First Hand - Edith Russell

Edith Louise Rosenbaum (Russell)

First-class passenger

View Bio

Peter West [Interviewer]:
And now let's take up the story from the survivors of the Titanic themselves. First of all, an American passenger, Miss Edith Russell, traveling First Class. Where were you just before it happened Miss Russell?

Edith Russell:
In the library. The Steward had just called out, "11:30. Lights out." So I gave him a few letters to post in the morning, told him I'd pay for the stamps, picked up a book, and walked forward to my stateroom, which was on the same deck, A-11. And as I got in my stateroom, I switched on the electric light and I noticed a slight jar, followed immediately by a second one, and a third one, which was quite strong enough to make me hold on to the bed post.

The boat came to a full stop. I walked forward to my window and saw a grayish white mass drifting by, very much surprised and decided to take my fur coat and go out on deck and see what it was all about.

Well, I got out on deck. I noticed a gentleman was standing by the rail and several people and a large, again, this grayish mass. I said, "What on Earth is that?" "That? Oh madam, that's an iceberg." "Iceberg? Gosh," I said, "I've always wanted to see one of those things since I was a child. "Well you're seeing a corker now. There's one eighth above the water and seven eighths below, and believe me, that's some iceberg."

So, after that, we picked up bits of ice, played snowballs for a little while, and it was very, very cold. I asked one of the officers, "Is there any danger?" He said, "No." And I went back to bed.

Peter West [Interviewer]:
As simple as that. No danger as far as you were concerned.

Edith Russell:
No danger.

[Other Survivors Interviewed]

Peter West [Interviewer]:
Let's ask Miss Russell to take up her story again and let's jump ahead in time. The last we heard from you Miss Russell, you were going to bed. You decided to go to bed. Now let's go forward to the time you when you were on deck and you asked Wareham, your steward, 1 to go and find your little pig, your mascot. Will you take it from there?

Edith Russell:
I was on A Deck in the Lounge when Wareham came along and I said to him, "Here Wareham are my trunk keys. Would you mind taking care of my trunks if I don't get back in time in the morning?" So he said, "You better go in and kiss those trunks goodbye." And I said, "You don't think there's any danger do you? If there is, why, you better go back and get my mascot."

My mascot was a little pig, a music box, had been given to me by my mother after a motor accident, fatal to everybody but me in France. So he brought the little pig back. It played the Matchiche. 2 And after that I was in the direct line of light with Bruce Ismay, who saw me and picked me up like a poppy and threw me down the steps. Well, I was wearing a sheath dress, very narrow skirt, a long fur coat, a woolen cap, some furs, evening slippers, and one thing or another, thin stockings, and I went forward to the rail, looked at that very, very high rail with the lifeboat swinging way out on its davits and I knew I never could make it, not with that skirt.

So as I stood there, hesitating, a sailor grabbed this little pig from under my arm and said, "Well if you don't want to be saved, we'll save your child." And he threw the pig into the lifeboat. Well, I stood there, hesitating, and as I said to a gentleman alongside, "Should I leave?" He said, "Definitely madam." Well, I said, "Can't make it." "So well now if you will just sit on my hand, this sailor and I will make a little cradle of our hands. You sit down, put your hand around my neck and we'll toss you right into the lifeboat." And they did.

First thing I did then was to hunt for the little pig. I found it at the bottom of the boat with its legs broken, but it still could play the Matchiche and I played it all night long to keep the children from crying.