(Testimony taken separately before Senator Bourne on behalf of the subcommittee.)
(The witness was sworn by Senator Bourne.)
10026. Please state your name, age, residence, and occupation.
- Ernest Archer; age 36; 59 Port Chester Road, Woolston, Southampton; able seaman.
10027. How long have you been rated as an able seaman?
- About 20 years.
10028. How long have you sailed with the White Star Line?
- With the White Star Line, five years this month.
10029. When did you join the Titanic?
- On Wednesday, the 10th of April, sir.
10030. Did you sign the day she sailed?
- No; signed on Monday, two days before she sailed.
10031. You were on the Titanic at the time of the catastrophe?
- Yes, sir.
10032. Will you explain, please, in your own way, what occurred immediately preceding and following the accident?
- I was in my bunk, asleep. I heard a kind of a crush, something similar to when you let go the anchor; it wounded like the cable running through the hawse pipe.
10033. Was there a shock, a jar?
- No; no shock and no jar; just a grating sensation.
10034. You were asleep at the time?
- I was asleep at the time.
10035. Are you a sound or a light sleeper?
- A pretty light sleeper, sir.
10036. You are easily awakened?
- Yes, sir.
10037. So, if there had been much of a shock, you think you would have felt it, although you had been asleep?
- Yes, sir.
10038. It was more of a noise?
- More of a noise than a shock, sir.
10039. What happened?
- I jumped out of my bed, put on a pair of trousers, and ran up on deck to find out what was the matter. I saw some small pieces of ice on the starboard side, on the forward deck.
10040. Which deck?
- The fore well deck.
10041. How much ice was there?
- Not an extraordinary lot, sir.
10042. How much?
- Not a great lot.
10043. No heavy pieces?
- No, sir.
10044. Not any 50 or 100 ton chunks?
- No; nothing like that; just small pieces.
10045. No pieces any larger than your head?
- No; I never saw any larger than that. After I saw the ice I went back in the door and put on a pair of shoes, a guernsey, and a cap. While I was doing that the boatswain ordered us on deck.
10046. How long after that did that occur?
- About 10 minutes, sir.
10047. What did you do?
- We went on deck to the top of the forecastle ladder, to the boatswain, and we waited for the watch, and he gave us orders, and we proceeded to the boat deck and proceeded to uncover and clear away the boats.
10048. Had you been assigned to a boat?
- Yes, sir.
10049. What number?
- No. 7.
10050. That was on the port side?
- No; on the starboard side, sir.
10051. The odd numbers were on the starboard side?
- Yes; the odd numbers on the starboard side and the even numbers on the port.
10052. Did you go right to your own boat, No. 7?
- No; we did not have orders to go to No. 7; we had orders to uncover all boats.
10053. You went, then to the boat you were nearest to at the time?
- We were to start and get it ready for lowering.
10054. After you uncovered the boats, what then?
- We went to them, uncovered them, and got the falls ready for lowering. Then I went over to the starboard side and assisted in lowering about three boats. I could not mention the number of the boats I lowered. I never taken any notice. Then an officer came along - I could not mention his name - and he sang out that they wanted some seamen on the other side, on the port side, to assist over there. I went over then and assisted in getting Nos. 12, 14, and 15 out. I assisted in getting the falls and everything ready, and the passengers into No. 14 boat. Then I went to No. 16.
10055. Have you a recollection that would be sufficiently distinct to be of value to the number of passengers that went into Nos. 12, 14, and 16?
- Well, I should say, sir, they would approach about 50.
10056. To each boat?
- To each boat.
10057. Then what?
- Then when I got to No. 16 boat the officer told me to get into the boat and see that the plug was in; so I got in the boat. I seen that the plug was in tight; then they started to put passengers in, and I assisted to get them in.
10058. Were you still remaining in No. 16?
- Still remaining in the boat and assisting the passengers, children and ladies, to the boat.
10059. Did any men get in?
- No, sir; I never saw any men get it, sir; only my mate.
10060. You were directed by the officer to get into the boat, and your mate was directed by the officer to get into the boat?
- So far as I know, he was, sir. I never heard the order for him to get in. I was busy with the children. I was busy. I did not know who was speaking.
10061. Then what?
- I heard him give orders to lower the boat. The last order I received after I heard that was from the officer, to allow nobody in the boat, and there was no one else to get into the boat. That was just prior to starting the lowering.
10062. You and your mate were in the boat?
- Yes, sir.
10063. Was the officer in the boat?
- No; no officer in the boat.
10064. Then you lowered the boat?
- We lowered the boat, and my mate pulled at the releasing bar for both falls, and that cleared the boat, and we started to pull away.
10065. Having about 50 passengers in the boat and only your mate and yourself?
- Yes, sir; the master-at-arms [Joseph Bailey] came down after us. He was the coxswain.
10066. He came down one of the ropes?
- Yes, sir; came down the fall.
10067. He was sent by an officer?
- I presume he was sent by an officer.
10068. To help fill up your complement?
- He said he was sent down to be the coxswain of the boat.
10069. And he took charge?
- He took charge.
10070. And you acted under his orders, you and your mate?
- Yes.
10071. So there were three of you and about 50 passengers?
- Yes, sir.
10072. All women and children, or some men?
- All women and children.
10073. While you were loading the boat was there any effort made on the part of the others to crowd into the boat?
- No, sir; I never saw any.
10074. No confusion?
- No confusion at all.
10075. No individuals, men or others, who were repelled from getting in?
- No, sir; I never saw anything of that at all, sir; everything was quiet and steady.
10076. Then after you commenced to row away?
- We rowed, I should say, a quarter of a mile away from the ship, and we remained there.
10077. Why did you remain?
- We stood by the ship, sir. We would not go right away from it. To tell you the truth, I did not think the ship would go down. I thought we might go back to her again afterwards.
10078. After she struck, the general impression, so far as the ship was concerned, was that she was not going to sink?
- I did not think so myself, sir.
10079. You remained, then, about a quarter of a mile away, and what happened?
- I heard a couple of explosions.
10080. You heard two?
- I heard two.
10081. How far apart were the two?
- I should say they would be about 20 minutes between each explosion. From the time I heard the first one until I heard the second one it would be about 20 minutes, sir.
10082. What did you assume from the explosions?
- That the water had gotten into the boiler room.
10083. Were you sufficiently near so that you could see the ship itself when you were about a quarter of mile away?
- Yes, sir; quite distinguish it.
10084. That is, the lights on the ship?
- Oh, yes; sir.
10085. Did the bow lights go out first?
- They started to go out from forward.
10086. Did quite a number of the lights in the bow, or forward, go out at the same time?
- Yes, sir.
10087. Or were they gradually going out?
- Gradually worked along, sir.
10088. From bow to stern?
- From bow to stern; yes, sir.
10089. Do you think the ship broke in two?
- Well, I could not say that, sir.
10090. There was nothing that gave you such an impression?
- No, sir.
10091. You were watching the ship all the time?
- Watching it settle down all the time; yes, sir.
10092. How long a period elapsed from the time the lights began to go out forward, and then aft, before all the lights went out? Two or three minutes or seconds?
- I should say three quarters of an hour.
10093. You would?
- Yes, sir; from the time they first started to go out.
10094. You were not familiar with the boiler rooms on the ship?
- No, sir; I never was in the boiler rooms at all.
10095. Did you hear any cries after the lights went out?
- Yes, sir; when the ship went down she seemed to come up on end.
10096. When she came up on end, the stern up in the air, was her keel visible? Did you see that?
- I could not say, sir, that I could see her keel.
10097. Were the lights still visible on the stern?
- No, sir; the lights were out.
10098. How, at that time in the morning, would it be possible for you to see that the stern was in the air and the bow down, at a distance of a quarter of a mile? It was just a black object, was it not?
- Yes, sir; just a black mass.
10099. What time, about, did you figure this was? Have you any idea?
- Well, I should say about 2 o'clock.
10100. But that would be a guess on your part, would it?
- Yes, sir; about 2 o'clock. I had no watch to see any time, so it would be only a rough guess.
10101. Then what did you do after the ship had sunk?
- It was spoken by one of the lady passengers to go back and see if there was anyone in the water we could pick up, but I never heard any more of it after that.
10102. And the boat was in charge of the master-at-arms?
- The master-at-arms had charge of the boat.
10103. Did this lady request you to go back?
- Yes, sir; she requested us to go back.
10104. What did he say?
- I did not hear; I was in the forepart of the boat.
10105. There were 50 people in the boat?
- Yes, sir.
10106. And you were rowing?
- Yes, sir.
10107. Did any of the ladies in the boat ask to help to row or take a trick at the oar?
- There was one, a stewardess.
10108. She tried to assist?
- She tried to assist.
10109. And she did?
- She did do so. I told her it was not necessary for her to do it, but she said she would like to do it to keep herself warm.
10110. Your boat was perfectly watertight?
- Oh, yes; no water in it at all, sir.
10111. Then you stood by until the Carpathia rescued you all?
- And we fancied we saw a light, sir, and we started to pull toward the light for a time, and then, after we had been pulling for it half an hour, we saw the Carpathia's side lights.
10112. Was it the Carpathia you thought you saw?
- Not in the first place.
10113. What was that?
- We did not know what became of that. When we saw the Carpathia, we turned to go back. I knew that was a steamboat of some kind, so we turned and made back towards the Carpathia. Of course, it turned out to be the Carpathia. We did not know at the time what ship it was, but I knew it was a steamboat of some kind.
10114. Were any of your people transferred from your boat after you lowered her, or taken from the water by you?
- Yes, sir; one fireman. There was one fireman found in the boat after we got clear. I do not know how he come there.
10115. Was he taken out of the water?
- No, sir; I do not know how he come in the boat. He was transferred from another boat, I think it was No. 9, after we were pulling toward the Carpathia.
10116. Why was he transferred; to help row the other boat?
- Yes, sir; to help row the other. I believe that there was only one other able seaman in it.
10117. Do you know his name?
- The fireman's?
10118. Yes.
- No, sir; I do nost.
10119. What were your duties at sea?
- Keeping the ship clean; washing the paint work; scrubbing and keeping the deck clean.
Senator Bourne:
Thank you, Mr. Archer.
(Witness excused.)
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