THE PIRATE AS MURDERER.
"_The German is a hero born, and believes that he can hack and hew his
way through life._"[C]
HEINRICH V. TREITSCHKE.
In February, 1915, Germany declared a blockade of Great Britain and
Ireland. Her official declaration stated, amongst other things, that
from February 18th every hostile merchant ship found in the waters
around the British Isles would be destroyed, "even if it is not
always possible to avoid dangers which thereby threaten the crews and
passengers." Neutral ships were also warned that they would incur
danger in the "military area," because, according to Germany, the
British Government had issued orders as to the misuse of neutral flags
at sea. This accusation was false; no misuse of neutral flags has ever
been ordered by the British Government. Traffic northwards round the
Shetland Islands was graciously permitted by the Germans in their Note.
That Germany could enforce an effective blockade of the British Isles
was not to be expected, but the Berlin Press hailed the Imperial
Government's declaration with delight. The _Lokal-Anzeiger_, a
semi-official journal, exclaimed: "What do we care about the outcry
of others and the indignation of our enemies? We Germans have a
great lesson to learn from this war, namely, not to be fastidious
and not to listen to others." Both these lessons appear to have been
thoroughly mastered. In the _Kreuz-Zeitung_, the official organ of the
Conservative and Court parties, the following comment appeared: "It
appears that we shall now torpedo ships without previous warning. For
the first time we appear now to have decided on this relentless form of
warfare. We welcome with satisfaction the fact that our submarines will
wage the most ruthless and relentless war against all enemy shipping."
As the term "blockade" is liable to misinterpretation, we cannot do
better than quote the German definition of a blockade, as contained in
the German Naval Prize Regulations, Section V., Articles 58, 59, and 60.
"The blockade must be confined to the ports and coasts belonging to or
occupied by the enemy; the blockading forces must not bar access to
neutral ports or coasts.
"A blockade, in order to be valid, must be effective, applied
impartially, and declared and notified according to the rules concerned.
"A blockade is really effective when it is maintained by a force
sufficient to prevent access to the enemy coast. The question whether
a blockade is effective as to number and disposition of the blockading
forces under the existing geographical conditions must in every case be
examined by the Prize Court. Among other things, it will be denied if
maritime traffic could be maintained between one of the blockaded ports
and any port not blockaded."
The absurdity of the German declaration becomes clear in the light of
Germany's own official description of an effective blockade. It is now
over two years since she essayed to blockade the British Isles; but
never during the whole of that period has she been able to provide a
"force sufficient to prevent access to the enemy coast." Moreover,
during the same period maritime traffic has been "maintained between
blockaded and unblockaded ports." The whole affair quickly developed
into a series of piratical raids by submarines against the sea-borne
commerce of the world, carried out in a spirit of reckless brutality.
The German's utter disregard even for the rules laid down by his own
Admiralty horrified the world and destroyed the reputation and honour
of the German Navy. This can scarcely be considered surprising, when
we remember that the following are but a few examples of the German
submariner's methods.
On the 27th March, 1915, at about 5.30 p.m. the s.s. _Aguila_, when
signalled to stop by a submarine, put on full speed to escape. She was,
however, overhauled, the submarine approaching to within about 300
feet of her, and opening fire with shrapnel and solid shot. The chief
engineer was killed, and the master, third engineer, and a fireman
were wounded. At 6 p.m. the engines were stopped, and as way came off
the ship, the boats were lowered; but the submarine continued to fire,
killing the boatswain, donkeyman, stewardess, and a lady passenger,
and wounding others. One of the boats capsized, which brought the
total death-roll up to eight. The position was 33 miles from land. The
submarine offered no assistance, and went away after sinking the ship.
On the 28th March, 1915, the s.s. _Falaba_, of 4,806 tons, was
overhauled after a short chase by an enemy submarine about 60 miles
west of St. Ann's Head. The submarine hailed the ship through a
megaphone to "take to the boats, as they were going to sink the ship in
five minutes." This was at noon, and ten minutes later the submarine
fired a torpedo from a distance of about 100 yards. The _Falaba_ took a
list to starboard and sank in 8 minutes.
The steamer carried a crew of 95 and 147 passengers, including seven
women, a total of 242 persons; and it was quite impossible to transfer
this number of people to the boats in the twenty minutes that elapsed
between the submarine's warning and the sinking of the ship. While the
boats were being launched at top speed, the falls of one boat slipped,
the falls of another jammed, some boats were dashed against the side
of the ship, and one was seriously injured by the explosion of the
torpedo. The result was that 104 lives were lost, 138 being saved.
This heavy loss of life was quite unnecessary, and would never have
occurred if the German commander had allowed the master a reasonable
time in which to abandon ship. We are entitled to claim that the
sinking of the _Falaba_, carried out as it was, amounted to nothing
less than an act of murder. This is true, because the safety of the
U-boat did not depend upon the immediate sinking of the steamer, which
could have been destroyed just as effectually without the loss of a
single life.
On the 1st June, 1915, at about 4.30 p.m., the trawler _Victoria_
endeavoured to escape from a submarine; but after being badly damaged
and losing one of her crew by shell-fire, the vessel was hove to. The
submarine was only 200 yards away, but she continued to fire, killing
five men and wounding a sixth, although the trawler had surrendered.
The spirit of the German submariner is here illustrated. Because a
vessel, very naturally, tries to escape, she is submitted to shell-fire
after giving in, and unnecessary loss of life is inflicted. The German
commander apparently derived satisfaction from this shelling of an
unarmed craft while stationary, but to ordinary men his action will
seem inhuman and cruel.
At 2.15 p.m. on the 9th July, 1915, a shot was fired at the s.s.
_Meadowfield_ by a submarine. Immediately afterwards, while the master
was looking round to see from whence the shot had come, a second was
fired and the man at the wheel fell dead. The engines were stopped at
once, but the submarine kept on firing, hitting the vessel several
times. Amongst the passengers on board were two women and two children,
and when it was seen that the Germans were scrutinising the ship
through glasses, the children were held up so that they might be seen.
Meanwhile the boats were lowered, the mate and 14 hands getting into
the port boat, while the master, eight hands and the five passengers
entered the starboard boat. The position was 42 miles from land, and
the boats were picked up at 9.15 p.m. that night.
The fact that only one man was killed can hardly be attributed to the
humanity of the Germans, who continued to shell the ship after she was
hove to, and even when they knew that there were women and children on
board.
The s.s. _Glenby_ was overhauled by a submarine and told to abandon
ship at 4.15 p.m. on the 17th August, 1915. While the crew were
lowering their boats the submarine opened fire, seriously wounding one
man and slightly wounding another. The shots also damaged the port
life-boat, besides severing her falls. The crew in two boats were
picked up at 7.15 the same evening, when it was found that two men were
missing.
On the 4th September, 1915, at 12.30 a.m., the s.s. _Cymbeline_ came
under fire from a submarine, which torpedoed the steamer while her crew
of 37 hands were getting into their boats. The explosion destroyed one
boat, causing the loss of six men. The survivors were taken into the
other boat, which then contained 31 men, four of whom were seriously
wounded. They were afloat for 16 hours before they fell in with a
sailing vessel, which towed them to within three miles of the coast.
They did not reach land, however, until 11 o'clock next morning. The
position of the ship when torpedoed was 80 miles from land.
At 8.20 a.m. on the 30th November, 1915, the s.s. _Middleton_ was
shelled by a submarine while endeavouring to escape, one man being
killed and several dangerously wounded. The crew took to the boats.
The submarine ignored the boats, and returned no answer to an appeal
for bandages for the wounded. It was not until ten hours afterwards
that the boats were picked up, and in the meantime two of the wounded
men had died. Another man died on board the ship which picked them up.
There were three other wounded men, who survived.
On Wednesday, the 1st December, 1915, at 8.15 a.m., the s.s. _Clan
Macleod_ was shelled by a submarine while endeavouring to escape.
Soon after the ship was first hit the master stopped her, hoisted the
international code signal indicating that she surrendered, and blew
two blasts on his whistle. The submarine, however, again opened fire
at a range of about a quarter of a mile, first blowing the bridge
and captain's accommodation to bits, and then destroying the two
starboard boats. This fire killed eight of the crew. All hands were
now ordered into the port-side boats, the master taking charge of the
life-boat, with 50 on board, while the first mate took the cutter with
a crew of 20. After sinking the ship the submarine came alongside the
boat, and some of the Germans bound up the wounds of the master and
an apprentice. The position was 100 miles from land. The life-boat
was adrift until 5.30 p.m. on Thursday, the 2nd December, when she
was picked up by a steamer. The mate's boat was adrift until 2 a.m.
on Saturday, the 4th December, when she was picked up by a French
destroyer. In the meantime one of the wounded in this boat had died.
On the 2nd December, 1915, at 6.40 a.m., the s.s. _Commodore_ was
shelled by a submarine while endeavouring to escape. At 7 a.m. the
vessel was stopped, one man having been killed and another severely
wounded. While the crew were taking to the boats five more men were
wounded by shell fire, two of them severely. The submarine then came
alongside the boats and questioned the master. The Germans refused to
supply any lint for the wounded men, and told the boats to clear off.
The survivors were adrift for 28 hours before being picked up.
On the 9th December, 1915, at 4.20 p.m., the s.s. _Orteric_ sighted
a submarine and tried to escape. During the chase the fire of the
submarine destroyed the starboard life-boat, killed two men, and badly
wounded four others. The ship was then hit in the stern and would not
steer, so the master signalled that he was stopping. The submarine,
however, ignored his signal and continued firing. The crew got into
three boats, in charge of the first and second officers and chief
engineer, respectively. The master and two hands remained on board,
having the gig ready. The three boats were about half a mile astern
of the _Orteric_ when the submarine fired four shots at the chief
engineer's boat. All four shots missed the boat, but only by a narrow
margin. The survivors were picked up an hour and a half later.
At 1.35 p.m. on Christmas Day, 1915, the s.s. _Van Stirum_ was fired on
by two submarines and overhauled about an hour afterwards. At 2.32 p.m.
the vessel was stopped, most of the crew embarking in two life-boats.
The master, chief officer, chief engineer, and Marconi operator then
got into a boat on the port side, leaving the boatswain and a seaman
to lower away and follow them into the boat. One of the submarines was
on the port quarter 200 yards away, and as these two men were coming
down the falls, a torpedo was fired, which passed under the boat and
struck the ship's side. The explosion killed both men in the falls. The
position was 20 miles from land, and the survivors were picked up an
hour later by a trawler.
The sinking of these seven vessels was accompanied by unnecessary
loss of life. In the case of the _Glenby_ there was no reason for the
Germans to open fire before the crew had abandoned ship. Three men were
wounded and two lost, simply because the Germans would not allow them
time to enter their boats. No excuse can be advanced for the Germans.
Again, with regard to the _Cymbeline_, lives were lost because she
was torpedoed while her crew were taking to their boats. To destroy a
life-boat and kill six men was an act of wanton murder. The destruction
of the _Middleton_ provides a clearer example of German methods. When
asked for bandages, the submarine held to her course and ignored the
appeal. Three of the wounded men died, probably as a result of the
Germans' refusal to aid them.
Eight of the _Clan Macleod's_ crew were killed by German gun-fire
after the ship had been hove to. This loss of life was, of course,
unnecessary, and was deliberately caused by the Germans after the
signal of surrender had been run up. It is true that the submarine crew
bound up the wounds of the master and an apprentice; but why were the
wounds ever inflicted? Very similar was the fate of the _Commodore_,
which involved another cowardly attack upon men who were taking to
their boats. On this occasion the Germans deliberately refused lint for
the wounded, although the submarine came alongside the boats.
Even worse was the conduct of the submariners who attacked the
_Orteric_. They waited until her boats were half a mile astern of the
steamer, and then deliberately fired at the boat of the chief engineer.
It is idle for anyone to pretend that these shots were intended for the
ship; they were aimed at an open boat, and each one of the four shots
very nearly hit her. Only bad shooting prevented the murder of this
boat-load of defenceless seamen.
Finally, we have the sinking of the _Van Stirum_ on Christmas Day,
attended by the deliberate murder of two men. A torpedo was fired
under one of the ship's boats while two men were coming down the falls,
and the explosion killed them both. In a few more minutes these men
would have been safe, and those on board the submarine, which was
only 200 yards away, must have known this perfectly well. They would
not wait a couple of minutes, but preferred to murder the men in cold
blood. Here, as in other cases, the utter uselessness of the deed must
strike any unprejudiced mind. The U-boats' mission is to sink this or
that ship, but the U-boat commander appears to delight in adding murder
to his daily programme.
The French Channel packet _Sussex_ carried over 380 passengers,
including about 270 women and children and 20 Americans, when, at 4.35
p.m. on the 24th March, 1916, she was torpedoed without warning. There
were 50 casualties; but, although her bows were blown to pieces, the
vessel was towed inside Boulogne breakwater and beached.
The Germans tried to evade the responsibility for this outrage by
suggesting that the _Sussex_ had been sunk by a British mine. They
admitted sinking a ship at the time, and in the position where the
_Sussex_ was sunk, but declared that it was a war vessel which they
had torpedoed. That the German contentions were false was eventually
proved beyond doubt, as the following evidence will show.
The American Consul at Boulogne sent this message to the Secretary
of State, Washington: "_Sussex_ torpedoed by German submarine
incontestably proved by piece of torpedo found on board _Sussex_ by
Balincourt, French Commandant, le front de Mere, Boulogne."
On the 25th March, 1916, the Divisional Naval Transport officer at
Boulogne writes: "I personally inspected the _Sussex_ this morning,
and was shown by the French authorities pieces of the torpedo which
had been found in the ship, thus establishing the fact that she was
torpedoed."
The reckless and unscrupulous methods of the German were well
illustrated in the sinking of the _Sussex_. The U-boat commander
obviously took no pains to discover what kind of vessel he was going
to attack. He simply fired a torpedo and disappeared. Afterwards he
tried to shuffle off the responsibility for his deed by a number of
falsehoods. While admitting that he had destroyed a certain vessel at
a certain time, he declared that he believed her to have been a war
vessel of the _Arabis_ class. Stories founded on his statements were
freely circulated by the German Government; but they were effectively
answered by a British official reply in the following terms:--
1. There is no resemblance whatever between a vessel of the
_Arabis_ class and the _Sussex_, and it is quite impossible to
mistake one vessel for the other.
2. The Germans are condemned out of their own mouths by their
statement that the commander of the German submarine fired on some
vessel at a certain moment. Now that certain moment was precisely
the time at which the _Sussex_ was attacked.
3. The German submarine commander admitted that he had destroyed
the fore part of the vessel he attacked. No other ship but the
_Sussex_ suffered in this way.
It was unfortunate for the Germans that the _Sussex_, although so
badly damaged, could be towed in and beached. Had she sunk, the German
contention that her fate was due to a mine would have been more
difficult to refute. When, however, pieces of a torpedo were discovered
on board, the method of her destruction was proved beyond all doubt.
Meanwhile, on the 18th April, 1916, the United States sent a Note
to the German Imperial Government. The Note pointed out that--"The
_Sussex_ was never armed; she was a ship which, as is well known,
was regularly employed only for the transport of passengers across
the English Channel. She did not follow the route pursued by troop
transports or munition ships. About 80 passengers, non-combatants of
every age and both sexes, including citizens of the United States, were
killed or wounded." The outrageous methods of German submarine warfare
are so admirably exposed by the American Government in this official
communication that we cannot do better than reproduce certain of the
passages here.
"If the sinking of the _Sussex_ had been an isolated case," says
the Note, "that would enable the Government of the United States to
hope that the officer responsible for the deed arbitrarily exceeded
his instructions, or in criminal negligence failed to observe the
prescribed measures of precaution, and that satisfaction might be done
to justice by his appropriate punishment, associated with a formal
disavowal of his conduct and the payment of appropriate compensation by
the Imperial Government. But although the attack on the _Sussex_ was
evidently indefensible and caused so tragic a loss of human life that
it appears as one of the most terrible examples of the inhumanity of
the submarine warfare as waged by the commanders of German vessels, it
unhappily stands not alone."
After recalling former protests by the American Government and
Germany's unlawful attempt to close a part of the high seas, the Note
continues:--
"The international law, which here applies and upon which the United
States Government based its protest, is not of recent origin or based
on purely arbitrary principles established by agreement. On the
contrary, it rests on obvious principles of humanity, and has long been
in force, with the approval and the express assent of all civilised
nations. The Imperial Government insisted, notwithstanding, on
prosecuting the policy announced, while it expressed the hope that the
existing dangers, at least for neutral ships, would be restricted to a
minimum by instructions given to the commanders of its submarines, and
assured the United States Government that it would apply every possible
precaution to respect the rights of neutrals and protect the lives of
non-combatants.
"In pursuit of this policy of submarine warfare against its enemy's
trade, so announced and begun despite the solemn protest of the United
States Government, the Imperial Government's submarine commanders have
practised a procedure of such reckless destruction as made it more
and more clear during recent months that the Imperial Government has
found no way to impose upon them such restrictions as it had hoped and
promised. The Imperial Government has repeatedly and solemnly assured
the United States Government that passenger ships, at least, would
not be thus treated, and yet it has repeatedly allowed its submarine
commanders to disregard these assurances with impunity. Even in
February of this year it announced that it regarded armed merchantmen
in enemy possession as part of the armed naval forces of its
adversaries, and would treat them as warships, while it bound itself,
at least implicitly, to warn unarmed vessels and guarantee the lives of
their passengers and crews; but their submarine commanders have freely
disregarded even this restriction.
"Neutral ships, even neutral ships _en route_ from neutral port to
neutral port, have been destroyed, just as hostile ships, in steadily
increasing number. Attacked merchantmen have sometimes been warned and
challenged to surrender before being fired on or torpedoed, sometimes
the most scanty security has been granted to their passengers and
crews of being allowed to enter boats before the ship was sunk; but
repeatedly no warning has been given, and not even refuge in boats was
granted to passengers on board. Great ships like the _Lusitania_ and
the _Arabic_, and purely passenger ships like the _Sussex_, have been
attacked without any warning, often before they were aware they were in
the presence of an armed enemy ship, and the life of non-combatants,
passengers, and crews was indiscriminately destroyed in a manner which
the Government of the United States could only regard as wanton and
lacking every justification. Indeed, no sort of limit was set to the
further indiscriminate destruction of merchantmen of every kind and
nationality outside the waters which the Imperial Government has been
pleased to indicate as within the war zone. The list of Americans
who lost their lives on the vessels thus attacked and destroyed has
increased month by month, until the terrible number of the victims has
risen to hundreds."
The German reply to America was dated 4th May, 1916, and one or
two extracts will indicate its tone. After vigorously denying any
"deliberate method of indiscriminate destruction of vessels of all
sorts," the German Government states "that it has as far as possible
instituted a far-reaching restraint upon the use of the submarine
weapon solely in consideration of neutrals' interests, in spite of the
fact that these restrictions were necessarily of advantage to Germany's
enemies. No such consideration has ever been shown to neutrals by Great
Britain and her Allies."
This last sentence is very typical of the hardy impertinence of Berlin.
Later on in the Note, the German Government "notifies the Government of
the United States that the German Naval Forces receive the following
orders for submarine warfare in accordance with the general principles
of visit, search, and destruction of merchant vessels recognised by
international law. Such vessels, both within and without the area
declared as a naval war zone, shall not be sunk without warning, and
without saving human lives, unless the ship attempts to escape or offer
resistance."
On the 2nd April, 1916, the British s.s. _Simla_, while making 11
knots, was torpedoed without warning in the Mediterranean. The
explosion made a hole in her port side 30 feet by 8 feet in size, and
the engines stopped of themselves. This took place at 1 p.m. Boats
were lowered, and 150 of the crew embarked, the remaining 10, who were
Asiatic firemen, having been killed by the explosion. After the ship
had been abandoned a submarine appeared and fired seven shells into
her, sinking her at 2.30 p.m. The survivors were picked up by a French
patrol-boat at 5 p.m. on the same day.
The steamer _Zent_ was in ballast off the Fastnet when at 10.20 p.m. on
the 6th April, 1916, she was attacked by a submarine. She was struck
by a torpedo in the engine-room and immediately afterwards by another
in No. 3 hatch on the starboard side. She had been proceeding at 13½
knots, and sank in two minutes. Three boats were lowered but, owing to
the way on the ship, they capsized, and those who could clung to the
bottom of an upturned boat. Forty-nine men were drowned; eleven men and
two corpses were picked up 2½ hours later, two of the rescued being
slightly injured and taken to hospital.
The loss of life was due to the vessel being torpedoed without any
warning. If the Germans had allowed even a short period of grace, it is
probable that there would have been no casualties. To sink a ship while
proceeding at full speed is equivalent to murder, and, as in other
similar cases, this was unnecessary murder.
The British steamer _Whitgift_ was torpedoed and sunk on the 20th
April, 1916, but there are no details about the occurrence, as the
whole of her crew, except one Japanese, were drowned. This survivor was
taken prisoner by the Germans. The only particulars about the sinking
of the ship are contained in a letter which he wrote:--
"I am now in Lager Holzminden Barrack 4. On the 20 April our schip
has been torpedoed by a German U-boot and only I have been saved by
the German U-boot and now I am prisoner."
The Great Eastern Railway Company's steamer _Brussels_, while on voyage
from the Hook of Holland to Tilbury, was captured by the Germans in the
early morning of the 23rd of June and taken into Zeebrugge. The master
of the vessel was Captain Charles Fryatt. On the 29th of July the text
of a German official announcement appeared in the _Times_:--
"On Thursday, at Bruges, before the Court-Martial of the Marine
Corps, the trial took place of Captain Charles Fryatt, of the
British steamer _Brussels_, which was brought in as a prize.
"The accused was condemned to death because, although he was not a
member of a combatant force, he made an attempt on the afternoon of
28th March, 1915, to ram the German submarine U33 near the Maas
Lightship. The accused, as well as the first officer and the chief
engineer of the steamer, received at the time from the British
Admiralty a gold watch, as a reward for his brave conduct on that
occasion, and his action was mentioned with praise in the House of
Commons.
"On the occasion in question, disregarding the U-boat's signal to
stop and show his national flag he turned at a critical moment at
high speed on the submarine, which escaped the steamer by a few
metres only, by immediately diving. He confessed that in so doing
he had acted in accordance with the instructions of the Admiralty.
The sentence was confirmed yesterday (Thursday) afternoon and
carried out by shooting.
"One of the many nefarious _franc-tireur_ proceedings of the
British merchant marine against our war vessels has thus found a
belated, but merited, expiation."
Even in face of the German official announcement quoted, the British
Government were unwilling to believe that the murder of Captain
Fryatt had indeed taken place. The Foreign Office communicated with
the American Ambassador at Berlin, asking that the facts of the case
might be ascertained. This communication stated that "His Majesty's
Government find it difficult to believe that a master of a merchant
vessel who, after German submarines adopted the practice of sinking
merchant vessels without warning and without regard for the lives
of passengers or crew, took a step which appeared to afford the only
chance of saving not only his vessel, but the lives of all on board,
can have been deliberately shot in cold blood for this action. If the
German Government have in fact perpetrated such a crime in the case
of a British subject held prisoner by them, it is evident that a most
serious condition of affairs has arisen."
The murder was referred to in the House of Commons and reported in the
_Times_ of the 1st August, 1916. In reply to a question by Sir Edward
Carson, Mr. Asquith made the following reply:--
"I deeply regret to say that it appears to be true that Captain
Fryatt has been murdered by the Germans. His Majesty's Government
have heard with the utmost indignation of this atrocious crime
against the law of nations and the usages of war. Coming as it does
contemporaneously with the lawless cruelties to the population of
Lille and other occupied districts of France, it shows that the
German High Command have, under the stress of military defeat,
renewed their policy of terrorism.
"It is impossible to guess to what further atrocities they may
proceed. His Majesty's Government, therefore, desire to repeat
emphatically that they are resolved that such crimes shall not, if
they can help it, go unpunished. When the time arrives they are
determined to bring to justice the criminals, whoever they may
be, and whatever their station. In such cases as this the man who
authorises the system under which such crimes are committed may
well be the most guilty of all."
The circumstances connected with Captain Fryatt's death are not
disputed by either side; everyone can, therefore, form his own opinion
about the case. It is as well to remember, however, that Germany
declared a blockade of the British Isles in February, 1915, a month
before Captain Fryatt encountered the U33, and that the U-boat pirates
were employing methods of "frightfulness" in March, 1915.
The captain was perfectly justified in believing that the U33 would
sink his ship without giving those aboard her time to enter their
boats. He acted as any man of spirit would have acted in similar
circumstances, and the German defence of his murder breaks down when
we recall the conduct of the U-boat commanders at that time. On the
very day when Captain Fryatt met the U33 another German submarine was
sinking the s.s. _Falaba_, without giving the passengers or crew time
to abandon ship. The _Falaba_, it will be remembered, sank in eight
minutes, with a loss of 104 lives. Was not Captain Fryatt justified in
saving his crew from the chances of a similar fate?
On the 21st September the s.s. _Curamalan_ proceeded to sea. She
had been in the service of the Argentine Republic for twenty years,
and could not, therefore, be classed as a ship transferred for use
during the war. Her owners were subjects of the Republic, and she was
chartered by the Argentine Whaling Company to carry coal from Newport
(Wales) to South Georgia. Such vessels are in the habit of speaking St.
Vincent, Cape Verde, _en route_, but the _Curamalan_ did not do so. She
has been missing "without trace" since the date of her sailing, and
it has been presumed by the authorities that she was sunk in European
waters.
It will be remembered that while Argentina was in controversy with the
German Government about the destruction of her ships by submarines,
Count Luxburg, the German _Chargé d'Affaires_ in Buenos Ayres, was
sending home, by way of the Swedish Foreign Office, recommendations
that certain vessels should be sunk "without a trace." That was in
July, 1917, but the total loss of the _Curamalan_ and her crew of 29
suggests the suspicion that this policy of sinking "without a trace"
dates a good deal further back.
The British steamship _North Wales_ left Hull bound for Canada on
the 20th October 1916, and on the 10th November the Canadian naval
authorities reported her as overdue. On the 9th November the German
Wireless Press gave the name of this vessel in their list of torpedoed
ships, so that, although details are lacking, her fate is fairly
certain. She was sunk almost without trace. One piece of varnished wood
marked "_North Wales_" was washed ashore in Sennen Cove, and one or two
bodies reached the Cornish coast. That is all. If her crew had time to
take to their boats, after being torpedoed, they were probably drowned,
as violent gales were raging at the time.
The British s.s. _Cabotia_ carried a crew of 74. She was on voyage from
Montreal to Liverpool, and had encountered bad weather most of the way.
On the morning of the 20th October there was a strong gale blowing
from the S.W. and a heavy sea running. At about 12.20 p.m. a German
submarine was sighted on the starboard bow and at once opened fire with
her forward gun. Her first shot struck the steamer about amidships on
the starboard side, but the master turned her stern to the submarine
and put on full speed. The U-boat continued firing at the rate of a
shot every five minutes, and out of seven shots she obtained four hits.
The steamer's boats were now swung out, though all hands realised that
probably they would not live long in such a sea. The submarine kept
trying to get on the _Cabotia's_ quarter, but she was kept well astern.
However, she continued to gain on the steamship, and by 2 p.m. was
close astern. The engines were stopped, four boats were lowered, manned
and got clear of the steamer without mishap. Of these boats, Nos. 1 and
2 were in charge of the master and third officer, respectively, while
the second officer took No. 3 boat and the chief officer No. 4.
The submarine, after again shelling the _Cabotia_, went alongside
another steamer which now approached. The boats proceeded in the same
direction, hoping to be picked up; but the steamer, after communicating
with the U-boat, blew two blasts on her whistle, apparently saluting
the submarine, and steamed away. The third and fourth boats, carrying
42 men altogether, were picked up by a patrol boat; but the other two
boats were never seen again, 32 lives being lost.
It goes without saying that the submarine commander could have saved
every one of these lives, had he told the steamer whom he closed to
pick up the _Cabotia's_ boats. Apart from this, it is the opinion of
the survivors that those on board the strange steamer saw their signals
of distress, shirts hoisted on oars, but deliberately ignored them.
About the fate of the British s.s. _Rappahannock_ there was some doubt
at the time of her disappearance, but it has since been established
that she was sunk on the 26th October, 1916. In November the Admiralty
received a message from the owners of the vessel to the effect that
information had been received by them from Captain Cuvellier, of the
Belgian Marine Department, that an inquest had been held at Porranporth
on a body washed ashore on the 8th November. This was the body of a
donkeyman named Theakins, one of the crew of the _Rappahannock_. Then
came news from the s.s. _Corinthian_, who reported that on the 9th
November she found a quantity of deals, wood pulp, and barrels of
apples afloat 60 miles west from the Scilly Islands. These articles
formed part of the _Rappahannock's_ cargo.
On the 27th January, 1917, Berlin published the following
announcement:--
"The English steamer _Rappahannock_ was forced to stop by a German
submarine on 26th October, 1916, following a pursuit of some length,
and sunk after the crew had been given ample time to leave the vessel.
The distance from the point of sinking to the Scillies was about
70 nautical miles, wind and sea were W.S.W. of the third strength.
The safety of the crew, who had entered the boats, appeared to the
commander of the submarine to be guaranteed, inasmuch as the life-boats
were in good condition and well equipped with sails and provisions, and
were able to reach land quickly and safely in view of the favourable
sailing wind, which pointed towards land, and the slight sea."
If the weather conditions had, indeed, been all that the German
commander here claims, it is fairly certain that most of the crew would
have reached land. As a matter of fact, not a single member of the
steamer's crew was ever seen alive again. The inevitable conclusion
is that the weather must have been unfavourable, and that the German
commander must have known what the fate of the crew would be.
On the 6th November, 1916, the British passenger steamship _Arabia_
was torpedoed in the Mediterranean without warning. She carried 437
passengers, of whom many were women and children, and a crew of 304.
The torpedo struck her in the engine-room at 11.22 a.m., the explosion
killing 11 men. The engines stopped at once, and the wireless was
rendered useless. There was no confusion on board, the last boat
leaving the ship at 11.37 a.m., and the only casualties were those
caused by the explosion.
The following message, addressed to Wolff's Telegraph Bureau,
Berlin, from a German in New York, was afterwards intercepted by the
Admiralty:--
"In Washington deep impression was made by German Admiralty's
announcement that German submarine sunk _Arabia_. There was even
surprise expressed that attack on _Arabia_ was semi-officially
admitted. Admiralty's explanation is considered as incomprehensible
because _Arabia_, according to information received here, was
ordinary passenger liner with many passengers on board, not
carrying troops nor being under British Government charter."
Only the splendid efficiency of officers and crew and the coolness of
the passengers on board the _Arabia_ prevented a terrible tragedy. To
abandon ship successfully in fifteen minutes was a fine feat which
averted a big disaster. The Germans who torpedoed this passenger ship
without warning cannot, however, be allowed any credit for the small
loss of life. It is quite obvious that they did not care whether the
women and children perished or not.
The British steamship _Moresby_ was torpedoed without warning on the
28th November, 1916. The ship at once settled down by the stern, and as
she disappeared in 1½ minutes there was no possibility of getting any
of the boats out or doing anything to save life. The submarine was not
seen. The chief officer, his wife, one A.B. and 29 Chinamen were lost.
The master, second mate, second and third engineers, one A.B. and seven
Chinamen were saved.
James Rose, second hand, was on the deck of the British sailing trawler
_Trevone_ at half-past three in the afternoon of 30th January, 1917,
when a German submarine suddenly appeared on the surface and opened
fire. Her second shot hit the peak halyards, and the master and crew
immediately took to their boat. They were ordered alongside the
submarine and told to board her. In attempting to obey, the master and
cook were both washed overboard. These two men could easily have been
rescued, but the Germans took not the slightest notice of them. The
master was seen hanging on to the submarine's side, aft, for over ten
minutes, but finally disappeared.
The remaining three hands were searched and relieved of their knives
and money. They then had to write their names and ages upon a piece of
paper, and were afterwards taken before the commanding officer, who
examined them through a junior officer who spoke English.
The men noticed several chocolate-coloured bags hanging in the
submarine, marked U55. They were given tea, and at 5 p.m. the U-boat
submerged, and appeared to be stationary until 10 p.m., although the
engines were kept running. She then came to the surface and remained
there all night. The men were given hammocks to sleep in, but could not
sleep, so talked to the submarine's crew, who said they had sunk seven
sailing vessels that day. At 9 a.m. next morning they had breakfast; at
10.45 they were ordered on deck, and received their knives back. The
German officers kept eight shillings of their money. Finally they were
sent off in the boat of a French schooner, and were fortunate enough to
be picked up five hours later.
The worst feature of this case is the callous disregard shown by the
Germans when the master and cook fell into the sea. These two men were
allowed to drown right under the eyes of the Germans. After all, the
poor fellows were only trying to carry out the U-boat commander's
order when they fell overboard, and the dictates of common decency
would have caused any ordinary civilised man to have made at least
some sort of effort to rescue them. No great effort would have been
necessary; their own comrades could have picked up both men, if the
Germans had allowed this.
Instead, the commander preferred to leave the master clinging to the
side of the submarine until the icy winter water and his failing
strength obliged the wretched man to relax his hold and sink to
his death. It is a disgusting incident, which fills the mind with
indignation against the man who could permit such a thing to happen.
Unfortunately, we cannot put these Germans down as exceptional types.
From what happened afterwards, they appear to have been just ordinary
members of the U-boat service. They did not, for example, ill-treat
their prisoners while on board the submarine; and beyond the theft
of a few shillings by the German officers, the trawler's crew had no
ground for complaint. But the whole incident shows the low standard of
morality prevailing among German submariners. Two men allowed to drown;
eight shillings stolen from the survivors. That is all, and apparently
such trifling incidents are taken as a matter of course in the German
submarine service. What can be said for such men? How can normal people
understand their motives?
The British steamer _Eavestone_ left Barry Docks on the 1st February,
1917, for Gibraltar. On the 3rd February, she was 100 miles W. by S.W.
of the Fastnets when she sighted a submarine. The German opened fire at
3,000 yards and soon found the range. Firing at the rate of a shot a
minute, she struck the steamer repeatedly, and continued firing while
the crew took to their boats. As soon as the boats had dropped astern
of their ship, the submarine turned her gun upon them at short range,
firing three shrapnel shells and striking both boats. The third shell
killed the master, the steward, and a donkeyman, wounded two able
seamen, and severely wounded the second officer in the right arm.
The submarine now called the first mate on board and questioned him,
but no enquiries were made as to the _Eavestone's_ losses, and no
help was suggested. The boats were picked up that same night by the
Norwegian barque _Regna_.
Here is a typical case of the pirate as murderer. Having done his best
to kill the steamer's crew, while they were taking to their boats, he
deliberately turns his gun against the open boats as soon as they are
manned and clear of the vessel. Without any shadow of pretext, the
pirate kills three men and wounds three others in this way. The number
of men killed was of no interest to the German. He did not even enquire
as to the result of his shrapnel fire, and of course it never occurred
to him to offer the survivors any help.
On the 7th February, 1917, at 11.30 a.m., in squally weather the
_Vulcana_ sighted a German submarine on her starboard boom, about 1
mile distant. The U-boat at once opened fire. She found the range after
firing half-a-dozen shots.
The skipper gave orders for the boat to be lowered, and while the
tackle was being carried forward, he stood close by the engine-room
door on the starboard side of the deck. The second hand was standing
about 2 feet away from him at the time. Just afterwards a shell
exploded close by. One piece struck the second hand's boot and another
cut his hand slightly. The skipper was struck on the top of the head;
his head was smashed in and part of his face was blown away. The second
hand heard him say: "Dear me," and he fell to the deck, dead.
George King, the second hand, now took charge. Shells continued to
burst about the deck; one passed through the galley and struck the
trimmer, wounding him severely in the back. After the boat had been
got out she capsized, and had to be righted before the crew could get
in. The skipper being dead, they left him where he had fallen, and he
went down with his ship. George King followed the crew into their boat,
and soon after she had got clear the ship went down, about noon. The
submarine then submerged and disappeared. The survivors were picked up
by a patrol-boat at noon on the following day. The trimmer was taken to
hospital, where he afterwards died.
The _Vulcana_ was a British trawler, although, from the savageness of
the German attack, it might have been thought that she was a warship.
The lives of the skipper and trimmer were sacrificed to German blood
lust. The trawler could have been sunk without any loss of life.
On the morning of the 7th February, 1917, the British steamers _St.
Ninian_ and _Corsican Prince_ were within a quarter of a mile of one
another. A U-boat torpedoed the _Corsican Prince_, striking No. 3
hold and bursting her engine-room bulkhead. The _St. Ninian_ was then
sunk. She went down in five minutes. Both ships were torpedoed without
warning, the casualties being 15 in the case of the _St. Ninian_ and
one in the _Corsican Prince_.
The British steamship _California_ carried 32 passengers and a crew of
171 hands; she was bound from New York to Glasgow. On the morning of
the 7th February, 1917, the weather was fine and clear, the wind was
N.E., and there was a heavy swell running. At 9.30 a.m., the master and
two junior officers being on the bridge, a periscope was sighted about
250 yards away on the port quarter. The master at once ordered the helm
hard aport and an S.O.S. signal to be sent out, but before the vessel
had paid off 3 points a torpedo struck her on the port quarter, about
No. 4 hatch, and the submarine was not seen again.
The engine-room was flooded. Boats were lowered on both sides to the
level of the bridge deck to embark the passengers; but the ship was
settling down quickly by the stern, and before the boats could be
lowered they were afloat. A number of passengers were in the boats when
they took the water, and one on the starboard side was overturned, the
passengers being thrown into the water. Another boat, which had to be
cut loose, threw three people into the water. Ten boats got clear of
the ship, which sank at 9.30 a.m., the master remaining on the bridge.
He was picked up half-an-hour later by one of the boats. A patrol-boat
had taken in the S.O.S. signal and arrived on the scene in time to
rescue 160 survivors.
Forty-three lives were lost by drowning and injuries, and there were
thirty cot cases among the survivors. A few facts reveal the tragic
side of the occurrence. Seven women and four children were killed;
three young children were saved, their mother being lost; one small boy
was saved, while the bodies of his mother, brother, and sister were
afterwards washed ashore.
The facts speak for themselves and make comment almost superfluous. The
passengers and crew never got a fair chance of saving themselves, as
the vessel was torpedoed without any kind of warning.
At 7 a.m. on the 10th February, 1917, a shot was fired at the British
steamship _Sallagh_ by a submarine on her starboard quarter. The
submarine then hoisted the signal "abandon ship," and while the boat
was being got ready, fired again, killing the chief engineer and
seriously wounding two other men. The Germans afterwards placed bombs
in the vessel, and fired two shots into her. The second caused an
explosion and the ship sank. Having provided bandages for the wounded
men, the Germans rigged their craft like a smack and lay off about 5
miles in wait for another victim. The ship's boat was picked up at 4.30
p.m. on the same day.
The British steamship _Afric_ was 12 miles S.S.W. of the Eddystone
Lighthouse at about 5.15 a.m. on the 12th February, 1917. Suddenly
a torpedo struck her on the starboard side about abreast of the
engine-room, causing a terrific explosion, which stopped the engines,
put out all lights, broke the telegraphs, and brought the aerial down.
The engineers and greasers on watch at the time were killed. The
rest of the crew left the ship and stood by in eight boats, leaving
the master, first officer and steward on board. At 6 a.m. a second
explosion occurred on the port side abreast of No. 1 hold. The ship
was finally abandoned after this, and at about 6.20 a.m. a submarine
appeared, questioned the master, and then shelled the ship, which sank
at 7.45 a.m. The boats were picked up about 5 hours later. Five men
were killed, probably by the first explosion.
The steamer _Sallagh_ appears to have been shelled as a matter of
course while her boats were being got out. Otherwise there would have
been no loss of life and no wounded on board. As the submarine took the
trouble to hoist the signal "abandon ship," which was at once obeyed,
she had no excuse for the subsequent shelling. The case is one of
wholly unnecessary murder, although the Germans were not so callous as
on some occasions.
At 11.15 p.m. on the 17th February, the British steamer _Valdes_ was
torpedoed without warning. It was a pitch-dark night, and nothing was
seen before the explosion of the torpedo. The master and seven of the
crew were thrown into the water as the ship went down; three men went
down with her. The port life-boat was successfully launched, and 20
members of the crew embarked. The starboard life-boat was blown to
pieces. A trawler picked up the 20 survivors, but two of them died from
exposure. Eleven men lost their lives.
The British steamship _Laconia_ was sunk on the 25th February. She
carried a crew of 217 and 77 passengers. When about 140 miles from the
S.W. of Ireland, at 10.53 at night, she was torpedoed without warning
and began to list to starboard. The boats were quickly lowered; all the
passengers and most of the crew embarked before a second torpedo struck
the ship. Those left on board then abandoned her, and the submarine
soon afterwards came to the surface, wished the boats' companies "good
night," and disappeared. The _Laconia_ went down at about 11.48 p.m.
Although her boats had been lowered, the task had not been accomplished
without mishap. Life-boat No. 8 had bumped several times against the
steamer's side, owing to the jambing of ropes and the ship's big list.
The boat took the water bow first, and when her stern was released,
she plunged, shipping a lot of water. She was considerably damaged
before getting clear, with the result that she was awash, except for
the raised portion of her bow and stern, when she did eventually get
clear. Every wave washed over the boat's company, whose sufferings were
deplorable.
About two hours after leaving the ship, a first-class passenger
named Mr. Robinson, who was in delicate health, died from exposure,
and his body was washed overboard. A lady was the next to die, but
her daughter, not realising what had happened, continued to support
her mother's body. An hour later the daughter herself passed away.
A coloured sailor was the next to succumb. Then a fireman, who was
sitting on one of the thwarts, allowed his head to sink into the water
and so was drowned. A gentleman passenger was now seen to be dead, and
a lady, who was his friend, became hysterical. To soothe her, it was
pretended that the man had only fainted, and his body was kept in the
boat. Fifteen minutes afterwards a fireman lurched overboard and was
drowned. At 9 o'clock next morning the boat was picked up. All the
other boats had been picked up before daylight. Twelve lives were lost.
The British sailing vessel _Galgorm Castle_ carried a crew of 24. At
5.30 p.m. on the 27th February, 1917, the ship was sunk by the Germans
with bombs. The crew left in two boats, but became separated in the
darkness. One boat capsized, drowning four men; the remaining eight
clung to her, but seven of them died from exposure. The twelfth man, a
Russian, was picked up on the 7th March. The second boat, with her 12
survivors, was picked up.
At 6.50 a.m. on the 1st March, 1917, while the British trawler _Redcap_
was hauling in her trawl, a U-boat appeared and fired several shells
at her. One deck-hand was killed, the mate had his leg blown off, and
two other hands were injured. The survivors got away in their boat, and
were picked up at 12.30 p.m. The trawler was sunk by the Germans.
At 2.30 a.m. on the 17th March, the British steamer _Tasso_ was
torpedoed by a U-boat at sight, without any kind of warning. The
vessel went down head-first, and the inrush of water against the
forecastle and cabin doors prevented these from being opened. In this
way many of the crew perished. The master and eighteen of the crew were
drowned, six men being saved; two of these were slightly injured in the
head. They were picked up by a French patrol steamer.
The British steamer _Joshua Nicholson_ was torpedoed by a German
submarine without warning at 6.30 a.m. on the 18th March, 1917. She
began to settle down very rapidly, with a heavy list to starboard.
While the port life-boat was being lowered she capsized, and three men
were drowned. Another man was blown into the water by an explosion.
After the ship had gone down, six men came to the surface and clung to
pieces of wreckage. Of these, three sank during the next five hours,
the remaining three being picked up at about 5 p.m., exhausted but
alive.
The _Joshua Nicholson_ and _Galgorm Castle_ are two ordinary instances
of German sinkings. The survivors in both cases underwent considerable
sufferings, which were in no way mitigated by the Germans. No tow was
offered and no assistance of any kind rendered to the crews.
The British steamship _Alnwick Castle_ was in the Atlantic, 320 miles
from land, on the 19th March. She carried a crew of 100, together
with 14 passengers; she also had on board the master and 24 survivors
of the s.s. _Trevose_, whom she had rescued on the previous day from
their boats. She had, therefore, 138 souls on board, when at 6 a.m.
she was torpedoed without warning by a submerged German submarine. The
boats were lowered as quickly as possible, and in about 10 minutes the
steamer plunged under water, bow first. Her whistle gave one blast; the
main topmast broke off; there was a smothered roar, a cloud of dust,
and she had disappeared.
The submarine had come to the surface and trained her gun on the
steamer, but no shots were necessary to complete the sinking, and
she steamed away without even speaking the boats. One of these was
in charge of the chief officer, and contained 31 people, including
two women and a four-months old baby. There was a considerable swell
running, with a moderate wind, so all sail was hoisted, and the boats
proceeded to the N.E. in single file, keeping in touch with one another
for the remainder of the day.
During the night both wind and sea increased considerably, and the
chief officer's boat had lost touch with the others by the following
morning, which was Tuesday. At 10 a.m. the weather compelled them to
take in all sail, and they lay-to, keeping her head-on to the enormous
seas with the help of a sea-anchor and the occasional use of the oars.
They proceeded in this way throughout the day and during Tuesday night,
which was very dark. They were thankful to see day break on Wednesday.
They had lost their sea-anchor in the night, so lashed a couple of
oars together, which served as a fairly good substitute. The weather
improved during the morning, so they hoisted sail again and proceeded
east.
During Tuesday night the _chef_ had gone mad, and on Wednesday he died.
Being accustomed to the warmth of a galley fire, he could not stand the
cold. Meanwhile, the chief officer had taken control of the provisions
and water. He served out the water in the morning and evening at the
rate of half a dipper-full to each person. During Wednesday night the
storekeeper went mad and had to be lashed down. He died about noon on
Thursday, and a third-class passenger also expired on the same day.
That night there were heavy squalls, so they had to take in sail and
put out their improvised sea-anchor. On Friday morning the weather
moderated, and they were able to set full sail again. An A.B. died
during the day, and everyone had now begun to endure agonies of thirst.
They continued to sail all Friday night, but exposure and exhaustion
were reducing them to a state of callousness, and at times they
suffered from light-headedness. These attacks were worse in the night
than by daylight. On Saturday morning a fireman was found dead in the
bottom of the boat, and during the day a third-class pantry-boy died.
There was little doubt in the chief officer's mind that the secret
drinking of salt water was hastening the death of many. He did his best
to prevent it, but he was working watch and watch at the tiller, and
there are limits to what one man can accomplish. They drifted with sail
down all through the night of Saturday, there being no stars to steer
by; but sail was re-hoisted at daybreak on Sunday. A cattleman, who
had been behaving in a peculiar way for two days, made three attempts
to jump overboard, and at last succeeded. The enfeebled state of his
shipmates rendered his rescue impossible, although they turned the boat
round and sailed about in the position where he had disappeared.
To-day their last tot of water was served out--a mouthful apiece--and
they tried to collect rain water from the occasional showers that
swept past them. Everything was saturated with salt, however, so that
the little they caught was undrinkable. Then they took to licking the
oars, the tiller, the seats and the woodwork of the boat, in their
frantic efforts to gather up the rain-drops; but the salt spray came
flying in-board continually and frustrated their hopes. At last a happy
thought occurred to them; they broke up the empty water-breaker and
licked the inside, which they found to be saturated with moisture and
delicious to their parched tongues. That night the deck-boy, who had
been quietly sinking all day, passed away.
They sighted land at 3 p.m. on Monday, and made what haste they
could to approach it. This they accomplished late in the evening,
but darkness had set in and there was a heavy northerly swell, which
rendered any attempt at landing too dangerous. They lay-to, therefore,
awaiting daylight. Their mast was carried away at the heel during a
squall, but it acted as a sea-anchor, and in the morning they pulled in
towards the shore until their strength gave out. Then two fishing-boats
were observed coming out from the harbour, and they towed the survivors
into Carino.
The villagers, headed by the priest, came to the assistance of the
boat's company, most of whom were unable to walk. The linen-keeper
died as he was being lifted ashore; two of the crew, who had gone mad,
refused to leave the boat, and had to be dragged out. The villagers
were very kind, and carried the survivors to their cottages, while
their wives paid special attention to the two women and the baby. This
morsel of humanity seemed well enough at Carino, but died six days
after being admitted to hospital at Ferrol. A trimmer died of gangrene
in the same hospital two weeks later. The chief officer bears testimony
to the splendid behaviour of the boat's crew during the eight days of
hardship and exposure which they endured. Forty lives were lost through
the sinking of the _Alnwick Castle_.
When about 150 miles S.E. of Cape Clear, at 3 o'clock in the afternoon
of 29th April, the British steamer _Daleby_ was torpedoed without
warning. She was struck twice, the second torpedo blowing up all the
life-boats and causing her to sink immediately. The last man to leave
the ship dived off as she was sinking. The submarine then came to the
surface and circled round him, but no attempt was made to pick him up.
Afterwards he noticed the ship's dinghy floating a little way off, and
swam towards it. The wind, however, was behind him, and kept blowing
the boat away, so that he did not reach her for two hours.
Having baled her out, he returned to the scene of the disaster, where
he managed to pick up a fireman, who had been wounded in the head and
was unconscious. He revived this man, and together they started rowing
for land, although the fireman was not able to do much work. They
were at sea in the dinghy for 24 hours, when they were picked up by a
steamer, having rowed 30 miles. Through the sinking of the _Daleby_ 26
men perished.
When about 8 miles south of Beachy Head on the 20th May, the British
steamer _Tycho_ was torpedoed without warning and began to go down by
the head. The order to abandon ship was given at 5.10 p.m., ten minutes
after the ship had been struck, and was carried out without casualties.
The vessel went down at 5.20. The crew then pulled towards the
steamship _Porthkerry_, which had seen the explosion and was standing
by about 200 yards away on the port beam.
As the _Tycho's_ boats came alongside her, another torpedo was
discharged by the submarine. This blew up one of the boats, killing
the master and 14 men, and capsized the other boat. The _Porthkerry_
was abandoned, with eight casualties, the vessel going down in three
minutes after being struck by the torpedo. The survivors from both
ships were picked up at 7 o'clock that night by a small coasting
steamer and landed at Newhaven at midnight on the 21st May.
The British steamer _Clan Murray_ was about 30 miles south of the
Fastnets on the 29th May when she was torpedoed without warning, being
struck amidships on the starboard side. The boiler and engine-rooms
were immediately filled with water, the vessel listed heavily to
starboard and foundered within five minutes. The submarine then
appeared and circled round the wreckage, taking the third officer and
one other man prisoners. She then made off in a westerly direction. The
survivors clung to floating wreckage for six hours before being picked
up. Sixty-four men lost their lives; 12 were saved; two were taken
prisoners.
The sinking of the _Tycho_ and _Porthkerry_ is a conspicuous instance
of German callousness. The U-boat commander waited until the _Tycho's_
boats were alongside the _Porthkerry_ before discharging his second
torpedo, and thereby killed 15 men without the slightest excuse or
necessity. He could have torpedoed the _Porthkerry_ before those
life-boats were alongside her, but apparently he preferred that her
sinking should be accompanied by loss of life. There seems to be no
other explanation of his conduct.
The schooner _Jane Williamson_, of Arklow, met with a small German
submarine off the coast of Cornwall at 4 o'clock in the afternoon of
the 10th September, 1917. The submarine opened fire at 150 yards range.
Her first shot smashed one of the boats, the second killed a man. There
were five men left, who got into their second boat, when a shell struck
her, killing one man outright and mortally wounding the skipper and
another man. The Germans beckoned the boat to them, in order to laugh
at the survivors. The U-boat then submerged.
The skipper lived long enough to be landed and taken to hospital, where
he died. The two dead seamen were buried at Penzance. An inquest was
held upon their bodies, and the coroner described the Germans' conduct
as diabolical, the jury returning a unanimous verdict of "wilful and
diabolical murder."
On the 11th September, 1917, the schooner _William_, of Dublin, was
attacked by a U-boat, which, after sinking her, fired on her crew with
shrapnel, wounding one man.
The sinking of the _Jane Williamson_ has been included under the
heading of "Murder," but it might as appropriately have been labelled
"Barbarity." The Germans displayed a callous disregard for human life,
and after killing two men, signalled the boat alongside, in order that
they might mock the dying. Plain men will agree with the jury's verdict
of wilful and diabolical murder. The Germans' behaviour was that of
savages.
The crew of the schooner _William_ were lucky enough to escape with one
man wounded, but the Germans' intention was again murder.
The French sailing barquentine _Mimosa_ had a crew of 31. On the 24th
September, 1917, when 23 miles S.W. of the Scilly Islands, with a
cargo of salt fish, she was attacked by a German submarine. It was 6
p.m., the weather was clear, the sea calm, and the visibility good.
A submarine appeared and at 6.15 p.m. opened fire on the Frenchman.
When 23 shots had been fired the ship was abandoned by all except the
master, who refused to leave his vessel and was killed at the wheel by
shrapnel. The submarine, which appeared to be an old one, dirty-grey
in colour, and showing no number, closed the _Mimosa_ to 150 yards on
the surface. One German officer was seen, a thin, clean-shaven man,
with dark hair and sunken cheeks. He ordered six men from one of the
boats to board the submarine, and lined them up on deck forward of his
gun. Soon afterwards the hatches of the submarine were closed, and she
submerged, throwing the men into the sea without any means of saving
themselves. The men were lucky enough to be able to reach their boats,
however. Two boats, carrying 15 men altogether, were picked up by a
British destroyer, and three boats, carrying the other 15 men, rowed
to the Scilly Islands. The master was buried at sea by the crew of the
destroyer.
The German appears to have had in mind his fellow-countryman's exploit
with the crew of the _Belgian Prince_. But he had not studied the case
carefully enough, and so his victims were able to escape. To line up
half-a-dozen men on the deck of the submarine and then to submerge was
obviously an attempt to commit deliberate murder, and for this reason
the case of the _Mimosa_ has been included in this chapter.
The s.s. _Elmsgarth_ was torpedoed without warning at 7.15 p.m. on the
29th September, and abandoned a quarter of an hour afterwards. A U-boat
then appeared and fired a shell between the life-boats. The master's
boat was then hailed alongside the submarine in order that he might
be questioned by the commander. The master pointed out that his boat
was half full of water, and asked for a baler, but this the commander
refused to supply, adding that his duty was not to save life, but to
destroy it.
Before the boat shoved off from the submarine, a Mexican fireman,
Daniel Vaca by name, jumped on board the U-boat and claimed protection
as a neutral. The Germans' response to this appeal was to deprive the
man of his passport and order him back into the life-boat. Good fortune
favoured the boats, which made for the Irish coast in safety.
THE PIRATE AS BARBARIAN.
_A Selection of Cases._
s.s. AMIRAL GANTEAUME 26th Oct., 1914.
Relief-ship HARPALYCE 10th April, 1915.
s.s. LUSITANIA 7th May, 1915.
s.s. ARABIC 19th Aug., 1915.
Relief-ship ASHMORE 12th Sep., 1915.
s.s. PERSIA 30th Dec., 1915.
Relief-ship EUPHRATES 22nd Jan., 1917.
Relief-ship LARS KRUSE 3rd Feb., 1917.
s.s. THRACIA 27th March, 1917.
Hospital-ship LANFRANC and s.s. DONEGAL 17th April, 1917.
s.s. ADDAH 1st June, 1917.
s.s. MARISTON 15th July, 1917.
s.s. VANLAND 23rd July, 1917.
s.s. BELGIAN PRINCE 31st July, 1917.