Page 35 - British Inquiry into Loss of RMS Titanic Day 1 - 5

70. Had you taken part in any boat drill before the accident? - We always have a drill leaving port. 71. Then did you take part in one? - Yes, always. 72. (The Commissioner.) Where was that? - At Southampton. 73. (The Solicitor-General.) And had No. 7 been your boat at that drill? - No; there were only two boats lowered away. 74. (The Commissioner.) Only two boats lowered for that drill? - Yes. 75. And is that the practice? - Yes, it is the practice. 76. What I mean is, you have travelled on these liners before, I suppose? - Yes. 77. Is it the practice when you have your boat drill to have it with two boats only? - That is all I have seen. 78. That has been your experience? - Yes. 79. (The Solicitor-General.) You say only two boats would be lowered at the drill. What I want to know is whether your boat drill included everybody going to their boat stations? - Yes, all hands are on the boat deck. 80. Just one thing more about that. There are two boats, are there not, that are kept swung out as emergency boats? - Yes. 81. And the rest of the wooden boats, the lifeboats would be swung in - kept in? - Well, they are not swung quite really in; they are just on the edge of the rails. 82. How do you know whether it was the emergency boats that were swung out that were used for the practice on which boat it was? - Oh, no, it was the lifeboats. 83. Two of the lifeboats? - Yes. 84. Now we can see which your boat is - because the model shows us the starboard side? - Yes, this is the one (pointing to the model) - there was one on the other side here and a fourth one on the starboard side. 85. That would be No. 7? - Yes. 86. Then there are No. 5 and No. 3, and No. 1 is just behind the emergency boat, is it not? - No, that is No. 1 (pointing to the model). 87. (The Commissioner.) The emergency boat is No. 1. Sir Robert Finlay: Yes. 88. (The Solicitor-General.) You say that when you were ordered up on deck and there was the muster, you went to No. 7? - Yes. 89. Just tell us what was done with boat No. 7? - We all cleared away the boats. The orders were for all hands to clear the boats, and we all went and cleared the boats. I helped to clear away No. 7, cleared away the falls, and got them all ready and the First Officer, Murdoch, told us to lower away the boats to the level of the rail. 90. That was Mr. Murdoch you say? - Yes, he was in charge of us. 91. And he gave the order to lower the boat to the level of the rail? - Yes. 92. And, of course, up to that time the boat would be empty? - Yes. 93. Then, when she was lowered down level with the rail, what were the orders then? - “Women and children in the boat.” 94. Had any seamen been put into the boat? - Not then. We were all standing by that belonged to the boat. 95. (The Commissioner.) How many men man one of these boats? - There are two sailors told off for each boat, so many firemen, and so many stewards. I do not know how many firemen; I have never seen their list. 96. (The Solicitor-General.) Two seamen and a certain number of the firemen, and a certain number of the stewards? - Yes. 97. Did you count as one of the two seamen for this boat? - Yes.