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Dahl related
his account to T. P. Shaver on the train, after which
Shaver phrased the story in (apparently) Dahl’s own
words. [On Board RMS Titanic page 258]:
“One officer and two sailors
were putting out the boats. Just after getting into
the boat, I heard a terrible scream beneath us. I
looked over the edge of ours and saw that there was
a lifeboat of women and children that had not yet
been cleared. Had our boat been lowered instantly it
would have swamped theirs. They saw their danger,
hence this scream. I reached over and got hold of
the stern of the lower boat and kept it clear of
ours, then we were lowered down. We had hard work to
get the tackle off our boat, as we could not get the
lever to work. I got a knife and cut away the ropes,
thus getting clear of the ship. There were 82 people
in our lifeboat, number 15. Seven were children,
eight women and the rest men.”
Dahl interview, Ward County Independent, May
2, 1912:
"I remained at the starboard
side until the last boat, well filled, was going
down the side of the ship. When it was 30 feet down
it stopped because there was another boat below that
had not gotten out of the way. I asked the officer
if he would have any objections to my getting in and
he told me to keep out. He said the boat was too far
down. I told him that if he'd give me permission to
get in I'd do so, and he said it was okay for me to
try, I knew that would be my last chance. I grabbed
one of the ropes and getting my leg around it, slid
down to the boat, which already contained
[illegible] people, mostly men, as the women had all
been cared for. I will admit that the boat was
pretty full. But there was room for me. One of the
fellows wanted to chuck me out, but I told him I had
permission from the officer, and they let me remain.
The boat below us was
having trouble, as they did not know how to unfasten
the ropes. The women below us were afraid our boat
was coming right down on top of theirs, and I never
heard such screaming in all my life. We kept
lowering and finally when we were close to their
boat I asked for a knife and being handed one, cut
the rope of their boat and it floated safely away."
If is very clear
that Dahl was in #15.
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