MR. PITMAN: I really could not say unless I had the position of the iceberg here now and put it on the chart.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Was there only one iceberg indicated; or did the cross with the word "Ice" indicate the presence of ice generally?
MR. PITMAN: I think there was only one.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Do you know how he came to note that one on the chart?
MR. PITMAN: Yes; we got it by marconigram from some ship.
SENATOR FLETCHER: You do not remember seeing the marconigram?
MR. PITMAN: No; I do not. I remember Capt. Smith showed the position to the officer of the watch, or at least one of the junior officers, and he says, "Take this position," and he took it down and put it on the chart and stuck the leaf up in a rack. He wrote it on a sort of paper and stuck it on the frame.
SENATOR FLETCHER: You do not recall exactly when that was done?
MR. PITMAN: No. It was some time Sunday.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Did you hear any more about icebergs discussed among the officers, or in any other way?
MR. PITMAN: No.
SENATOR FLETCHER: What officer had charge of the log of the ship?
MR. PITMAN: Well, the fifth and sixth usually keep that. Which log do you mean? We keep two or three. The scrap log is kept on the bridge; the fifth and sixth look after that. The chief officer's log is copied from that. Which do you mean?
SENATOR FLETCHER: All of them.
MR. PITMAN: The fifth and sixth keep the scrap log, as everything happens on the bridge, alterations of courses, deviations, and that sort of thing, and it is copied from there into the chief officer's log, which is really the official log.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Do you know if any of the logs were saved?
MR. PITMAN: None, sir. We had something else to think of besides log books, sir.
SENATOR FLETCHER: You say the ship was going about 22 knots?
MR. PITMAN: About 21 1/2.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Twenty­one and one­half knots per hour. And you say you had to study the question of coal? What do you mean by that? Did you take account of the amount of coal you had?
MR. PITMAN: Yes; I understood we had not quite sufficient; there was not sufficient there on board to drive here on at full speed.
SENATOR FLETCHER: How do you know that?
MR. PITMAN: I had that from one of the engineers.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Did you ask him whether he had enough coal to drive her at full speed?
MR. PITMAN: I knew we had not; he told me that we had not quite sufficient.
SENATOR FLETCHER: What speed were you intending to make?
MR. PITMAN: We were intending to arrive in New York Wednesday morning.
SENATOR FLETCHER: When did you gather that to be the intention?
MR. PITMAN: From the beginning of the trip.
SENATOR FLETCHER: At the beginning of the trip; and from whom?
MR. PITMAN: That was the general impression throughout the ship.
SENATOR FLETCHER: In order to do that, how many knots per hour would you have had to make?
MR. PITMAN: About twenty and a quarter ­ 21 knots.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Had you increased the speed after leaving Southampton?
MR. PITMAN: After we left Queenstown we had.
SENATOR FLETCHER: How much had you increased your speed Sunday night?
MR. PITMAN: To 21 1/2 knots.
SENATOR FLETCHER: What increase was that over the speed you had been making prior to that?
MR. PITMAN: Only about a knot.
SENATOR FLETCHER: You had been making about 20 1/2?
MR. PITMAN: Yes, 20 1/4 and 20 1/2 first, after we left Queenstown.
SENATOR FLETCHER: How long did that continue?
MR. PITMAN: The next day, 21.
SENATOR FLETCHER: And you kept increasing up to 21 1/2, so that at the time the iceberg was struck you were traveling at the highest rate of speed at which you had been going during the trip?
MR. PITMAN: Oh, no; the same speed we had been traveling for the last 24 hours.
SENATOR FLETCHER: The same speed?
MR. PITMAN: The same speed.
SENATOR FLETCHER: You were told, you say, by the engineer, that you did not have coal enough to go at a faster rate of speed that that?
MR. PITMAN: He remarked we had not sufficient coal on board to drive her full speed all the way across.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Did you change the course of the ship after leaving Queenstown?
MR. PITMAN: Change the course of the ship?
SENATOR FLETCHER: Yes.
MR. PITMAN: A number of times.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Where was the last change of direction made?
MR. PITMAN: 5:50 on Sunday night.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Sunday night?
MR. PITMAN: Yes.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Where was that change made?
MR. PITMAN: I can not remember the position.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Before that, were you traveling along the southerly track?
MR. PITMAN: Yes.
SENATOR FLETCHER: And then you changed to this northerly course?
MR. PITMAN: No. We stuck to the track we were supposed to follow from the 14th of January to the 14th of August, just as agreed upon by the big steamship companies.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Is that what is known as the northern track?
MR. PITMAN: That is known as the southern track.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Which is known as the southern track?
MR. PITMAN: The one we were coming out on.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Known as the southern track?
MR. PITMAN: Yes. We speak of the northern track as the track we follow between the 14th of August and the 14th of January. We speak of that as the northern track.
SENATOR FLETCHER: There is no course to the south of the one you were traveling, that is used for travel?
MR. PITMAN: Yes, I believe there is.
SENATOR FLETCHER: What course were you on, if you can remember, at 5:50 p.m., Sunday?
MR. PITMAN: No, I can not remember. If I had the true course, I could make it.
SENATOR FLETCHER: What extent of change did you make in the course at 5:50 p.m., or about that time, Sunday?
MR. PITMAN: I am not quite certain about that.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Do you know any such designation as the "corner"?
MR. PITMAN: Yes, we were supposed to be at the corner at 5:50.
SENATOR FLETCHER: What do you mean by that?
MR. PITMAN: That is 47-degrees west and 42-degrees north.
SENATOR FLETCHER: At 5:50 p.m. you turned what you call the "corner"?
MR. PITMAN: The corner, yes.
SENATOR FLETCHER: And you make almost a right angle change there, do you not?
MR. PITMAN: Oh, no.
SENATOR FLETCHER: You make a considerable change in your course at the turning of the corner?
MR. PITMAN: No, it is not a great deal; not a right­angle turn by any means.
SENATOR FLETCHER: What change does that lead you to, the northward of the way you were going?
MR. PITMAN: No; the course we were on when we struck­­
SENATOR FLETCHER: How many degrees did you change?
MR. PITMAN: I can not remember. If I had a chart here I could tell you in a minute. South 84 or 86 west would be the true course we were making after 5:50; south 84 or 86, I am not quite certain which, was the true course.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Do you remember the course prior to that?
MR. PITMAN: No; I can not remember it.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Do you remember whether you increased speed after turning that corner?
MR. PITMAN: No; we did not, sir.
SENATOR FLETCHER: As I understand, you say that Mr. Ismay told you that you had better get aboard with the women and children?
MR. PITMAN: No, no. He remarked to me, "You had better go ahead and get the women and children," and I replied that I would await the commander's orders. I did not know it was Mr. Ismay at the time.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Did you tell him what Mr. Ismay said?
MR. PITMAN: I said I judged that it was Mr. Ismay.
SENATOR FLETCHER: And you told him what Mr. Ismay said?
MR. PITMAN: Yes.
SENATOR FLETCHER: What did the commander say?
MR. PITMAN: "Carry on."
SENATOR FLETCHER: That meant you were to obey the direction of Mr. Ismay?
MR. PITMAN: No; not by any means.
SENATOR FLETCHER: What did it mean?
MR. PITMAN: It meant that I was to fill the boat with women.
SENATOR FLETCHER: And lower the boat? Did it include that?
MR. PITMAN: Oh, yes. We take no orders from anybody except the commander.
SENATOR FLETCHER: He said, "Carry on," and that meant for you to go on and load the boat and lower it and get the people off, the women and children?
MR. PITMAN: Yes.
SENATOR FLETCHER: How do you account for the fact that at that time there were no women and children around to be seen, even, let alone asking to get on board the boat?
MR. PITMAN: I can not account for that, sir.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Did you see any trying to get into No. 7?
MR. PITMAN: No, I did not, sir.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Did you see any trying to get into any other boats on the starboard side?
MR. PITMAN: No. Those were the only two boats coming down at that time ­ No. 5 and No. 7.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Had the others gone down?
MR. PITMAN: No; No. 7 was the first to go.
SENATOR FLETCHER: And you went with No. 5, next.
MR. PITMAN: Yes.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Did you see any of the others after No. 7 was lowered?
MR. PITMAN: From a distance.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Did you know whether they were loaded or not? Could you tell whether they were full?
MR. PITMAN: I could not, sir. I helped to discharge them when they got to the Carpathia, but I did not take any notice of how many there were.
SENATOR FLETCHER: How long did it take to lower the boat after you got the people into it?
MR. PITMAN: It may have been a minute and it may have been two minutes.
SENATOR FLETCHER: How many men does it take to lower that boat?
MR. PITMAN: Two men.
SENATOR FLETCHER: What is the distance the boat has to go to get to the water.
MR. PITMAN: Well, we had to go 70 feet.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Do I correctly you understand you to say that you would not consider it safe to load a boat to its full capacity at the rail before lowering it?
MR. PITMAN: No; I do not think it would be wise to do it.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Well, under the conditions obtaining there, where there were not enough boats to take care of more than one­third of the passengers, would not risk loading the boat to its full capacity before lowering it?
MR. PITMAN: No; I do not think it would be wise to do so.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Suppose the boat carries 65 people; how many would you feel it safe to put into the boat before lowering it?
MR. PITMAN: That would depend a lot the conditions of the boat, whether it was an old boat or a new boat.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Well, I am taking conditions as they were there that night and those people.
MR. PITMAN: I think 40 would be a very safe load. I do not think boats are ever intended to be filled from the rail.
SENATOR FLETCHER: How did you calculate to fill the boat?
MR. PITMAN: It was according to the number of people to go in.
SENATOR FLETCHER: How did you expect to fill them?
MR. PITMAN: With a side ladder.
SENATOR FLETCHER: That is, let them down in the water and fill them with a side ladder?
MR. PITMAN: Yes, sir.
SENATOR FLETCHER: From deck E?
MR. PITMAN: No; it would not be E. It would be about D or C; C deck, I should say.
SENATOR FLETCHER: It is intended and expected, then, to fill the boats by first lowering the boat and then letting the people down on side ladders?
MR. PITMAN: Yes, sir.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Or through doors?
MR. PITMAN: Yes.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Why was not that course pursued in this instance?
MR. PITMAN: Well, it was a new ship, and everything new, of course. It takes a certain amount of risk. That was a much quicker way, too.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Which is the much quicker way?
MR. PITMAN: The way we did it.
SENATOR FLETCHER: You say that you did not see any of the boats lowered on the port side?
MR. PITMAN: Not one, no.
SENATOR FLETCHER: What course did you take after your boat was lowered into the water? Did you go to the stern of the Titanic, to the bow, or off from her?
MR. PITMAN: Just rowed off from her, that way [indicating].
SENATOR FLETCHER: Which way?
MR. PITMAN: To the north.
SENATOR FLETCHER: To the north now far?
MR. PITMAN: It may have been three or four hundred yards.
SENATOR FLETCHER: And there you lay on your oars?
MR. PITMAN: Yes, waiting for future developments.
SENATOR FLETCHER: And No. 7­­
MR. PITMAN: Did likewise.
SENATOR FLETCHER: And remained closed by you until some time in the morning, when she cast off your rope and took care of herself?
MR. PITMAN: Yes.
SENATOR FLETCHER: About what time in the morning was that?
MR. PITMAN: It may have been about a quarter to 3 or 3 o'clock.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Just before you saw the Carpathia?
MR. PITMAN: Oh, an hour before we saw her, approximately.
SENATOR FLETCHER: You saw the Carpathia about 3:30 o'clock, you said?
MR. PITMAN: Somewhere about then.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Did you think it proper to take into your boat two firemen and two stewards; were they of any use as seamen?
MR. PITMAN: Yes; they were.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Why did you take those two firemen and two stewards when you only needed four men to row the boat, and you could supply the place of one of those yourself?
MR. PITMAN: Well, I wanted somebody in the boat that knew something about it.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Did they understand that sort of work?
MR. PITMAN: Three of them did, and probably the fourth one did; but I never tried him.
SENATOR FLETCHER: And you had one sailor?
MR. PITMAN: Yes.
SENATOR FLETCHER: You had one sailor, two firemen, and two stewards?
MR. PITMAN: Yes.
SENATOR FLETCHER: And five or six male passengers besides those?
MR. PITMAN: Well, those three male passengers.
SENATOR FLETCHER: After the bow of the Titanic went down, you heard these explosions?
MR. PITMAN: No; I did not hear them until the ship had disappeared altogether.
SENATOR FLETCHER: After the bow of the Titanic went down, she assumed an almost upright position?
MR. PITMAN: Yes, sir.
SENATOR FLETCHER: How long after getting into that position was it before she disappeared entirely?
MR. PITMAN: I think it must have been a question of seconds.
SENATOR FLETCHER: And then came the explosions?
MR. PITMAN: Then came the explosions.
SENATOR FLETCHER: And after the bow was submerged the bridge was submerged. How long was it before she went down completely?
MR. PITMAN: I could not say.
SENATOR FLETCHER: How long was it after your boat was in the water before she went down, as near as you can fix it?
MR. PITMAN: How long before?
SENATOR FLETCHER: How long was it after you boat was lowered into the water before the 2:20 hour arrived and the Titanic went down?
MR. PITMAN: I should say an hour and a half.
SENATOR FLETCHER: You said to your men, "Get your oars and pull toward the wreck?"
MR. PITMAN: Yes, sir.
SENATOR FLETCHER: Were not their oars already out?
MR. PITMAN: There may have been one out, but the others had pulled them in and laid them across the boat. Of course it was that dark I really could not say.
