PAGE TWO
THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 24, 1912.
COLLISION
BROUGHT GRIEF
Sinking of Titanic Recalls Oth
er Disasters, Though None
Was So Appalling.
T
IIK appalling catastrophe which 1
recently befell the White Star
liner Titanic, when she was
sunk In collision with nn Ico-1
lnr ..fV nntn llnrt.. ..'Ul, (lin 1,.c,a rtf !
more tlmn 1,:0( lives, Is the grentcsti only thing thnt stood between her 300
of nil ocenn disasters. The sensation-1 passengers and crew nnd destruction
nl details, the failure of water tight j withstood the shock, nnd no lives were
compnrtnients to protec against 1 lost.
speedy sinking, the Inadequacy of wire- xCxt to fog, Icebergs are regarded
less telegraphy against the failure of a . ns the source of gravest peril to vos
ship to keep afloat, are already mat- FCls navigating the north Atlantic. Ac
tors of history.
Of former collisions of steamships
with Icebergs the last before that of
the Niagara, reported about the same
time as the Tlta'il' trisedv, win the
encounter 01 an i'-e'icg bv the Anchor
liner Columbia, from Glasgow, 011 Aug.
2, 1011. The collision occurred In a
flense fog. when the Columbia was
180 miles north and r7 miles ent f
Cape Itaee. Huge tons of Ice fell
tipon her forecastle, and her stem was
smashed In to the water !i,ie The
tipper parts of her bow plates wer.
The upper picture is a combination
forced back ten feet. Several mem' 1
bers of the crew and one passe uer
were Injured. The Columbia was able
to complete her voyage to e , York.
On July S. 11107. the Xorth Gerca :
Lloyd liner Kronprlnz Wilhelin sfnek
nn Iceberir off the banks in the uncer
tain light of early morning. Her b iw
was dented, and her starlwiurd s d--was
scraped badly by the Ice. hit
whinh she had plowed her way at .
speed of sixteen knots an hour.' The
steamship Yoltuvno. on her way to'
New York from Rotterdam, also had n
narrow escape from an Iceberg In1
Mnv. IflOfj. when, off the const of Xew
foundluud. she plowed her wav Into
tin Ice field, which ground deep sears
Into her sides. Some bergs passed so
near her that great chunks of Ice fell
on her decks, but she escaped without
serious damage.
Iceberg Peril Next to Fog.
The giant freighter Nnronlc of the
White Star Hue. which disappeared
from tho eastward winter track ncross
the Atlnntlc some time after Kob. 11.
ISO.'l, with seventy-four persons aboard,
is also believed to have encountered
nn Iceberg and to huve gone down In
collision with It. The facts of this dis
aster were never ascertained. Her
overturned lifeboats were found float
lng derelicts ,long afterward 1500 miles
southeast of Newfoundland.
In August, 1890, tho Donaldson liner
Concordia, n cattle steamer, outward
bound from Montreal, collided with n
berg In the Hello Isle strait off the
Newfoundland const and had her bow
crushed. To go farther back, there
wns the disaster to the old Gulon line
steamship Aritona on Nov, 7, 1870.
HAS
TO MI VESSELS
Accidents Happen Despite the i
Great Precautions Taken
to Guard the Ships. J
She crushed Into a berg off tho New
fouudlnnd banks nnd Immediately be
gan to nlnk nt the bow. Hut she was
stcntnlng only nt the rate of fifteen
knots, nnd her collision bulkhead --the
cording to all nccounts brought by In
coming ocean steamers, this menace
has been greater during the last few
weeks than In any recent yenr. The
presence of a great number of Ice
bergs In the lane of transatlantic traf
fic Just now does nut. however nocjs
snrlly indicate anv extraordinary con
ditions in the arctic during the pnt
winter. According to the nioit rella
ble estimate of scientists. It require
as a rule from three to four years for
an Icebors to drift across the polar
basin and reach that region of the At-
of photograpn of the Titanic and drawing; of an iceberg.
lumbla by American Press Association.
iRntlc In which disaster overlook the
White star giantess on her maiden
voyage.
Ho Ice Ticlds Are Formed.
rue greati'Si precautious are tn';'n
on board the big ocean liners to gu-inl
against collision with Icebergs. No
only are the olllcers on the bridge nnd
the lookout in the crow's nest impress
ed wilh the fact that they must exer
else the greatest vigilance when ves
pels npproach the Newfoundland
banks, where the d.tnger from Ice
bergs Is the greatest at this tl'Jie of
the year, but the temperature of th
water Is taKon frequently, and any
striking drop Indlcnted by the ther
momoter Is certain to be accepted us n
warning against the presence of lee
bergs In the vicinity.
This and the lowering of the tern
perature of the air If one should hap
pen to pass to the leeward of an Ice
berg are about the most reliable of
all the danger signals set against this
peril. To the eye. Indeed, nn Iceberg
Is not easily perceptible nt night, even
though the wenthcr should happen to
1ms clear nnd the moon, perchance,
shining. Most of tho icebergs have an
intense white nnd bluish hue, which
blends with moonlight In n fnshlo'i
that may confound the most seasoned
nnd vigilant of mariners.
ITnd the course of the Titanic car
rled her about a hundred miles to the
southward of where the disastrous
crash oceurred she would In all prob
ability hare steered clear of all dan
gers from ice. According to the most
expert mariners, nn iceberg is rarely
seen at this tlmo of the year or at any
season, Indeed farther eouth than 40
degrees north latitude. The Tltnntc'n rugged promontories nnd numberless
wireless operator gnve the position of iiands nnd cliffs surrounded by reefs
the stcnmidilp when the collision enmo nn(i simllow water. Some of the Ice
as 41 degrees 4(1 minutes north, or 10(1 l)crg8 nro crushed against the rock
miles to the north of the southern u,0und coast, others nro caught in the
boundary or tnc Atlantic region where,
the dnnger from Icebergs Is nn ever
present one.
The hydrogrnphle oiriec of the navy
department from time to time has sent
out much detailed nnd reliable Informa
tion regarding the formation and trav
els of the Icebergs nnd Ice llclds In
the north Atlnntlc.
Until within n comparatively recent
period it had been presumed that the
Icebergs that Infested the Atlantic dur
ing the spring and early summer
months had broken off from the border
of the great arctic ice fields. This, ac
cording to tho light of later research,
is an erroneous theory. The Iceberg
that drifted directly In the path of tun
Titanic, It Is almost certnln, was a
smnll frngment of n huge glacier that
years ago had disengaged Itself from
the Interior ice cap of western Green
land, sliding with Irresistible nnd dev
nstntlng momentum toward the coast
and finally plunging Into the deep'sea.
It Is when the edge of such a huge
glacier reaches a steep const that from
time to time fragments are broken off
by their own weight, caught up by tho
ocenn currents and carried off.
The size of these fragments vnrles
greatly, but according to the reports
of the hydrogrnphle ofll e an Iceberg
from (SO to in 1 ft-t to the top of Its
walls, with pinnacles ui:d spires reach
ing from 2(H to 2HO feet in height, are
not unusual In the arctic sea. These
measurements apply only to the mns
of Ice nboo the surface of the water.
This constiiiitus from one-eighth to
Photo of the Co-
one-ninth of the whole mass. It would
be futile to seek to render an estimate
of the depth of an Iceberg below the
surface of the sea because this depth
varies with the weight of that part
which is above the water. A few years
ago 1111 iceberg which had a pinnacle
of about 1(H) feet In height did not
ground until It reached sixteen fathoms
of water In tho Heile Isle strait, near
St. John's, X. l
Carried South by Labrador Current.
Thousands of such fragments drop
olT every year. As they reach the
water they ure caught up by the polar
currents. .Nunsen, during his expedl
tion with tho Krum; Amundsen, during
the nrctic trip, ho undertook in 1001.
and the Duke of Orleans iu 1005, uiude
a study of polar sea physics. The
course of tho currents Is pretty well
known from the published result of
their observations.
Along the northern part of the West
Greenland const, where tnost of the Ice
bergs are created, there Is a current
setting off shore and toward the pole.
This currcut carries tho Icebergs some
dlstnnco northward until n Junction is
made with what Is known as the Lab
rador current This sets in in a due
southerly direction along tho coast of
Dnflln bay and Labrador. Whllo at
times It ceases entirely, and while its
speed varies greatly, being greatest
near the coast, after winds from the
northward, It has been estimated by
scientists that usually an iceberg Is
carried south by this current at a rato
of from ten to thirty miles in twenty
four hours.
It is not by any means smooth sail
ing. All along the Labrador coast are
uocn flords 0f Greenland before they
rench tho open sea at all. Others ngnln
nre nground In the shallow waters along
portions of tho const until only a small
percentage of a year's output of Ice
bergs ever reaches far enough south to
bring misfortune to transatlantic ship
ping. According to the reports Issued
by the hydrogrnphle ofllce nt Well
ington, the Ice In such bergs Is of ex
trnordlnnrybrlttlcncss. There Is nutheu
tic Information showing that n blow
with an ax, the concussion of n gun
shot or the heavy blast of n steamship
whistle has had tho effect of splitting
the huge mountain of drifting ice. They
tire more readily broken In warm wea
ther. On tho coast of Labrador dur
ing tho short summer that prevails
there, when It Is pneked with Icebergs,
there Is a constant and almost deafen
ing crash as Icebergs collapse In col
lision with the const or with other
bergs.
Modern Safety Devices.
In these days of progress In marine
architecture, when tho up to date liner
is n floating hotel, with every device
for the safety, comfort nnd amusement
of the passengers, the loss of such a
vessel as the Titanic comes as a shock
to steamship men, and especially to
those who have been figuring on how j
to build "the largest vessel in the
world." Th- Titanic, with her fifteen
automatic self closing bulkhead doors,
was considered unsinknble, not only by
the nfllcials of the White Star line, but
by those who had made 11 study of
modern shipbuilding.
I'p to date vessels are all equipped
with these water tight compartments,
which In time of danger are of primary
Importance. The enptain on the bridge,
standing at the central control of the
, bulkhead doors, can by the simp'o
1 pressing of a single electric button
close every door the length of the ves
I sel and transform her In a few seconds
Into a craft which the modern shlp
' builders have claimed would lloat with
many of her water tight compartments
Hooded.
If the electric signal Indicated a mi
nor accident In a particular part of the
ship by pressing buttons on the bridge
her skipper could closo the compart
ments in that section.
Submarine Bell Device.
Another device for marine safety is
the submarine bell signal, with which
every vessel Is fitted. These bells are
also mounted on reefs nnd points of
land. Their action is by wireless or
hand ringing, and they come into piny
whenever two vessels approach within
range or when a ship nears the land
station to which they belong. This
notification usually comes to tho skip
per or man In command of tho bridge
In time for him to change his course or
check his headway. The range of noti
fication is several miles. This device
enables vessels swallowed up in the
dense fogs off the banks or in mid
ocean to learn of each other's proxim
ity long before any fog siren or sound
ing bell would be audible. It Is also,
of course, much more efficient than the
most powerful searchlight.
Since their Installation on the modern
ocean liners many collisions have been
averted by their use, it is said, and ex
ports have declared that many a disas
ter of ships running on rocks or Into
collision could have been averted if
these submarine bells had been in use.
One Test of the Bell.
As an example of the efficiency of
the submarine signal bell, the tug ICu
gene F, Moran wns piloted from a
point three miles out In the open sea
to the Ambrose channel lightship by
a man blindfolded. He followed the
course by the guidlug sound of tho bell
ringing some thirty feet below the
surface of the sea. This took place on
Feb. 31, 1000.
The Moran went down the lower
bay to Ambrose lightship and ran
alongside to request thnt the subma
rine bell on board be kept rluglng. In
a short time the man who had the tel
ephone headpiece connected with the
microphone receivers at the bow of
the tug reported that the bell was
ringing. Three miles beyond the Honk
Assistant Engineer Fay wns blindfold
ed, nnd the tug wns put out of her
course to confuse him. With the re
celvcrs nt ills ears, however, ho cor
rected the course and brought the tug
without much difficulty back to the
Ambrose lightship.
Within a row montiis, with a new
type of wireless equipment, which Is
Marconi's Intest Invention, steamships
cnught In n dense fog need have no
more fear of It thnn they have now of
the starlight or the morning's sun
shine. This new device Is known ns
tho wireless compass. Mnrconl said
In a recent Interview thnt the drend of
the fog Is the last remaining anxiety
of seafarors. By means of special
wireless waves be proposes to inform
the commanders of vessels the exact
direction from which each message
comes.
A Chaser.
Tho Inqulsltlvo old Woman
Guard, why did tho train stop 00
foro wo camo to tho Btatlon.
Tho Guard Ran over a pig, mum.
Tho Inquisitive Old Woman
What, was it on tho Hno7
Tho Guard No oh, no; wo chas
ed it up tho embankment! London
Sketch.
Closed Season.
"Your proposal comos too lato."
"Then you have engaged yoursolf
to another?"
"No."
"Thon why not bo engaged to
mo?"
"Tho ellly season is over now."
IT
WHICH
i ICEBERG, THE
White Star Liner Was on Her
Maiden Trip From South
ampton to New York.
T
UK now White Star liner Titan-
tic, which was recently In col
lision with an iceberg on her
maiden trip from Southamp
ton to New York, Is described by her
owners as follows:
The Titanic and her sister ship, the
Olympic, nro the largest ships afloat,
being 100 foot longer than their next
rival. Theso sea monsters nro nt the
snme time llontlng mansions of lux
ury, each capable of holding n town
ful of people. They nre 88ya feet
long, 02 feet iu the beam and 04 feet
In depth, with 45,000 tons register nnd
C0,00 tons displacement
With officers and crew numbering
800. the TlUnle is cnpablo of carrying
,'1,01)0 to 3,500 passengers cabin and
steerage. She was built to be the last
word In size, socd, power and sea lux
ury, and It would take u powerful
Imagination to couceivo the magnifi
cence nnd detail for comfort and lux
ury and pastime on the great ship. It
interior more closely resembles a huge
hotel, with heavy balustraded wide
stnlrways and elevators running up and
down for nl'i" ptorles; its great sa
loons nnd restnurauts; Its miniature
.
ft
THE WHITE STAE
theater, squash and tennis courts,
swimming pools and Turkish bath
rooms; its great smoking room, card
rooms nnd beautiful music rooms, and
even on the top of its twelve decks a
mluluture golf links.
Private Promenades.
Two private suits with their own
private promenades, wherein passen
gers can live as luxuriously at sea ns
In their own homes, lllistrate some of
the novelties. These suits are only de
signed for one or two persons, with
accommodations for their servants,
nnd the price asked for them for a
single trip voyage Is $1,330. Without
the iorch single suits like these are
sold for ?2,300.
The Titanic was launched at Ilelfast
lnfet May that Is to say, her huge hulk
was launched, but that only half com
pleted the work of construction, to say
nothing of tho mammoth task of dec
oration. The Titanic has nine decks of sol
idly constructed steel. Tho hull is di
vided Into thirty water tight compart
ments, the doors of which can be si
multaneously closed by tho operation
of a lever from tho bridge. Sho Is of
the triple screw type. Tho two wing
screws are driven by reclprocntlng en
gines, tho central ono by turbines. Her
speed Is twenty-one knots nn hour.
Borne Idea of the Immensity of the
work Involved In tho construction of
such n levlnthnn ns the Titanic mny bo
gained by n few statistics. The weight
of the 600,000 rivets in the shlp'a dou
ble bottom nlono Is 270 tons. Tho
heaviest pinto wolghs 4 tons and Is
3d feet long. The rudder weighs 100
tons. Tho lnrgest lx'nm used weighs 4
tons aud measures 02 feet.
Near a Mishap at Southampton.
Captain Smith, her commander, tho
ndmlral of the White Star fleet, wns In
command of her slater ship, tho Olym
pic, when she made her maiden voy
ago to New Y'ork and also when sho
collided with tho British cruiser
Hawko in tho Solent last September.
A dlsaater was narrowly averted the
day the Titanic sailed from Southamp
ton. It was similar to that which be
fell, her slater ship, the Olympic. Cap-
COLLIDED
WITH
GREATEST SHIP
A Marvel In Luxury Of 66,000
Tons Displacement Re
quired Crew of 860.
tain E. J. Smith was commandtr of
the Olympic ut that time, and he was
in charge of the Titanic.
The Titanic, with about 1,300 passen
gers abourd, 3."0 of whom were in the
first cabin, was leaving her pier when
there wns n sound as of a mountain
battery being discharged. There was
a rush of passengers to tho port rail
to --eo what the trouble was,
it then developed that ns she passed
out Into the stream the 45.000 ton
steamship had sucked the water be
tween herself and the quay to so great
an extent that tho seven huge hawsers
with which tho American liner New
York wns moored to the pier had been
snnpped like threads.
The Olympic's Mishap.
The New York began drifting help
lessly, stern first, toward the Titanic,
which seemed to act like n magnet
Slowly the New York bore down on
tho Titanic, which reversed her en
gines. In a few minutes her headway
was stopped and she began to move
slowly uste-u. The tugs Neptune nnd
Vulcnn sped to the helpless American
liner, caupht her with hawsers, bow
nnd stern, and towed her back to her
it . v-
LINEB TITANIC.
berth. The tugs' timely arrival and
quick work probably prevented a bad
smash between the two liners.
Captain Smith was 011 tho bridge of
the Olympic on Sept. 20 last as she
was outgoing in Cowes roads. The
British cruiser Ilawke, which was
passing the liner to starboard, was sud
denly drawn in, as if by an undercur
rent caused by the giant's propellers,
and crashed Into the steamship's quar
ter about twenty feet from the stern
It required almost three months to re
pair the Olympic.
Captain Smith has been in th- White
Star's service for more than thirty
years. Ills llrst important command
wns the Majestic In 1S02. Every large
ship of the line has been commanded
by him since then. leitig put in charge
of each one as soon ns she was put In
commission.
Noted Persons Aboard.
Amoug the first cabin passengers
aboard the Titanic were Major Archi
bald W. Butt, Norman C. Craig, M. P ,
Mr. aud Mrs. Washington Dodge, Ben
Jamlu Guggenheim, Henry B. Htirrls.
New Y'ork theater manager, aud Mrs.
Harris; Colonel Washington Hoebling,
the Couutess of Hothes, Adolph Seal
feld, Mr. aud Mrs. isldor Straus, Mr
and Mrs. Emll Taussig, Mr. and Mrs
George D. Widener, Mrs. J. Stewart
White, F. D. Millet, the artist uud
president of the Consolidated Amerl
can academy at Borne; O. M. Hayes,
president of tho Grand Trunk railway,
J. Bruco Ismay, chairman and manag
ing director of tho White Star lino
W. T. Stead nnd Colonel and Mrs. John
Jacob Astor.
POETRY AND PUNS IN BIBLE.
Profeeior Torrey of Yalo Cites Ex
amples Beforo Oriental Society.
The world's most beautiful aud per
fect poetry is to be found in tho Old
Testament, according to Professor C.
O. Torrey of Yalo. t
Professor Torrey said that tho Blblo
is full of puns, and ho proved his point
with a series of examples of playa upon
words, taking his illustrations from the
book of Isaiah.