Journey
Six lifeboats had been successfully launched after the sinking. The larger ones, Lifeboats 1, 5, 6, 7 and 8 held 54, 54, 55, 57 and 55 people respectively, whilst the smaller Lifeboat 2 held 17 people. After assessing the situation, it was decided to attempt to reach the nearest land, St Helena, despite the danger of overshooting the small island and becoming lost. There were 189 people in six boats, each of which had a compass, but there was only one sextant among them. These, along with Master William Rogerson's Rolex watch, would be needed for navigation, and this would require the boats to remain together. The survivors hoped to reach St Helena within two or three weeks and water was rationed at 110 ml a day per person, despite the tropical heat. Over the next three weeks, most of the boats lost contact with each other, and numerous occupants died. Rogerson had hoped to prevent a fragmentation of the boats for as long as possible, but as the situation worsened he was compelled to allow one of the faster boats which was short of supplies and taking on water, to press on ahead. The boats also suffered damage, with rudders or masts being broken, causing some to lag behind. Eventually most of the boats had lost sight of each other and were proceeding alone.
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Famous quotes containing the word journey:
“Along the journey we commonly forget its goal. Almost every vocation is chosen and entered upon as a means to a purpose but is ultimately continued as a final purpose in itself. Forgetting our objectives is the most frequent stupidity in which we indulge ourselves.”
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)
“Jane Addams, founder of Hull House, once asked, “How shall we respond to the dreams of youth?” It is a dazzling and elegant question, a question that demands an answer—a range of answers, really, spiraling outward in widening circles.”
—William Ayers, U.S. author. To Teach: The Journey of a Teacher, ch. 7 (1993)
“Someday soon, we hope that all middle and high school will have required courses in child rearing for girls and boys to help prepare them for one of the most important and rewarding tasks of their adulthood: being a parent. Most of us become parents in our lifetime and it is not acceptable for young people to be steeped in ignorance or questionable folklore when they begin their critical journey as mothers and fathers.”
—James P. Comer (20th century)