 Last Days of the Titanic
Photographs and Mementos of the Tragic Maiden
Voyage
Edward Eugene O'Donnell, Frank Browne, Francis Browne
On the cover of The Last Days of the Titanic, Captain Smith peers
at a lifeboat far below with a portentously worry-furrowed expression
(there's a blow-up of the photo inside). The photo, which captures the
man's soul, was taken at the start of the Titanic's trip by Francis
Browne, a priest who got a ticket for the first couple days'
voyage--before the Atlantic crossing--as a present from his uncle.
This book boasts several photos of unique interest, including the only
known clear shot of the part of the ship that remains almost intact today,
the forecastle, which hit bottom first. It's also got some human interest:
Browne, who died in 1960, almost missed the chance to win the Croix de
Guerre for war heroism, save souls, and make art all his life, because of
the kindness of an American millionaire couple he met at dinner on the Titanic.
They liked Browne so much they offered to pay his way to New York. He
wired his Jesuit superior, who wired back, "GET OFF THAT SHIP." |
