FIFTEENTH DAY. TUESDAY, MAY 9, 1912. Subcommittee of the Committee on Commerce, United States Senate, Washington, D.C. [Testimony taken separately before Senator William Alden Smith, chairman of the subcommittee, sitting separately.] TESTIMONY OF MR. MAURICE L. FARRELL. The witness was sworn by Senator Smith. SENATOR SMITH: Give your full name to the reporter. MR. FARRELL: Maurice L. Farrell. SENATOR SMITH: Where do you reside? MR. FARRELL: In New York City. SENATOR SMITH: What is your business? MR. FARRELL: I am managing editor of Dow, Jones & Co. SENATOR SMITH: How old are you? MR. FARRELL: Thirty­five. SENATOR SMITH: How long have you been connected with Dow, Jones & Co.? MR. FARRELL: Since March 1, 1912. SENATOR SMITH: In your capacity as managing editor, what are your duties? MR. FARRELL: I have general supervision of the operations of the news agency and the Wall Street Journal, which we publish. SENATOR SMITH: Your duties throw you in personal contact with your reporters? MR. FARRELL: In direct, personal contact. SENATOR SMITH: And they work under your direction and authority? MR. FARRELL: Exactly. Senator, if I may be permitted to offer a suggestion. I have prepared a brief statement, which, with your permission, I would like to read into the record, and which I think will save time and establish the facts. SENATOR SMITH: I will give you an opportunity to do so, but I want to direct your attention specifically to two things. In your bulleting or ticker original ­ is that the proper expression? MR. FARRELL: Yes. SENATOR SMITH: At 9:33 a.m. Monday morning, April 15, you say: Mr. Franklin said he had received a brief wireless dispatch from the Olympic, saying she had talked by wireless with the Titanic at 4:24 o'clock this morning. The message gave no further information, Mr. Franklin said. The message shows conclusively that the Titanic was still afloat six hours after the reported accident. Then you give the names of the officers of the Titanic. I desire to ask from whom you obtained that information? MR. FARRELL: I do not find that we published such a statement as that, Senator; at least, not at that time: I have here a full record of the tape from the beginning of business to the end of the day, and that does not appear. SENATOR SMITH: That is what is called Local "A"­2, for identification. Does that help you any? MR. FARRELL: No; it does not. SENATOR SMITH: I will proceed a little further. From your bulletin Local "A"­3, headed "Bulletin," I read as follows: NEW YORK, April 15. (Add Titanic)A dispatch received here from Halifax, N.S., this morning reports that all the passengers of the Titanic had left the steamship after 3:30 o'clock this morning. (Bulletin will stand.) CSB. DR. 9:33 a.m. Following that on your original memoranda appears the following: Titanic dispatch from Halifax reports that all passengers had left the Titanic in boats short after 3:30 this morning. Have you that? MR. FARRELL: We published that dispatch on our ticker at 8:58 on the morning of April 15. We received it from Boston News Bureau, our Boston correspondent. SENATOR SMITH: Did you make any attempt to verify that statement at the White Star Line offices or through Mr. Franklin personally? MR. FARRELL: We did. SENATOR SMITH: With what results? MR. FARRELL: Prior to that we had received from the White Star offices a statement somewhat similar. SENATOR SMITH: Have you got it there? MR. FARRELL: I have; and with your permission I will read it. SENATOR SMITH: Please do so. MR. FARRELL: This was published at our tickers at 8:35, or thereabouts. It was obtained by Mr. Gingold, one of our reporters, who is now in London. He went to London on a vacation very shortly after that. I will read the statement as it appeared on our tickers, head "Titanic." It reads: Officers of White Star Line stated at 8 o'clock this morning that passengers on the Titanic were being taken off in boats and that there was no danger of loss of life. The Baltic and the Virginian, they stated, were standing by to assist in the rescue work. SENATOR SMITH: Is that the end of that? MR. FARRELL: Then there are two more items running along on the same story: On Titanic there were 300 first class, 320 second class, 800 third class passengers, and a crew of 900 men. It is not yet known whether the vessel will be saved. White Star people are in something of a quandary if she should be saved, as it is said there is no dry dock on this side of the Atlantic to take care of her. SENATOR SMITH: From whom was that information received? MR. FARRELL: That was received at the White Star offices from some of the junior officials. Mr. Franklin had not yet arrived at the office. SENATOR SMITH: Can you give me the name of your informant? MR. FARRELL: No, sir; I can not. Let me explain the relation of this. This was early in the morning. The early newspaper accounts had been published. There was a great crowd, and there was great excitement at the White Star offices. Dozens of newspaper men and also the relatives of passengers on the Titanic were all clamoring for information. In response to questions, this was the information given out by some of the representatives of the White Star Line. This particular information was not given by Mr. Franklin. SENATOR SMITH: Did you make any attempt to verify it? MR. FARRELL: Yes; we made every attempt we could. SENATOR SMITH: What did you do? MR. FARRELL: Then, subsequent to that, came the dispatch from Boston which you have just mentioned: A dispatch from Halifax reports that all passengers had left the Titanic in boats shortly after 3:30 this morning. SENATOR SMITH: Did you regard that as confirmatory? MR. FARRELL: We did. SENATOR SMITH: Did you talk with Mr. Franklin later in the day about the information you had gotten from his office at the time just referred to? MR. FARRELL: We had reporters at the White Star offices all day long seeking information from Mr. Franklin and other officials, and the bulk of the news we published came from the White Star offices. SENATOR SMITH: Did it come from Mr. Franklin? MR. FARRELL: Most of it from Mr. Franklin; some of it from some of his subordinates. SENATOR SMITH: I call your attention to a bulletin which we will designate as No. 3, 9:43 a.m., April 15 [reading]: Montreal, April 15. The Montreal Star to­day says that an unofficial dispatch from Halifax stated that word had been received there that the Titanic was still afloat and was making her way slowly toward Halifax. (Bulletin will stand.) ­­cp­­aa­ck­­9:43 a.m. Do you know anything about that? MR. FARRELL: No, sir; I do not find such a dispatch in our record here on our ticker tape. If the stenographer will note it, I will subsequently go over the bulletins. SENATOR SMITH: I am quoting from the bulletins. MR. FARRELL: From the bulletins? SENATOR SMITH: Yes. That was from a bulletin. Have you them numbered? MR. FARRELL: Yes. SENATOR SMITH: What is that one you are looking at? MR. FARRELL: This is No. 20. Is your memorandum numbered? SENATOR SMITH: My memorandum starts with No. 1. What I have just read was from No. 3. MR. FARRELL: We printed nothing about the Titanic on bulletin No. 1. We printed nothing on bulletin No. 3­­ SENATOR SMITH: Perhaps you will find under this Montreal date this dispatch which I have just read. MR. FARRELL: No, sir; I do not find that. SENATOR SMITH: Do you find at 9:53 a.m. an optimistic statement by Mr. Franklin in which he said, as will be seen on page 2, which I have already quoted: The Olympic has just been reported as having been in direct communication by wireless with the Titanic. MR. FARRELL: No; I do not find that either, Senator. Are you sure you have not got our bulletins confused with some one else's? SENATOR SMITH: No; I wanted to know about these two things. I have here your original memorandum, from which I will now read; Titanic.Dispatch from Montreal received by White Star officials says Titanic was afloat at 8:30 and that women and children had not yet been taken off, though lifeboats were ready in case of emergency. The steamship is heading in direction of Halifax, from which the Virginian is approaching. It is thought that bulkheads will prevent ship from sinking. Titanic is moving under her own engines. This is dated 11:03 a.m., Monday, April 15. MR. FARRELL: I think I recall such a dispatch as that. SENATOR SMITH: This is your original note, I think. MR. FARRELL: That is ours, yes; that is our tape. SENATOR SMITH: I would like to ask where you got that information? MR. FARRELL: I will tell you in just a moment. [After examining papers.] That previous one which you read as follows: White Star officials report Olympic was in communication with Titanic at 8:24 this morning, and Titanic was still afloat. I find that on the record here. I received that from the Boston News Service. SENATOR SMITH: Referring to the Montreal dispatch I just read, where did you get that information? MR. FARRELL: [reading]: Dispatch from Montreal received by White Star officials says Titanic was afloat at 8:30 and that women and children had not yet been taken off, though lifeboats were ready in case of emergency. The steamship is heading in direction of Halifax from which the Virginian is approaching. It is thought that bulkheads will prevent ship from sinking. Titanic is moving under her own engines. We received that from Mr. Franklin. Mr. Byrne, one of our reporters, got that from Mr. Franklin. SENATOR SMITH: At the time indicated? MR. FARRELL: Approximately; yes. Of course all these were rush stuff. It was telephoned into the office and slapped on the ticker as quickly as possible. We published it about 10:45. SENATOR SMITH: Monday morning? MR. FARRELL: Yes. SENATOR SMITH: April 15? MR. FARRELL: Yes. SENATOR SMITH: I now call your attention to a bulletin of Monday, April 15. I am now reading from your original. It reads as follows: 10:49 a.m.­Titanic.­Montreal.­Wireless message received 10 o'clock this morning said that two vessels were standing by Titanic and that the big vessel's passengers had been taken off. MR. FARRELL: That was published on our ticker tape; time, 10:49. We received it from the Laffan News Bureau, New York. SENATOR SMITH: Have you in your bulletin of April 15, at 12:07 p.m. the following: MONTREAL, April 15. The local office of Horton Davidson, one of the Titanic's passengers, has received the following wireless message: "All passengers are safe and Titanic taken in two by the Virginian. MR. FARRELL: What time was that, Senator Smith? SENATOR SMITH: 12:07 p.m. MR. FARRELL: No, sir; we have no dispatch on our ticker tape of that character at that time. At 12:12 we published this: Wireless says Titanic is under way and proceeding to New York. SENATOR SMITH: From whom did you receive that message? MR. FARRELL: From the Laffan News Bureau, New York. SENATOR SMITH: Have you a complete transcript or copy of news published by your company regarding the Titanic disaster, which you now hold in your hand? MR. FARRELL: Not complete. I have the ticker tape in my hand. SENATOR SMITH: And you have the bulletins? MR. FARRELL: The bulletins we published contained some nonessential statements which did not appear on the ticker, but all of the important items appeared on the ticker. SENATOR SMITH: I would like to have you read into the record that statement, and indicate, with each item of news quoted, the sources of your information. MR. FARRELL: The first item we published was at approximately 8:10 a.m., April 15 as follows: At 10:25 Sunday night new White Star liner Titanic called "C.Q.D." and reported having struck an iceberg. Wireless received stated steamship needed immediate assistance as she was sinking at the bow. Another message received half an hour later reported that the women were being put off in lifeboats. Marconi station at Cape Race notified Allan Line steamship Virginian, which immediately headed for the Titanic. At midnight the Virginian was about 170 miles distant from the Titanic and expected to reach that vessel about 10 o'clock this morning. Steamship Baltic is headed toward the disaster, being 200 miles away at midnight. Last word received from sinking Titanic was a wireless heard by the Virginian at 12:27. The operator on board the Virginian said these signals were blurred and ended abruptly. Among those on board are J. J. Astor, J. Bruce Ismay, Benjamin Guggenheim, George B. Widener, and Isidor Strauss. You understand we begin business at 8 o'clock in the morning. This was a brief summary of what appeared in the morning papers, principally taken from the Herald. SENATOR SMITH: Some of that information, however, you obtained direct from the White Star office ­ that to which I have previously called your attention? MR. FARRELL: I believe that one of our men, about 7:30 in the morning, went to the White Star office and got some information there, but as I recall it, he did not get much additional to what had been published in the morning papers. The Herald, the Times, and some of the other papers had rather complete accounts of it up to that time. At 8:25 or thereabouts, in what we call our summary, which consist of the important developments over night, taken from various sources­­ SENATOR SMITH: That was on April 15? MR. FARRELL: Yes; we printed this line: White Star Liner Titanic, on maiden westward voyage, hit by iceberg and reported to be sinking. Passengers being taken off. That was taken from the general news which appeared in the morning papers. At 8:35, or approximately that time, April 15, we published the following: Officers of White Star Line at 8 o'clock this morning that passengers on the Titanic were being taken off in boats and that there was no danger of loss of life. The Baltic and the Virginian they stated were standing by to assist in the rescue work. On Titanic there were 300 first class, 320 second class, 800 third class passengers, and a crew of 900 men. It is not yet known whether the vessel will be saved. White Star people are in something of a quandary if she should be saved, as it is said there is no dry dock on this side of the Atlantic to take care of her. That was obtained by Mr. Gingold, one of our reporters, from the White Star Office. SENATOR SMITH: From Mr. Franklin? MR. FARRELL: No; this was not from Mr. Franklin. SENATOR SMITH: From some other of the subordinates?