Countdown to Disaster

The Last Days of the R.M.S. Titanic

Monday, April 8, 1912

 Monday, April 8th, 1912 was rainy and grey. Titanic remained warped in Berth 44 in Southampton's dock. On this day some 4,427 tons of coal was loaded aboard her, as well as a large amount of the foodstuffs. Seamen still packed the White Star's hiring halls to reserve a place as a crewman on the newest and largest ship built by White Star, or by any company for that matter. These men applied for positions as Able Seamen, Firemen, Trimmers, Stewards, and many other such tasks. A large group of Europeans from Luigi Gatti's restaurants in England came down to sign on Titanic to fill the spots needed to run Luigi Gatti's newest restaurant, the a'la Carte, which was aboard Titanic herself. Over the course of the day, hundreds of crewmembers were added to the ship. Names like Reginald Jones, Alfred Maytum, Thomas Barker, Cyril Ricks, Frank Prentice, Bertram Noss, Charles Joughin, Arthur May, his father A.W. May, were all added to the ship's roster. 34-year-old Joseph Scarrot joined Titanic's crew today as an Able Seaman:

 "I signed on the 'articles' as 'A.B.' [Able Seaman] on Monday, April 8th, 1912. The signing on seemed like a dream to me, and I could not believe I had done so, but the absence of my discharge book from my pocket convinced me. When I went to the docks that morning I had as much intention of applying for a job on the Big 'Un as we called her, as I had of going for a trip to the moon."

 Also, many fresh food supplies were loaded aboard today, including:

75,000 lbs. of Fresh Meat
11,000 lbs. of Fresh Fish
4,000 lbs. of Salted and Dried Fish
75,000 lbs. of Ham and Bacon
25,000 lbs. of Poultry and Game
2,500 lbs. of Sausage
40,000 lbs. of Fresh Eggs
2,200 lbs. of Coffee
1,120 lbs. of Jams and Marmalade
1,000 Sweetbreads
800 lbs. of Tea
10,000 lbs. of Rice, Dried Beans, etc.
10,000 lbs. of Sugar
200 barrels of Flour
10,000 lbs. of Cereals
36,000 (180 boxes of) Oranges
16,000 (50 boxes of) Lemons  

 Also:  

25 cases of Biscuits
1,750 quarts of Ice Cream
1,196 bags of Potatoes
6 cases of Confectionery
22 cases of Mushrooms
3 cases of Tea
10 cases of Mixed Vegetables
225 cases of Mustard
8,000 cigars  

 And to drink:

20,000 bottles of Beer and Stout
1,500 bottles of Wine
15,000 bottles of Mineral Waters
850 bottles of Spirits  

 The meat and produce was put into large refrigerators on G-Deck. Officers Murdoch and Lightoller supervised the taking of this food down to where it was to be placed. The Refrigerators were to be watched over and tended by Extra Assistant 4th Engineer Thomas Hulman Kemp.

 Last minute details were overseen by Titanic's designer Thomas Andrews, who made another of his routine inspections of the ship at 6:30 p.m. before returning to the Harland & Wolff office to prepare for the coming voyage. Andrews tireless wandered the ship in the last two days before the voyage, followed by his secretary Thomas Hamilton. Andrews inspected every bit of the ship, and was busy noticing what definantly had to be changed before the next trip. There were too many screws, for example, in stateroom hat hooks. The restaurant galley hot press wasn't working correctly, either. It would definantly have to be replaced before the next voyage.

Countdown to Disaster has been prepared for ACT I by Titanic Researcher Addison Hart of DeKalb, Illinois.

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