New-York tribune., 1912-04-29

| that on her first run she should make
! creditabIe showing, and by his previous
| misfortune with the Olympic. probably VIII
| never be known.
That the conduct OF II. @. Lowe. NTH
| officer, was deserving OF the highest COM
mendation; that he exhibited not only per-
| sonal bravery, but discretion and re-
sourcefulness which resulted in the saving
| of many more lives than those originally
intrusted to the boat OF which he was
! placed In command.
That G. II. LightoIler, second officer,
conducted himself with great courage. de-
voting his attention solely to the welfare
of passengers and taking no thought OF
his own safety although his Judgment In
so far undertaking the first boats he
lowered may be questioned
That, as has been said, all the other Of
icers did their part with credit, seeking
the safety Of those intrusted to their care.
inspiring the crew by their example. and
obeying the commands of their superiors.
That T. A. S. Franklin has impressed
majority o. the committee that he has
been frank and straightforward on the
witness stand. and that he took only ordi-
| nary and natural precaution in refusing
10 give official sanction to the first press
reports of the disaster. resorting 10 every
| expedent to secure information which he
| could regard as wholly dependable.
That the wireless operators on the IT,
tanic exhibited bravery and fidelity TO duty,
sticking 70 their post to the last minute.
and that the single survivor, Bride. did HIM
self and his chief perhaps not unnatural
injustice on the witness stand.
That Captain A. II. Rostron. OF the Car
pathia, exhibited not only serious and eff
| fective concern for the lives Of those on
| the Titanic but that he displayed extraor-
binary soicitude for their comfort before
and after their rescue and left undone
nothing which could have added TO their
welfare.
That there were numerous instances in
which passengers displayed great courage
and valor.
The Question of Relief.
In one respect the investigation has been
most unsatisfactory. That is with regard
10 the suspicion that certain ships may
have failed to render such help as was in
| their power The evidence has proved the
presence Of several other ships compare
lively close to the Titanic. So far they
| have been interrogated, the commanders OF
| these ships have all testified that they were
| too far away to render assistance before
| the sinking of the ship.
Under such circumstances II seems hard
ly proper to point to any particular vessel
as under Suspicion. but great regret Is ex-
pressed by those with nautical experience
| that these shippers were not subjected to
| cross s-examination by men TO whom terms
of latitude and longitude and the reading
| OF the compass mean something more than
mere names and figures; that asserted posi-
| tons could not have been laid down on
chart as they were given. and that cross
examination based on the relative posi-
tions so determined could not have been
conducted. Experience has demonstrated
| that in no other way could the facts have
been satisfactorily established.
1t is regarded as probable that, in the
light OF the testimony given here and the
defects of this investigation. the British
inquiry will be far more thorough In this
respect, and it Is remarked that. az most
| of the ships concerned are owned by Brit
! ish subjects, that course may ultimately
prove more satisfactory although this dis
play of Incompetence here is at least EN-
| barrassing.
| Conduct Of the Investigation.
No such summary as this would be COM
| plete without reference TO the conduct OF
/. the investigation. In the light OF the facts
set forth, there are probably few who
maintain that II has not served useful
n,rpose. and that it's findings will prove
valuable to those charged with the re-
| sponsibilty OF remedial legislation. on the
other hand, II cannot be gainsaid That II
has been directed too largely by one man.
the chairman Of the subcommittee. rather
than by the judgment Of majority OF the
committee and II is also a fact that those
whose opinion, because of their knowledge
and experience. is entitled to respect, be-
ueye Il could have been conducted with
much greater efficiency and expedition.
To Senator william Alden Smith be-
longs all the credit, and any discredit.
which may have attached TO the Inquiry
during the last two days, and which VIII
attach to Il in the future In the opinion
of a majority-probably all--of the mem-
bers of the subcommittee, wi.h the eH 'ep-
ton of Mr. Smith. the inquest has now
served every useful purpose, and any ma
terial prolongation will be worse than
useless II is the view of the leaders or
the Senate, 30 far az that body may now
be said to have leaders, Of the men whose
experience. good judgment and sense OF
the proprieties have in the past guided
the Senate in all matters involving dell
cacy. that continuance of the inquiry
must inevitably be attended by a sensa-
tionalism which they regard as depiora-
BILE The reiterated recitation Of harrow
ing details in their opinion cannot pos
sibly serve any useful purpose. must
prove painful TO the great number OF those
bereaved by the catastrophe, ard will In
evitably acquire semblance or morbidity
inconsistent With the dignity of the SEN
ate and mortlfying to all Americans pos
sessed of proper sense of delicacy.
Senator Smith will make no prediction
as to the duration OF the inquest. He
merely asserts that he cannot see the end
Other members OF the subcommittee de-
clare they will not permit II 10 continue
much longer Beyond that they are in
definite, some OF them insisting. however
that they are seriously contemplating
steps to bring II to II abrupt end. The
summoning of additional witnesses by the
chairman and his apparent purpose still
further to probe phase which most re-
gard as inconsequental-- the sell
ing by the wireless operators of the
stories of their experiences-is regarded
as most discouraging by those who are
seeking to bring the affair TO an end.
To Take up Wireless Methods.
Just what methods are employed by the
Marconi company in the operation Of its
wireless stations. including the rules and