The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-09-29

the Petropavlovsk at Port Arthur was not
accidental. They are inclined to ascribe
the loss Of the vessel to an attack by a
Japanese submarine boat, OF which class
OF vessels they say the enemy possesses
four"
O'Brien's part in the three days fight in
Tsushima Struts, as told by his friend,
upsets the accepted ~accounts of the great
sea fight, O'Brien's boat was one of three
large ones n there we're several smaller
ones that took a active part in the fight.
-Togo's feet waited at Masampo, on the
south Corean coast, for more than two
months in anticipation of the coming of
the Baltic fleet, says the narrator Of Dyna-
the fleet were three large submarines and
a number of smaller ones. The latter did
not take great part in the fight.
hen Togo's scouts reported the coming
OF the Russians early on the morning Of
May u Togo moved his feet slowly out to
the middle of Tsushima Straits to meet
the Russians on his own ground. The
waves were high and it was bad going for
the submarines. As a consequence the
smaller ones Jagged behind and did not
get into the first days action.
The Russians came up in two columns,
the heavier hip being in the second line.
When the engagement b~egalhthe submarines
kept back Of the Japanese lines until the
turning of the Russians leading ships
forced the whole Of the enemY's line TO
take a curved course In toward the shore
of Ok Shima. Then the submarines got
to work.
Mind you; the japanese torpedo boats
did not get into action until the evening
of the first day when darkness came on.
Yet in the first days fight the Borodino and
Alexander Ill, both battleships, were
blown up. Those two units in the Baltic
fleet were destroyed by Jack O'Brien's
boat. He did the work by go ling right into
the Russians line when it had been thrown
intn NOnfIRlnh Inv tho frIrnipO N,nyav~.apt
picking out his ships and getting down
below their armor belt. These two boats
sank within a few minutes after the tor
pedoes had been launched.
"In the second days fight, off the Liam
court Rocks, further up in the straits,
O'Brten's submarine tackled the battleship
NicOlaiI /. The torpedo landed but the ship
did not sink, because of its watertight COM
paFtments.
Il don't know whether or not any Of the
other submarines got the Russian ships.
But the fact that O'Brien's boat did for three
of them | know, and he has in his possession
a letter from the Japanese Admiraltyithank-
ing hin for the services he rendered during
the fight Y
This new account of what went on under
water in the fight in Tsushima Straits has
been guessed at and limited at before. After
the fight press reports about the use of
submarines began TO appear, but the Jap
anese Naval Office vigorously denied all
such conlectures.
Now that this story of O'Brien's work has
been made public partial confirmation Of it
il given by a member of THE SUNS staff
who was in Japan throughout the war.
At a dinner given him in Toxic a Japanese
naval officer, TaiserO MotonO. when some
what in his cups, admitted upon direct
query that the Japanese had possessed
several subma riues and had found that they
were valuable boats. But he would not
say how the knowledge of the submarine
utility had been gained.
Dynamite Jack O'Brien the hero of these
stories OF adventure, gained a name as
"A devil may care ~adventureT before ever
he launched forth az a submarine boat
captain in the Far East or a revolutionary
in Russia. Many years ago, before the
He'll Gate rocks were blown uD, he used
to make the hair rise on the heads Of less
daring bay Tilots by taking big vessels
through Hep Gate passage without ever an
accident.
When the last Cuban rebellion began
O'Bren fOrsook New York harbor for
newer and more exciting fields. He became
n hlibuster. The first Of his expeditions
was with the yacht Rambler, loaded with
dynamite, which he took to Cuba in the first
year Of the revolt. His other famous ex-
ploits were made in h & Bermuda, the
Dauntless, the Laurada and thP Commo-
dore. He always evaded capture. both
by the United States and the Spanish gun
boats. ..r 49,
In one OF the baytlen revolutions Dyna-
mite Jack was employed. by the insurgents
20 run in arms. He not only did that but
took command of n of the armies in the
field with much success. President LegitimS
was defeated by O'Brien' = forces and forced
10 flee to exile.
When he was not running arms into Cuba
or leading forlorn hopes in other Of the
southern islands O'Brien used TO live in
peace in the somnolent own of Arlington.
n. j. Bat his continued absence from
Arlington has caused his name to be almost
forgotten there. II is still green, however.
along South street where seamen gather
to spin yarns over the glass.
JOTTINGS 9BOCT TOwN.