Question

read the passage and answer the question that follows.
the peculiar way in which the titanic is described as hesitating and assuming a vertical position before her final dive to the depths below can be accounted for only on this hypothesis of the sliding of the boilers from their beds. a second - cabin passenger has written an excellent book about the titanic disaster, dwelling especially upon the lessons to be learned from it. his account given to the newspapers contains an actual graphic description from the viewpoint of those in the lifeboats of how the great ship looked before her final plunge. he writes, when the oarsmen lay on their oars and all in the lifeboat were motionless, as we watched the ship in absolute silence - save only the wash of the water - we saw her astern of amidships until she attained a vertical upright position, and there she remained - motionless! as she tilted slightly up, revolving apparently about a center of gravity just astern of amidships, there came a single flash and then went out altogether, and as they did so we heard a noise which many people, wrongly, i think, have described as an explosion. it has always seemed to me that it was nothing but the engines and machinery coming loose from their place and bearings and falling through the compartments, smashing everything in their way. it was partly a roar, partly a groan, partly a rattle and partly a smash, and it was not a sudden roar as an explosion would be, it went on successively for some seconds, probably fifteen or twenty, as the heavy machinery dropped down to the bottom of the ship, i suppose it fell through the end and sank first before the ship.
the central idea of this passage is that the sinking of the titanic sank slowly, loudly, and in an upright position. which item from the passage does not support this central idea?
a second - cabin passenger has written an excellent book about the titanic disaster, dwelling especially upon the lessons to be learned from it. the peculiar way in which the titanic is described as hesitating and assuming a vertical position before her final dive to the depths below can be accounted for only on this hypothesis of the sliding of the boilers from their beds.
as we gazed awe - struck, she tilted slightly up, revolving apparently about a center of gravity just astern of amidships until she attained a vertical upright position, and there she remained - motionless! it was partly a roar, partly a groan, partly a rattle and partly a smash, and it was not a sudden roar as an explosion would be.
it was partly a roar, partly a groan, partly a rattle and partly a smash, and it was not a sudden roar as an explosion would be.
the peculiar way in which the titanic is described as hesitating and assuming a vertical position before her final dive to the depths below can be accounted for only on this hypothesis of the sliding of the boilers from their beds.

Explanation:

The passage describes the Titanic's sinking as slow, noisy, and in an upright position. Option B mentions the ship tilting up, revolving to an upright position and remaining motionless, and also describes the noise as a mix of different sounds rather than a sudden roar, which supports the central idea.

Answer:

B. As we gazed awe - struck, she tilted slightly up, revolving apparently about a center of gravity just astern of amidships until she attained a vertical upright position, and there she remained - motionless! It was partly a roar, partly a groan, partly a rattle and partly a smash, and it was not a sudden roar as an explosion would be.