will start their life in the new world
with ample funds. ..-.
Committee Getting Story.
The most complete story of the IL
tanics fate is being gathered in New
York by the members of the senate
investigating committee.
The burden of the testimony thus
far given emphasizes the unquestion-
ing faith of the Titanic's officers in
her unsuitable character, the reck-
lessness of steaming full speed thru
a sea where dangerous icebergs were
known to threaten, and the remark
able calmness with which the doomed
passengers and crew faced the last
moments. -.-, " -
The Titanic's fate has inspired
prompt action by the transatlantic
lines to insure liners hereafter taking
course far to the south, away from
the iceberg's danger There is little
disposition to criticise Captain Smith
for having followed the ocean Sane m
which he met disaster He showed
unusual caution, according to the
naval photographers, in steering a
course we'll to the south of the reg
ular southern lane.
Establishing New Route.
The new route eastbound provides
that steamships shall dip to latitude
1920 on the first third of their course,
making a total distance from New
York to, Fastnet of 5000 miles, where
the distance is now reckoned as 1883
miles,, Liners will thus be, carried 27O
miles below the route heretofore fol-
lowed. The loss of time on the new
course will be about nine hours for a
24-knot boat.
There was some, criticism among
the survivors here today of the I'll
tanic's crews inability to handle the
lifeboats.
Could Not Handle Lifeboats.
"The crew of the Titanic was new
one, OF course" declares Mrs. George
N. Stone, Of Cincinnati, "and had
never been through a lifeboat drill of
any kind or training in the rud1-
ments and equipping of the boats.
Scores of lives were thus ruthlessiy
vast ID. a sacrifice to inefficiency. Had
there been any sea running instead
of the glass calm that prevailed, not
a. single passenger would have safe
ly reached the surface of the water.
The men did not know how to lower
the boats; the boats were not provis-
toned; many of the sailors could not
handle an oar with reasonable skill.
Albert Major, steward on the IT,
tanic, admitted that there had been
no boat drills and that the lfeboats
were poorly handled.
Another story told by the members
of he Titanlc's crew which did not
have q bearing in the investigation OF
the rapid sinking Of the ship, is OF
fire which is said to have started in
one of the coal bunkers of the vessel
aoon after she left Southampton ana
which was not extinguished until
Satu ,day afternoon. The story as told
by fireman: g
Fire in Coal Bunker.
at lad been necessary to take the
coal cut of sections two and three on
the starboard side forward, and wher
the water came rushing in after the
collision with the ice, the bulkheads