British Wreck Commissioner's Inquiry
Day 7
Testimony of James Gibson
Examined by the SOLICITOR-GENERAL.
7412. Is your name James Gibson?
- Yes.
7413. How old are you?
- Twenty.
7414. Just give us your address?
- 38, Railway Terrace, Southport.
7415. Were you an Apprentice on the "Californian"?
- Yes.
7416. And on this night, between Sunday, 14th, and Monday, 15th, what time did you go on watch, on duty?
- Twelve o'clock midnight.
7417. Was your watch the middle watch?
- Yes.
7418. Twelve to four?
- Yes.
7419. Which of the Officers was in charge in the middle watch?
- The Second Officer.
7420. Is that Mr. Stone?
- Yes.
7421. He would be on the bridge?
- Yes.
7422. When you came on duty at midnight did you find that your ship had stopped?
- Yes.
7423. We have been told she stopped some time before half-past ten?
- Yes.
7424. When was it that you saw any ship's light round you first?
- About twenty minutes past twelve.
7425. What was the light that you saw?
- A white masthead light and a red sidelight.
7426. Could you see both those lights clearly?
- I could see the red light with the glasses.
7427. You used glasses to see the red light, the port light, but you could see the white light, could you, with your naked eyes?
- Yes.
7328. Could you see more than one white light?
- I saw a glare of lights on her after deck.
7429. You mean the port-hole lights?
- A glare of white lights on her after deck.
7430. I do not think you quite answered the question I was putting to you. Did you or did you not see any second white steamer lights?
- Not distinctly, sir.
7431. Do you mean you are not sure whether you could see it or not?
- No.
7432. Not sure?
- No.
7433. Do you know at all which way your ship, the quot;Californian," was heading?
- I was told afterwards that she was heading east-north-east.
7434. So that she was really pointing in the opposite direction to the direction she had been steaming?
- I could not say.
7435. She was going from the east to the west?
- I do not know what she was steering.
7436. She was going from Europe to America?
- Yes.
7437. And she was pointing how?
- East-north-east.
7438. Where did the lights of this steamer you have spoken of bear from you?
- Right on the starboard beam.
7439. Would that be broad on the starboard beam?
- Right on the starboard beam.
7440. Did you form any view as to how far away the ship was?
- From four to seven miles.
7440a. You thought she was from four to seven miles away?
- Yes.
7441. Did you notice anything about her masthead light, her white light?
- Yes.
7442. What was it?
- It was flickering.
7443. Did you form an opinion about it; what did you think she was doing?
- I thought it was a Morse light calling us up.
7444. That would be using her masthead light to send Morse signals?
- I did not know it was the masthead light then.
7445. Using a light to send Morse signals?
- Yes.
7446. Did you report this?
- I went to the keyboard and called it up. I went to our keyboard and called her up.
7447. Is the keyboard that you speak of the keyboard, that would work your Morse signaling?
- Yes, Sir.
7448. When you work your Morse signaling with your keyboard, what is the light that you flash?
- On top of the bridge.
7449. Do you know how to use the keyboard and send Morse signals?
- Yes.
7450. So that you went to your keyboard to send them?
- Yes.
7451. When you tried to call up this steamer with your Morse signals, could you get into communication with her?
- No, Sir; the lights were still flickering.
7452. Could you read at all the message, if it was a message, which this flickering light was sending?
- Yes, Sir.
7453. You could?
- Yes.
7454. What was it you read?
- I did not read any message.
7455. Could you read it if it was clear?
- I could have done if it was a Morse light, but I looked at her through the glasses afterwards, and found it was a masthead light.
7456. Then the light went on flickering, did it?
- Yes.
7457. And did you look at it then through glasses?
- Yes.
7458. And when you did that you say you made out that it was a masthead light?
- Yes.
7459. And did you come to the conclusion that she was not sending any Morse messages at all?
- Yes.
7460. You have told us, I think, that the Officer of the watch was Mr. Stone, the Second Officer?
- Yes.
7461. Did you report to him; did you call his attention to the lights you had seen?
- Yes.
7462. I suppose this would all take a little time. You said about a quarter-past twelve you noticed the light first. By the time you had finished your attempt with the Morse signaling what time would it be?
- About getting on for 25 past.
7463. A little later than that, did the Second Officer, Mr. Stone, say anything to you about this ship?
- At five minutes to one.
7464. What was it he told you?
- That she had fired five rockets.
7465. That was at five minutes to one?
- Yes.
7466. Had you not been on the bridge all the time?
- No, Sir. I went down at twenty-five minutes to and came up at five minutes to one.
7467. You went down at twenty-five minutes to one and came up at five minutes to one, and it is when you come up that this message is given?
- Yes.
7468. Could you still see her lights?
- Yes, Sir.
7469. Was she still in the same position?
- No, Sir. She was about two and a half points before the starboard beam.
7470. Can you tell us whether your ship during that hour had been heading the same way, or whether she had shifted her position?
- The ship was swinging round.
7471. Your ship was?
- Yes.
7472. Of course, if your ship was swinging round, even though the other ship was stationary, after a bit her lights would bear differently from you?
- Yes.
7473. When you say it was 2 1/2 points upon the starboard beam, do you mean forward of the starboard beam?
- Before the beam.
7474. Five and a-half from the bows?
- Yes.
7475. You say that the "Californian" was swinging. Can you tell me, do you know, which way she was swinging?
- She was swinging towards the nor'ard.
7476. Now, I just want to get what happened after that. You have told me that the Second Officer said to you that the ship had fired five rockets?
- Yes.
7477. Did he tell you anything else about what he had been doing while you had not been there?
- He told me that he had reported it to the Captain.
7478. Did he tell you what the Captain had instructed him to do?
- Yes.
7479. What was it?
- To call her up on the Morse light.
7480. Did he tell you whether he had tried to call her up on the Morse light?
- Yes.
7481. Had he?
- Yes.
7482. What had been the result?
- She had not answered him, but fired more rockets.
7483. Did you see her fire these further rockets?
- I saw three rockets.
7484. You saw three?
- Yes.
The Commissioner:
Does this mean that there were ten rockets fired by this time?
7485. (The Solicitor-General.) I was just going to find out the same thing. (To the Witness.) Let. us get it quite clear. The Second Officer had told you, you say, that she had sent up five rockets?
- Yes.
7486. And you say that you saw three rockets?
- Yes.
7487. Did the Second Officer tell you of any more than the five?
- No.
7488. Then as far as the report to you went he told you of five before you came back at five minutes to one?
- Yes.
7489. And after that you saw three more yourself?
- Yes.
7490. How soon was that after you had come back at five minutes to one?
- As soon as I went on the bridge at five minutes to one. I called her up as soon as the Second Officer told me.
7491. You called her up on the Morse?
- Yes.
7492. You mean the Second Officer gave you orders to do that?
- Yes.
7493. And she did not respond to you?
- No.
7494. And then you saw these rockets?
- Yes.
7495. Give me an idea of the time - would that take long, or was it at once?
- Well, I called her up for about three minutes, and I had just got the glasses on to her when I saw her fire the rocket. That was the first one.
7496. The first of the three?
- Yes.
7497. You say you had just got the glasses on to her. Did you see it through the glasses?
- Yes.
7498. How did you see the second one?
- With the eye.
7499. With the naked eye?
- Yes, without the glasses.
7500. And the third one?
- With the eye.
7501. What colour rockets were they?
- White ones.
7502. When you got your glasses on the vessel and saw the first rocket going up through them, could you make out the vessel at all?
- No, Sir, just her lights.
7503. (The Commissioner.) Still this glare of light?
- Yes.
7504. Did that indicate, that glare of light, that this was a passenger steamer?
- No, Sir.
7505. (The Solicitor-General.) When you saw the first of these three rockets through your glasses did you report what you saw to the Officer?
- Yes.
7506. Did he tell you whether he saw the second or the third rocket?
- Yes, Sir.
7507. Did he?
- Yes, Sir.
7508. He said he did?
- Yes.
7509. Was he using glasses, too?
- No.
7510. He saw it with his naked eye?
- Yes.
7511. What happened after that?
- About twenty minutes past one the Second Officer remarked to me that she was slowly steaming away towards the south-west.
7512. Had you remained on the bridge from the time that you saw these three rockets until then?
- Yes.
7513. Had you been keeping her under observation?
- Yes.
7514. Looking at her with your glasses from time to time?
- Yes.
7515. What had you noticed between one o'clock and twenty minutes past one, looking at her through your glasses?
- The Second Officer remarked to me, "Look at her now; she looks very queer out of the water; her lights look queer."
7516. You are sure that is what he said - "She looks very queer out of the water"?
- Yes.
7517. Did he say what he meant?
- I looked at her through the glasses after that, and her lights did not seem to be natural.
7518. (The Commissioner.) What do you mean by that?
- When a vessel rolls at sea her lights do not look the same.
7519. But there was no water to cause her to roll, was there; you were not rolling?
- No.
7520. There was no sea to cause her to roll?
- No, Sir.
7521. (The Solicitor-General.) He made this observation to you. Did you look at her then through your glasses?
- Yes.
7522. What did you see?
- She seemed as if she had a heavy list to starboard.
7523. She seemed to have a list., and you thought a list to starboard?
- Yes.
7524. Looking at her through your glasses, what was there that you could see of her which made you think that?
- Do you mean that her masthead light was not immediately over the other lights?
- No, Sir.
7525. What was there to show you?
- Her lights did not seem to look like as they did do before when I first saw them.
The Commissioner:
What was the difference?
7526. (The Solicitor-General.) Could you describe them at all, Gibson?
- No, Sir.
7527. You have told us what the Officer said to you. Did you think yourself when you looked at her through the glasses that something was wrong?
- We had been talking about it together.
7528. (The Commissioner.) I should very much like you to tell me what you had been saying to the Officer?
- He remarked to me -
7529. I should like you to tell me what were you saying to each other?
- He remarked to me that a ship was not going to fire rockets at sea for nothing.
7530. Who said that?
- The Second Officer.
7531. A ship is not going to fire rockets at sea for nothing?
- Yes.
7532. I daresay you agreed with him?
- Yes.
7533. What took place after that between you and him?
- We were talking about it all the time, Sir, till five minutes past two, when she disappeared.
7534. (The Solicitor-General.) Till five minutes past two, when she disappeared?
- Yes.
7535. (The Commissioner.) Then do I understand from you that the Second Officer came to the conclusion that this was a ship in distress?
- No, Sir, not exactly.
7536. What do you mean by "not exactly"? The Second Officer said to you, "A ship does not fire up rockets for nothing"?
- Yes, Sir.
7537. Did not that convey to you that the ship was, in his opinion, in distress?
- Not exactly in distress, Sir.
7538. What then?
- That everything was not all right with her.
7539. (The Solicitor-General.) In trouble of some sort?
- Yes, Sir.
7540. Just think for a minute about this conversation. Do you remember whether the Second Officer and you said anything about ice being dangerous?
- No, Sir.
7541. You mean that nothing was said about that?
- No.
7542. Your ship had stopped?
- Yes.
7543. Because it was not safe. Just think a minute. Was not anything said between the Officer and you about it?
- No, Sir.
7544. Was anything said between the Second Officer and you as to whether this was likely to be a passenger steamer?
- No.
7545. What did you think?
- I thought she was a tramp steamer, and I told him so.
7546. You thought she was a tramp steamer, and you had seen her sidelight at what you thought was between four and seven miles away?
- Yes.
7547. And you had seen a blaze of light in the afterpart?
- A glare of light.
7548. Four to seven miles away?
- Yes.
7549. And you thought she was a tramp steamer?
- Yes.
7550. (The Commissioner.) Did you expect to see a glare of light on the afterpart of a tramp steamer?
- Yes, Sir, on some of them.
7551. (The Solicitor-General.) That is until she disappeared at five minutes past two that you have spoken about?
- Yes.
7552. What were the orders which the Second Officer gave you when she disappeared?
- "Call the Captain and tell him that that ship has disappeared in the South-West; that we are heading West-South-West, and that she has fired altogether eight rockets."
7553. Did you report that to the Captain?
- Yes.
7554. Where did you go?
- Into the chart room.
7555. Was the chart room door shut?
- Yes.
7556. Did you open the door and go in?
- Yes.
7557. Did you find the Captain there?
- Yes.
7558. Did you speak to him?
- Yes.
7559. Did you give him the report you were ordered to give him?
- Yes.
7560. What did the Captain say?
- He asked me were they all white?
7561. The rockets?
- Yes, were there any colours in the rockets at all?
7562. What did you tell him?
- I told him that they were all white.
7563. Did he give any instructions?
- No.
7564. Did he say anything further?
- He asked me the time.
7565. What was the time?
- Five minutes past two by the wheelhouse clock.
7566. You told him that, did you?
- Yes.
7567. Did he ask you anything further?
- No.
7568. Or tell you anything further?
- No.
7569. And did you go away?
- Yes.
7570. (The Commissioner.) Was he awake?
- Yes, Sir.
7571. (The Solicitor-General.) Did you return to the bridge?
- Yes.
7572. Did you report that you had done what you were told to do?
- Yes.
7573. Was there anything further that you noticed until you got close to 4 o'clock?
- Yes.
7574. What was it?
- About 3. 40 the Second Officer whistled down to the Captain again.
7575. Twenty minutes to four?
- Yes.
7576. Did you see him doing it?
- Yes.
7577. Did you hear what he said?
- No.
7578. Did anything happen after that?
- Yes.
7579. What?
- I saw three more rockets, Sir.
7580. How much after?
- That was about twenty minutes to four.
7581. Just about the same time?
- Yes.
7582. These further rockets that you saw, were they before or after the Second Officer had telephoned to the Captain?
- After.
7583. Just think for a moment. You are sure about the time, are you?
- Not exactly, Sir.
7584. But you have said 3.40 - twenty minutes to four?
- Yes.
7585. Are you sure you mean that?
- Yes.
The Commissioner:
I thought that the Captain's evidence was that it was about 4.30 when this boy was supposed to have given him that message?
The Solicitor-General:
Oh, no.
The Commissioner:
What time was it?
- Oh, yes, I have made a mistake.
The Attorney-General:
At 4.30 the Officer came.
The Commissioner:
What time did the boy come in with the message to the Captain?
The Witness:
Five minutes past two.
The Solicitor-General:
And he reports at once the rockets that he had seen.
7586. (The Commissioner.) Now, am I to understand you to say that at twenty minutes to four the same morning you saw three more rockets?
- Yes, Sir.
7587. Were they reported to the Captain?
- I reported them to the Second Officer.
7588. Did he report them to the Captain?
- No.
7589. Why not?
- I do not know.
7590. If they were really there, why were not they reported to the Captain?
- I do not know, Sir.
7591. Are you quite sure that these three rockets were ever seen by you at all?
- Yes, Sir. I saw the first one, and I reported it to the Second Officer, and we looked out for more to see if we could see any more - and we saw two more.
7592. (The Solicitor-General.) You say you saw the first one?
- Yes.
7593. Do you mean you saw it with your naked eye?
- Yes.
The Commissioner:
Did any of the boats of the "Titanic" fire Roman candles?
7594. (The Solicitor-General.) Yes, my Lord, Roman candles. (To the Witness.) If it was twenty minutes to four it was not very far off the beginning of dawn, was it?
- No, dawn was just breaking.
7595. Had it got any lighter?
- Yes.
7596. Could you see when you saw this flash at all how far away you thought it was?
- It was right on the horizon.
7597. What sort of a light was it? You called it a rocket? Was it a flash; did you see it go up into the sky?
- Yes.
7598. What colour was it?
- White.
7599. And you called Mr. Stone's attention to it, did you, and then there were two more seen?
- Yes.
7600. I understand that is after Mr. Stone had spoken on the tube to the Captain?
- Yes.
7601. Do you say he did not report these three further lights to the captain at all?
- No.
7602. When you saw these three further lights did you get your glasses on to the place?
- Yes.
7603. Could you see any sign of a ship?
- No.
7604. No sign of a masthead light?
- No.
7605. No sign of a sidelight?
- No.
7606. Nothing except these flashes?
- That is all.
7607. Is that right?
- Yes.
7608. Then I think you went off your watch at four o'clock?
- A quarter to.
(After a short adjournment.)
7609. (The Solicitor-General.) There is very little more I want to ask him, my Lord. (To the Witness.) I want to be quite sure first of all that I have got accurately the message that you were told to give to the Captain after the ship had disappeared about five minutes past two. Just tell us again exactly, what it was the Second Officer told you to tell the Captain?
- To call the Captain and tell him that the ship has disappeared in the S.W., that we were heading W.S.W., and that she has fired altogether eight rockets.
7610. When the ship disappeared she had got a little on to your port bow?
- Yes.
The Commissioner:
Will you ask him what he understood by the word "disappeared"?
Continued >
