Morgan Robertson: "The Wreck of the Titan"
In the short novel "The Wreck of the Titan" by Morgan Robertson which was first published under the title "Futility" in 1898, the story of the sinking of the ship Titan, the largest vessel afloat, forms a framework to the story of John Rowland, a sailor, who survives the disaster after a long ordeal on an iceberg together with the daughter of his former love, Myra, whom he rescues. It also tells us of the former relationship between Rowland and Myra, and the reader can watch how the antipathy of Myra towards Rowland slowly changes to forgiveness.
The main character is Lieutenant John Rowland, a slight-built, black-bearded seaman of about 30 years of age. He is a disgraced and broken-down naval officer, who has now no higher post than an appointment as an ordinary seaman, as he is a drinker.
One day, Rowland signs on for the Titan. She has been built with the highest technology, and is steered by the best officers and crew in the world. She can stay afloat with nine of her 19 watertight compartments flooded, and is therefore proclaimed unsinkable.
On the third return trip from New York to Great Britain, Rowland meets the first-class passenger Myra Selfridge, a pretty young woman, who is his former girlfriend. She is shocked of the meeting, as she can no longer stand Rowland for he is a drinker and an atheist – she herself is a professing Christian.
One evening, Rowland is on the watch in the crow's nest, when the ship collides with a sailing ship which has been seen too late by the look-outs. As the Titan steams very fast, she cuts the sailing-boat in two. Nothing is done to rescue those aboard the small ship. After their watch is over, each member of the crew who has seen the collision is called to the captain who bribes them in order to prevent them from telling anyone about that incident. Rowland, however, does not accept the money, as he thinks that the steamer has been going at a reckless high speed. The captain therefore decides that he will discredit Rowland by getting him drunk.
On the next day, while Rowland is working on deck, a girl runs towards him and clings to him. He plays a little bit with her, and finally he holds her above the rail. Just in this moment, the mother arrives on the deck – it is Myra, his former love. She is furious, for she thinks that Rowland has wanted to kill her daughter who is, by the way, called Myra, too. Therefore, she and her husband, George, talk to the captain who promises to arrest Rowland. Nevertheless, Rowland just has to work out of sight of the passengers, because the captain thinks that a murder charge is not suitable for discrediting Rowland.
The same day, a seaman hired by the captain tries to numb Rowland by dropping a drug in his tea. However, Rowland cannot drink very much as he spills his tea by accident. Nevertheless, while he is working as a look-out on the starboard bridge the same night, the drugs begin to work, and Rowland starts having hallucinations.
Rowland is again "visited" by the young daughter of Myra, when suddenly the Titan collides with an iceberg. She slips onto the berg, rising out of the sea. Abruptly, she crashes down on her starboard side, and all the boilers, engines, and other heavy machines crash through her side, causing the water to flood in very quickly. Afterwards, the Titan moves back into the sea. Rowland finds himself lying on the iceberg together with the young Myra, amidst the remains of the bridge and the crushed starboard lifeboats. He realises that one of the port lifeboats is lowered, and soon after that, the Titan founders. As the two are not rescued by this lifeboat, Rowland and Myra seek protection under the remains of the bridge. Soon, they both fall asleep.
Meanwhile, the lifeboat is making for the Southern Lane which is usually used by the vessels at that time of the year in order to avoid icebergs. The only woman aboard is weeping and screaming for her husband and her child. In all, only 13 of the more than 3,000 aboard the Titan are rescued.
The next day, Rowland explores the iceberg a little bit closer. On his way back, he notices that a polar bear approaches the bridge where he has left Myra. The child is attacked by the bear, which gives it a blow with its massive paws. Then, Rowland attacks the animal with his pocket knife. Before managing to kill it, he is crippled by the bear for life: His left arm is crushed by a bite of its big jaws, and some of his ribs are broken. Afterwards, Rowland tries to nurse Myra and to ease his own pains.
The following three days, Rowland is in a state of delirium due to his injury and due to the whiskey which he has with him. Myra and Rowland eat the meat of the polar bear. When Rowland can finally think clearly again, he, the atheist, begins to pray for the rescue – not of himself, but of Myra and her mother. Just a few minutes after he has finished praying, a bark appears by which they are rescued.
In the meantime, a certain Mr. Meyer is completely desperate, as he is the heaviest insurer of the Titan and of the Royal Age which has perished, too. Then, he hears of Rowland who has, according to newspaper reports, stated that the Titan had run over a sailing ship before the night of the sinking, and his spirits are raised, for this might help him to escape his duties as an insurer.
Finally, two months after the sinking, Mr. Meyer organises a meeting in his office in London. Apart from him, Mr. Selfridge – the largest holder of Titan stock, and, at the same time, the father of George – is present. The captain, the First Officer of the Titan (who have both survived the disaster), as well as the attorney of the steamship company are invited, too. At last, Rowland arrives as well, accompanied by Captain Barry of the Peerless, the sailing ship which rescued Rowland and Myra. When Selfridge recognises Myra, he is very happy that his grandchild is safe, and he is therefore more interested in her than in the coming account. The story of the Royal Age, which was the ship the Titan had run over, is not accepted by the company's attorney, therefore Mr. Meyer claims that he will not pay the insurance due to the fact that there was a drunk look-out, Rowland, on the watch during the very night of the collision with the iceberg. Despite the fact that both the captain and the First Officer have previously claimed that Rowland had been drunk in order to discredit him, they now deny it. Then, Rowland claims that both the captain and the First Officer, who are both part owners of the ship, have committed an act which nullifies the insurance on that ship, namely having a drugged sailor on the look-out. Mr. Meyer is very enthusiastic about that remark. Finally, the captain even gives himself away while Rowland tells his story, and admits that Rowland has been drugged with hashish on his behalf. Mr. Meyer tells the captain and the First Officer that they may leave his office, nevertheless Scotland Yard will be on their traces within half an hour. The two men immediately take this opportunity to escape.
When Mr. Selfridge realises that the insurance will not be paid, and that he is on the verge of ruin for he has even to pay the insurance for the Royal Age, he has a heart attack, and dies a few minutes later. Now Rowland learns that Mr. Selfridge is ruined as the insurance is not paid, and refuses to testify in court, for he wants to assure that Myra (who has been rescued) and her daughter are provided for. Mr. Meyer has the door locked immediately, and tries to change Rowland's mind, but Rowland escapes with the help of Captain Barry who crushes the door.
Again with the help of the captain, Rowland obtains his last month's wage and two first-class tickets to New York which are offered to him by the steamship company as he has lost all his clothes and later his arm (which has been amputated) through the carelessness of the company's officers. Therefore, he travels to New York to reunite Myra and her mother. At the harbour, he is met by several reporters – his story has just been given to the press by Mr. Meyer. However, he refuses to give an interview.
Then, he proceeds to a shop where he has Myra dressed. Soon after he has left the shop, he is stopped by a policeman who thinks that Rowland kidnapped the child. Suddenly, the mother comes by, recognises Myra, snatches her, and finally faints. Her father, who is accompanying her, wants to make a charge in the name of his daughter against Rowland who is hence arrested for kidnapping young Myra.
On the next day, the court hearing takes place. Both Myra and her father testify that Rowland has stolen Myra aboard the Titan, and has tortured her – the scratches on Myra's back caused by the polar bear are still visible. After the judge has read the newspaper account about the story of Rowland, the sailor is dismissed.
During the following six months, John Rowland continuously works his way up the ladder. Step by step, he achieves better jobs, and he never touches a bottle of alcohol again.
Someday, he gets a letter from Myra who congratulates him for winning his fight for his old standards. As her daughter always asks for him, he is invited "to see – Myra."
The book was first published 14 years before the Titanic sank. In 1912 (after the Titanic disaster), the prophetic value was noticed, and a revised edition was published, though the changes concern, above all, punctuation and phrasing. It is true that there are a lot of similarities between the fictional Titan and the Titanic, nevertheless most of them are likely to be pure coincidences, still lots of people believe that Morgan Robertson foresaw the Titanic disaster.
The most obvious parallels are:
| Titanic | Titan | |
|---|---|---|
| Length | 882.5 feet | 800 feet |
| Gross Tonnage | 46,328 | 45,000 |
| Displacement | 66,000 tons |
45,000 tons 70,000 tons |
| Horse Power | 46,000 |
40,000 75,000 |
| Speed at time of collision | 22.5 knots | 25 knots |
| Point of collision | Starboard side | Starboard side |
| Time of collision | 11.40 p.m., April 14, 1912 | near midnight, in April |
- Both vessels were called the largest passenger ship ever built.
- Each was considered unsinkable because of its watertight compartments: 16 on the Titanic, 19 on the Titan.
- Both vessels could carry about 3,000 people.
- Both ships were all steel, with three propellers and two masts.
- Each carried far too few lifeboats: 20 on the Titanic, 24 on the Titan.
- Each was on the great circle connecting New York and England.
- Both steamers were owned by a British firm with headquarters in Liverpool and a branch office on Broadway in New York. The principal stock owners of both ships, however, were American.
- For further parallels, look at the figures on the right-hand side. If two figures are shown for the Titan, the first one is from the 1898 edition, whereas the second one is from the 1912 revision.
Still, these parallels can be explained: The author was a sailor himself and did know a lot about shipping. When writing his story in 1898, he thought of a huge vessel – much larger than any other vessel at that time, for he did not want his ship to be surpassed by others in the near future. So, lots of the specifications came close to those of the Titanic. Besides, he knew that the danger of icebergs – practically the only way by which a ship could sink during peacetime – was most imminent in springtime. This is why both vessels struck an iceberg in April.
However, even some discrepancies between the Titan and the Titanic can be noticed:
- The Titan was equipped with sails, the Titanic was not.
- The Titanic was making her maiden voyage from Britain to New York, whereas the Titan was on her third return trip to England.
- The Titanic struck the iceberg in a clear, moonless night, whereas the Titan collision occurred in moonlight and heavy fog.
- The collision itself took place in a different way: The iceberg only scratched the Titanic's starboard side while moving alongside, whereas the Titan slipped onto the berg, rising out of the sea.
- The toll at the Titan disaster was much higher than at the Titanic disaster: Of the more than 3,000 people aboard the Titan, only 13 survived, whereas about 700 of the Titanic's 2,200 passengers and crew were rescued.
- Finally, the story of John Rowland told by Morgan Robertson is, of course, purely fictional.
