Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1915-03-06
Explosion Plot by Enemy
of Allies Is Rum0r
at London.
139 RAPID FIRE GUNS
AMONG VESSELS CARGO
Ship Was Loaded With Waf
Supplies for Allies When
She Left New York.
FIVE OTHER STEAMERS
CATCH WIRELESS CALL
| La Touraine About 100 MiIes
Off French Coast When
s o S Is Sent Out
BY IN. u1itsd Press.

BY the Usatsd Press.
LONDON. March s.-The Frsnch
steamship La Touraine, which left
New York last Saturday for Hsyre.
is afrs at latitude <s.os north and
longitude 2o.1l west, according to g
wireless message received here today.
Five steamers have gone to the a..
sistance Of La Touraine. The
o 8 call was sent by Captain
Causin. It Is believed La Tourzins
is I'm great danger. The wireless de
scrfbes the fire as ''ierce."
The French liner has ON board
party of American nurses bound 20.
the war zone In France. She also
carries a large consignment OF wns
munitions for France and England
shipped by United States firms. The
war munitions included 1ss rapid ere
guns made in the United States. tons
Of cartridges and other war eq0ip-
ment for the allies.
Report L. seouts1.
The origin Of the fre has net ~
been definitely ascertained. The eeua-
pany's ofices here claim to be un-
informed, but secuted report which
was apparently circulated without
any tangible basis that there had
been an explosion OF some sort on
the vessel. It was fntimated that
enemies OF the allied nations now al
war against Germany. Austria-Hun-
gary and Turkey had put secret
agents on board La Touraine at New
York
The first message telling Of the firs
was received from the wireless sta
ton at valenti. Ireland. In addition
to giving the position of the La Tou-
raine it stated that the steamers Rot
terdam. swanmore. Cornishman. Ara
bic and others were going to her
assistance. Later there came another
wireless, via Queenstown, stating
that the blaze In La Touraine was
fierce.
La Touraine carried but eighty
four passengers when she left
New York. 1t was announced at ths
company's office here. Thirty-eight
of these were cabin passengers and
forty-six were in the steerage.
At the beginning OF the wal
La Touraine wes engaged in bring
ing Americans home from the was
zone and In transporting French re
servists from the United States L
France. On a recent voyage to New
York she was badly battered In
heavy seas, arriving thirty-six hours
overdue.
Captain Causin and the crew oi
the liner La Touraine. reported burn
ing in mid-ocean. were heroes of the
disaster that overlook the liner Vol.
turno. when she burned at sea witt
the loss Of 1s2 lives sixteen months
ago.
La Touraine Steamed to the assist-
ance OF the burning yoiturnc
Captain causin, despite a heavy sea
got a boat over and took on forty.
two of the Volturno's passengers
reaching New York with them Cc-
tober 2s, 1913 The captain and mem.
bers of the crew were given medals
of honor for bravery.
Captain Causin tried to save the Ill.
fated Titanic He signsled her
warning Of the presence Of icebergs
in her course.
La Touraine Is one Of the biz
liners plying between New York and
Havre. She is steel twin screw
steamer Of s,42s tons, built In 1884
and $40 feet in length, with accom-.
mediation for several hundred passen.
gers. She has a speed of ninefeer
knots and was under command OF
Captain Caussin Because OF war con.
ditions and the recent establishment
of the war zone." her passenger lis
was comparatively light when she
sailed from New York
The party OF American nurses and
doctors aboard the La Touraine com
prised q unit sent by the French Hos
pitai, West Thirty fourth street, NeT
York.
Funds for the hospital unit wers
supplied by Mrs. William J. FftzEer
aid. an English woman living In Ser
York, who contributed a1oo.o0o-
The American surgeons II tlu
scortsunea an P.<s z. c>srr1n Il