Walter Hurst's Letter to Walter Lord

I was serving on Titanic as Engine Oiler or as what we British call, "Greaser." It was at 11:20 P.M. on the 14th when I was awakened by a grinding crash along the starboard side. No one was very much alarmed, but knew we had struck something. My father-in-law was in the same room. He ran up on deck and back at once with a large lump of ice, threw it in my bunk, and told me to get up as we had hit a berg.

At that moment, a messenger from the bridge told us to put on our warmest clothes anterin [and to run to] the Mess Room, and as a precaution, put on lifebelts. Later, we went to the Fore Well Deck. We were met by a quartermaster who told us not to come on [the] Boat Deck until later on. I could plainly see a ship's riding light away on the port side and our ship was sending up rockets, but got no reply.

We could see that they were lowering boats and I saw the first one away, No. 1 Starboard Boat, going into the water. There were PG in the stern at the tiller, 4 crew on the oars, and about 4 passengers.

So we all began to go up to the Boat Deck. My station was No. 13 Boat, but it was gone. There was a crowd around some other boats, but no one seemed to have got scared yet as they had great confidence in the ship.

I stood watching the band playing in the Smoke Room, some in blue uniforms and others in their white waiting jackets. Not knowing much about music, I could not identify the tunes, but it seemed something fine. [A] lady and two gents were by me and I heard them say, "She cannot possibly sink. She has too many air-tight compartments," and I advised one man to get her into a boat, if possible, as I could see the ship was sinking. I said, "If she can stay afloat till morning, we may be all right as the Marconi would get help," and that certainly cheered him up some.

All the boats were gone by now except No. 9, and there was a bit of trouble there – the Chief Officer was threatening someone and fired 2 revolver shots shouting, "Now will you get back." I was not near enough to see if anyone was shot. After No. 9 had left, the Chief Officer shouted, "Any crew here?" and about 7-8 stepped forward and he said, "Hurry men up there and put that boat adrift." It was a collapsible on top of [the] Smoke Room – we got it down to the deck, but could not overhaul [the] boats falls as they were hanging down shipside in water.

The ship's bow [was] now underwater. There was a group of officers in [the] corner of the Bridge and I never saw one move from there. [A] man just in front of me jumped overboard and I, without a thought, did the same. The ship's lights were still on from the emergency dynamo.

There came a terrible crashing of machinery falling forward, and one propeller fell off. The after funnel fell in the sea near me and I was half blinded by soot and water. [T]hen came the raft we had cut adrift – it fell within a dozen feet of me and some men were clinging to it. As I swam to it, there were terrible screams all round and one I plainly heard screaming, "Save one life." I've never forgotten that.

I saw the 2nd Officer get on to the raft and he at once took charge, cut away an oar that was lashed on, and told me to use it to try and get the raft clear before it got overcrowded, but I could do nothing about it. [T]here was one man quite near us – he had the voice of authority [and] kept cheering us with, "Good Boy. Good Lads." I reached the oar out to help him, but he was too far gone. As it touched him, he turned about like a cork and was silent.

There was a gent talking to the officer – I am sure he was a big shot – and he was complaining that his head was so cold. [A] man nearby offered them a drink from a flask but they declined and told him to give me a drink. I took the bottle, thought it was brandy, and took a good pull, but it was essence of peppermint – nearly choked me, but i am sure it did me good. The wireless man was on the raft. The officer asked what ships he had contacted. He said Caledonian and Carpathia would be on the spot at 4 A.M., which was when she [was] sighted. We began to shout, but the officer said, "She is four miles away. Save your breath."

On board Carpathia, Duff Gordon sent for his boat's crew and I saw [the] Five Pound Note he gave to each one. I took the liberty to tell one [of the crew] he would be sorry he had it.

I can state definitely [that] Captain Smith did not reach the raft, but I always had the idea he was the man that spoke to us in the water, but I could not be sure.

Home in Southampton, they gave us an exam to see what we knew about it all, and I have in front of me now a summons to appear at the Court of Wreck Commissioners at Westminster London, 3rd of May 1912. The White Star Line stopped new pay the day [the] ship sank, but gave us a small bonus – nothing for our loss of sea kit, and I am looking at my Pay Off Paper £2 .16. 0.

Had it not been for the generosity of The Seamen's Mission in New York, I would have come home half naked, as my clothes were put to dry in Carpathia's Engine Room and got lost.

Curator's note: This transcription is an excerpt from the full letter that is preserved in the archive of the collections of the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich. This transcription has been lightly edited for readability. Line breaks, punctuation, grammar, and capitalization have been adjusted to conform to modern conventions. These changes have been made solely to enhance clarity, and the original intent, tone, and content of the letter have been carefully preserved.