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May, 1912 tween the fore and aft bunker bulkheads which are from 10 to 16 ft. in from the vessel's side and ex- tend in an unbroken line for 280 ft. Had the Titanic's hull been judiciously. subdivided in a fore and aft dit rection as well as transversely, she might be afloat today. This question of wing bulkheads will undoubt- edly be given careful consideration in the future de- sign of broad-beamed ships, but it must be borne in mind that there is a very large body of expert opinion opposed to longitudinal compartments on the ground that they would give a heavy list to a vessel and might even cause it to capsize. Suitable cross con- nections, however, might be a guard against this con- dition. There has been much hysteria in the papers regard- ing the lack of life saving equipment and at a confer-: ence of steamship owners, independent of govern- mental action, it was decided to arrange that life boats should be carried to accommodate every soul on board an ocean ship. The British Board of Trade, too, has been thoroughly awakened to the serious nature of its remissness of duty in not revising its regulations to meet the rapid advance in the size of ships. It is a dreadful pity that there were not more life boats on board the Titanic, though in fairness to the owners it should be stated that she carried more than the law required and quite as many as are car- ried on other ocean liners. The sea was providentially smooth and the boats, when launched, were in no danger from the elements. The fact must not be lost sight of, however, that the life boat is the last resort, and that the prospects of a life boat living in the seas usually prevailing on the North Atlantic are very slight. Moreover, it is doubtful whether a sufficient number of boats to carry a full complement of pas- sengers and crew could be launched much under five. or six hours, by which time relief might be expected from passing vessels through the wireless. Second Officer Lightoller's testimony was to the effect that the boat deck of the Titanic was 70 ft. above the sea when he launched his first life boat and that it was only 10 ft. above the sea when he launched the sixth; and in fact the ship sank while First Officer Murdock was struggling to release the last collapsible boat. In the time that she remained afloat the Titanic could probably not have launched a sufficient number of boats to accommodate all on board. It is not well to put an undue emphasis upon auxiliary life saving equipment. The real security of the passenger lies elsewhere, One thing, however, is certain, and that is that a closer regulation of the wireless is necessary. The instruments should be more powerful and operators should be on duty both day and night. A well reg- ulated and_ intelligent wireless constantly alert to catch the call for help is the life saver of first im- portance. We will not minimize the need of life boats; nor will we magnify it. It is well to have them on board and ways can undoubtedly be worked .out THE MARINE REVIEW from recollection. 167 for stowing them, but the lowering difficulty is a very serious one and a pronounced list may rob a vessel of half its boat accommodation at once. Then again the circumstances are not usual, but exceptional, when they are found to be of real value on the North At- lantic. It was most fortuitous that when the Florida rammed the Republic and the Titanic struck the ice- berg, the sea was quiet, but when the Cunard liner Pavonia broke down in mid-Atlantic and it became necessary to convey a rope to the tramp steamer that eventually towed her to the Azores, a crew of picked men could just keep their life boat afloat and were forced to abandon it on their return, being pulled aboard the Pavonia by ropes. The lesson of the Titanic, however, is one that never will be forgotten. In the annals of the sea it will survive when other disasters will have faded More than any other event, it will tend to make future navigation safe. Already steps have been taken to provide by international agreement what routes shall be traversed by steamers on the North Atlantic, what speed shall be maintained when dangers are known to exist, and what further provi-- sions in the way of auxiliary equipment, such as searchlights, may be necessary or desirable. The naval architect will attack with greater zest the problem of creating a ship that will withstand any ~ shock that it is possible to foresee and yet remain afloat until help may reasonably be expected. The builder, the navigator, and the government, will work to a common goal that never again shall a great ship with her burden of souls plunge to the bottom of the sea. oS Controlling Foreign Steamship Lines The house committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries has unanimously reported in favor of the Humphrey bill which seeks to. prevent ships identified with any foreign combination operating in violation of the Sherman anti-trust law from landing at Amer- ican ports. This measure was revised by Attorney General Wickersham at the suggestion of Mr. Hum- phrey and is favored by the administration. The bill is designed to give the United States government a means of enforcing the Sherman law in cases of foreign combinations and pools which are now dif- ficult to reach, because there is no way of enforcing penalties. The bill makes possible the sale of the vessel adjudged to have violated the Sherman anti-. trust law and prohibits it from entering at or clear- ing from any port of the United States under penalty of $25,000 for each violation. The report of the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries is a vigorous one, maintaining that over 90 per cent of the over-sea trade of the United States is carried by foreign ships that belong to rings, pools, conferences and combinations between which there is absolutely no competition.