The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1904-08-03
German Steamship Thea
Sunk by the VladiyOstOk
Squadron.
First Details Of Incident
Are Conveyed in Report
From SkrydlOff.

ST. PETERSBURG, Aug. FIN a
lengthy telegram to the Emperor, Vice
Admiral Skrydloff relates the doings Of
the VIadivostok squadron under Rear
/ Admiral lessen.
With the cruisers Rossiay, Gromobol
and Rurik, Admiral lessen left Vladi-
vostok on July 20. After sinking a
small japanese vessel the cruisers held
up the British steamship Camara, but
as she had no cargo and was not
caught in the act of carrying contra
band of war we were compelled to let
her CO." says the dispatch.
A japanese cOasting steamship was
next met, but 'as most of her fifty pas
sengers were women we determined to
release her"
Two Japanese schooners were sunk.
Then Admiral lessen fell in in quick
succession with the British steamships
Arabia and Knight Commander. OF
the Arabia he says nothing new.
THE Knight Commander only stopped
after the fourth shot" the admiral re-
ports. Her cargo being railroad ma
terial, undoubtedly contraband for the
belligerent party. and not being able
to bring her to the nearest Russian
port, owing to her not having enough
coal, without manifest danger to the
squadron, we sank the Knight Com
mander after taking off all her crew
and removing her papers"
Two more Japanese schOOners laden
with salt were then sunk.
The steamship Schinau, from Austria
liza for Yokohama, was inspected and
released. On July 25 the Thea, Ger
man vessel of 1874 tons register, with
full cargo of fish from America to Yo-
kohama, was stopped. She was re-
garded as a legal prize and her crew
was taken off and the vessel sunk
owing to the impossibility of bringing
her to a Russian port"
On July so, near the northern coast,
Japanese third class cruiser and sew
eral torDedo-boats. taking the same
course as the Russians, were sighted.
while on the western coast near the
Tsugaru Straits a coast defense battle
ship hove into sight.
'All these ships" Admiral lessen
says, kept far astern of our cruisers,
and after two hours they turned away.
The Russian squadron suffered no loss
in men and no damage, and there was
no loss of life on the vessels sunk or
taken"
The news of the return Of the Vlad-
ivostok cruisers from their third sue
cessful raid considerably lessened the
feeling of dependency created by Gen
eral Kuropatlin's telegram to the En-
perOr admitting the necessity of his
retreat. Vice Admiral Skrvdloff's re-
port of the cruise points out the utter
inability of the Japanese warships TO
follow UP the three Russian cruisers.
The japanese were apparently unable
to spare a single effective ship to cope
with them The few antiQuated yes
sells encountered by Rear Admiral Jes-
sen were unable to give chase, and the
torpedo7bOats were shy in approaching
the Russians.
1t is presumed that the steamship
Thea, although flying the German flag,
was chartered by an American firm
In view of the fact that she sailed
with a cargo of canned fish, it is con-
sidered not unlikely that, like the
Arabia, she sailed from Portland, Or.
The only trace of the Thea in the
maritime records available is that she
is of 934 tons register and that she is a
German vessel which had been trading
in the China Sea.