MR. ROWE: When I was on the bridge firing the rockets. I saw it myself, and I worked the Morse lamp at the port side of the ship to draw her attention.
SENATOR BURTON: Do you know whether the water­tight doors were closed or not?
MR. ROWE: I could not say.
SENATOR BURTON: Did you hear any signal for the doors to close?
MR. ROWE: No.
SENATOR BURTON: You had a signal on the ship to ring bells before the doors closed, did you not?
MR. ROWE: I could not hear that on the poop.
SENATOR BURTON: You could not hear the three gongs for "dead ahead" on the poop, could you?
MR. ROWE: No.
SENATOR BURTON: Do you know whether any of the men were sent down below to see whether any of the doors were closed or not?
MR. ROWE: I could not say.
SENATOR BURTON: You would not have known of that, really, anyway, would you?
MR. ROWE: No, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: Was there any steam coming up through any of the hatches or ventilators?
MR. ROWE: No, sir. The only steam I saw was coming out of exhaust pipes.
SENATOR BURTON: Did you hear any explosions?
MR. ROWE: I heard one, sir, after we left the ship. It was not an explosion; a sort of a rumbling.
SENATOR BURTON: What do you think it was?
MR. ROWE: I have no idea what it was.
SENATOR BURTON: Do you think it was boilers exploding?
MR. ROWE: It was not an ordinary explosion, you understand; more like distant thunder.
SENATOR BURTON: Was that before or after the ship sank?
MR. ROWE: Before she sank, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: Were there more than one of those explosions?
MR. ROWE: I only heard the one, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: How far from the ship were you when she went down?
MR. ROWE: About three­quarters of a mile, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: Did you see her go down?
MR. ROWE: I saw her stern disappear at the finish, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: It was while she was still floating that you heard the explosions?
MR. ROWE: Heard this rumbling sound, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: You are quite sure of that, are you?
MR. ROWE: Positive, sir.
G. T. Rowe
Subscribed and sworn to before me this 30th day of April, A.D. 1912
[SEAL.] E. L. Cornelius, Notary.
TESTIMONY OF MR. ALFRED OLLIVER
[Testimony taken separately before Senator Burton on behalf of the subcommittee]
SENATOR BURTON: What is your name?
MR. OLLIVER: Alfred Olliver.
SENATOR BURTON: How old are you?
MR. OLLIVER: Twenty­eight next 6th of June.
SENATOR BURTON: How long have you been a sailor?
MR. OLLIVER: I have been a sailor ever since I was 16.
SENATOR BURTON: Navy or merchant marine?
MR. OLLIVER: Both.
SENATOR BURTON: How long in the Navy?
MR. OLLIVER: Seven years.
SENATOR BURTON: You were first on duty in the Navy?
MR. OLLIVER: I was in the Navy first, and then I came into the merchant marine afterwards.
SENATOR BURTON: What was your position on the boat?
MR. OLLIVER: Quartermaster.
SENATOR BURTON: Where were you when the collision occurred?
MR. OLLIVER: I was stand­by quartermaster on the bridge. I had been relieved from the wheel at 10 o'clock, and I was stand­by after 10 o'clock. I was running messages and doing various other duties. I was not right on the bridge; I was just entering the bridge. I had just performed an errand and was entering the bridge when the collision occurred.
SENATOR BURTON: Just state what happened?
MR. OLLIVER: When I was doing this bit of duty I heard three bells rung up in the crow's nest, which I knew that it was something ahead; so I looked, but I did not see anything. I happened to be looking at the lights in the standing compass at the time. That was my duty to look at the lights in the standing compass, and I was trimming them so that they would burn properly. When I heard the report, I looked but could not see anything, and I left that and came and was just entering on the bridge just as the shock came. I knew we had touched something.
SENATOR BURTON: Just describe what that shock was.
MR. OLLIVER: I found out we had struck an iceberg.
SENATOR BURTON: Did you see that iceberg?
MR. OLLIVER: Yes; I did, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: Describe it.
MR. OLLIVER: The iceberg was about the height of the boat deck; if anything, just a little higher. It was almost alongside of the boat, sir. The top did not touch the side of the boat, but it was almost alongside of the boat.
SENATOR BURTON: What kind of a sound was there?
MR. OLLIVER: The sound was like she touched something; a long, grinding sound, like.
SENATOR BURTON: How long did that sound last?
MR. OLLIVER: It did not last many seconds.
SENATOR BURTON: How far aft did the grinding sound go?
MR. OLLIVER: The grinding sound was before I saw the iceberg. The grinding sound was not when I saw the iceberg.
SENATOR BURTON: Where was the iceberg when you saw it, abeam or abaft?
MR. OLLIVER: Just abaft the bridge when I saw it.
SENATOR BURTON: What was the length of it along beside the boat?
MR. OLLIVER: That I could not say, the length of the iceberg, because I only saw the top. It was impossible to see the length of the iceberg from where I was standing.
SENATOR BURTON: What was the shape at the top?
MR. OLLIVER: The shape was pointed.
SENATOR BURTON: You could not tell how wide it was?
MR. OLLIVER: I only saw the tip top of the iceberg.
SENATOR BURTON: Did you notice the course of the berg as it passed you?
MR. OLLIVER: No, sir; I did not notice the course of the berg as it passed us. It went aft the after part of the ship. I did not see it afterwards, because I did not have time to know where it was going.
SENATOR BURTON: Do you know whether the wheel was hard aport then?
MR. OLLIVER: What I know about the wheel ­ I was stand­by to run messages, but what I knew about the helm is, hard aport.
SENATOR BURTON: Do you mean hard aport or hard astarboard?
MR. OLLIVER: I know the orders I heard when I was on the bridge was after we had struck the iceberg. I heard hard aport, and there was the man at the wheel and the officer. The officer was seeing it was carried out right.
SENATOR BURTON: What officer was it?
MR. OLLIVER: Mr. Moody, the sixth officer, was stationed in the wheelhouse.
SENATOR BURTON: Who was the man at the wheel?
MR. OLLIVER: Hichens, quartermaster.
SENATOR BURTON: You do not know whether the helm was put hard astarboard first, or not?
MR. OLLIVER: No, sir; I do not know that.
SENATOR BURTON: But you know it was put hard aport after you got there?
MR. OLLIVER: After I got there; yes, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: Where was the iceberg, do you think, when the helm was shifted?
MR. OLLIVER: The iceberg was away up stern.
SENATOR BURTON: That is when the order "hard aport" was given?
MR. OLLIVER: That is when the order "hard aport" was given; yes, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: Who gave the order?
MR. OLLIVER: The first officer.
SENATOR BURTON: And that order was immediately executed, was it?
MR. OLLIVER: Immediately executed, and the sixth officer saw that it was carried out.
SENATOR BURTON: How long did this sound continue; can you tell that?
MR. OLLIVER: I can not say exactly, but I should say it was not many seconds.
SENATOR BURTON: Could you tell how far aft the sound continued?
MR. OLLIVER: I could not say how far aft, sir, because I do not know where it started and where it finished. I do not know.
SENATOR BURTON: You could not tell about that?
MR. OLLIVER: No, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: Was it 100 feet? Did it rub against the boat behind where you were?
MR. OLLIVER: Not behind where I was. It did not, to my knowledge, rub behind where I was; it was before.
SENATOR BURTON: You can not tell, then, for how many feet it rubbed against the boat?
MR. OLLIVER: No, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: But you think it got away from the boat before the place where you were?
MR. OLLIVER: Yes, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: Did you see the iceberg?
MR. OLLIVER: I tell you, sir, I saw the tip top of it.
SENATOR BURTON: What color was it?
MR. OLLIVER: It was not white, as I expected to see an iceberg. It was a kind of a dark­blue hue. It was not white.
SENATOR BURTON: Did you see a light?
MR. OLLIVER: On any other ship but the Titanic?
SENATOR BURTON: Yes.
MR. OLLIVER: I saw lights in the boats, being displayed by the boats.
SENATOR BURTON: I mean of another boat?
MR. OLLIVER: I saw what I thought was a light; but then I could not say whether it was a proper light or whether it was a star.
SENATOR BURTON: Did you see this before the ship struck?
MR. OLLIVER: No, sir; after we were in the boats.
SENATOR BURTON: You did not see it when you were on board the Titanic?
MR. OLLIVER: No; I did not.
SENATOR BURTON: In what boat did you go down to the water?
MR. OLLIVER: No. 5 boat. That was on the starboard side.
SENATOR BURTON: In the order in which they were lowered, which was yours?
MR. OLLIVER: It was the third on that side.
SENATOR BURTON: Who had charge of that boat?
MR. OLLIVER: Mr. Pitman, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: How many of the crew were there with him?
MR. OLLIVER: There the officer, Mr. Pitman, myself, sailor, and two firemen and two stewards.
SENATOR BURTON: Six in all?
MR. OLLIVER: Six in all.
SENATOR BURTON: How many passengers were there in the boat?
MR. OLLIVER: When we lowered the boat there was, I should say­­I do not know the exact number, but I should say ­ about 40 before we lowered the boat.
SENATOR BURTON: Did you have any trouble in lowering the boat?
MR. OLLIVER: There were so many people that when I got in the boat I went to put the plug in, and there were so many people around me I could not get near the plug to put the plug in. As he was lowering the boat I implored the passengers to move so that I could put the plug in, so that as soon as they put the boat in the water I let the tripper go and water came into the boat; but I then forced my way to the plug and put it in. If it was not for that the boat would have been swamped.
SENATOR BURTON: What position did you have in the boat after you got into the water?
MR. OLLIVER: I was rowing, sir, after I let go the tripper.
SENATOR BURTON: Was there any rush when you got into the boat?
MR. OLLIVER: No, sir; there was not. I helped to put the passengers in myself.
SENATOR BURTON: Were most of the passengers up on the top deck at that time?
MR. OLLIVER: At the time, sir, there were some in the other boats.
SENATOR BURTON: Was it crowded around there?
MR. OLLIVER: No; not so overcrowded.
SENATOR BURTON: Were there firemen and stokers up there?
MR. OLLIVER: Yes, sir; some, I think.
SENATOR BURTON: Did you notice any passengers on the lower decks as you went by?
MR. OLLIVER: No, sir; I was busy looking after the safety of the boat.
SENATOR BURTON: Would you have seen them if they were there?
MR. OLLIVER: No, sir; not for what I was doing, because I did not look toward the ship.
SENATOR BURTON: Were your passengers all women and children?
MR. OLLIVER: There were also a few men.
SENATOR BURTON: How many do you think, about?
MR. OLLIVER: I should say there were about six or eight men.
SENATOR BURTON: What was the order in which your boat was unloaded on the Carpathia? Was it the first, second, or third ­ what was it?
MR. OLLIVER: It was the fourth or fifth, I think.
SENATOR BURTON: Did you get along comfortably in the water?
MR. OLLIVER: Yes, sir. It was cold, but we got along comfortably in the water, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: Did you hear Pitman give an order to go back to the ship?
MR. OLLIVER: Yes, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: What happened?
MR. OLLIVER: The women passengers implored him not to go, because they reckoned it was not safe.
SENATOR BURTON: How far were you away from the ship then?
MR. OLLIVER: I should say about 300 yards.
SENATOR BURTON: Did Pitman then countermand the order?
MR. OLLIVER: Yes, sir; he did not go.
SENATOR BURTON: Did only a few of the passengers on board object to his going back, or did they all object?
MR. OLLIVER: They very nearly all objected.
SENATOR BURTON: Did any ask him to go back?
MR. OLLIVER: No, sir; not as I know of.
SENATOR BURTON: Would it have been safe to go back?
MR. OLLIVER: To my idea, sir, no.
SENATOR BURTON: Why not?
MR. OLLIVER: I reckon it would have been endangering the lives of the people we had in the boat already.
SENATOR BURTON: In what way; by being sucked down, or by persons trying to climb on?
MR. OLLIVER: Both, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: Which would have been the more serious of the two?
MR. OLLIVER: The suction, as I thought, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: After the ship was sunk, there could have been no suction, could there?
MR. OLLIVER: There could have been none, no; but this was before.
SENATOR BURTON: After the ship had sunk?
MR. OLLIVER: We had orders to pull back toward the ship before she sank.
SENATOR BURTON: Did you have any orders to pull back after she sank?
MR. OLLIVER: No, sir; we did not; we were farther away.
SENATOR BURTON: Were there cries and moaning from the place where the boat had sunk?
MR. OLLIVER: Yes. It lasted about 10 minutes.
SENATOR BURTON: Did it not last longer than that?
MR. OLLIVER: No; not to my idea.
SENATOR BURTON: Then, you were only about 300 yards away?
MR. OLLIVER: When the cries were heard we were farther, but when the ship sank we were about 300 yards away.
SENATOR BURTON: About how far away were you then?
MR. OLLIVER: I should say about 500 yards then.
SENATOR BURTON: So far as danger of capsizing is concerned, after the boat had sunk you could have gone back, could you not?
MR. OLLIVER: Yes, sir; we could have gone back.
SENATOR BURTON: Were you afraid that the boat would be capsized by persons trying to climb in?
MR. OLLIVER: No, sir; I was not afraid.
SENATOR BURTON: Who was afraid?
MR. OLLIVER: The passengers; the women, especially.
SENATOR BURTON: Did they voice their fear?
MR. OLLIVER: Yes, sir.
SENATOR BURTON: Did you see the boat sink?
MR. OLLIVER: I can not say that I saw it right plain; but to my imagination I did, because the lights went out before she went down.
SENATOR BURTON: How did she sink?
MR. OLLIVER: She was well down at the head at first, when we got away from her at first, and to my idea she broke forward, and the afterpart righted itself and made another plunge and went right down. I fancied I saw her black form. It was dark, and I fancied I saw her black form going that way.
SENATOR BURTON: Did she careen over, tip over sideways, or did she go ahead?
MR. OLLIVER: She went ahead, like that [indicating].
SENATOR BURTON: Did you hear explosions?
MR. OLLIVER: I heard several little explosions, but it was not such explosions as I expected to hear.
SENATOR BURTON: Were these before or after she sank?
MR. OLLIVER: Before she sank and while she was sinking.
SENATOR BURTON: What did you think those explosions were?
MR. OLLIVER: Myself, I thought they were like bulkheads giving in.
SENATOR BURTON: Do you know whether the water­tight doors were closed or not?
