The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-12-03
HOW THE LUTN'S CREW DIED.
POISONOUS GASES SHORTENED
AGONY IN SCBKARINE.
OmclsI Report to French Minister OF the
Navy shows That Pebble in Sea valve
and structural weakness Causeu
Trs gFdS vain Efforts TO Escape.

PARIS, Nov. 2O.-M. Thomson, the Min
ister Of the Navy. announced to-day at the
Council Of Ministers that the commission
Of inquiry into the loss of the submarine
Iutin had returned from Bizerta and would
submit a full report to him at once Inc
conclusions reached were that he interior
bulkhead of one of the water ballast COM
toward the stern, a bulkhead
which was in good condition, had yielded
under a pressure greater than it had been
designed to withstand, and that this over
pressure was due to the fact that the corre-
spondinp intake Of water had not been com
pletely closed. and that this non-closing
was caused by the ~interposition of a stone
in front Of the sluice gate of the sea waive,
where the water il let in, the presence oil
this stone perhaps dating back To a com
paratively distant time.
The crew. a great part Of whom had Sue
ceeded in taking refuge in the manoenv-
rins commitment" forward, had quickly
succumbed To the rapid increase OF pressure;
the attempt TO open the hood had only been
made at the last minute and had had no
effect on the fatal result of the accident.
The commission recommends a lumber
Of measures which should be applied both
to the submarines in service and to those
being built. The chief objects TO he at
tanned by these precautions are first that II
an intake of water is not completely closed,
notice must he automatically given ana
secondly that bulkheads Of water ballast
should be able 20 support the same pressure
ss the hull, properly ~o-called, Of the sub
marine.
As this is likely to be all that will be Off
cially made known, il is the more interesting
to read an account given to lie journal
by one whose knowledge and accuracy
the editor guarantees. He states that the
Lutin sank through too great pressure
being put on its plates. The helms ana
wings for rising were found in a position
for a rapid rise, sharply inclined at an angle
of thirty three degrees; one OF the three
hoods was open from an inch to an inch
and a half. This opening could not have
been made by the divers in their operations
and, further, the position Of three bodies
inside showed that the men had attempted
TO open the hood in hopes Of escaping there
by. The commanders right hand was
clutching the exit adder below the hopd
and he had been unable with his left TO work
the crank which opened the hood on account
of the two bodies wedged into the cupola,
where ordinarily there is scarcely room
for one person.
The middle compartment of the sub
marine was empty; the two watertight
doors in front of the cupola compartment
and the three of the bow end were closed,
tho one communicating with the stern end
was open.
No men were at their posts except the
four shut in the stern compartment, the
commander and the ensign, The four had
49, A. -At aY,R 40 Nhrna of tho four hOhG
were undone but the lowest had refused To
act, owing TO the water having penetrated
under the flooring, and 30 warplng II TO
such an extent that the workmen later
were compelled to smash the bolt with
great force before the door would open.
Then they found themselves face TO face
with three bodies and a fourth close behind.
of the rest OF the crew, nine were IN the
Y compartment preceding the cup0la com
and three in the cuploa COM
partment, where the commander had the
q-uartermaster in his arms. while a seaman
was wedged into the passage giving access
to the cupola, crowded up with his knees
level with his face, so placed that had es-
cane been possible his position would have
prevented his comrades taking advantage
Of that exit. II proved a very difficult task
to extricate him.
The bodies we're twined together with
the faces toward the cupola. but their atti-
tudes showed beyond the slightest doubt
that there had been nothing In the nature
OF q struggle among the men. .
The water in the submarine was about
q foot above the floor level. the water
ballast compartment was not intact and
the plates near had given way. Six rivets
in the hull had sprung and there was a
crack on the starboard side six inches by
an inch and a half. On the port side a row
Of sixteen rivets had sprung and through
these holes the water entered the sub
marine.
When the crew found the speaking tubes
g. .uANn- NhnNr rim
TO stop them up; a handkerchief was found
at the outlet of ode, another had been
plugged. The agony of the unfortunate
men did not last very long, AZ the access OF
water TO the electric apparatus stopped the
motor and the lights. creating short circuits
and producing a veritable fireworks dis
play, which with the %corroding Of the tubes
by acids must have produced an atmos-
phere that would asphyxiate any one forced
TO breathe II in short time, The appearance
of all the bodies when found ~corroborated
this theory.
There were two clocks on board. One
had stopped at 1922. the large hand OF the
other had fallen of, but the small hand
indicated approximately II 10. In spite OF
this it IL not believed the agony could nave
exceeded ten or twelve minutes.
The Lutin was provided with lead weights
which couldbe released by a lever with the
utmost ease TO assist her in coming to the
surface. Either the crew in their panic
forgot these weights entirely or, what Is
more likely, the machinery for release
failed TO act. After the raising, the lever
was worked, but the lead refused To drop
in fact il required the application OF great
force 10 detach il.
The presence of the stone was due to
one Of the Lutin's previous ~strandings; II
did not prevent the Lutin from taking
three successful dives on the fatal. day
October 10, but by the fourth attempt II
had got liked in such a position as to pre-
vent the sluice gate from closing, ne
Ruillotine and tho stone getting for the
w fret time into u TRAVERSE position, from
which 1t later required an iron bar TO dis
place il.
Tho authority now quoted added thsI
he was in a position TO affirm hat the Lutir
had never been in the dock during its sever
months stay al BizeTta, although IL is known
20 have met with two previous accidents.
M
Want HAGERHAN REMOVED.
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