Arizona republican., 1914-05-24
SINKING SUBMARINE SENT TELEPHONE WIRE TO SURFACE
Russian Sailors Saved From Death by New Buoy Which Floats to the Top of the Sea When
 Submarine Sinks.

The tale of submarine acci-
 dent with anything but fatal
 outcome is rare enough to merit
 especial notice. This tale comes
 from Russia--a land whose rep
 utation for naval efficiency has
 not been high since the events
 of the Japanese war The story
 comes from the St Petersburg
 correspondent of the Railway
 and Marine News, Seattle, who
 characterizes the experiences that
 he relates as unusual and re
 markable"
 The Mingoa is one of the subma- rine flotilla stationed at Libau. On a Saturday several weeks ago it was out for exercise in the neighbor- hood of the lightship off Libau, with it's full crew of nineteen men. under the command of Lieutenant Garsoev. and as usual q tender was present during the maneuvers. The Mingoa. which was apparently proceeding ei- ther well on the surface or just awash. was suddenly discovered by those on the tender to take a plunge in somewhat abnormal fashion, throwing it's stern well into the air. For some time it was not supposed any accident had happened. and the return of the submarine to the sur face was expected, but the appear ance of the emergency buoy gave the alarm. These buoys not only precisely to locate the whereabouts of sunken submarine, but are fit ted with telephone apparatus ena- bling the crew to communicate with the upper air. The moment the ten der learned by these means what had happened it steamed off to the lightship, which telephoned the news of the disaster to the backyard head quarters at Libau.
 The accident happened at o'clock in the afternoon, but owing. it would would seem, to the dispersal of the men on q Saturday. the message was not acted on for several hours, and it was not until 9 o'clock at night that the salvage vessels arrived at the spot. The weather conditions remained happily favorable and di-
  the Mingoa was successfully brought to the surface by midnight. having 1 been nine hours at the bottom of 1 the sea. When the after hatch was 1 opened three men staggered out. 1 barely able to crawl. Fifteen of the l crew and the captain were got out | unconscious from the after part of the vessel There remained only the | coxswain, who was in the coming | tower amidships. It was necessary to raise the submarine well out of the water to get at the coming tow CT, and this took another three hours work. but the coxswain. when re- leased after twelve hours confine- ment was in the best condition of ! any of the crew.
 The cause of the accident was a defective ventilator Water leaked through until the trim of the sub marine was affected and it plunged head foremost to the bottom. Water continued to enter until the air in the vessel was so far compressed as | to resist the entrance of any more. On this air the crew of twenty sur vived, the captain and fifteen men in the body of the vessel suffering also from the fumes of chlorin gas given off by the accumuIators. The three men who crawled out unaided from | the afterhatch, and the coXwan who after being confined fn the coming tower three hours longer than any of the mates. was yet the least affected were apparently out of reach of the chlorin gas fumes. All have now re- covered from the effects of their ter rible experience.
 The usefulness of the emergency buoy, which is also employed in the French submarine service, is amply demonstrated by the Mingoa acci- dent.