Page 154 - British Inquiry into Loss of RMS Titanic Day 6 - 9

8946. You are sending at half-past seven a message which the Captain had asked you to send? - Yes. 8947. And the message referred to the fact that an hour before apparent ship’s time there had been icebergs seen to the southward? - Yes. 8948. Did the Captain write out this message and give it to you to send? - Yes. 8949. I just want you to go back for a moment to the message; there was one point I did not quite follow. You began by telling us the message started by a reference to your latitude and longitude. Did that refer, as you understood it, to the position you were in at half-past seven, or to the position you were in at half-past six? - Half-past six apparent time ship. 8950. So that it gave the other ships news of whereabouts in the Atlantic these icebergs were? - Yes. 8951. Did you hear anything of or from the “Titanic” about this time? - Yes, a little after. 8952. Did she ring you up, or did you ring her up? - She called me up. 8953. What does that mean? Is it just to find your position, or what? - No. If you have not had another ship before, whichever ships hears the other one first you call him up and you offer him a “T.R.” 8954. What does “T.R.” mean? - “Time rush”- when a ship gets him. It is what we call the official “T.R.” 8955. (The Commissioner.) What does “T.R.” mean? - It means “time rush.” The Commissioner: What does “time rush” mean? - I do not know the significance of it. 8956. (The Solicitor-General.) I fancy it is merely a memoria technica. (To the Witness.) It is merely a convenient message to use? - Yes. 8951. Let us see if I follow it properly. When the “Titanic” sends out a message as other ships get nearer to her with apparatus they can hear that the “Titanic” is sending out a message, cannot they? - Yes. 8958. When they get within a certain range? - Yes. 8959. And when that happens, do you communicate back again? - Yes. 8960. To say that you are there? - Yes. 8961. Then the “Titanic” knows that you are within her range, and you are able to say that you have heard the “Titanic”? - Yes. 8962. Is that what a “T.R.” is? - Yes; and then we exchange times to see if our clocks are the same. That is why we call it a “T.R.” 8963. You exchange times? - Yes, and which way we are bound. 8964. Ship’s time? - No, if we are working on New York time we exchange New York time. 8965. So that that is a check to see that each ship has got the right time? - Yes. 8966. I see from the statement you have made that upon this happening you offered him what you call an “S.G.”? - Yes. 8967. What is an “S.G.”? - “S.G.” is a prefix. When you send “S.G.” he knows that there is a service advice message coming through. 8968. It means that you are offering him some information if he wants it? - Yes. 8969. And what was the information that you were prepared to offer the “Titanic”? - I told him “‘S.G.’ ice report.” 8970. That means that you were in a position to give him some news about ice? - Yes. 8971. Is this shortly after half-past seven? - Yes. 8972. What did the “Titanic” say to you when you offered your ice report? - He said, “It is all right. I heard you sending it to the ‘Antillian,’ and I have got it.” 8973. Did you cease communicating with him? - Yes. 8974. That is all about 7.30, or a little later, is it not? - Yes. 8975. There is nothing more, as I follow you, until your ship stops? - No.