S.S. Frankfurt (German) gives Titanic his position at 12 p.m., 39-degrees 47-minutes N., 52-degrees 10-degrees W. Titanic asks "Are you coming to our assistance?" Frankfurt asks "What is the matter?" Titanic replies "We have struck iceberg and sinking. Please tell captain to come." Titanic sill calling distress. Frankfurt seems nearest to him according to strength of signals.
SENATOR SMITH: What are you reading from?
MR. MOORE: This is what my operator sent up to me. These are the messages he sent up to me, the original messages.
SENATOR SMITH: Received by your wireless operator on the Mount Temple?
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir.
SENATOR SMITH: And taken to you at the bridge?
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir.
SENATOR SMITH: Is that signed?
MR. MOORE: This is signed "J. Durrant." He was my operator.
SENATOR SMITH: Did you know of the Frankfurt's position?
MR. MOORE: He gives his position there, sir.
SENATOR SMITH: He does not give his position, does he?
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir.
SENATOR SMITH: Not the Frankfurt?
MR. MOORE: The Frankfurt says that at 12 o'clock his position is 39-degrees 47-minutes, sir.
SENATOR SMITH: But this wireless message says that he judges by the strength of his signals or messages that the Frankfurt is nearest.
MR. MOORE: But he gives his position, sir.
SENATOR SMITH: That is the position at the time this last message was sent, which you have handed over; at the time that was delivered?
MR. MOORE: The Frankfurt gives his position as 39-degrees 47-minutes N., 52-degrees 10-minutes W., sir.
SENATOR SMITH: You must excuse me for being so minute about it, but I want to find out whether the Frankfurt made any effort at all to reach the Titanic's position.
MR. MOORE: Of course, this is by the operator, his personal statement that he seems to be the nearest on account of the strength of the message. As a matter of fact, you see he was one degree to the westward of my position, or pretty near it, when I first turned around.
SENATOR SMITH: The testimony shows that from the strength of the wireless impact, if it may be called that, he judged that the Frankfurt was nearest?
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir.
SENATOR SMITH: But the testimony also shows that the Titanic operator, when the Frankfurt asked what was the matter 20 minutes after receiving the C.Q.D., replied "You are a fool; keep out' Now, I am asking you in detail about the Frankfurt because I desire, if possible to get some authentic information regarding her conduct after receiving that C.Q.D. call.
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir.
SENATOR SMITH: Now, proceed.
MR. MOORE: This is another message [indicating]. This is a note to me from the Marconi man:
Olympic sent that message at 1:30, this ship's time.
That means the time of my ship.
Titanic acknowledged it, but has not spoken since, although Olympic, Baltic, and Frankfurt calling him.
That is one hour after I received my first message that we caught the C.Q.D., "He has not spoken since."
SENATOR SMITH: Let us see what other vessels­­
MR. MOORE: Perhaps I had better read it through.
SENATOR SMITH: I think that is best.
MR. MOORE: Olympic sent that message at 1:30, this ship's time. Titanic acknowledged it, but has not spoken since, although Olympic, Baltic, and Frankfurt calling him. American ship
Which proved to be a Russian ship, sir­
name unknown, tells Frankfurt he is 70 miles off Titanic.
SENATOR SMITH: This Russian ship is that distance?
MR. MOORE: It says here American ship, but it turned out to be a Russian ship named the Birma, 70 miles off, a much faster ship than our vessel.
SENATOR SMITH: Proceed.
MR. MOORE: That is all that I have.
SENATOR SMITH: You hold in your hand the minutes of the wireless operator?
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir.
SENATOR SMITH: Do those minutes disclose any facts or circumstances more complete than the memoranda you have just filed regarding the position of the Titanic and the position of other ships on Sunday or Monday?
MR. MOORE: I think those cover it; but if you like, I will read these out.
SENATOR SMITH: I think we had better have them.
MR. MOORE: This is a copy of the operator's book; a copy he puts in his book:
Time remarks, p.m. Sunday evening, April, 1912.
This is New York time, sir:
9:55 Signals with M.P.A., nil. 10:25. Titanic sending C.Q.D. Answer him, but he replies "Can not read you, old man, but here is my position ­ 41-degrees 46-minutes N., 50-degrees 14-minutes W. Come at once. Have struck berg." Informed captain.
SENATOR SMITH: "Come at once, have struck berg."
MR. MOORE: "Have struck berg. Informed captain." That is my operator who informed me, sir.
10:35. Carpathia answers "M.G.Y."
Which is the Titanic, I understand, says:
Struck iceberg. Come to our assistance at once.
Sends position.
10:40. M.G.Y.­
That is the code of the Titanic.
Still calling C.Q.D. Our captain reverses ship and steams for M.G.Y. We are about 50 miles off.
That is, roughly, the position I gave him, which afterwards proved within a mile, as far as I could say.
10:45. Frankfurt answer "M.G.Y.
Which is the Titanic.
Titanic gives his position and asks, "Are you coming to our assistance." D.F.T."­
That is the Frankfurt.
Asks, "What is the matter with you?" M.G.Y. replies, "We have struck iceberg and sinking. Please tell captain to come."
SENATOR SMITH: Let me see. "M.G.Y." was the message from the Titanic?
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir. He has given me the code here, according to each ship.
SENATOR SMITH: That indicates that the second message was a further call of distress?
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir. Of course, the distress signal was going. We first caught it at 12:30 by our ship's time, sir.
SENATOR SMITH: You think we are getting what the Frankfurt got?
MR. MOORE: These the are messages that crossed between the two ships, sir, which we caught.
SENATOR SMITH: The Titanic and the Frankfurt?
MR. MOORE: I have a code here. Perhaps I had better give the names.
SENATOR SMITH: I wish you would.
MR. MOORE: Frankfurt asks: "What is the matter with you?" Titanic replies, "We have struck iceberg, and sinking. Please tell captain to come." "O.K. Will tell the bridge right away."
That means that the Frankfurt asked if the Frankfurt's operator should tell the captain of the Frankfurt right away, and the other man says, "O.K. Yes; quick." That is, the Titanic's man said, "Yes; quick."
10:55. Titanic calling S.O.S.
which is the other distress signal ­ the new distress signal.
SENATOR SMITH: The signal of the Berlin convention?
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir; I suppose it is.
10:57. Ditto.
10:59 Working M.R.A.
SENATOR SMITH: Who is that?
MR. MOORE: That must mean that he is not working with the regular current, sir; that perhaps he is on his auxiliary. I can not understand that. I think that must be the auxiliary.
SENATOR SMITH: I think I understand you, Captain, and I thought I did at first, because the water had at that time submerge the other source of electric supply.
MR. MOORE: The dynamo, sir.
SENATOR SMITH: And now he was now drawing on his auxiliary from the upper deck?
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir.
SENATOR SMITH: And that is what that indicates?
MR. MOORE: But before that, sir, he is still calling "M.K.C.," whatever that is. I will look that up. [After referring to code.] "M.K.C." means Olympic. He is calling the Olympic, then , at 10:59.
Working M.R.A.
That must be the auxiliary, because that is not a code for any ship he has given me.
11 o'clock. Calling M.G.N. and C.Q.D.
"M.G.N." is the Virginian.
11:10. Calling C.Q.D.
SENATOR SMITH: Do you know who "M.R.A." referred to?
MR. MOORE: No, sir; I think that must be the auxiliary, because there is nothing here. Perhaps I have made a mistake. This looks like "M.P.A."
SENATOR SMITH: Would that be the Corona, or do you know?
MR. MOORE: I think there is a mistake here.
SENATOR SMITH: The Carpathia is "M.P.A."?
MR. MOORE: It may be "M.P.A.," but he has "M.R.A." Perhaps that is the Carpathia.
SENATOR SMITH: I do not want you to guess. If you know, you may tell.
MR. MOORE: I think that is the Carpathia, "M.P.A." He certainly has "M.R.A." here, but he has given "M.P.A." for the Carpathia. So that would be:
10:59 Working the Carpathia. 11. Calling M.G.N. (the Virginian) and C.Q.D.
That is the distress signal.
11:10 Calling C.Q.D. q 11:20 Gets Olympic and says "Captain says get your boats read. Going down fast at the head." Frankfurt says, "Our captain will go for you."
SENATOR SMITH: What hour is that?
MR. MOORE: 11:25
11:27 Titanic calling C.Q.D. and Baltic. 11:30 Still doing the same 11:35 Olympic sends service message to Titanic. Titanic replies, "We are putting the women into boats."
SENATOR SMITH: Anything else?
MR. MOORE: Titanic say: C.Q.D. Engine room flooded.
I do not seem to have gotten that. I expect it should be "D.F.F."; but he certainly has "D.K.F.." He has not given me that in this code. "D.F.F." is the only one that commences with a "D."
"Are there any boats around you already?" No reply. 11:47 Olympic sends service message to Titanic. Titanic acknowledges it and sends "R.D."
I can not make anything out of that. I suppose it is "regards." It looks like "regards."
SENATOR SMITH: Does that give the hour?
MR. MOORE: That is 11:457.
11:55 Frankfurt and Russian liner Birma calling Titanic. No reply. A.m. Monday, April 15, 1912.
12:10 Olympic., Frankfurt, Baltic calling Titanic. No reply.
12:35 Birma tells Frankfurt it is 70 miles from Titanic.
12:50 All quiet now. Titanic has not spoken since 11:47 p.m.
SENATOR SMITH: The last message you picked up from the Titanic was "regards," was it not?
MR. MOORE: I really do not know what it was. It says "Rd," sir. Of course, we abbreviate sometimes when we are sending messages.
SENATOR SMITH: I think it was very thoughtful of you, Captain, to bring the operator's notes. It is the most complete information we have had concerning messages from the Titanic, their records all being destroyed. Have you anything further to read?
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir; I have a lot, sir.
12:50 All quiet now. Titanic has not spoken since 11:47 p.m.
1:25 Carpathia sends "If you are there, we are firing rockets.
SENATOR SMITH: This to you?
MR. MOORE: No; he sends this to the Titanic:
If you are there, we are firing rockets. 1:40 Carpathia calling Titanic.
SENATOR SMITH: Let me ask you right there, did you see the rockets from the Carpathia?
MR. MOORE: I never saw any rockets whatever, sir.
SENATOR SMITH: Is it possible that this passenger from Toronto, who claims to have seen rockets, may have seen the rockets from the Carpathia at that time?
MR. MOORE: I do no think it possible, sir, because if the Carpathia was farther away it is not likely you would see her rockets. But you see, this ship says she is sending rockets up. So it is possible that other ships may have seen them. I do not know. I thought of sending rockets up, but I thought it far better to let it alone, because if other ships ­ they thought they saw them ­ might be coming to me, and I had not seen anything of the Titanic and did not know exactly where she was; because I think, after all, the Titanic was further east than she gave her position, sir. In fact, I am certain she was.
SENATOR SMITH: East or south?
MR. MOORE: East, sir.
SENATOR SMITH: How much farther away?
MR. MOORE: I should think at least 8 miles, sir, of longitude.
SENATOR SMITH: What makes you think so?
MR. MOORE: Because when I got the position in the morning I got a prime vertical sight; that is a sight taken when the sun is bearing due east. That position gave me 50-degrees 9 1/2-minutes west. I got two observations. I took one before the prime vertical and also on the prime vertical. We were steering north, at the time, steering north to go around this pack again, to look out, to see if we could find a hole through the ice, and we took these two positions, and they both came within a quarter of a mile of each other; so that the Titanic must have been on the other side of that field of ice, and then her position was not right which she gave.
SENATOR SMITH: Does that indicate to your mind the possibility that after striking this iceberg, in the position that has been indicated by these wireless messages, the Titanic drifted­­
MR. MOORE: [interrupting]. Excuse me, sir. It was such a short time I hardly think the drift would be anything like that, sir; nothing like that.
SENATOR SMITH: And you could not imagine her going far under her own power after that impact?
MR. MOORE: I understood she stopped. I don't think she would go astern on it.
1:40 Carpathia calling­­
SENATOR SMITH: [interposing]. Just one moment. Does the fact you found no evidence of the wreck when you got to the Titanic's reported position tend to confirm you in the idea that her position was 8 miles farther to the southward?
MR. MOORE: No; to the eastward.
SENATOR SMITH: To the eastward?
MR. MOORE: Yes.
SENATOR SMITH: That tends to confirm you in that belief?
MR. MOORE: My observation was this: My fourth officer took two observations, and of course, he is a navigator, and, also an extra master's certificate is held by him, which is a better certificate than mine, and he took those observations both times, and both of them tallied. One came 50-degrees 9 1/2-minutes west and the other came 50-degrees 9 3/4-minutes. Of course, it proved afterwards when, after coming southward and trying to find some place I could get through, on the way back again ­ I suppose about 6 o'clock in the morning ­ that I sighted the Carpathia on the other side of this great ice pack, and there is where I understand he picked up the boats. So this great pack of ice was between us and the Titanic's position.
SENATOR SMITH: As given by her?
MR. MOORE: No, sir. I was in that position. I was to the eastward of the position the Titanic gave me, but she must have been to the eastward still, because she could not have been through this pack of ice.
SENATOR SMITH: As I recollect, the captain of the Californian , who was sworn yesterday, and who went to the position given by the Titanic in the C.Q.D., also said that he found nothing there, but cruised this position.
MR. MOORE: I saw the Californian myself cruising around there, sir.
