Page 81 - British Inquiry into Loss of RMS Titanic Day 32 - 36

“Titanic’s” position at about 4 o’clock in the morning. Instead of that, there were four hours during which the “Californian” was not in sight at all. The evidence from the “Titanic” also shows that the “Californian” was not in sight at any time. Before 11.40 your Lordship has the evidence of the look-out men who were in the crow’s-nest, Lee and Fleet. Neither of those men at any time between 10 and 12, when they were in the crow’s-nest, saw the lights of any steamer, and if the “Californian” had then been 10 or 5 miles, or whatever distance, the witnesses from the “Californian” have stated the vessel which they saw was, they could not have helped seeing the lights of the “Californian.” But neither of them saw anything of the kind. Hogg relieved Fleet and Lee at midnight, and went into the crow’s-nest, and was there until he was called out of the crow’s-nest and went away in one of the boats. During the time he was in the crow’s-nest, and no doubt anxiously looking for lights, he did not see any lights; he did not see the “Californian’s” lights, nor did he see the Morse signals of the “Californian,” which would, of course, show a greater distance than the ordinary navigation lights. So that up to the time when the “Titanic” struck the berg, the “Californian” was not in sight of the “Titanic.” But a number of witnesses from the “Titanic” have described the lights which they either saw from the “Titanic” after the vessel struck or which they saw when they were in the boats. Most of the witnesses from the “Titanic” who saw any lights at all saw the light or lights of a fishing vessel, that is the light which most of them speak of - that is the Second Officer at Questions 13984 and 14137; the Third Officer of the “Titanic” at Question 15061; the two Quartermasters at Questions 1338 and 17660; the three look-out men at Questions 2566 and 11478 and 17363, and also Mr. Ismay at Question 18584. The only lights which these witnesses saw, representing as I say two officers, two quartermasters, three look-out men, and Mr. Ismay, were the lights of a fishing boat or fishing boats. Others, like Scott, the greaser, saw a light on another of the “Titanic’s” own lifeboats. Scott, at Question 5663; Beauchamp, the fireman, and I think some others saw lights which afterwards proved to be the lights of the “Carpathia,” but no other lights. That is Question 810. But Boxhall, the Fourth Officer; Lucas, an A.B.; and Hart, a Steward, saw some time between 1 and 2 a steamer which approached, and to which they signalled by Morse signals; they saw her approach, and later on they saw her steam away. They are the only witnesses who mentioned seeing a steamer at all, and that was not until some time between 1 and 2. They saw a steamer which approached at that time between 1 and 2, obviously not the “Californian,” because the “Californian” at that time was lying stopped in the ice. She unfortunately was stopped until 6 o’clock in the morning. The steamer which they saw approached, and then steamed away. The “Californian” when she began to approach the scene of the disaster continued to approach until she actually got there; she never steamed away. The steamer which Boxhall said he saw was never seen or heard of again. The “Californian” came up to the “Carpathia” about 8.30. The steamer which they saw was not using Morse signals; the “Californian” was. The Commissioner: My attention is drawn here to Boxhall’s evidence at page 357, Question 15409: “What distance do you suppose her to be away? - (A.) I judged her to be between 5 and 6 miles when I Morsed to her, and then she turned round. She was turning very, very slowly, until at last I only saw her stern light, and that was just before I went away in the boat.” And I think there is evidence from the “Californian” that the “Californian” turned slowly. The Attorney-General: Certainly. Mr. Dunlop: She turned slowly at 10.21 or half-past 10. The Commissioner: She went on turning, I think? Mr. Dunlop: Until her head came about N.N.E. Her head went round because the Master, when he stopped his engines for the ice, at the same time put his helm hard over and turned his vessel’s head round. But there is no evidence that her head went round to such a position as to show to a vessel to the Southward of her stern light. Boxhall, Lucas, and Hart, when describing a vessel