Titanic Tales Arthur’S Story Four Days Before, My Ship, the Carpathia, Cast Off from New York, Bound for You Probably Won’T Recognise My Name
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Mysteries Marvels and Miracles at Sea Arthur Rostron Titanic tales Arthur’s Story Four days before, my ship, the Carpathia, cast off from New York, bound for You probably won’t recognise my name. Gibraltar, a voyage of exactly 3,194 miles, if you are interested in the detail. On It’s Arthur Rostron. You see what I mean. board, 734 passengers, more than three You haven’t heard of me, have you? You quarters of whom were travelling in third may be surprised to know that a lot of class, each paying £10 a ticket. people on both sides of the Atlantic once Let me tell you about the Carpathia. She regarded me as a hero. They say I saved was a medium-sized cargo steamer, a ship of the Cunard Line. Even now, their lives. I don’t know why. I am a ship’s I can give you her vital statistics: 558 captain. I was simply doing my duty feet long, a single funnel, four masts, when my ship was crossing the ocean at beam of 64 feet, seven boilers (that’s right, seven), two quadruple-expansion one particular time. It just happened to engines spinning two propellers, a be me, my ship, my crew. The date, I’ll capacity for 12,000 tons of cargo and never forget, was April 15th 1912. a cruising speed of 14 knots. To most people Carpathia wasn’t special in any way, but she did an important job. I’m not just saying that because I was her captain. It did matter. She carried emigrants from southern Europe to a new life in the United States and, for them, she represented a break from the past and a first step into an unknown future. It was 1235 hours. I had just fallen asleep when my First Officer, Horace Dean, and my wireless operator, Harold Cottam, burst into my cabin. A message had been received from the Titanic: ‘Come at once. We have struck a berg. Position 41.46N 50.14W.” 26 Sir Thomas Lipton Foundation A message had been received from the Titanic: RMS ‘Come at once. We have Carpathia struck a berg. Position 269m long 41.46N 50.14W.” RMS Titanic 170m long Full Speed Ahead I was very soon wide awake and, to say the least, somewhat astonished. Titanic? It wasn’t possible. The newest, grandest transatlantic liner of the White Star Line on her maiden voyage from Southampton carrying, First, I ordered our surgeon, Frank I knew, nearly 1,400 passengers and McGee, the Purser Ernest Brown, and 900 crew. I just couldn’t believe it. Chief Steward Evan Hughes, to my cabin immediately. What would be the There was no time to lose. Still most drastic and memorable night of I knew Titanic half-asleep, I worked out our my career was about to begin. When had struck ice, so precise location on the charts and I tell you now how it all happened I’m I prepared for it our distance to Titanic’s position: still amazed that I could think clearly as we rushed at 58 miles. At our usual cruising at the time under so much pressure breakneck speed speed of 14 knots that would take in the cold, pitch black darkness of approximately four hours and ten the Atlantic. Every bit of my twenty- across the inky minutes. We had to do better than five years’ experience at sea played a black sea into the that. Lives were at stake. part, I’m sure. ice zone. I passed on the command FULL I gave my first instructions to McGee, SPEED, but I was fully conscious Brown and Hughes. of the danger my own ship and passengers were sharing. The danger Set up a medical team with full from icebergs was real. Maybe even supplies, one in the first-class dining more dangerous were what sailors room, one in the second-class dining called growlers, the large heavy room, and one in the third. chunks of ice that floated lower on Have stewards ready at Carpathia’s the water’s surface and were so much gangways to assist and direct Titanic’s harder to see. passengers to the dining rooms. I knew Titanic had struck ice, so Keep Carpathia’s own passengers off I prepared for it as we rushed the decks and out of the way. at breakneck speed across the Get coffee, soup and blankets ready inky black sea into the ice zone. I in each saloon and at the gangways. doubled the lookouts and took every Prepare my cabin, all officers’ cabins, possible care on board. Four hours the smoke rooms, the library and dining may seem to you a long time and in rooms to accommodate survivors. a way it was; so long for passengers Double up our steerage passengers to and crew of the Titanic to wait for create more spare berths. us, whatever had happened to them. Yet, there was so much to do. Continued on the next page > Buoyed Up Log Book 2019 27 Mysteries Marvels and Miracles at Sea RMS Titanic Titanic Tales > Continued from the previous page Next, I had to tell our Chief Officer, By the time Dr McGee joined me on Thomas Hankinson, and First Officer, the bridge at 0235 hours to report Horace Dean, what they should do. that all of the medical preparations were completed, I knew we would Call all hands. need every bandage, every medicine. Prepare and swing out all life boats. The wireless operator had radioed at Open all of the gangway doors. 0130 hours, “putting the passengers The sea had off in small boats.” Only 15 minutes started to get fairly Organise a chair sling at each later I received this last signal from gangway to bring up the sick and Titanic: “engine room full up to rough by the time wounded. Make sure there are canvas boilers.” Titanic was sinking. There we were taken on ash bags for lifting up children as could be no doubt. the Carpathia and well. Secure bowlines along the ship’s we were cold and sides for boat ropes to hoist people Dr McGee and I were still talking when glad for the shelter up. At the end of each briefing I quite suddenly – and only for a couple and protection. I impressed upon all of my officers the of seconds - I saw a green flare. Maybe have every praise absolute necessity for order, discipline I was wrong to think Titanic was already and quietness, and to avoid all at the bottom of the ocean. That flare for the Carpathia’s confusion. Stay calm. had to come from her. Surely. captain and its crew, as well as By now we were steaming towards Just as quickly, the alarm was the passengers Titanic’s last coordinates at up to 16 raised on the bridge. Iceberg! Three aboard. They were knots. I took my place on the bridge. quarters of a mile ahead on the port kindness itself to I had instructed all of my officers bow. At speed, we changed course. to report to me personally there at No sooner had we watched it pass each and every regular intervals to relay progress harmlessly by on our port side than one of us.” on carrying out their orders. Starting the look-outs were shouting. Iceberg! Titanic passenger, at 2.45 a.m. and every quarter of an We had to dodge six of them, one Eloise Hughes Smith hour thereafter I had rockets fired to after the other, all the while chasing reassure Titanic. the succession of green flares in the night sky. You may depend on it, It was hard, very hard, to stop thinking we were keyed up pretty tight and about the combination of our speed keeping a bright lookout. and the icebergs of all shapes and sizes above and below the surface An Emotional Rescue in the waters we were rapidly We finally reached Titanic’s distress approaching. I doubled my look outs. coordinates at 0400 hours. Ahead From the crow’s nest, to the bow, to of us, another green flare rocketed the bridge, to port and to starboard, up into the darkness. It was so close men were scanning, straining to see that I knew for certain then that as much of the black sea ahead with it came from a boat in the water. binoculars. Titanic had gone. 28 Sir Thomas Lipton Foundation The Carpathia docks in New York Joseph Boxhall’s flares had guided running a risk with my own ship and us to the rescue. His boat, lifeboat passengers, I also had to consider what number two, was the first we I was going for. I knew what I was doing. encountered and it was he who told Very soon after we me that Titanic had sunk two hours The last person rescued stepped before. At the time there was simply aboard Carpathia at 0839 hours, four got on board they too much to do to stop and think about and a half hours after the recovery took a complete the enormity of what had happened. began. We now had 800 passengers list of the names aboard Carpathia, of whom 705 of all survivors. As dawn finally broke over a calm had been rescued from Titanic. The sea, Titanic’s lifeboats slowly became rescue completed, I asked one of our The kindness and visible, scattered over several miles. American passengers, an Episcopal efficiency of all the Some were in groups of two or three, minister, to conduct a service of arrangements on others singly pulling in toward a prayer, and thanksgiving, for the the Carpathia for common centre – the Carpathia.