第6章

IconfessthatthisnotionoftheBoardofTradeasanentityhavingabrainwhichcouldbeovercomebythefumesofstrongliquorcharmedmeexceedingly。Forthenitwouldhavebeenunlikethelimitedcompaniesofwhichsomeexasperatedwithasoncesaidthattheyhadnosoulstobesavedandnobodiestobekicked，andthuswerefreeinthisworldandthenextfromalltheeffectivesanctionsofconscientiousconduct。But，unfortunately，thepicturesquepronouncementoverheardbymewasonlyacharacteristicsallyofanannoyedsailor。TheBoardofTradeiscomposedofbloodlessdepartments。Ithasnolimbsandnophysiognomy，orelseattheforthcominginquiryitmighthavepaidtothevictimsoftheTitanicdisasterthesmalltributeofablush。IaskmyselfwhethertheMarineDepartmentoftheBoardofTradedidreallybelieve，whentheydecidedtoshelvethereportonequipmentforatime，thatashipof45，000tons，thatANYship，couldbemadepracticallyindestructiblebymeansofwatertightbulkheads?Itseemsincredibletoanybodywhohadeverreflecteduponthepropertiesofmaterial，suchaswoodorsteel。Youcan\'t，letbuilderssaywhattheylike，makeashipofsuchdimensionsasstrongproportionatelyasamuchsmallerone。TheshocksouroldwhalershadtostandamongsttheheavyfloesinBaffin\'sBaywereperfectlystaggering，notwithstandingthemostskilfulhandling，andyettheylastedforyears。TheTitanic，ifonemaybelievethelastreports，hasonlyscrapedagainstapieceoficewhich，I

suspect，wasnotanenormouslybulkyandcomparativelyeasilyseenberg，butthelowedgeofafloe——andsank。Leisurelyenough，Godknows——andheretheadvantageofbulkheadscomesin——fortimeisagreatfriend，agoodhelper——thoughinthislamentablecasethesebulkheadsservedonlytoprolongtheagonyofthepassengerswhocouldnotbesaved。Butshesank，causing，apartfromthesorrowandthepityofthelossofsomanylives，asortofsurprisedconsternationthatsuchathingshouldhavehappenedatall。Why?

Youbuilda45，000tonshotelofthinsteelplatestosecurethepatronageof，say，acoupleofthousandrichpeople(forifithadbeenfortheemigranttradealone，therewouldhavebeennosuchexaggerationofmeresize)，youdecorateitinthestyleofthePharaohsorintheLouisQuinzestyle——Idon\'tknowwhich——andtopleasetheaforesaidfatuoushandfulofindividuals，whohavemoremoneythantheyknowwhattodowith，andtotheapplauseoftwocontinents，youlaunchthatmasswithtwothousandpeopleonboardattwenty-oneknotsacrossthesea——aperfectexhibitionofthemodernblindtrustinmerematerialandappliances。Andthenthishappens。Generaluproar。Theblindtrustinmaterialandapplianceshasreceivedaterribleshock。Iwillsaynothingofthecredulitywhichacceptsanystatementwhichspecialists，techniciansandoffice-peoplearepleasedtomake，whetherforpurposesofgainorglory。Youstandthereastonishedandhurtinyourprofoundestsensibilities。Butwhatelseunderthecircumstancescouldyouexpect?

FormypartIcouldmuchsoonerbelieveinanunsinkableshipof3，000tonsthaninoneof40，000tons。Itisoneofthosethingsthatstandtoreason。Youcan\'tincreasethethicknessofscantlingandplatesindefinitely。Andthemereweightofthisbignessisanaddeddisadvantage。Inreadingthereports，thefirstreflectionwhichoccurstooneisthat，ifthatlucklessshiphadbeenacoupleofhundredfeetshorter，shewouldhaveprobablygoneclearofthedanger。Butthen，perhaps，shecouldnothavehadaswimmingbathandaFrenchcafe。That，ofcourse，isaseriousconsideration。Iamwellawarethatthoseresponsibleforhershortandfatalexistenceaskusindesolateaccentstobelievethatifshehadhitendonshewouldhavesurvived。Which，byasortofcoyimplication，seemstomeanthatitwasallthefaultoftheofficerofthewatch(heisdeadnow)fortryingtoavoidtheobstacle。Weshallhavepresently，indeferencetocommercialandindustrialinterests，anewkindofseamanship。Averynewand“progressive“kind。Ifyouseeanythingintheway，bynomeanstrytoavoidit；smashatitfulltilt。Andthen——andthenonlyyoushallseethetriumphofmaterial，ofclevercontrivances，ofthewholeboxofengineeringtricksinfact，andcoverwithgloryacommercialconcernofthemostunmitigatedsort，agreatTrust，andagreatship-buildingyard，justlyfamedforthesuper-excellenceofitsmaterialandworkmanship。Unsinkable！See?Itoldyoushewasunsinkable，ifonlyhandledinaccordancewiththenewseamanship。Everything\'sinthat。And，doubtless，theBoardofTrade，ifproperlyapproached，wouldconsenttogivetheneededinstructionstoitsexaminersofMastersandMates。Beholdtheexamination-roomofthefuture。Entertothegrizzledexaminerayoungmanofmodestaspect:“Areyouwellupinmodernseamanship?““Ihopeso，sir。”“H\'m，let\'ssee。Youareatnightonthebridgeinchargeofa150，000tonsship，withamotortrack，organ-loft，etc。，etc。，withafullcargoofpassengers，afullcrewof1，500cafewaiters，twosailorsandaboy，threecollapsibleboatsasperBoardofTraderegulations，andgoingatyourthree-quarterspeedof，say，aboutfortyknots。Youperceivesuddenlyrightahead，andcloseto，somethingthatlookslikealargeice-floe。Whatwouldyoudo?““Putthehelmamidships。”

“Verywell。Why?““Inordertohitendon。”“Onwhatgroundsshouldyouendeavourtohitendon?““Becausewearetaughtbyourbuildersandmastersthattheheavierthesmash，thesmallerthedamage，andbecausetherequirementsofmaterialshouldbeattendedto。”

Andsoonandsoon。Thenewseamanship:whenindoubttrytoramfairly——whatever\'sbeforeyou。Verysimple。IfonlytheTitanichadrammedthatpieceofice(whichwasnotamonstrousberg)

fairly，everypuffingparagraphwouldhavebeenvindicatedintheeyesofthecredulouspublicwhichpays。Butwouldithavebeen?

Well，Idoubtit。IamwellawarethatintheeightiesthesteamshipArizona，oneofthe“greyhoundsoftheocean“inthejargonofthatday，didrunbowsonagainstaveryunmistakableiceberg，andmanagedtogetintoportonhercollisionbulkhead。

ButtheArizonawasnot，ifIrememberrightly，5，000tonsregister，letalone45，000，andshewasnotgoingattwentyknotsperhour。Ican\'tbeperfectlycertainatthisdistanceoftime，buthersea-speedcouldnothavebeenmorethanfourteenattheoutside。Boththesefactsmadeforsafety。And，evenifshehadbeenenginedtogotwentyknots，therewouldnothavebeenbehindthatspeedtheenormousmass，sodifficulttocheckinitsimpetus，theterrificweightofwhichisboundtododamagetoitselforothersattheslightestcontact。

Iassureyouitisnotforthevainpleasureoftalkingaboutmyownpoorexperiences，butonlytoillustratemypoint，thatIwillrelatehereaveryunsensationallittleincidentIwitnessednowrathermorethantwentyyearsagoinSydney，N。S。W。Shipswerebeginningthentogrowbiggeryearafteryear，though，ofcourse，thepresentdimensionswerenotevendreamtof。IwasstandingontheCircularQuaywithaSydneypilotwatchingabigmailsteamshipofoneofourbest-knowncompaniesbeingbroughtalongside。Weadmiredherlines，hernobleappearance，andwereimpressedbyhersizeaswell，thoughherlength，Iimagine，washardlyhalfthatoftheTitanic。

ShecameintotheCove(asthatpartoftheharbouriscalled)，ofcourseveryslowly，andatsomehundredfeetorsoshortofthequayshelostherway。Thatquaywasthenawoodenone，afinestructureofmightypilesandstringersbearingaroadway——athingofgreatstrength。Theship，asIhavesaidbefore，stoppedmovingwhensomehundredfeetfromit。Thenherengineswererungonslowahead，andimmediatelyrungoffagain。Thepropellermadejustaboutfiveturns，Ishouldsay。Shebegantomove，stealingon，sotospeak，withoutaripple；comingalongsidewiththeutmostgentleness。Iwentonlookingherover，verymuchinterested，butthemanwithme，thepilot，mutteredunderhisbreath:“Toomuch，toomuch。”HisexercisedjudgmenthadwarnedhimofwhatIdidnotevensuspect。ButIbelievethatneitherofuswasexactlypreparedforwhathappened。Therewasafaintconcussionofthegroundunderourfeet，agroaningofpiles，asnappingofgreatironbolts，andwithasoundofrippingandsplintering，aswhenatreeisblowndownbythewind，agreatstrongpieceofwood，abaulkofsquaredtimber，wasdisplacedseveralfeetasifbyenchantment。Ilookedatmycompanioninamazement。“Icouldnothavebelievedit，“Ideclared。“No，“hesaid。“Youwouldnothavethoughtshewouldhavecrackedanegg——eh?“

Icertainlywouldn\'thavethoughtthat。Heshookhishead，andadded:“Ah！Thesegreat，bigthings，theywantsomehandling。”

SomemonthsafterwardsIwasbackinSydney。Thesamepilotbroughtmeinfromsea。AndIfoundthesamesteamship，orelseanotheraslikeherastwopeas，lyingatanchornotfarfromus。

Thepilottoldmeshehadarrivedthedaybefore，andthathewastotakeheralongsideto-morrow。Iremindedhimjocularlyofthedamagetothequay。“Oh！“hesaid，“wearenotallowednowtobringtheminundertheirownsteam。Weareusingtugs。”

Averywiseregulation。Andthisismypoint——thatsizeistoacertainextentanelementofweakness。Thebiggertheship，themoredelicatelyshemustbehandled。Hereisacontactwhich，inthepilot\'sownwords，youwouldn\'tthinkcouldhavecrackedanegg；withtheastonishingresultofsomethinglikeeightyfeetofgoodstrongwoodenquayshakenloose，ironboltssnapped，abaulkofstouttimbersplintered。Now，supposethatquayhadbeenofgranite(assurelyitisnow)——or，insteadofthequay，iftherehadbeen，say，aNorthAtlanticfogthere，withafull-growniceberginitawaitingthegentlecontactofashipgropingitswayalongblindfold?Somethingwouldhavebeenhurt，butitwouldnothavebeentheiceberg。

Apparently，thereisapointindevelopmentwhenitceasestobeatrueprogress——intrade，ingames，inthemarvelloushandiworkofmen，andevenintheirdemandsanddesiresandaspirationsofthemoralandmentalkind。Thereisapointwhenprogress，toremainarealadvance，mustchangeslightlythedirectionofitsline。Butthisisawidequestion。WhatIwantedtopointouthereis——thattheoldArizona，themarvelofherday，wasproportionatelystronger，handier，betterequipped，thanthistriumphofmodernnavalarchitecture，thelossofwhich，incommonparlance，willremainthesensationofthisyear。Theclatterofthepresseshasbeenworthyofthetonnage，ofthepreliminarypaeansoftriumphroundthatvanishedhull，oftherecklessstatements，andelaboratedescriptionsofitsornatesplendour。Agreatbabbleofnews(andwhatsortofnewstoo，goodheavens！)andeagercommenthasarisenaroundthiscatastrophe，thoughitseemstomethatalessstridentnotewouldhavebeenmorebecominginthepresenceofsomanyvictimsleftstrugglingonthesea，oflivesmiserablythrownawayfornothing，orworsethannothing:forfalsestandardsofachievement，tosatisfyavulgardemandofafewmoneyedpeopleforabanalhotelluxury——theonlyonetheycanunderstand——andbecausethebigshippays，inonewayoranother:inmoneyorinadvertisingvalue。

Itisinmorewaysthanoneaveryuglybusiness，andamerescrapealongtheship\'sside，soslightthat，ifreportsaretobebelieved，itdidnotinterruptacardpartyinthegorgeouslyfitted(butinchastestyle)smoking-room——orwasitinthedelightfulFrenchcafe?——isenoughtobringontheexposure。Allthepeopleonboardexistedunderasenseoffalsesecurity。Howfalse，ithasbeensufficientlydemonstrated。Andthefactwhichseemsundoubted，thatsomeofthemactuallywerereluctanttoentertheboatswhentoldtodoso，showsthestrengthofthatfalsehood。

Incidentally，itshowsalsothesortofdisciplineonboardtheseships，thesortofholdkeptonthepassengersinthefaceoftheunforgivingsea。Thesepeopleseemedtoimagineitanoptionalmatter:whereastheordertoleavetheshipshouldbeanorderofthesternestcharacter，tobeobeyedunquestioninglyandpromptlybyeveryoneonboard，withmentoenforceitatonce，andtocarryitoutmethodicallyandswiftly。Anditisnousetosayitcannotbedone，foritcan。Ithasbeendone。Theonlyrequisiteismanageablenessoftheshipherselfandofthenumbersshecarriesonboard。Thatisthegreatthingwhichmakesforsafety。A

commandershouldbeabletoholdhisshipandeverythingonboardofherinthehollowofhishand，asitwere。Butwiththemodernfoolishtrustinmaterial，andwiththosefloatinghotels，thishasbecomeimpossible。Amanmaydohisbest，buthecannotsucceedinataskwhichfromgreed，ormorelikelyfromsheerstupidity，hasbeenmadetoogreatforanybody\'sstrength。

ThereadersofTHEENGLISHREVIEW，whocastafriendlyeyenearlysixyearsagoonmyReminiscences，andknowhowmuchthemerchantservice，shipsandmen，hasbeentome，willunderstandmyindignationthatthosemenofwhom(speakinginnosentimentalphrase，butintheverytruthoffeeling)Ican\'tevennowthinkotherwisethanasbrothers，havebeenputbytheircommercialemployersintheimpossibilitytoperformefficientlytheirplainduty；andthisfrommotiveswhichIshallnotenumeratehere，butwhoseintrinsicunworthinessisplainlyrevealedbythegreatness，themiserablegreatness，ofthatdisaster。Someofthemhaveperished。Todieforcommerceishardenough，buttogounderthatseawehavebeentrainedtocombat，withasenseoffailureinthesupremedutyofone\'scallingisindeedabitterfate。Thustheyaregone，andtheresponsibilityremainswiththelivingwhowillhavenodifficultyinreplacingthembyothers，justasgood，atthesamewages。Itwastheirbitterfate。ButI，whocanlookatsomearduousyearswhentheirdutywasmydutytoo，andtheirfeelingsweremyfeelings，canremembersomeofuswhoonceuponatimeweremorefortunate。

ItisofthemthatIwouldtalkalittle，formyowncomfortpartly，andalsobecauseIamstickingallthetimetomysubjecttoillustratemypoint，thepointofmanageablenesswhichIhaveraisedjustnow。SincethememoryoftheluckyArizonahasbeenevokedbyothersthanmyself，andmadeuseofbymeformyownpurpose，letmecalluptheghostofanothershipofthatdistantdaywhoselessluckydestinyinculcatesanotherlessonmakingformyargument。TheDouro，ashipbelongingtotheRoyalMailSteamPacketCompany，wasratherlessthanone-tenththemeasurementoftheTitanic。Yet，strangeasitmayappeartotheineffablehotelexquisiteswhoformthebulkofthefirst-classCross-AtlanticPassengers，peopleofpositionandwealthandrefinementdidnotconsideritanintolerablehardshiptotravelinher，evenallthewayfromSouthAmerica；thisbeingtheserviceshewasengagedupon。OfherspeedIknownothing，butitmusthavebeentheaverageoftheperiod，andthedecorationsofhersaloonswere，I

daresay，quiteuptothemark；butIdoubtifherbirthhadbeenboastfullyparagraphedallroundthePress，becausethatwasnotthefashionofthetime。Shewasnotamassofmaterialgorgeouslyfurnishedandupholstered。Shewasaship。Andshewasnot，intheaptwordsofanarticlebyCommanderC。Crutchley，R。N。R。，whichIhavejustread，“runbyasortofhotelsyndicatecomposedoftheChiefEngineer，thePurser，andtheCaptain，“asthesemonstrousAtlanticferriesare。Shewasreallycommanded，manned，andequippedasashipmeanttokeepthesea:ashipfirstandlastinthefullestmeaningoftheterm，asthefactIamgoingtorelatewillshow。

ShewasofftheSpanishcoast，homewardbound，andfairlyfull，justliketheTitanic；andfurther，theproportionofhercrewtoherpassengers，Irememberquitewell，wasverymuchthesame。TheexactnumberofsoulsonboardIhaveforgotten。Itmighthavebeennearlythreehundred，certainlynotmore。Thenightwasmoonlit，buthazy，theweatherfinewithaheavyswellrunningfromthewestward，whichmeansthatshemusthavebeenrollingagreatdeal，andinthatrespecttheconditionsforherwereworsethaninthecaseoftheTitanic。Sometimeeitherjustbeforeorjustaftermidnight，tothebestofmyrecollection，shewasrunintoamidshipsandatrightanglesbyalargesteamerwhichaftertheblowbackedout，and，herselfapparentlydamaged，remainedmotionlessatsomedistance。

MyrecollectionisthattheDouroremainedafloatafterthecollisionforfifteenminutesorthereabouts。Itmighthavebeentwenty，butcertainlysomethingunderthehalf-hour。Inthattimetheboatswerelowered，allthepassengersputintothem，andthelotshovedoff。Therewasnotimetodoanythingmore。AllthecrewoftheDourowentdownwithher，literallywithoutamurmur。

Whenshewentsheplungedbodilydownlikeastone。Theonlymembersoftheship\'scompanywhosurvivedwerethethirdofficer，whowasfromthefirstorderedtotakechargeoftheboats，andtheseamentoldofftomanthem，twoineach。Nobodyelsewaspickedup。Aquartermaster，oneofthesavedinthewayofduty，withwhomItalkedamonthorsoafterwards，toldmethattheypulleduptothespot，butcouldneitherseeaheadnorhearthefaintestcry。

ButIhaveforgotten。Apassengerwasdrowned。Shewasalady\'smaidwho，frenziedwithterror，refusedtoleavetheship。Oneoftheboatswaitednearbytillthechiefofficer，findinghimselfabsolutelyunabletotearthegirlawayfromtherailtowhichshedungwithafranticgrasp，orderedtheboatawayoutofdanger。Myquartermastertoldmethathespokeovertotheminhisordinaryvoice，andthiswasthelastsoundheardbeforetheshipsank。

Therestissilence。Idaresaytherewastheusualofficialinquiry，butwhocaredforit?Thatsortofthingspeaksforitselfwithnouncertainvoice；thoughthepapers，Iremember，gavetheeventnospacetospeakof:nolargeheadlines——noheadlinesatall。Youseeitwasnotthefashionatthetime。Aseaman-likepieceofwork，ofwhichonecherishestheoldmemoryatthisjuncturemorethaneverbefore。Shewasashipcommanded，manned，equipped——notasortofmarineRitz，proclaimedunsinkableandsentadriftwithitscasualpopulationuponthesea，withoutenoughboats，withoutenoughseamen(butwithaParisiancafeandfourhundredofpoordevilsofwaiters)tomeetdangerswhich，lettheengineerssaywhattheylike，lurkalwaysamongstthewaves；sentwithablindtrustinmerematerial，light-heartedly，toamostmiserable，mostfatuousdisaster。

Andthereare，too，manyuglydevelopmentsaboutthistragedy。Therushofthesenatorialinquirybeforethepoorwretchesescapedfromthejawsofdeathhadtimetodrawbreath，thevituperativeabuseofamannomoreguiltythanothersinthismatter，andthesuspicionofthisaimlessfussbeingapoliticalmovetogethomeontheM。T。Company，intowhich，incommonparlance，theUnitedStatesGovernmenthasgotitsknife，Idon\'tpretendtounderstandwhy，thoughwiththerestoftheworldIamawareofthefact。

Perhapstheremaybeanexcellentandworthyreasonforit；butI

venturetosuggestthattotakeadvantageofsomanypitifulcorpses，isnotpretty。Andtheexploitingofthemeresensationontheothersideisnotprettyinitswealthofheartlessinventions。NeitheristhewelterofMarconilieswhichhasnotbeensentvibratingwithoutsomereason，forwhichitwouldbenauseoustoinquiretooclosely。Andthecalumnious，baseless，gratuitous，circumstantialliechargingpoorCaptainSmithwithdesertionofhispostbymeansofsuicideisthevilestandmostuglythingofallinthisoutburstofjournalisticenterprise，withoutfeeling，withouthonour，withoutdecency。

Butallthishasitsmoral。AndthatothersinkingwhichIhaverelatedhereandtothememoryofwhichaseamanturnswithreliefandthankfulnesshasitsmoraltoo。Yes，materialmayfail，andmen，too，mayfailsometimes；butmoreoftenmen，whentheyaregiventhechance，willprovethemselvestruerthansteel，thatwonderfulthinsteelfromwhichthesidesandthebulkheadsofourmodernsea-leviathansaremade。

CERTAINASPECTSOFTHEADMIRABLEINQUIRYINTOTHELOSSOFTHE

TITANIC——1912

Ihavebeentakentotaskbyafriendofmineonthe“otherside“

formystricturesonSenatorSmith\'sinvestigationintothelossoftheTitanic，inthenumberofTHEENGLISHREVIEWforMay，1912。I

willadmitthatthemotivesoftheinvestigationmayhavebeenexcellent，andprobablywere；mycriticismboremainlyonmattersofformandalsoonthepointofefficiency。InthatrespectI

havenothingtoretract。TheSenatorsoftheCommissionhadabsolutelynoknowledgeandnopracticetoguidethemintheconductofsuchaninvestigation；andthisfactgaveanairofunrealitytotheirzealousexertions。IthinkthatevenintheUnitedStatesthereissomeregretthatthiszealoftheirswasnottemperedbyalargedoseofwisdom。Itisfittingthatpeoplewhorushwithsuchardourtotheworkofputtingquestionstomenyetgaspingfromanarrowescapeshouldhave，Iwouldn\'tsayatinctureoftechnicalinformation，butenoughknowledgeofthesubjecttodirectthetrendoftheirinquiry。ThenewspapersoftwocontinentshavenotedtheremarksofthePresidentoftheSenatorialCommissionwithcommentswhichIwillnotreproducehere，havingascantrespectforthe“organsofpublicopinion，“astheyfondlybelievethemselvestobe。Theabsolutevalueoftheirremarkswasaboutasgreatasthevalueoftheinvestigationtheyeithermockedatorextolled。TotheUnitedStatesSenateIdidnotintendtobedisrespectful。Ihaveforthatbody，ofwhichonehearsmostlyinconnectionwithtariffs，asmuchreverenceasthebestofAmericans。Tomanifestmoreorlesswouldbeanimpertinenceinastranger。IhaveexpressedmyselfwithlessreserveonourBoardofTrade。Thatwasdoneundertheinfluenceofwarmfeelings。Wewereallfeelingwarmlyonthematteratthattime。But，atanyrate，ourBoardofTradeInquiry，conductedbyanexperiencedPresident，discoveredaveryinterestingfactontheveryseconddayofitssitting:thefactthatthewater-tightdoorsinthebulkheadsofthatwonderofnavalarchitecturecouldbeopeneddownbelowbyanyirresponsibleperson。Thusthefamousclosingapparatusonthebridge，paradedasadeviceofgreatersafety，withitsattachmentsofwarningbells，colouredlights，andallthesepretty-pretties，was，inthecaseofthisship，littlebetterthanatechnicalfarce。

Itisamusing，ifanythingconnectedwiththisstupidcatastrophecanbeamusing，toseethesecretlycrestfallenattitudeoftechnicians。Theyarethehighpriestsofthemoderncultofperfectedmaterialandofmechanicalappliances，andwouldfainforbidtheprofanefrominquiringintoitsmysteries。Wearethemastersofprogress，theysay，andyoushouldremainrespectfullysilent。Andtheytakerefugebehindtheirmathematics。Ihavethegreatestregardformathematicsasanexerciseofmind。ItistheonlymannerofthinkingwhichapproachestheDivine。Butmerecalculations，ofwhichthesemenmakesomuch，whenunassistedbyimaginationandwhentheyhavegainedmasteryovercommonsense，arethemostdeceptiveexercisesofintellect。Twoandtwoarefour，andtwoaresix。Thatisimmutable；youmaytrustyoursoultothat；butyoumustbecertainfirstofyourquantities。Iknowhowthestrengthofmaterialscanbecalculatedaway，andalsotheevidenceofone\'ssenses。ForitisbysomesortofcalculationinvolvingweightsandlevelsthatthetechniciansresponsiblefortheTitanicpersuadedthemselvesthatashipNOTDIVIDEDbywater-

tightcompartmentscouldbe“unsinkable。”Because，youknow，shewasnotdivided。YouandI，andourlittleboys，whenwewanttodivide，say，abox，takecaretoprocureapieceofwoodwhichwillreachfromthebottomtothelid。Weknowthatifitdoesnotreachallthewayup，theboxwillnotbedividedintotwocompartments。Itwillbeonlypartlydivided。TheTitanicwasonlypartlydivided。Shewasjustsufficientlydividedtodrownsomepoordevilslikeratsinatrap。Itisprobablethattheywouldhaveperishedinanycase，butitisaparticularlyhorriblefatetodieboxeduplikethis。Yes，shewassufficientlydividedforthat，butnotsufficientlydividedtopreventthewaterflowingover。

Thereforetoaplainmanwhoknowssomethingofmathematicsbutisnotbemusedbycalculations，shewas，fromthepointofviewof“unsinkability，“notdividedatall。Whatwouldyousayofpeoplewhowouldboastofafireproofbuilding，anhotel，forinstance，saying，“Oh，wehaveitdividedbyfireproofbulkheadswhichwouldlocaliseanyoutbreak，“andifyouweretodiscoveroncloserinspectionthatthesebulkheadsclosednomorethantwo-thirdsoftheopeningstheyweremeanttoclose，leavingaboveanopenspacethroughwhichdraught，smoke，andfirecouldrushfromoneendofthebuildingtotheother?And，furthermore，thatthosepartitions，beingtoohightoclimbover，thepeopleconfinedineachmenacedcompartmenthadtostaythereandbecomeasphyxiatedorroasted，becausenoexitstotheoutside，saytotheroof，hadbeenprovided！Whatwouldyouthinkoftheintelligenceorcandouroftheseadvertisingpeople?Whatwouldyouthinkofthem?Andyet，apartfromtheobviousdifferenceintheactionoffireandwater，thecasesareessentiallythesame。

Itwouldstrikeyouandmeandourlittleboys(whoarenotengineersyet)thattoapproach——Iwon\'tsayattain——somewherenearabsolutesafety，thedivisionstokeepoutwatershouldextendfromthebottomrightuptotheuppermostdeckofTHEHULL。Irepeat，theHULL，becausethereareabovethehullthedecksofthesuperstructuresofwhichweneednottakeaccount。Andfurther，asaprovisionofthecommonesthumanity，thateachofthesecompartmentsshouldhaveaperfectlyindependentandfreeaccesstothatuppermostdeck:thatis，intotheopen。Nothinglesswilldo。Divisionbybulkheadsthatreallydivide，andfreeaccesstothedeckfromeverywater-tightcompartment。Thentheresponsiblemaninthemomentofdangerandintheexerciseofhisjudgmentcouldcloseallthedoorsofthesewater-tightbulkheadsbywhateverclevercontrivancehasbeeninventedforthepurpose，withoutaqualmattheawfulthoughtthathemaybeshuttingupsomeofhisfellowcreaturesinadeath-trap；thathemaybesacrificingthelivesofmenwho，downthere，arestickingtothepostsofdutyastheengine-roomstaffsoftheMerchantServicehaveneverfailedtodo。Iknowverywellthattheengineersofashipinamomentofemergencyarenotquakingfortheirlives，but，asfarasIhaveknownthem，attendcalmlytotheirduty。Weallmustdie；but，hangitall，amanoughttobegivenachance，ifnotforhislife，thenatleasttodiedecently。It\'sbadenoughtohavetostickdowntherewhensomethingdisastrousisgoingonandanymomentmaybeyourlast；buttobedrownedshutupunderdeckistoobad。SomemenoftheTitanicdiedlikethat，itistobefeared。Compartmented，sotospeak。Justthinkwhatitmeans！

Nothingcanapproachthehorrorofthatfateexceptbeingburiedaliveinacave，orinamine，orinyourfamilyvault。

So，oncemore:continuousbulkheads——aclearwayofescapetothedeckoutofeachwater-tightcompartment。Nothingless。Andifspecialists，thepreciousspecialistsofthesortthatbuilds“unsinkableships，“tellyouthatitcannotbedone，don\'tyoubelievethem。Itcanbedone，andtheyarequitecleverenoughtodoittoo。Theobjectionstheywillraise，howeverdisguisedinthesolemnmysteryoftechnicalphrases，willnotbetechnical，butcommercial。Iassureyouthatthereisnotmuchmysteryaboutashipofthatsort。Sheisatank。Sheisatankribbed，joisted，stayed，butsheisnogreatermysterythanatank。TheTitanicwasatankeighthundredfeetlong，fittedasanhotel，withcorridors，bed-rooms，halls，andsoon(notaverymysteriousarrangementtruly)，andforthehazardsofherexistenceIshouldthinkaboutasstrongasaHuntleyandPalmerbiscuit-tin。ImakethiscomparisonbecauseHuntleyandPalmerbiscuit-tins，beingalmostanationalinstitution，areprobablyknowntoallmyreaders。Well，aboutthatstrong，andperhapsnotquitesostrong。Justlookatthesideofsuchatin，andthenthinkofa50，000tonship，andtrytoimaginewhatthethicknessofherplatesshouldbetoapproachanywheretherelativesolidityofthatbiscuit-tin。InmyvariedandadventurouscareerIhavebeenthrilledbythesightofaHuntleyandPalmerbiscuit-tinkickedbyamulesky-high，asthesayingis。Itcamebacktoearthsmiling，withonlyasortofdimpleononeofitscheeks。AproportionatelysevereblowwouldhaveburstthesideoftheTitanicoranyother“triumphofmodernnavalarchitecture“likebrownpaper——Iamwillingtobet。

Iamnotsayingthisbywayofdisparagement。Thereisreasoninthings。Youcan\'tmakea50，000tonshipasstrongasaHuntleyandPalmerbiscuit-tin。Butthereisalsoreasoninthewayoneacceptsfacts，andIrefusetobeawedbythesizeofatankbiggerthananyothertankthateverwentafloattoitsdoom。Thepeopleresponsibleforher，thoughdisconcertedintheirheartsbytheexposureofthatdisaster，aregivingthemselvesairsofsuperiority——priestsofanOraclewhichhasfailed，butstillmustremaintheOracle。Theassumptionisthattheyareministersofprogress。Butthemereincreaseofsizeisnotprogress。Ifitwere，elephantiasis，whichcausesaman\'slegstobecomeaslargeastree-trunks，wouldbeasortofprogress，whereasitisnothingbutaveryuglydisease。Yetdirectlythisverydisconcertingcatastrophehappened，theservantsofthesillyOraclebegantocry:“It\'snouse！Youcan\'tresistprogress。Thebigshiphascometostay。”Well，letherstayon，then，inGod\'sname！Butsheisn\'taservantofprogressinanysense。Sheistheservantofcommercialism。Forprogress，ifdealingwiththeproblemsofamaterialworld，hassomesortofmoralaspect——ifonly，say，thatofconquest，whichhasitsdistinctvaluesincemanisaconqueringanimal。Butbignessismereexaggeration。Themenresponsibleforthesebigshipshavebeenmovedbyconsiderationsofprofittobemadebythequestionablemeansofpanderingtoanabsurdandvulgardemandforbanalluxury——theseasidehotelluxury。Oneevenasksoneselfwhethertherewassuchademand?Itisinconceivabletothinkthattherearepeoplewhocan\'tspendfivedaysoftheirlifewithoutasuiteofapartments，cafes，bands，andsuch-likerefineddelights。Isuspectthatthepublicisnotsoveryguiltyinthismatter。Thesethingswerepushedontoitintheusualcourseoftradecompetition。Ifto-morrowyouweretotakealltheseluxuriesaway，thepublicwouldstilltravel。Idon\'tdespairofmankind。Ibelievethatif，bysomecatastrophicmiracleallshipsofeverykindweretodisappearoffthefaceofthewaters，togetherwiththemeansofreplacingthem，therewouldbefound，beforetheendoftheweek，men(millionaires，perhaps)cheerfullyputtingouttoseainbath-tubsforafreshstart。Wearealllikethat。Thissortofspiritlivesinmankindstilluncorruptedbytheso-calledrefinements，theingenuityoftradesmen，wholookalwaysforsomethingnewtosell，offerstothepublic。

Letherstay，——Imeanthebigship——sinceshehascometostay。I

onlyobjecttotheattitudeofthepeople，who，havingcalledherintobeingandhavingromanced(tospeakpolitely)abouther，assumeadetachedsortofsuperiority，goodnessonlyknowswhy，andraisedifficultiesinthewayofeverysuggestion——difficultiesaboutboats，aboutbulkheads，aboutdiscipline，aboutdavits，allsortsofdifficulties。Tomostofthemtheonlyanswerwouldbe:

“Wherethere\'sawillthere\'saway“——themostwiseofproverbs。

Butsomeoftheseobjectionsarereallytoostupidforanything。I

shalltrytogiveaninstanceofwhatImean。

ThisInquiryisadmirablyconducted。Iamnotalludingtothelawyersrepresenting“variousinterests，“whoaretryingtoearntheirfeesbycastingallsortsofmeanaspersionsonthecharactersofallsortsofpeoplenotabitworsethanthemselves。

Itishonesttogivevalueforyourwages；andthe“bravos“ofancientVenicewhokepttheirstilettosingoodorderandneverfailedtodeliverthestabbargainedforwiththeiremployers，consideredthemselvesanhonestbodyofprofessionalmen，nodoubt。

Buttheydon\'tcompelmyadmiration，whereastheconductofthisInquirydoes。Andasitisprettycertaintobeattacked，Itakethisopportunitytodepositheremynickelofappreciation。Well，lately，therecamebeforeitwitnessesresponsibleforthedesigningoftheship。Oneofthemwasaskedwhetheritwouldnotbeadvisabletomakeeachcoal-bunkeroftheshipawater-tightcompartmentbymeansofasuitabledoor。

Theanswertosuchaquestionshouldhavebeen，“Certainly，“foritisobvioustothesimplestintelligencethatthemorewater-tightspacesyouprovideinaship(consistentlywithhavingherworkable)theneareryouapproachsafety。Butinsteadofadmittingtheexpediencyofthesuggestion，thiswitnessatonceraisedanobjectionastothepossibilityofclosingtightlythedoorofabunkeronaccountoftheslopeofcoal。Thiswiththetrueexpert\'sattitudeof“Mydearman，youdon\'tknowwhatyouaretalkingabout。”

Nowwouldyoubelievethattheobjectionputforwardwasabsolutelyfutile?Idon\'tknowwhetherthedistinguishedPresidentoftheCourtperceivedthis。Verylikelyhedid，thoughIdon\'tsupposehewaseverontermsoffamiliaritywithaship\'sbunker。ButI

have。Ihavebeeninside；andyoumaytakeitthatwhatIsayofthemiscorrect。Idon\'twishtobewearisometothebenevolentreader，butIwanttoputhisfinger，sotospeak，ontheinanityoftheobjectionraisedbytheexpert。Abunkerisanenclosedspaceforholdingcoals，generallylocatedagainsttheship\'sside，andhavinganopening，adoorwayinfact，intothestokehold。Mencalledtrimmersgointhere，andbymeansofimplementscalledslicesmakethecoalrunthroughthatopeningontothefloorofthestokehold，whereitiswithinreachofthestokers\'(firemen\'s)

shovels。Thisbeingso，youwilleasilyunderstandthatthereisconstantlyamoreorlessthicklayerofcoalgenerallyshapedinaslopelyinginthatdoorway。Andtheobjectionoftheexpertwas:

thatbecauseofthisobstructionitwouldbeimpossibletoclosethewater-tightdoor，andthereforethatthethingcouldnotbedone。Andthatobjectionwasinane。Awater-tightdoorinabulkheadmaybedefinedasametalplatewhichismadetocloseagivenopeningbysomemechanicalmeans。AndiftherewerealawofMedesandPersiansthatawater-tightdoorshouldalwaysslidedownwardsandneverotherwise，theobjectionwouldbetoagreatextentvalid。Butwhatistheretopreventthosedoorstobefittedsoastomoveupwards，orhorizontally，orslantwise?Inwhichcasetheywouldgothroughtheobstructinglayerofcoalaseasilyasaknifegoesthroughbutter。Anyonemayconvincehimselfofitbyexperimentingwithalightpieceofboardandaheapofstonesanywherealongourroads。Probablythejointofsuchadoorwouldweepalittle——andthereisnonecessityforitsbeinghermeticallytight——buttheobjectofconvertingbunkersintospacesofsafetywouldbeattained。Youmaytakemywordforitthatthiscouldbedonewithoutanygreateffortofingenuity。AndthatiswhyIhavequalifiedtheexpert\'sobjectionasinane。

Ofcourse，thesedoorsmustnotbeoperatedfromthebridgebecauseoftheriskoftrappingthecoal-trimmersinsidethebunker；butonthesignalofallotherwater-tightdoorsintheshipbeingclosed(aswouldbedoneincaseofacollision)theytoocouldbeclosedontheorderoftheengineerofthewatch，whowouldseetothesafetyofthetrimmers。Iftherentintheship\'ssidewerewithinthebunkeritself，thatwouldbecomemanifestenoughwithoutanysignal，andtherushofwaterintothestokeholdcouldbecutoffdirectlythedoorplatecameintoitsplace。Sayaminuteattheveryoutside。Naturally，iftheblowofaright-angledcollision，forinstance，wereheavyenoughtosmashthroughtheinnerbulkheadofthebunker，why，therewouldbethennothingtodobutforthestokersandtrimmersandeverybodyintheretoclearoutofthestoke-room。Butthatdoesnotmeanthattheprecautionofhavingwater-tightdoorstothebunkersisuseless，superfluous，orimpossible。{7}

Andtalkingofstokeholds，firemen，andtrimmers，menwhoseheavylabourhasnotasingleredeemingfeature；whichisunhealthy，uninspiring，arduous，withouttherewardofpersonalprideinit；

sheer，hard，brutalisingtoil，belongingneithertoearthnorsea，Igreetwithjoytheadventformarinepurposesoftheinternalcombustionengine。Thedisappearanceofthemarineboilerwillbearealprogress，whichanybodyinsympathywithhiskindmustwelcome。Insteadoftheunthrifty，unruly，nondescriptcrowdtheboilersrequire，acrowdofmenINtheshipbutnotOFher，weshallhavecomparativelysmallcrewsofdisciplined，intelligentworkers，abletosteertheship，handleanchors，manboats，andatthesametimecompetenttotaketheirplaceatabenchasfittersandrepairers；theresourcefulandskilledseamen——mechanicsofthefuture，thelegitimatesuccessorsoftheseseamen——sailorsofthepast，whohadtheirownkindofskill，hardihood，andtradition，andwhoselastdaysithasbeenmylottoshare。

Onelivesandlearnsandhearsverysurprisingthings——thingsthatonehardlyknowshowtotake，whetherseriouslyorjocularly，howtomeet——withindignationorwithcontempt?Thingssaidbysolemnexperts，byexalteddirectors，byglorifiedticket-sellers，byofficialsofallsorts。Isupposethatoneoftheusesofsuchaninquiryistogivesuchpeopleenoughropetohangthemselveswith。

AndIhopethatsomeofthemwon\'tneglecttodoso。Oneofthemdeclaredtwodaysagothattherewas“nothingtolearnfromthecatastropheoftheTitanic。”Thathehadbeen“givinghisbestconsideration“tocertainrulesfortenyears，andhadcometotheconclusionthatnothingeverhappenedatsea，andthatrulesandregulations，boatsandsailors，wereunnecessary；thatwhatwasreallywrongwiththeTitanicwasthatshecarriedtoomanyboats。

No；Iamnotjoking。Ifyoudon\'tbelieveme，praylookbackthroughthereportsandyouwillfinditallthere。Idon\'trecollecttheofficial\'sname，butitoughttohavebeenPooh-Bah。

Well，Pooh-Bahsaidallthesethings，andwhenaskedwhetherhereallymeantit，intimatedhisreadinesstogivethesubjectmoreof“hisbestconsideration“——foranothertenyearsorsoapparently——buthebelieved，ohyes！hewascertain，thathadtherebeenfewerboatstherewouldhavebeenmorepeoplesaved。Really，whenreadingthereportofthisadmirablyconductedinquiryoneisn\'tcertainattimeswhetheritisanAdmirableInquiryorafelicitousOPERA-BOUFFEoftheGilbertiantype——witharathergrimsubject，tobesure。

Yes，rathergrim——butthecomictreatmentneverfails。MyreaderswillrememberthatinthenumberofTHEENGLISHREVIEWforMay，1912，IquotedtheoldcaseoftheArizona，andwentonfromthattoprophesythecomingofanewseamanship(inaspiritofironyfarremovedfromfun)atthecallofthesublimebuildersofunsinkableships。Ithoughtthat，asasmallboyofmyacquaintancesays，Iwas“doingasarcasm，“andregardeditasaratherwildsortofsarcasmatthat。Well，Iamblessed(excusethevulgarism)ifawitnesshasnotturnedupwhoseemstohavebeeninspiredbythesamethought，andevidentlylongsinhisheartfortheadventofthenewseamanship。Heisanexpert，ofcourse，andIratherbelievehe\'sthesamegentlemanwhodidnotseehiswaytofitwater-tightdoorstobunkers。WithludicrousearnestnessheassuredtheCommissionofhisintensebeliefthathadonlytheTitanicstruckend-onshewouldhavecomeintoportallright。Andinthewholetoneofhisinsistentstatementtherewassuggestedtheregretthattheofficerincharge(whoisdeadnow，andmercifullyoutsidethecomicscopeofthisinquiry)wassoill-advisedastotrytopassclearoftheice。Thusmysarcasticprophecy，thatsuchasuggestionwassuretoturnup，receivesanunexpectedfulfilment。Youwillseeyetthatindeferencetothedemandsof“progress“thetheoryofthenewseamanshipwillbecomeestablished:“Whateveryouseeinfrontofyou——ramitfair……”

Thenewseamanship！Lookssimple，doesn\'tit?Butitwillbeaveryexactartindeed。Theproperhandlingofanunsinkableship，yousee，willdemandthatsheshouldbemadetohittheicebergveryaccuratelywithhernose，becauseshouldyouperchancescrapethebluffofthebowinstead，shemay，withoutceasingtobeasunsinkableasbefore，findherwaytothebottom。IcongratulatethefutureTransatlanticpassengersonthenewandvigoroussensationsinstoreforthem。Theyshallgoboundingacrossfromicebergtoicebergattwenty-fiveknotswithprecisionandsafety，anda“cheerfulbumpysound“——astheimmortalpoemhasit。Itwillbeateeth-loosening，exhilaratingexperience。ThedecorationswillbeLouis-Quinze，ofcourse，andthecafeshallremainopenallnight。ButwhataboutthepricelessSevresporcelainandtheVenetianglassprovidedfortheserviceofTransatlanticpassengers?Well，Iamafraidallthatwillhavetobereplacedbysilvergobletsandplates。Nasty，common，cheapsilver。ButthosewhoWILLgotoseamustbepreparedtoputupwithacertainamountofhardship。

Andthereshallbenoboats。Whyshouldtherebenoboats?

BecausePooh-Bahhassaidthatthefewertheboats，themorepeoplecanbesaved；andthereforewithnoboatsatall，nooneneedbelost。Buteveniftherewasaflawinthisargument，praylookattheotheradvantagestheabsenceofboatsgivesyou。Therecan\'tbetheannoyanceofhavingtogointotheminthemiddleofthenight，andtheunpleasantness，aftersavingyourlifebytheskinofyourteeth，ofbeinghauledoverthecoalsbyirreproachablemembersoftheBarwithhintsthatyouarenobetterthanacowardlyscoundrelandyourwifeaheartlessmonster。LessBoats。

Noboats！Greatshouldbethegratitudeofpassage-sellingCombinestoPooh-Bah；andtheyoughttocherishhismemorywhenhedies。Butnofearofthat。Hiskindneverdies。Allyouhavetodo，OCombine，istoknockatthedooroftheMarineDepartment，lookin，andbeckontothefirstmanyousee。Thatwillbehe，verymuchatyourservice——preparedtoaffirmafter“tenyearsofmybestconsideration“andabundleofstatisticsinhand，that:

“There\'snolessontobelearned，andthatthereisnothingtobedone！“

OnanearlierdaytherewasanotherwitnessbeforetheCourtofInquiry。AmightyofficialoftheWhiteStarLine。TheimpressionofhistestimonywhichtheReportgaveisofanalmostscornfulimpatiencewithallthisfussandpother。Boats！Ofcoursewehavecrowdedourdeckswiththeminanswertothisignorantclamour。Merelumber！Howcanwehandlesomanyboatswithourdavits?Yourpeopledon\'tknowtheconditionsoftheproblem。Wehavegiventhesemattersourbestconsideration，andwehavedonewhatwethoughtreasonable。Wehavedonemorethanourduty。Wearewise，andgood，andimpeccable。Andwhoeversaysotherwiseiseitherignorantorwicked。

Thisisthegistofthesescornfulanswerswhichdisclosethepsychologyofcommercialundertakings。Itisthesamepsychologywhichfiftyorsoyearsago，beforeSamuelPlimsollupliftedhisvoice，sentoverloadedshipstosea。“Whyshouldn\'twecraminasmuchcargoasourshipswillhold?Lookhowfew，howveryfewofthemgetlost，afterall。”

Mendon\'tchange。Notverymuch。Andtheonlyanswertobegiventothismanagerwhocameout，impatientandindignant，frombehindtheplate-glasswindowsofhisshoptobediscoveredbythisinquiry，andtotellusthathe，they，thewholethreemillion(orthirtymillion，forallIknow)capitalOrganisationforsellingpassageshasconsideredtheproblemofboats——theonlyanswertogivehimis:thatthisisnotaproblemofboatsatall。Itistheproblemofdecentbehaviour。Ifyoucan\'tcarryorhandlesomanyboats，thendon\'tcramquitesomanypeopleonboard。Itisassimpleasthat——thisproblemofrightfeelingandrightconduct，therealnatureofwhichseemsbeyondthecomprehensionofticket-

providers。Don\'tsellsomanytickets，myvirtuousdignitary。

Afterall，menandwomen(unlessconsideredfromapurelycommercialpointofview)arenotexactlythecattleoftheWestern-oceantrade，thatusedsometwentyyearsagotobethrownoverboardonanemergencyandlefttoswimroundandroundbeforetheysank。Ifyoucan\'tgetmoreboats，thenselllesstickets。

Don\'tdrownsomanypeopleonthefinest，calmestnightthatwaseverknownintheNorthAtlantic——evenifyouhaveprovidedthemwithalittlemusictogetdrownedby。Selllesstickets！That\'sthesolutionoftheproblem，yourMercantileHighness。

Buttherewouldbeacry，“Oh！Thisrequiresconsideration！“(Tenyearsofit——eh?)Well，no！Thisdoesnotrequireconsideration。

Thisistheveryfirstthingtodo。Atonce。Limitthenumberofpeoplebytheboatsyoucanhandle。That\'shonesty。Andthenyoumaygoonfumblingforyearsaboutthesepreciousdavitswhicharesuchastumbling-blocktoyourhumanity。Thesefascinatingpatentdavits。Thesedavitsthatrefusetodothreetimesasmuchworkastheyweremeanttodo。Oh！Thewickednessofthesedavits！

OneofthegreatdiscoveriesofthisadmirableInquiryisthefascinationofthedavits。Allthesepeoplepositivelycan\'tgetawayfromthem。Theyshuffleaboutandgroanaroundtheirdavits。

Whereastheobviousthingtodoistoeliminatetheman-handleddavitsaltogether。Don\'tyouthinkthatwithallthemechanicalcontrivances，withallthegeneratedpoweronboardtheseships，itisabouttimetogetridofthehundred-years-old，man-powerappliances?Cranesarewhatiswanted；low，compactcraneswithadjustableheads，onetoeachsetofsixornineboats。Andifpeopletellyouofinsuperabledifficulties，iftheytellyouoftheswingandspinofspannedboats，don\'tyoubelievethem。Theheadsofthecranesneednotbeanyhigherthantheheadsofthedavits。Theliftrequiredwouldbeonlyacoupleofinches。Astothespin，thereisawaytopreventthatifyouhaveineachboattwomenwhoknowwhattheyareabout。Ihavetakenuponboardaheavyship\'sboat，intheopensea(theshiprollingheavily)，withacommoncargoderrick。Andacargoderrickisverymuchlikeacrane；butacranedevisedADHOCwouldbeinfinitelyeasiertowork。Wemustrememberthatthelossofthisshiphasalteredthemoralatmosphere。AslongastheTitanicisremembered，anuglyrushfortheboatsmaybefearedincaseofsomeaccident。Youcan\'thopetodrillintoperfectdisciplineacasualmobofsixhundredfiremenandwaiters，butinashipliketheTitanicyoucankeeponapermanenttrustworthycrewofonehundredintelligentseamenandmechanicswhowouldknowtheirstationsforabandoningshipandwoulddotheworkefficiently。Theboatscouldbeloweredwithsufficientdispatch。Onedoesnotwanttoletripone\'sboatsbytherunallatthesametime。Withsixboat-cranes，sixboatswouldbesimultaneouslyswung，filled，andgotawayfromtheside；

andifanysortoforderiskept，theshipcouldbeclearedofthepassengersinaquiteshorttime。Fortheremustbeboatsenoughforthepassengersandcrew，whetheryouincreasethenumberofboatsorlimitthenumberofpassengers，irrespectiveofthesizeoftheship。Thatistheonlyhonestcourse。Anyotherwouldberatherworsethanputtingsandinthesugar，forwhichatradesmangetsfinedorimprisoned。Donotletustakearomanticviewoftheso-calledprogress。Acompanysellingpassagesisatradesman；

thoughfromthewaythesepeopletalkandbehaveyouwouldthinktheyarebenefactorsofmankindinsomemysteriousway，engagedinsomeloftyandamazingenterprise。

Alltheseboatsshouldhaveamotor-engineinthem。And，ofcourse，theglorifiedtradesman，themummifiedofficial，thetechnicians，andallthesesecretlydisconcertedhangers-ontotheenormousticket-sellingenterprise，willraiseobjectionstoitwitheveryairofsuperiority。Butdon\'tbelievethem。Doesn\'titstrikeyouasabsurdthatinthisageofmechanicalpropulsion，ofgeneratedpower，theboatsofsuchultra-modernshipsarefittedwithoarsandsails，implementsmorethanthreethousandyearsold?

OldasthesiegeofTroy。Older！……AndIknowwhatIamtalkingabout。OnlysixweeksagoIwasontheriverinanancient，rough，ship\'sboat，fittedwithatwo-cylindermotor-

engineof7。5h。p。Justacommonship\'sboat，whichthemanwhoownsherusesfortakingtheworkmenandstevedorestoandfromtheshipsloadingatthebuoysoffGreenhithe。Shewouldhavecarriedsomethirtypeople。Nodoubthascarriedasmanydailyformanymonths。Andshecantowatwenty-fivetonwaterbarge——whichisalsopartofthatman\'sbusiness。

Itwasaboisterousday，halfagaleofwindagainstthefloodtide。Twofellowsmanagedher。Ayoungsterofseventeenwascox(andafirst-ratecoxhewastoo)；afellowinatornbluejersey，notmucholder，oftheusualriversidetype，lookedaftertheengine。Ispentanhourandahalfinher，runningupanddownandacrossthatreach。Shehandledperfectly。Witheightortwelveoarsoutshecouldnothavedoneanythinglikeaswell。Thesetwoyoungstersatmyrequestkeptherstationaryfortenminutes，withatouchofengineandhelmnowandthen，withinthreefeetofabig，uglymooringbuoyoverwhichthewaterbrokeandthesprayflewinsheets，andwhichwouldhaveholedherifshehadbumpedagainstit。Butshekeptherposition，itseemedtome，toaninch，withoutapparentlyanytroubletotheseboys。Youcouldnothavedoneitwithoars。Andherenginedidnottakeupthespaceofthreemen，evenontheassumptionthatyouwouldpackpeopleastightassardinesinabox。

Nottheroomofthreepeople，Itellyou！Butnoonewouldwanttopackaboatlikeasardine-box。Theremustberoomenoughtohandletheoars。Butinthatoldship\'sboat，evenifshehadbeendesperatelyovercrowded，therewaspower(manageablebytworiversideyoungsters)togetawayquicklyfromaship\'sside(veryimportantforyoursafetyandtomakeroomforotherboats)，thepowertokeephereasilyheadtosea，thepowertomoveatfivetosevenknotstowardsarescuingship，thepowertocomesafelyalongside。Andallthatinanenginewhichdidnottakeuptheroomofthreepeople。

Apoorboatmanwhohadtoscrapetogetherpainfullythefewsovereignsofthepricehadtheideaofputtingthatengineintohisboat。Butallthesedesigners，directors，managers，constructors，andotherswhomwemayincludeinthegenericnameofYamsi，neverthoughtofitfortheboatsofthebiggesttankonearth，orratheronsea。Andthereforetheyassumeanairofimpatientsuperiorityandmakeobjections——howeversickathearttheymaybe。AndIhopetheyare；atleast，asmuchasagrocerwhohassoldatinofimperfectsalmonwhichdestroyedonlyhalfadozenpeople。Andyouknow，thetinningofsalmonwas“progress“

asmuchatleastasthebuildingoftheTitanic。More，infact。I

amnotattackingshipowners。IcareneithermorenorlessforLines，Companies，Combines，andgenerallyforTradearrayedinpurpleandfinelinenthantheTradecaresforme。ButIamattackingfoolisharrogance，whichisfairgame；theoffensivepostureofsuperioritybywhichtheyhidethesenseoftheirguilt，whiletheechoesofthemiserablyhypocriticalcriesalongthealley-waysofthatship:“Anymorewomen?Anymorewomen?“lingeryetinourears。

IhavebeenexpectingfromoneortheotherofthemallbearingthegenericnameofYamsi，something，asignofsomesort，somesincereutterance，inthecourseofthisAdmirableInquiry，ofmanly，ofgenuinecompunction。Invain。Alltradetalk。Notawhisper——

exceptfortheconventionalexpressionofregretatthebeginningoftheyearlyreport——whichotherwiseisacheerfuldocument。

Dividends，youknow。Theshopisdoingwell。

AndtheAdmirableInquirygoeson，punctuatedbyidioticlaughter，bypaid-forcriesofindignationfromunderlegalwigs，bringingtolightthepsychologyofvariouscommercialcharacterstoostupidtoknowthattheyaregivingthemselvesaway——anadmirablylaboriousinquiryintofactsthatspeak，nayshout，forthemselves。

Iamnotasoft-headed，humanitarianfaddist。Ihavebeenorderedinmytimetododangerouswork；Ihaveordered，otherstododangerouswork；IhaveneverorderedamantodoanyworkIwasnotpreparedtodomyself。Iattachnoexaggeratedvaluetohumanlife。ButIknowithasavalueforwhichthemostgenerouscontributionstotheMansionHouseand“Heroes“fundscannotpay。

Andtheycannotpayforit，becausepeople，evenofthethirdclass(excusemyplainspeaking)，arenotcattle。Deathhasitssting。

IfYamsi\'smanager\'sheadwereforciblyheldunderthewaterofhisbathforsomelittletime，hewouldsoondiscoverthatithas。

Somepeoplecanonlylearnfromthatsortofexperiencewhichcomeshometotheirowndearselves。

Iamnotasentimentalist；thereforeitisnotagreatconsolationtometoseeallthesepeoplebrevetedas“Heroes“bythepennyandhalfpennyPress。Itisnoconsolationatall。Inextremity，intheworstextremity，themajorityofpeople，evenofcommonpeople，willbehavedecently。It\'safactofwhichonlythejournalistsdon\'tseemaware。Hencetheirenthusiasm，Isuppose。ButI，whoamnotasentimentalist，thinkitwouldhavebeenfinerifthebandoftheTitanichadbeenquietlysaved，insteadofbeingdrownedwhileplaying——whatevertunetheywereplaying，thepoordevils。I

wouldrathertheyhadbeensavedtosupporttheirfamiliesthantoseetheirfamiliessupportedbythemagnificentgenerosityofthesubscribers。Iamnotconsoledbythefalse，written-up，DruryLaneaspectsofthatevent，whichisneitherdrama，normelodrama，nortragedy，buttheexposureofarrogantfolly。Thereisnothingmoreheroicinbeingdrownedverymuchagainstyourwill，offaholed，helpless，bigtankinwhichyouboughtyourpassage，thanindyingofcoliccausedbytheimperfectsalmoninthetinyouboughtfromyourgrocer。

Andthat\'sthetruth。TheunsentimentaltruthstrippedoftheromanticgarmentthePresshaswrappedaroundthismostunnecessarydisaster。

PROTECTIONOFOCEANLINERS{8}——1914

ThelossoftheEmpressofIrelandawakensfeelingssomewhatdifferentfromthosethesinkingoftheTitanichadcalledupontwocontinents。Thegriefforthelostandthesympathyforthesurvivorsandthebereavedarethesame；butthereisnot，andtherecannotbe，thesameundercurrentofindignation。Thegoodshipthatisgone(Irememberreadingofherlaunchsomethinglikeeightyearsago)hadnotbeenusheredinwithbeatofdrumasthechiefwonderoftheworldofwaters。Thecompanywhoownedherhadnoagents，authorisedorunauthorised，givingboastfulinterviewsaboutherunsinkabilitytonewspaperreportersreadytoswallowanysortoftradestatementifonlysensationalenoughfortheirreaders——readersasignorantasthemselvesofthenatureofallthingsoutsidethecommonestexperienceofthemaninthestreet。

No；therewasnothingofthatinhercase。Thecompanywascontenttohaveasfine，staunch，seaworthyashipasthetechnicalknowledgeofthattimecouldmakeher。Infact，shewasassafeashipasninehundredandninety-nineshipsoutofanythousandnowafloatuponthesea。No；whateversorrowonecanfeel，onedoesnotfeelindignation。Thiswasnotanaccidentofaveryboastfulmarinetransportation；thiswasarealcasualtyofthesea。TheindignationoftheNewSouthWalesPremierflashedtelegraphicallytoCanadaisperfectlyuncalled-for。Thatstatesman，whosesympathyforpoormatesandseamenissosuspecttomethatI

wouldn\'ttakeitatfiftypercent。discount，doesnotseemtoknowthataBritishCourtofMarineInquiry，ordinaryorextraordinary，isnotacontrivanceforcatchingscapegoats。I，whohavebeenseaman，mateandmasterfortwentyyears，holdingmycertificateundertheBoardofTrade，maysafelysaythatnoneofuseverfeltindangerofunfairtreatmentfromaCourtofInquiry。Itisaperfectlyimpartialtribunalwhichhasneverpunishedseamenforthefaultsofshipowners——as，indeed，itcouldnotdoevenifitwantedto。AndthereisanotherthingtheangryPremierofNewSouthWalesdoesnotknow。Itisthis:thatforashiptofloatforfifteenminutesafterreceivingsuchablowbyabarestemonherbaresideisnotsobad。

Shetookatremendouslistwhichmadetheminutesofgracevouchsafedherofnotmuchuseforthesavingoflives。Butforthatneitherherownersnorherofficersareresponsible。Itwouldhavebeenwonderfulifshehadnotlistedwithsuchaholeinherside。EventheAquitaniawithsuchanopeninginherouterhullwouldbeboundtotakealist。Idon\'tsaythiswiththeintentionofdisparagingthislatest“triumphofmarinearchitecture“——tousetheconsecratedphrase。TheAquitaniaisamagnificentship。I

believeshewouldbearherpeopleunscathedthroughninety-ninepercent。ofallpossibleaccidentsofthesea。Butsupposeacollisionoutontheoceaninvolvingdamageasextensiveasthisonewas，andsupposethenagaleofwindcomingon。EventheAquitaniawouldnotbequiteseaworthy，forshewouldnotbemanageable。

Wehavebeenaccustomingourselvestoputourtrustinmaterial，technicalskill，invention，andscientificcontrivancestosuchanextentthatwehavecomeatlasttobelievethatwiththesethingswecanovercometheimmortalgodsthemselves。Hencewhenadisasterlikethishappens，therearises，besidestheshocktoourhumanesentiments，afeelingofirritation，suchasthehon。

gentlemanattheheadoftheNewSouthWalesGovernmenthasdischargedinatelegraphicflashupontheworld。

Butitisnousebeingangryandtryingtohangathreatofpenalservitudeovertheheadsofthedirectorsofshippingcompanies。

Youcan\'tgetthebetteroftheimmortalgodsbythemerepowerofmaterialcontrivances。Therewillbeneitherscapegoatsinthismatternoryetpenalservitudeforanyone。TheDirectorsoftheCanadianPacificRailwayCompanydidnotsell“safetyatsea“tothepeopleonboardtheEmpressofIreland。Theyneverintheslightestdegreepretendedtodoso。Whattheydidwastosellthemasea-passage，givingverygoodvalueforthemoney。Nothingmore。Aslongasmenwilltravelonthewater，thesea-godswilltaketheirtoll。Theywillcatchgoodseamennapping，orconfusetheirjudgmentbyartswellknowntothosewhogotosea，orovercomethembythesheerbrutalityofelementalforces。Itseemstomethattheresentfulsea-godsneverdosleep，andareneverweary；whereintheseamenwhoaremeremortalscondemnedtounendingvigilancearenomatchforthem。

Andyetitisrightthattheresponsibilityshouldbefixed。Itisthefateofmenthatevenintheircontestswiththeimmortalgodstheymustrenderanaccountoftheirconduct。Lifeatseaisthelifeinwhich，simpleasitis，youcan\'taffordtomakemistakes。

Withwhomthemistakelieshere，isnotformetosay。IseethatSirThomasShaughnessyhasexpressedhisopinionofCaptainKendall\'sabsoluteinnocence。Thisstatement，prematureasitis，doeshimhonour，forIdon\'tsupposeforamomentthatthethoughtofthematerialissueinvolvedintheverdictoftheCourtofInquiryinfluencedhimintheleast。Idon\'tsupposethatheismoreimpressedbythewritoftwomilliondollarsnailed(ormorelikelypasted)totheforemastoftheNorwegianthanIam，whodon\'tbelievethattheStorstadisworthtwomillionshillings。

Thisismerelyamoveofcommerciallaw，andeventhewholemajestyoftheBritishEmpire(sofinelyinvokedbytheSheriff)cannotsqueezemorethanaverymoderatequantityofbloodoutofastone。

SirThomas，inhisconfidentpronouncement，standsloyallybyaloyalanddistinguishedservantofhiscompany。

Thisthinghastobeinvestigatedyet，anditisnotproperformetoexpressmyopinion，thoughIhaveone，inthisplaceandatthistime。ButIneednotconcealmysympathywiththevehementprotestationsofCaptainAndersen。Achargeofneglectandindifferenceinthematterofsavinglivesisthecruellestblowthatcanbeaimedatthecharacterofaseamanworthyofthename。

Onthefaceofthefactsasknownuptonowthechargedoesnotseemtobetrue。Ifupwardsofthreehundredpeoplehavebeen，asstatedinthelastreports，savedbytheStorstad，thenthatshipmusthavebeenathandandrenderingalltheassistanceinherpower。

AstothepointwhichmustcomeupforthedecisionoftheCourtofInquiry，itisasfineasahair。Thetwoshipssaweachotherplainlyenoughbeforethefogclosedonthem。NoonecanquestionCaptainKendall\'sprudence。Hehasbeenasprudentaseverhecouldbe。Thereisnotashadowofdoubtastothat。

Butthereisthisquestion:Acceptingthepositionofthetwoshipswhentheysaweachotherascorrectlydescribedintheverylatestnewspaperreports，itseemsclearthatitwastheEmpressofIreland\'sdutytokeepclearofthecollier，andwhattheCourtwillhavetodecideiswhetherthestoppingofthelinerwas，underthecircumstances，thebestwayofkeepingherclearoftheothership，whichhadtherighttoproceedcautiouslyonanunchangedcourse。

This，reducedtoitssimplestexpression，isthequestionwhichtheCourtwillhavetodecide。

Andnow，apartfromallproblemsofmanoeuvring，ofrulesoftheroad，ofthejudgmentofthemenincommand，awayfromtheirpossibleerrorsandfromthepointstheCourtwillhavetodecide，ifweaskourselveswhatitwasthatwasneededtoavertthisdisastercostingsomanylives，spreadingsomuchsorrow，andtoacertainpointshockingthepublicconscience——ifweaskthatquestion，whatistheanswertobe?

Ihardlydaresetitdown。Yes；whatwasitthatwasneeded，whatingeniouscombinationsofshipbuilding，whattransversebulkheads，whatskill，whatgenius——howmuchexpenseinmoneyandtrainedthinking，whatlearnedcontriving，toavertthatdisaster?

Tosavethatship，alltheselives，somuchanguishforthedying，andsomuchgriefforthebereaved，allthatwasneededinthisparticularcaseinthewayofscience，money，ingenuity，andseamanshipwasaman，andacork-fender。

Yes；aman，aquartermaster，anableseamanthatwouldknowhowtojumptoanorderandwasnotanexcitablefool。InmytimeatseatherewasnolackofmeninBritishshipswhocouldjumptoanorderandwerenotexcitablefools。Astotheso-calledcork-

fender，itisasortofsoftballoonmadefromanetofthickroperathermorethanafootindiameter。ItissuchalongtimesinceIhaveindentedforcork-fendersthatIdon\'trememberhowmuchthesethingscostapiece。Oneofthem，hungjudiciouslyoverthesideattheendofitslanyardbyamanwhoknewwhathewasabout，mightperhapshavesavedfromdestructiontheshipandupwardsofathousandlives。

Twomenwithaheavyrope-fenderwouldhavebeenbetter，buteventheotheronemighthavemadeallthedifferencebetweenaverydamagingaccidentanddownrightdisaster。Bythetimethecork-

fenderhadbeensqueezedbetweentheliner\'ssideandthebluffoftheStorstad\'sbow，theeffectofthelatter\'sreversedpropellerwouldhavebeenproduced，andtheshipswouldhavecomeapartwithnomoredamagethanbulgedandstartedplates。Wasn\'ttherelyingaboutonthatliner\'sbridge，fittedwithallsortsofscientificcontrivances，acoupleofsimpleandeffectivecork-fenders——oronboardofthatNorwegianeither?Theremusthavebeen，sinceoneshipwasjustoutofadockorharbourandtheotherjustarriving。

Thatisthetime，ifever，whencork-fendersarelyingaboutaship\'sdecks。Andtherewasplentyoftimetousethem，andexactlyintheconditionsinwhichsuchfendersareeffectivelyused。Thewaterwasassmoothasinanydock；oneshipwasmotionless，theotherjustmovingatwhatmaybecalleddock-speedwhenentering，leaving，orshiftingberths；andfromthemomentthecollisionwasseentobeunavoidabletilltheactualcontactawholeminuteelapsed。Aminute，——anageunderthecircumstances。

Andnoonethoughtofthehomelyexpedientofdroppingasimple，unpretendingrope-fenderbetweenthedestructivesternandthedefencelessside！

IappealconfidentlytoalltheseameninthestillUnitedKingdom，fromhisMajestytheKing(whohasbeenreallyatsea)totheyoungestintelligentA。B。inanyshipthatwilldocknexttideintheportsofthisrealm，whethertherewasnotachancethere。I

havefollowedtheseaformorethantwentyyears；Ihaveseencollisions；Ihavebeeninvolvedinacollisionmyself；andIdobelievethatinthecaseunderconsiderationthislittlethingwouldhavemadeallthatenormousdifference——thedifferencebetweenconsiderabledamageandanappallingdisaster。

ManylettershavebeenwrittentothePressonthesubjectofcollisions。Ihaveseensome。Theycontainmanysuggestions，valuableandotherwise；butthereisonlyonewhichhitsthenailonthehead。ItisalettertotheTIMESfromaretiredCaptainoftheRoyalNavy。Itisprintedinsmalltype，butitdeservedtobeprintedinlettersofgoldandcrimson。Thewritersuggeststhatallsteamersshouldbeobligedbylawtocarryhungovertheirsternwhatweatseacalla“pudding。”

ThissolutionoftheproblemisaswonderfulinitssimplicityasthecelebratedtrickofColumbus\'segg，andinfinitelymoreusefultomankind。A“pudding“isathingsomethinglikeabolsterofstoutrope-netstuffedwitholdjunk，butthickerinthemiddlethanattheends。Itcanbeseenonalmosteverytugworkinginourdocks。Itis，infact，afixedrope-fenderalwaysinapositionwherepresumablyitwoulddomostgood。HadtheStorstadcarriedsucha“pudding“proportionatetohersize(say，twofeetdiameterinthethickestpart)acrossherstern，andhungabovethelevelofherhawse-pipes，therewouldhavebeenanaccidentcertainly，andsomerepair-workforthenearestship-yard，buttherewouldhavebeennolossoflifetodeplore。

Itseemsalmosttoosimpletobetrue，butIassureyouthatthestatementisastrueasanythingcanbe。Weshallseewhetherthelessonwillbetakentoheart。Weshallsee。ThereisaCommissionoflearnedmensittingtoconsiderthesubjectofsavinglifeatsea。Theyarediscussingbulkheads，boats，davits，manning，navigation，butIamwillingtobetthatnotoneofthemhasthoughtofthehumble“pudding。”Theycanmakewhatrulestheylike。Weshallseeif，withthatdisastercallingaloudtothem，theywillmaketherulethateverysteam-shipshouldcarryapermanentfenderacrossherstern，fromtwotofourfeetindiameterinitsthickestpartinproportiontothesizeoftheship。Butperhapstheymaythinkthethingtooroughandunsightlyforthisscientificandaestheticage。Itcertainlywon\'tlookveryprettybutImakeboldtosayitwillsavemorelivesatseathananyamountoftheMarconiinstallationswhicharebeingforcedontheshipownersonthatveryground——thesafetyoflivesatsea。

Weshallsee！

TotheEditoroftheDAILYEXPRESS。

SIR，AsIfullyexpected，thismorning\'spostbroughtmenotafewlettersonthesubjectofthatarticleofmineintheILLUSTRATED

LONDONNEWS。AndtheyareverymuchwhatIexpectedthemtobe。

IshalladdressmyreplytoCaptainLittlehales，sinceobviouslyhecanspeakwithauthority，andspeaksinhisownname，notunderapseudonym。Andalsoforthereasonthatitisnousetalkingtomenwhotellyoutoshutyourheadforaconfoundedfool。Theyarenotlikelytolistentoyou。

ButiftherebeinLiverpoolanybodynottooangrytolisten，I

wanttoassurehimorthemthatmyexclamatoryline，“Wastherenooneonboardeitheroftheseshipstothinkofdroppingafender——

etc。，“wasnotutteredinthespiritofblameforanyone。Iwouldnotdreamofblamingaseamanfordoingoromittingtodoanythingapersonsittinginaperfectlysafeandunsinkablestudymaythinkof。Allmysympathygoestothetwocaptains；muchthegreatershareofittoCaptainKendall，whohaslosthisshipandwhoseloadofresponsibilitywassomuchheavier！Imaynotknowagreatdeal，butIknowhowanxiousandperplexingarethosenearlyend-onapproaches，soinfinitelymoretryingtothemeninchargethanafrankright-anglecrossing。

ImaybeginbyremindingCaptainLittlehalesthatI，aswellashimself，havehadtoformmyopinion，orrathermyvision，oftheaccident，fromprintedstatements，ofwhichmanymusthavebeenlooseandinexactandnonecouldhavebeenminutelycircumstantial。

IhavereadthereportsoftheTIMESandtheDAILYTELEGRAPH，andnoothers。Whatstandsinthecolumnsofthesepapersisresponsibleformyconclusion——orperhapsforthestateofmyfeelingswhenIwrotetheILLUSTRATEDLONDONNEWSarticle。

Fromthesesoberandunsensationalreports，Iderivedtheimpressionthatthiscollisionwasacollisionoftheslowestsort。

Itakeit，ofcourse，thatboththemeninchargespeakthestrictesttruthastopreliminaryfacts。WeknowthattheEmpressofIrelandwasforatimelyingmotionless。AndifthecaptainoftheStorstadstoppedhisenginesdirectlythefogcameon(ashesayshedid)，thentakingintoaccounttheadversecurrentoftheriver，theStorstad，bythetimethetwoshipssightedeachotheragain，musthavebeenbarelymovingOVERTHEGROUND。The“overtheground“speedistheonlyonethatmattersinthisdiscussion。Infact，Irepresentedhertomyselfasjustcreepingonahead——nomore。This，Icontend，isanimaginativeview(andwecanformnoother)notutterlyabsurdforaseamantoadopt。

Somuchfortheimaginativeviewofthesadoccurrencewhichcausedmetospeakofthefender，andbechidedforitinunmeasuredterms。NotbyCaptainLittlehales，however，andIwishtoreplytowhathesayswithallpossibledeference。Hisillustrationborrowedfromboxingisveryapt，andinacertainsensemakesformycontention。Yes。Ablowdeliveredwithaboxing-glovewilldrawbloodorknockamanout；butitwouldnotcrushinhisnoseflatorbreakhisjawforhim——atleast，notalways。Andthisisexactlymypoint。

TwiceinmysealifeIhavehadoccasiontobeimpressedbythepreservingeffectofafender。OnceIwasmyselfthemanwhodroppeditover。NotbecauseIwassoverycleverorsmart，butsimplybecauseIhappenedtobeathand。AndIagreewithCaptainLittlehalesthattoseeasteamer\'ssterncomingatyouattherateofonlytwoknotsisastaggeringexperience。Thethingseemstohavepowerenoughbehindittocuthalfthroughtheterrestrialglobe。

AndperhapsCaptainLittlehalesisright?ItmaybethatIammistakeninmyappreciationofcircumstancesandpossibilitiesinthiscase——orinanysuchcase。Perhapswhatwasreallywantedtherewasanextraordinarymanandanextraordinaryfender。Icarenothingifpossiblymydeepfeelinghasbetrayedmeintosomethingwhichsomepeoplecallabsurdity。

Absurdwasthewordappliedtotheproposalforcarrying“enoughboatsforall“onboardthebigliners。Andmyabsurditycanaffectnolives，breaknobones——needmakenooneangry。WhyshouldIcare，then，aslongasoutofthediscussionofmyabsurditytherewillemergetheacceptanceofthesuggestionofCaptainF。Papillon，R。N。，fortheuniversalandcompulsoryfittingofveryheavycollisionfendersonthestemsofallmechanicallypropelledships?

Anextraordinarymanwecannotalwaysgetfromheavenonorder，butanextraordinaryfenderthatwilldoitsworkiswellwithinthepowerofacommitteeofoldboatswainstoplanout，make，andplaceinposition。Ibegtoask，notinaprovocativespirit，butsimplyastoamatteroffactwhichheisbetterqualifiedtojudgethanI

am——WillCaptainLittlehalesaffirmthatiftheStorstadhadcarried，slungsecurelyacrossthestem，evennothingthickerthanasinglebaleofwool(anordinary，hand-pressed，Australianwool-

bale)，itwouldhavemadenodifference?

Ifscientificmencaninventanaircushion，agascushion，orevenanelectricitycushion(withwiresorwithout)，tofitneatlyroundthestemsandbowsofships，thenletthemgotowork，inGod\'snameandproduceanother“marvelofscience“withoutlossoftime。

Forsomethinglikethishaslongbeendue——toolongforthecreditofthatpartofmankindwhichisnotabsurd，andinwhichI

include，amongothers，suchpeopleasmarineunderwriters，forinstance。

Meanwhile，turningtomaterialsIamfamiliarwith，Iwouldputmytrustincanvas，lotsofbigrope，andinlarge，verylargequantitiesofoldjunk。

Itsoundsawfullyprimitive，butifitwillmitigatethemischiefinonlyfiftypercent。ofcases，isitnotwellworthtrying?

Mostcollisionsoccuratslowspeeds，anditoughttoberememberedthatincaseofabigliner\'sloss，involvingmanylives，sheisgenerallysunkbyashipmuchsmallerthanherself。

JOSEPHCONRAD。

AFRIENDLYPLACE

EighteenyearshavepassedsinceIlastsetfootintheLondonSailors\'Home。Iwasnotstayingtherethen；IhadgoneintotrytofindamanIwantedtosee。Hewasoneofthoseableseamenwho，inawatch，areaperfectblessingtoayoungofficer。I

couldperhapsrememberhereandthereamongtheshadowsofmysea-

lifeamoredaringman，oramoreagileman，oramanmoreexpertinsomespecialbranchofhiscalling——suchaswiresplicing，forinstance；butforall-roundcompetence，hewasunequalled。Ascharacterhewassterlingstuff。HisnamewasAnderson。Hehadafine，quietface，kindlyeyes，andavoicewhichmatchedthatsomethingattractiveinthewholeman。Thoughhelookedyetintheprimeoflife，shoulders，chest，limbsuntouchedbydecay，andthoughhishairandmoustachewereonlyiron-grey，hewasonboardshipgenerallycalledOldAndybyhisfellows。Heacceptedthenamewithsomecomplacency。

Imademyenquiryatthehighly-glazedentryoffice。Theclerkondutyopenedanenormousledger，andafterrunninghisfingerdownapage，informedmethatAndersonhadgonetoseaaweekbefore，inashipboundroundtheHorn。Then，smilingatme，headded:“OldAndy。Weknowhimwell，here。Whatanicefellow！“

I，whoknewwhata“goodman，“inasailorsense，hewas，assentedwithoutreserve。Heavenonlyknowswhen，ifever，hecamebackfromthatvoyage，totheSailors\'Homeofwhichhewasafaithfulclient。

Iwentoutgladtoknowhewassafelyatsea，butsorrynottohaveseenhim；though，indeed，ifIhad，wewouldnothaveexchangedmorethanascoreofwords，perhaps。Hewasnotatalkativeman，OldAndy，whoseaffectionateship-nameclungtohimeveninthatSailors\'Home，wherethestaffunderstoodandlikedthesailors(thosemenwithoutahome)anddiditsdutybythemwithanunobtrusivetact，withapatientandhumoroussenseoftheiridiosyncrasies，towhichIhastentotestifynow，whentheveryexistenceofthatinstitutionismenacedaftersomanyyearsofmostusefulwork。

Walkingawayfromitonthatdayeighteenyearsago，Iwasfarfromthinkingitwasforthelasttime。Greatchangeshavecomesince，overlandandsea；andifIweretoseeksomebodywhoknewOldAndyitwouldbe(ofallpeopleintheworld)Mr。JohnGalsworthy。ForMr。JohnGalsworthy，Andy，andmyselfhavebeenshipmatestogetherinourdifferentstations，forsomefortydaysintheIndianOceanintheearlynineties。And，butforustwo，OldAndy\'sverymemorywouldbegonefromthischangingearth。

Yes，thingshavechanged——theverysky，theatmosphere，thelightofjudgmentwhichfallsonthelaboursofmen，eithersplendidorobscure。HavingbeenaskedtosayawordtothepubliconbehalfoftheSailors\'Home，Ifeltimmenselyflattered——andtroubled。

Flatteredtohavebeenthoughtofinthatconnection；troubledtofindmyselfintouchagainwiththatpastsodeeplyrootedinmyheart。AndtheillusionofnearnessissogreatwhileItracetheselinesthatIfeelasifIwerespeakinginthenameofthatworthySailor-ShadeofOldAndy，whosefaithfullyhardlifeseemstomyvisionathingofyesterday。

Butthoughthepastkeepsfirmholdonone，yetonefeelswiththesamewarmththatthemenandtheinstitutionsofto-dayhavetheirmeritandtheirclaims。OtherswillknowhowtosetforthbeforethepublicthemeritoftheSailors\'Homeintheeloquenttermsofhardfactsandsomefewfigures。Formyself，Icanonlybringapersonalnote，giveaglimpseofthehumansideofthegoodworkforsailorsashore，carriedonthroughsomanydecadeswithaperfectunderstandingoftheendinview。IhavebeenintouchwiththeSailors\'Homeforsixteenyearsofmylife，offandon；I

haveseenthechangesinthestaffandIhaveobservedthesubtlealterationsinthephysiognomyofthatstreamofsailorspassingthroughit，infromtheseaandoutagaintosea，betweentheyears1878and1894。Ihavelistenedtothetalkonthedecksofshipsinalllatitudes，whenitsnamewouldturnupfrequently，andifI

hadtocharacteriseitsgoodworkinonesentence，Iwouldsaythat，forseamen，theWellStreetHomewasafriendlyplace。

Itwasessentiallyjustthat；quietly，unobtrusively，witharegardfortheindependenceofthemenwhosoughtitsshelterashore，andwithnoulterioraimsbehindthateffectivefriendliness。Nosmallmeritthis。Anditsclaimonthegenerosityofthepublicisderivedfromalongrecordofvaluablepublicservice。Sinceweareallagreedthatthemenofthemerchantserviceareanationalassetworthyofcareandsympathy，thepubliccouldexpressthissympathynobetterthanbyenablingtheSailors\'Home，sousefulinthepast，tocontinueitsfriendlyofficestotheseamenoffuturegenerations。

Footnotes:

{1}YvetteandOtherStories。TranslatedbyAdaGalsworthy。

{2}TURGENEV:AStudy。ByEdwardGarnett。

{3}STUDIESINBROWNHUMANITY。ByHughClifford。

{4}QUIETDAYSINSPAIN。ByC。BogueLuffmann。

{5}ExistenceafterDeathImpliedbyScience。ByJasperB。Hunt，M。A。

{6}THEASCENDINGEFFORT。ByGeorgeBourne。

{7}Sincewritingtheabove，IamtoldthatsuchdoorsarefittedinthebunkersofmorethanoneshipintheAtlantictrade。

{8}ThelossoftheEmpressofIreland。

End