Page 213 - British Inquiry into Loss of RMS Titanic Day 10 -13

mention it at all. 15222. And you cannot give me any information from what you saw in the chart room? - No, my Lord. Captain Smith gives the orders to alter the course at the time he thinks fit. The Commissioner: Where do you get your red lines from, Mr. Laing? Mr. Laing: We have had to work it out from a witness who has not yet been called. 15223. (The Commissioner.) Oh, very well. (To the Witness.) How often when you are on watch do you mark the position of the ship on the chart? - Only at noon. 15224. Do not you mark it again? - No, not when we are well at sea. 15225. You do not mark it when you go off watch for the purpose of letting the man who succeeds you see at once on the chart where the ship is? - No, only when we are making the land. 15226. Do you do it when you get a stellar observation? - No, my Lord, unless we are making the land. The Commissioner: Yes, I understand that. Examined by Mr. HOLMES. 15227. Can you tell us whether the “Titanic’s” head was going round at all under her helm when you left the ship, or after the collision? - She remained stationary from the time I left the ship till she disappeared. 15228. No altering her heading? - No. 15229. At the time your boat was lowered was she very much down by the head? - It was noticeable. 15230. Would it make very much difference in the amount of drop that you had to the water? - Slightly, yes. 15231. Not very much? - No. 15232. And you lowered your boat without any difficulty? - Oh, yes. 15233. Can you, therefore, say whether at the time the ship had much of a list on? - None whatever. 15234. None at all when you were launched? - No. 15235. Did you watch the list change after you were in the water? - She had no list when I left the ship. 15236. But afterwards, before she went down, did the list increase? - I could not see that she had a list at all at any time. 15237. (The Commissioner.) He said she had no list at the time his boat was lowered into the water. (To the Witness.) Did you see a list to starboard, ever? - I saw no list at all, my Lord. 15238. Do you mean to say that before the ship went down you did not notice a list? - No. 15239. You only noticed her down by the head? - That is all. 15240. (Mr. Holmes.) Did you hear anything in the nature of explosions before she went down? - Yes, I heard four reports. 15241. What do you estimate they were? - Boilers leaving the bedplates and crashing through the bulkheads. 15242. When the ship actually went down, did you experience any suction in your boat? - Oh, none at all. 15243. Although you had no lamp in your boat, did you see other of the ship’s boats in the water with lamps in them? - Several. 15244. Was the boat into which you transferred some of your passengers one that had a lamp in it? - I cannot recollect. 15245. Did you tie up your boat eventually to that boat in order to keep together during the night? - Yes, we did for some time.