Page 27 - British Inquiry into Loss of RMS Titanic Day 19 - 22

The Commissioner: The pressure comes from outside. Mr. Rowlatt: Yes, it depends entirely upon the depth of water. 20404. (The Commissioner.) Yes. That is to say, if you had a thin coating of water of an inch, the pressure would be the same? - Yes, that is so; the fore and aft extension of the water behind the bulkhead. 20405. The fore and after extension of the water does not matter? - Not in the least. 20406. If it was only fore and aft to the extent of an inch, the pressure would be the same? - Quite right. 20407. The pressure comes from the outside? - The pressure comes from the vertical head. 20408. (Mr. Rowlatt.) Therefore, what you have to deal with at the bottom of any of these bulkheads is to take the height of the bulkhead, and then to make it strong enough at the bottom and all the way up to hold the amount of water that is represented by the distance to the top? - Quite. 20409. Now, just to clear up one matter about the bulkhead between No. 5 and 6 boiler section. You know there has been some confusion about a hole there, an injury to the bulkhead. Just tell me, you have heard this fire in the bulkhead described? - I have. 20410. In your judgment would that injure the bulkhead as a watertight arrangement? - Not materially. The evidence as to the actual character of the fire has not been very definite, but it would have to be a much more alarming fire than anything that has been described to destroy the watertightness of the bulkhead. It might weep very slightly a few bucketsfull an hour, that could easily be handled by the pumps. 20411. It did not materially affect it? - Not materially. (After a short adjournment.) 20412. (The Commissioner.) There is a question I want to ask you, Mr. Wilding, with reference to the construction of the “Mauretania.” Assuming that the side bunkers on one side of the ship were to be flooded and full of water, and there was a large roll, would that imperil the safety of the ship? - I am afraid it would want more detailed calculation than I could make mentally. 20413. It is suggested to me that she would become so unstable that she might roll over? - If sufficient length of the one side was flooded, undoubtedly. It is a question of the fore and aft extent to which the side is laid open. If only a short length was flooded she would list. The greater the length flooded, the more she would list, and if you flooded her a sufficient length she would probably roll over. 20414. (Mr. Rowlatt.) You mean the longitudinal bulkhead is divided transversely also by watertight divisions? - Yes. 20415. Into bunkers? - Certainly, and, of course, flooding one division - 20416. Would not matter? - Would not matter - only a small list. The Commissioner: But if the bunkers were flooded by reason of a rip going alongside the ship and filling several, it is suggested to me that the effect of that would be to cause a list on the side where the rip was, of such a kind as to imperil the life of the ship, if there were any considerable roll in the water. 20417. (Mr. Rowlatt - to the Witness.) Did you hear that? - It would depend entirely on the length whether it would or not, my Lord. If it was 300 feet amidships, probably; if 300 to 400 feet of the middle, probably. 20418. (The Commissioner.) I do not know that it is very material, but I would like to know whether the officers of these ships are obliged to become American subjects? - No, my Lord; I know they are all English subjects. Some of them were members of His Majesty’s Naval Reserve, who can only be English subjects.