Moody wrote to his sister Margaret from Belfast, and his letter captures not only some sense of how he viewed Titanic and his colleagues, but also gives an impression of his bright, quick sense of humor.
The size of the ship was somewhat daunting- "have been here a week, chiefly occupied trying to find my way about the big omnibus." Of his new captain, Edward "E.J." Smith, he observed, "Though I believe he's an awful stickler for discipline, he's popular with everybody". There was also a foray into company gossip as he referred to the appointment of Captain Haddock to Olympic and Captain Smith's impending retirement: "'Daddy Haddock' is going to the Olympic until old 'E.J.' retires on his old age pension from the Titanic..."
The Titanic had drawn many of her crew members from her sister ship, Olympic, and Oceanic. Among them were Moody's fellow Oceanic crew mates First Officer Charles Lightoller, Third Officer Herbert Pitman and wireless operator John "Jack" Phillips, as well as his good friend Second Officer David Blair. His spirits were further buoyed by the fact that he now had his own cabin although, as he observed to his sister, it was approximately the size of a cupboard. |
 |
After a day's delay due to bad weather, Titanic's sea trials commenced in Belfast Lough on April 2. Moody and Murdoch played a role in the "stopping test", conducted after lunch. A buoy was dropped, which the ship then approached at full speed while the Chief and Sixth Officers observed it with their sextants. Titanic took approximately 850 yards to come to a complete stop. |
| Having passed her trials without problems and being certified seaworthy, Titanic departed for her new home port, Southampton, and arrived about midnight. Little over a week remained before sailing day, and the officers and crew worked to prepare her for her maiden voyage as the artists and decorators worked to complete her lavishly furnished interiors- David Blair's daughter would remember her aunt's visit to Titanic at Southampton, where "the ship was a hive of activity with carpets still being laid and decorators busy until the last moment"
Just before sailing day a major shakeup occurred in the bridge hierarchy. For reasons that are still not entirely clear, Henry Tingle Wilde was brought aboard as the new Chief Officer. In order to accommodate him, William Murdoch and Charles Lightoller were bumped down a rank. Former Second Officer David Blair left the ship altogether, writing to his sister: "This is a marvelous ship and I feel very disappointed I am not to make the first voyage". In the realm of pure speculation, one wonders if – had he made the voyage – Blair, during the evacuation of the stricken Titanic, might have ordered his young friend and colleague Moody away in command of a lifeboat.
All officers and crew not on watch already were aboard Titanic by midnight on April 9, and on April 10 the final preparations for departure began. The British Board of Trade's Immigration Officer, Captain Maurice Harvey Clarke, was aboard overseeing compliance with requirements of the Merchant Shipping Acts that would allow Titanic to pass certification as an immigrant ship. As part of this compliance check, he observed the manning and lowering of two lifeboats.
Lowe and Moody, each with a bo'sun and seven seamen, were lowered in starboard lifeboats No. 11 and No. 15. After being rowed around the dock the boats were hoisted back up and put in their davits.
We were lowered down in the boats with a boat's crew. The boats were manned and we rowed around a couple of turns, and then came back and were hoisted up and had breakfast and then went about our duties.
The drill commenced at approximately 9.00 am and was over by 9.30 am.
Moody was stationed at the aft gangway as the Titanic prepared for her noon departure. A late group of several stokers and trimmers who had been drinking at a public house arrived to find that the last gangway had already been detached. They argued with a White Star official on the dock side of the gangway, but Moody did not order the gangway reattached. Six standbys had been selected to replace the latecomers.
Moody would have one last chance to see his old ship, Oceanic. Titanic was delayed for an hour after a near miss with the liner New York, which had been pulled from her moorings by the suction of the giant ship's passing. New York had been moored alongside Oceanic. All three ships escaped damage, and Titanic resumed her voyage across the Channel to Cherbourg.
Gradually the officers and crew became accustomed to working with each other and this behemoth liner. The junior officers worked grueling watches of four hours on, four hours off, with one two hour dog watch. In addition to the senior officer of the watch, Moody worked with fellow junior Fourth Officer Boxhall. Boxhall came from Hull, not too distant from Grimsby and, as Moody had family connections in Hull, it is possible the two found common ground for casual conversation.
As well as generally assisting the more senior officers - work that might entail navigational calculations, working on the slip table, etc - the Sixth Officer took the engine revolution reports from the engine room and reports on air and water temperature which he duly logged.
On the evening of April 14, Moody relieved a very tired Fifth Officer Lowe at 8.00 pm. Coming on duty at the same time was Fourth Officer Boxhall. The Officer of the Watch at that time was Charles Lightoller. Behind the ship's wheel was Quartermaster Oliver, who was soon to be relieved by Quartermaster Hichens.
Knowing from the telegrams that had been received that they were approaching an ice-infested region, Lightoller asked Moody to "let me know at what time we should reach the vicinity of the ice". Moody made some calculations and reported "about 11 o'clock".
Lightoller ran the figures in his head, and came up with an alternate time of 9.30 pm. He later suggested that rather than having made a mistake, Moody had probably made his calculations from a different Marconigram [radio message], of which Lightoller was unaware - "I have come to the conclusion that Mr Moody did not take the same Marconigram which Captain Smith had shown me on the bridge because on running it up just mentally, I came to the conclusion that we should be to the ice before 11 o'clock, by the Marconigram that I saw." When later asked why he had not sought to clarify the discrepancy, he responded: As far as I remember he was busy – what on, I cannot recollect, and I thought I would not bother him just at that time. He was busy with some calculations, probably stellar calculations or bearings...."
At approximately 9.30 p.m. Hichens "heard the Second Officer repeat to Mr. Moody, the Sixth Officer, to speak through the telephone, warning the lookout men in the crow's nest to keep a sharp lookout for small ice until daylight and pass the word along to the other lookout men." Lightoller himself clearly remembered the exchange: I told Mr. Moody to ring up the crow's nest and tell the look-outs to keep a sharp look out for ice, particularly small ice and growlers. Mr. Moody rang them up and I could hear quite distinctly what he was saying. He said "Keep a sharp look out for ice, particularly small ice," or something like that, and I told him, I think, to ring up again and tell them to keep a sharp look out for ice particularly small ice and growlers. And he rang up the second time and gave the message correctly.
Lightoller finished his shift at 10.00 p.m., and First Officer Murdoch took over as Officer of the Watch. Boxhall, the only officer on duty at the time of the collision to survive, would later be questioned as to how fast Titanic was going on April 14: I have no immediate recollections of what the revolutions were at 8 o'clock. I do not remember them. As a matter of fact I never received them. The Sixth Officer, when we were on watch, generally took them from the telephone.
Best estimates place the liner's speed in the vicinity of 22 knots, possibly more. She was steaming towards a known icefield.
At 11.40 p.m., with only 20 minutes left before his watch finished, Moody was probably looking forward to returning to his small cabin and escaping the bitter cold. Lightoller had ordered the heat turned on in the officers' quarters, so at the very least Moody had a warm berth to look forward to before his next watch began at 4.00 am. In the meantime, he was stationed in the wheelhouse, standing just behind and to the left of Hichens at the wheel. Boxhall had briefly left the bridge, and Murdoch had stationed himself out in the cold night air on the bridgewing.
Three bells rang out from the crows nest, indicating an object directly ahead. Moody turned around to the telephones mounted on the wall behind him as the one connecting the bridge to the crows nest rang. Lookout Fred Fleet would recall that he received an answer from Moody "straight away". Hearing the receiver picked up, Fleet asked "Are you there?" Moody responded "Yes. What do you see?" "Iceberg right ahead"
Part I Main Page |
