The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1906-10-18
VAIN EFFORTS MADE
TO FIND The LUT|N
Small Doubt That Crew of
French Submarine Boat Per-
ished in the Ocean.
PARIS. Oct. IA feeling of gloom

PARIS, Oct. IA feeling of gloom
prevails at the Ministry OF Marine here
or account of the disappearance of the
French submarine boat Lutln, which
left Bizerta Tunis, yesterday morning,
for plunging experiments, having on
board a crew of fourteen men com
manded by Lieut.. Phoepon and which
was reported last night to have disap-
peared.
The principal hope of floating the
Lutin IN time to save the lives of the
imprisoned men seems to rest IN the
assistance of the Danish salvage
pened to be off Cape Farina, and was
immedia tely summoned to aid in raising
the Lutin.
The Danish vessel possesses machin-
cry capable OF lifting 1900 tons, but
the submarine boat lies in thirty faith
oms Of water, and 1t is pointed out that
the submarine boat Farfadet, which
sank last summer in the same vicinity
but in only ten fathoms of water, was
nine days at the bottom, and when she
was rehoated all her crew were dead.
Marine Minister Thomson has acted
with the greatest promptness, After
consulting with several naval officers
he conceived the plan of trying to get
heavy chains from the forts at Bizerta
under the hull of the Lutin and thus
lift her from the bottom.
But it is feared that the tugs and
other vessels on the spot may not be
equal to the task, and the Marine Min
lister thC efore has ordered two power
full salvage vessels, the Polypheme and
the Dromedaire, to start Immediately
from Toulon to the scene of the .dlsas-
ter and assist the salvageTs already on
the spot,
No News From Vallette.
Although no news has been received
from Vallette. 1t is assumed that the
British admiralty officers and the Gov"
ernor of Malta have responded to the
appeal for assistance sent from BlZerta
yesterday at the instance OF the British
Consul General at that port, who sug-
gested that the French resident general
telegraph to Malta for salvage assist
ance.
It became known today that the Lu-
tin had on board supplementary en-
gineers who had been detailed to watch
the diving experiments, but 1t Is not
definitely known whether they are IN
cluded in the fourteen men which, 1t
was announced at Bizerta last night,
went down IN the submarine boat under
the command of Lieut.. Phoepon.
The officers engaged In the salvage
work with the certainty that the crew
of the Lutin had perished. Members
of the crew of the tug Ishmul, which
conveyed the Lutin on her last voyage,
declare that the submarine plunged
twice successfully, and after she had
gone down for the third time her bow
showed twice above the surface Of
the water before she finally disappeared.
This leads to the belief that the catas-
trophe resulted from sudden leak at
the stern. The water probably rushed
IN very rapidly, and overturned the
accumulators This would cause death
giving fumes to emanate from them
and the crew would have no
chance for life.
Working in the Dark.
Admiral Belue tonight is uncertain
whether the salyagers have located the
JQtin or not. Divers have reached the
bottom, but owing to the roughness OF
the sea they We're unable to remain be-
low sufficiently long to make thorough
investigation. Fourteen salvage vessels
now form a Gordon around the spot
where the Lutin went down. The
divers descend in relays and are dis
playing untirlng energy All their en-
deavors, however. to obtain definite
| knowledge as to the Lutin s position in
order TO permit the utilization of the
powerful lifting apparatus on the spot
have been in vain.
The British admiraly has sent a
| battleship, a cruiser and torpedo boat
| DESTROYER. as we'll as several tugs, TO
| assist in the search. Tonight the sea
| is moderating, and the work tomorrow
| will be continued under better coudl-
| tions.