Loss of the Steamship “Titanic”: Report of a Formal Investigation into the Circumstances Attending the Foundering on April 15, 1912, of the British Steamship “Titanic,” of Liverpool, after Striking Ice in or Near Latitude 41° 46´ N., Longitude 50° 14´ W., North Atlantic Ocean, as Conducted by the British Government; 62D CONGRESS SENATE DOCUMENT; 2d Session; NO. 933
Presented by Mr. Smith of Michigan August 20, 1912, WASHINGTON; 1912
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
Introduction.
1.--Description of the Ship.
The White Star Line.
The Steamship “Titanic.”
Detailed Description.
Water-Tight Compartments.
Decks and Accommodation.
Structure.
Life-Saving Appliances.
Pumping Arrangements.
Electrical Installation.
Machinery.
General.
Crew and Passengers.
2. Account of the Ship’s Journey across the Atlantic, the Messages She Received, and the Disaster.
The Sailing Order.
The Route Followed.
Ice Messages Received.
Speed of the Ship.
The Weather Conditions.
Action That Should Have Been Taken.
The Collision.
3.--Description of the Damage to the Ship and of Its Gradual and Final Effect, with Observations Thereon.
Extent of the Damage.
Time in Which the Damage Was Done.
The Flooding in First Ten Minutes.
Gradual Effect of the Damage.
Final Effect of the Damage.
Observations.
Effect of Suggested Additional Subdivision upon Floatation.
4.--Account of the Saving and Rescue of Those Who Survived.
The Boats.
Conduct of Sir C. Duff Gordon and Mr. Ismay.
The Third-Class Passengers.
Means Taken to Procure Assistance.
The Rescue by the Steamship “Carpathia.”
Numbers Saved.
5.--The Circumstances in Connection with the Steamship “Californian.”
6.--The Board of Trade’s Administration.
Report of the Life-Saving Appliances Subcommittee to the Merchant Shipping Advisory Committee.
Extension of Life-Saving Apparatus Tables.
Draft Amendment of General Rules.
Ship’s Boats.
Construction of Ship’s Boats.
Powers of the Board of Trade as Regards the Supervision of Designs of Vessels.
7. Finding of the Court.
8. Recommendations.
Water-Tight Subdivision.
Lifeboats and Rafts.
Manning the Boats and Boat Drills.
General.
Introduction.
On April 23, 1912, the Lord Chancellor appointed a wreck commissioner under the merchant shipping acts, and on April 26 the home secretary nominated five assessors. On April 30 the board of trade requested that a formal investigation of the circumstances attending the loss of the steamship Titanic should be held, and the court accordingly commenced to sit on May 2. Since that date there have been 37 public sittings, at which 97 witnesses have been examined, while a large number of documents, charts, and plans have been produced. The 26 questions formulated by the board of trade, which are set out in detail below, appear to cover all the circumstances to be inquired into. Briefly summarized, they deal with the history of the ship, her design, construction, size, speed, general equipment, life-saving apparatus, wireless installation, her orders and course, her passengers, her crew, their training, organization and discipline; they request an account of the casualty, its cause and effect, and of the means taken for saving those on board the ship; and they call for a report on the efficiency of the rules and regulations made by the board of trade under the merchant shipping acts and on their administration, and, finally, for any recommendations to obviate similar disasters which may appear to the court to be desirable. The 26 questions, as subsequently amended, are here attached:
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