Titanic Deception by Joe Loesch pt4 "Reckless Driving"
The collision between the Olympic and HMS Hawk was not an isolated incident for Captain Smith. He had a rather unfavorable professional record, being known for his show-off behavior and reckless handling of ships, often causing damage. The series of three incidents involving the Olympic, which likely caused permanent damage to the vessel, put Captain Smith in a precarious position with his employers.
He may have been summoned by J. Bruce Ismay, the chairman of the White Star Line, once it became apparent that the Olympic was beyond repair. Such a meeting would have had severe consequences for Captain Smith.
During Titanic's maiden voyage, Britain was in the midst of a coal strike, resulting in a scarcity of fuel. Ships were laid up in Southampton. Despite this, the White Star Line had difficulty finding firemen and greasers to work below decks on the Titanic. After sailing from Belfast to Southampton, all but two of the firemen on board refused to sign up again for the Atlantic voyage, opting to wait for employment on another ship.
It’s intriguing that these men, amid a coal strike with thousands of unemployed people, turned down work on the Titanic. What did they know? Additionally, Chief Officer Wilde, who would tragically lose his life three nights later, wrote a letter to his sister expressing his unease with the ship, stating, "I still don't like this ship." This statement is quite peculiar for a man who had just stepped foot on board the day before unless he suspected that he was actually on his previous ship, the Olympic.