The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-02-25
BUTCHER WENT TO. BOTTOM HEADING TOWARDS ENEMY Prof. Duesing Tells Brother Here Facts of Memorable
 North Sea Battle. University Instructor Gives Staggering Casualty Esti-
 mates = Says French
 Conceal Facts.

Tn a letter which Prof. Karl Dues ] ing. instructor of mathematics in the Royal Naval college at Kiel, Germany, i has written to his brother, pr. Herman i Deusing, of 1,169 East Main street, this city. he graphically describes the sink ling of the German armored cruiser l Bluecher The action in which this I German vessel was sent to the bottom I occurred about o'clock on Sunday morning, January "A, in the North sea, E about 12o miles northwest or the island of Helgoland. According to Professor # Duesine the German squadron was greatly overmatched by the English fleet which it encountered, but in the
 running fight which ensued the Ger l mans evened matters for the sinking # fish vessel.
 , Prof Duesing names the German E vessels engaged as the ba$tleships Sed-
 litz, Defflinger, and Moltke, the ar
 mored cruiser Bluecher, four small
 cruisers and several torpedo boats. Prof. Duesing says that under full steam the larger vessels of the Sdeet
 were able to make 28 miles an hour E while the Bluecher could make but 23
 miles. This lack of speed proved her
 undoing when the English got within
 range and with 8 we'll placed shell dis
 abled the Bluecher'S engines.
 The English vessels which the Ger
 man officers report as taking part in the engagement were the batteshps lIdon, Tiger, Princess Royal and New
 Zealand, besides a number of smaller sI vessels and torpedo boats.
 Fl The squadrons, IS miles apart, en-
 gagged in a running fight for 50 miles.
 Then the Bluecher became disabled
 and turned to meet her pursuers. The
 other vessels continued toward refuge
 in German port while the German torpedo boats gathered about the
 stricken Bluecher to lend whatever assistance they could.
 T. The calibre of the German battle Eships guns was 28 and 30 centimeters. Those of the BIuecher were 21 centi- meters. The British guns averaged in icaHber between 30 and 40 centimeters. Despite this great difference in arnaa-
 ment the Germans claim the Bluecher gave a good account of herself before she went to the bottom. Of her crew
 of 8a5 men and officers about 200 ars believed to have been saved by the English ships.
 During the action the Germans claim one Of her torpedo boats sank a Brit
 ish cruiser. The English deny this,
 but Prof Duesing says the sinking, of
 the vessel was reported by the officers
 of the torpedo boat and was witnessed
 by German Zeppelin.
 Fl The professor says that another Eng
 aish vessel was so disabled it was nec- Eessary to tow it into pert. German re- IPOESS O1tf IIG &u3dSG1D2L1I assert Inalt the English broke off the fight because
 of their heavy losses in both ships and men, The English claim that the Ger
 mans ran to safety under batteries on their own coast.
 The professor reports an engage ment which took place at La Craonne in eastern France, Jan. 25, 26, and 27 IsETe says ,5oO F'reuchmen were killed HOO taken prisoners and several miles lOf trenches were captured by the Ger
 man soldiers.
 Prof Dgesing claims the total Ger. man losses on land and sea since ths
 war started are about 500 900 while the total losses Of the allies in killed
 wounded. disabled and missing ara a, -4 least 3, 750. .00O. There are 250, ,OO0 FrencI Iprisoners on German soil. A Londor Times despatch from Petrograd say. that Russia has already lost 1, 300, ,00a killed or totally disabled in this wa land 100000 Russians are prisoners
 A correspondent writing to the Lon. Idon Times from Paris says: Franc, } is one hospital and one grave
 This correspondent, according to tn, professor, says the French minister O
 war refuses to give out the true re ,il ports of the French losses because h, , fears the people will become to dis
 couraged there will be no more recruit ing.