Page 136 - British Inquiry into Loss of RMS Titanic Day 10 -13

13865. (The Commissioner.) And it was a list to port? - Yes. 13866. Did you ever notice a list to starboard? - No. 13867. Was there a list to starboard? - Not that I am aware of, and I think I should have noticed it in lowering the boat. I may say that my notice was called to this list - I perhaps might not have noticed it; it was not very great - by Mr. Wilde calling out “All passengers over to the starboard side.” That was an endeavour to give her a righting movement, and it was then I noticed that the ship had a list. It would have been far more noticeable on the starboard side than on the port. 13868. (The Solicitor-General.) Did you hear that order given when you were dealing with boat No. 6? - Yes. 13869. Now by that time you were dealing with boat No. 6, were there a number of passengers, men, women and children, on the boat deck? - Yes. 13870. And at that time when you were dealing with No. 6 had any order been given about their getting into the boats? - Yes. 13871. Who gave it, and when was it given? - The Captain gave it to me. 13872. What was the order? - After I had swung out No. 4 boat I asked the Chief Officer should we put the women and children in, and he said “No.” I left the men to go ahead with their work and found the Commander, or I met him and I asked him should we put the women and children in, and the Commander said “Yes, put the women and children in and lower away.” That was the last order I received on the ship. 13873. Was that, as you understood it, a general order for the boats? - Yes, a general order. 13874. Again, I should like to have the time fixed. Is that after these events you have described about boat No. 4? - No; previous to any swinging out, when No. 4 was almost uncovered; in fact, the canvas cover was off. They were taking the falls out and I think they were in the act of taking the strong back out, and the next movement to be executed would be swinging the boat out. So before any delay had occurred I asked the Commander, as I say, should we lower away. 13875. That means, should you put people into the boat, I suppose? - Yes. We had had orders to swing out, so the boat was in the process of being swung out. 13876. Now, we can take No. 6. You say you went to that? - Yes. 13877. You saw that boat filled, did you? - Yes. 13878. It was filled under your supervision? - Yes. 13879. Now, tell us about the way in which it was done and the orders given as to who should get into it? - As a matter of fact, I put them in myself. There were no orders. I stood with one foot on the seat just inside the gunwale of the boat, and the other foot on the ship’s deck, and the women merely held out their wrist, their hand, and I took them by the wrist and hooked their arm underneath my arm. 13880. You have not told us anything yet about the preference being given to women? - The order had been received from the Commander. The Commissioner: He has told us about the order given by the Captain. 13881. (The Solicitor-General.) I see. (To the Witness.) And that is the order you carried out? - Yes. 13882. And then was No. 6 lowered away? - No. 6 was lowered away. 13883. Was boat No. 6 filled? - It was filled with a reasonable regard to safety. I did not count the people going in. 13884. But you exercised your judgment about it? - Yes. 13885. It was filled as much as you thought was safe in the circumstances? - Yes. 13886. In your judgment is it possible to fill these lifeboats when they are hanging as full as you might fill them when they are water borne? - Most certainly not. 13887. (The Commissioner.) Is that due to the weak construction of the lifeboats or to the insufficiency of the falls? - A brand new fall, I daresay, would have lowered the boats down and