WASHINGTON -- Louise Pope, who survived the sinking of the Titanic 73 years ago, said today if she could have anything from the ship she would want her bicycle.
But Pope, who lost two members of her family in the tragedy in which 1,513 people died, said the Titanic should not be salvaged.
Pope was interviewed on 'The CBS Morning News' program with Robert Ballard, a marine geologist with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts. Ballard headed the U.S.-French team that found the wreck of the 'unsinkable' luxury liner 13,000 feet at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean 500 miles south of Newfoundland.
Asked if she could have anything from the ship, Pope said, 'My bicylcle.'
Ballard said his research team has found no bicylcles, 'But, I wouldn't be surprised if we couldn't find them.'
Pope was emphatic about leaving the ship at the bottom of the ocean and not bring it up.
'What is there left?' she said. 'The only thing I always said they could bring the valuables up like the jewels and money, why, that would be fine.'
Ballard compared his discovery with 'finding a pyramid that has not had grave robbers go in and rob. That's the way I feel about it. I just think what a marvelous situation it would be if we could go back into Egypt and other historical sights and see all the artifacts and see everything in its right place and I just hope we can somehow rise above the way we have behaved in the past and preserve the Titanic.'
Pope also said more people could have been saved if the Titanic's lifeboats had been filled.
'If they would've filled the boats more, I think there would have been a lot more saved, but they were in such a rush that the boats were only filled halfway and in that way, of course, there were a lot more people drowned or they would have probably been saved,' Pope said.
Ballard said he did not expect the attention he has received since the Titanic was found.
'I wasn't really prpepared for what took place,' Ballard said. 'I knew the world would be interested and excited about finding the Titanic, but I did not expect this sort of reaction.'
