Page 228 - British Inquiry into Loss of RMS Titanic Day 14 - 18

have any Regulations upon that point. 19530. You consider it of course, eminently desirable that proper boat drill should be carried out? - Certainly. 19531. And you consider that it is in the interest of the safety of the passengers that in cases of emergency the men should know exactly what to do, know their stations and what is expected of them? - Yes. 19532. Now I think you told my Lord yesterday that in the case of the “Oceanic” the men had refused boat muster? - Yes, I did. 19533. In your view, is the Master or the Captain of the ship not the right man to fine the men? - Yes. 19534. And to punish them for refusing to comply with his orders? - Yes, but that does not make them do it. They were logged in this instance for refusing duty. 19535. And your evidence today was that up to the present inducement has failed? - To a very large extent it has failed. You cannot get them to turn out in any satisfactory numbers. 19536. You know that Mr. Andrews was the designer of this boat? - I cannot say who the designer of the boat was. It was designed by Messrs. Harland and Wolff; but who they employed for the particular work I cannot say. 19537. Do you know Mr. Andrews? - Very well indeed. 19538. I am not referring now to this question of davits. Do you know whether or not prior to the launching of the “Olympic” and the “Titanic” a suggestion was made that these ships were insufficiently boated? - I do not know of any such suggestion. 19539. You have never heard of that? - No, I have never heard of any such suggestion. 19540. Now upon the question of crews, I put a question with regard to continuous service to Mr. Ismay, and I would like to invite an expression of your opinion upon it. Would you consider it feasible to provide, as far as possible, for keeping on the crew which does the voyage backwards and forwards during the time the steamer is in port? - It is feasible, but not commercially feasible. 19541. Do you think it could be made commercially feasible by employing these men instead of employing shore gangs, as you do at present? - We do put those men on the shore gangs as near as we can, but in practice it is not their desire to work while the ship is in port. 19542. Up to the present, have you in practice given them the opportunity? - Yes, they have had lots of opportunities. 19543. Then I take it that you would not disagree that for the purposes of managing a big steamship you require a well-disciplined and thoroughly-trained crew? - Of course. 19544. And that cannot be secured by shipping a fresh crew for every voyage? - There is no regular liner that does ship a fresh crew for every voyage. 19545. But I gather that the men when they come home are discharged, are paid off, and then that you sign on a fresh crew when she is leaving again? - I do not know what you mean by a fresh crew. I should say that 70 percent of the men that come in on one voyage go out on the next. 19546. According to the Government requirements, they are all paid off each time they come into port. The Commissioner: All this we have heard before, and I really do not want to hear it half-a- dozen times. 19547. (Mr. Harbinson.) Would it not be possible to increase the number of those who continue in your service and continue on the particular boat they are employed upon? - We told you yesterday of the efforts we have made to do it, and it was not any good, and we have met with no encouragement. 19548. Now, Mr. Ismay, in answer to the Attorney-General at Question 18434, said this: He