Passengers: T. Beattie,* P. D. Daly,† G. Rheims, R. N. Williams, Jr., first-class; O. Abelseth,† W. J. Mellers, second-class; and Mrs. Rosa Abbott,† Edward Lindley,‡ third-class.
Crew: Steward: E. Brown. Firemen: J. Thompson, one unidentified body.* Seaman: one unidentified body.*
* Body found in boat by Oceanic.
† Pulled into boat out of sea.
‡ Died in boat.
An extraordinary story pertains to this boat. At the outset of my research it was called a “boat of mystery,” occasioned by the statements of the Titanic’s officers. In his conversations with me, as well as in his testimony, Officer Lightoller stated that he was unable to loosen this boat from the ship in time and that he and his men were compelled to abandon their efforts to get it away. The statement in consequence was that this boat “A” was not utilized but went down with the ship. My recent research has disabused his mind of this supposition. There were only four Engelhardt boats in all as we have already learned, and we have fully accounted for “the upset boat B,” and “D,” the last to leave the ship in the tackles, and boat “C,” containing Mr. Ismay, which reached the Carpathia’s side and was unloaded there. After all the mystery we have reached the conclusion that boat “A” did not go down with the ship, but was the one whose occupants were rescued by Officer Lowe in the early morning, and then abandoned with three dead bodies in it. This also was the boat picked up nearly one month later by the Oceanic nearly 200 miles from the scene of the wreck.
I have made an exhaustive research up to date for the purpose of discovering how Boat A left the ship. Information in regard thereto is obtained from the testimony before the British Court of Inquiry of Steward Edward Brown, from first-class passenger R. N. Williams, Jr., and from an account of William J. Mellers, a second cabin passenger as related by him to Dr. Washington Dodge. Steward Brown, it will be observed, testified that he was washed out of the boat and yet “did not know whether he went down in the water.” As he could not swim, an analysis of his testimony forces me to believe that he held on to the boat and did not have to swim and that boat “A” was the same one that he was in when he left the ship. I am forced to the same conclusion in young Williams’ case after an analysis of his statement that he took off his big fur overcoat in the water and cast it adrift while he swam twenty yards to the boat, and in some unaccountable way the fur coat swam after him and also got into the boat. At any rate it was found in the boat when it was recovered later as shown in the evidence.
I also have a letter from Mr. George Rheims, of Paris, indicating his presence on this same boat with Messrs. Williams and Mellers and Mrs. Abbott and others.
INCIDENTS
Edward Brown, steward (Br. Inq.):
Witness helped with boats 5, 3, 1 and C, and then helped with another collapsible; tried to get it up to the davits when the ship gave a list to port. The falls were slackened but the boat could not be hauled away any further. There were four or five women waiting to get into the boat. The boat referred to was the collapsible boat “A” which they got off the officers’ house. They got it down by the planks, but witness does not know where the planks came from. He thinks they were with the bars which came from the other boats; yet he had no difficulty in getting the boat off the house. The ship was then up to the bridge under water, well down by the head. He jumped into the boat then and called out to cut the falls. He cut them at the aft end, but cannot say what happened to the forward fall. He was washed out of the boat but does not know whether he went down in the water.[37] He had his lifebelt on and came to the top. People were all around him. They tore his clothes away struggling in the water. He could not swim, but got into the collapsible boat “A.” Only men were in it, but they picked up a woman and some men afterwards, consisting of passengers, stewards and crew. There were sixteen men. Fifth Officer Lowe in boat No. 14 picked them up.