5/11/2023 0 Comments DEAD WAKE by Erik Larson![]() ![]() In accord with Cunard's practice of rotating captains from ship to ship, this was his third stint as the Lusitania's master, his first in wartime. ![]() He had blue eyes and a kind and gentle smile, and his graying hair - he was fifty-eight years old - conveyed wisdom and experience, as did the mere fact of his being a Cunard captain. With the physique of a bank safe, he was the embodiment of quiet strength. It was Turner's intention, however, to provide reassurance. His presence had the perverse effect of affirming everything the passengers had been fearing since their departure from New York, in the way that a priest's arrival tends to undermine the cheery smile of a nurse. There was already a good deal of tension in the room, despite the singing and piano playing and clumsy magic tricks, and this became more pronounced when Turner stepped forward at intermission. Ordinarily Turner avoided events of this kind aboard ship, because he disliked the social obligations of captaincy, but tonight was no ordinary night, and he had news to convey. ![]() The room was large and warm, paneled in mahogany and carpeted in green and yellow, with two fourteen-foot-tall fireplaces in the front and rear walls. ![]() William Thomas Turner left the bridge and made his way to the first-class lounge, where passengers were taking part in a concert and talent show, a customary feature of Cunard crossings. On the night of May 6, 1915, as his ship approached the coast of Ireland, Capt. ![]()
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