Another Theory Why the Titantic Hit the Iceburb

[Ken Scharabok]

http://www.aolnews.com/world/article..._lnk3%7C172156

I find this plausabile. I sent a bit over three years in the Navy and came out conufsed as to starboard or port. These were intended as stear towards the land vis stear towards the open seas, which were alternate as the direction you are going.

I could only remember starboard and right has 8/5 numbers while port had 4/4 numbers.

[Jean in Virginia]

Port and left both have 4 letters, that's how I remember it.

[RWBlue01]

Port has more alcohol in it and ....never mind. :-)

I think the ship had too many issues. If it wasn't for one thing, it would have been another.

[foxtrapper]

Amusing story, but ships have been steered with wheels for centuries, not tillers. The story will not stand up to snopes.

There might have been confusion. A helmsman may well have steered it into the berg. But it has nothing to do with tillers.

[FarmboyBill]

Thats what I dont understand. WHY would they change the direction a ship turns just because it went from being wood and sail, to being steam.
Steam ships had been normal since the Civil War, and became more so after up to the end of the 19th Century. Sails were only used as an axuliary, or for emergency, and by 1900 There likely wasnt a steam ship WITH sales one out of a hundred. Surely by 1912, or by 1910 when they started building it they would have had the steering issues long since worked out, and there wouldnt have been a steersman still alive who had worked on a ship that had steered differently.

Why would they do it in the first place, no matter what kind of ship it was on. That would be like changeing the steering on cars opposite of what its been for 100yrs, and just before you drive off the lot they tell you, (O and by the way, The steerring is the reverse on YOUR car as on any other makes) Wouldnt that be neat.??

Lastly. If you had the biggest ship in the world, and it had just hit an iceburg big enough to shower the top deck with chunks of ice, Would you order to keep going forward??? I dont think I would. Id be for backing off a mile, inspecting the damage, and accessing it, radioing for the Californian to get its mast over to me, seeing if the bulk heads were holding, and the pumps working, Seeing if the ship was still makeing steam, and if so, if it could make port. OR do u think the representative of the company knew he was screwed, and would be fired when and if they made port, so he said , Full Steam Ahead with the idea of going down with it. People did funny things back then, The Captain, I think even went down with it.

[FarmboyBill]

Another thing. The article said thewy didnt want to disgrace her grandad as he later became a hero in the war. #1 What did her grandad have to do with the sinking? He was #2 as I understood it, and off duty.
#3. The war hadnt happened yet, and the naval battle that supposedly made him a hero happened in 1915 or 16, The Battle of Jutland. The Looking into the causes of the sinking would have long since been over. Blame would have long since been decided

[foxtrapper]

Originally Posted by FarmBoyBill

Thats what I dont understand. WHY would they change the direction a ship turns just because it went from being wood and sail, to being steam.

They didn't. That's part of the confusion and mistake by the daughter. She's mixed up the tiller steering of a summer camp type sailboat with wheel steered ships.

[jil101ca]

He was in his cabin therefore this knowledge is nothing more than hearsay, he said, they said.

[longshadowfarms]

It will provide plenty of publicity to help sell her new book.