Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1915-03-27
Several Hours Elapse Before
Any Alarm Is Felt By
the Sister Vessels
LITTLE HOPE HELD
OUT BY OFFICIALS
'Twenty-six Men Aboard the
Craft Are All But Given
Up; Securing Bottom

Honolulu, March 26.-Wireless mes
sages early today from vessels search
Ing for the missing submarine F4,
which was submerged at 9:15 a. m.
yesterday, and which has not yet re-
appeared, state that the work Is pro-
crossing but that there Is nothing
definite to report. The fate of the 26
men aboard the submarine Is still a
matter of apprehension.
The shore off which the F-4 is be-
lieved to be lying on the ocean bed,
is steep and shelves to precipitous
drop. If the submarine lies in S5
fathoms of water, it Is beyond the
reach of divers and it is feared will
only work deeper to the dropping OF
place
Divers yesterday descended to q
depth of 1876 feet, which ts local
record, and were drawn up uncon-
scious.
James M. Hoggett, electrician, Of
Macedonia, Mo-, who was on shore
leave, Is the only member OF the crew
known to have escaped.
Other submarines stationed here are
searching the ocean bed and the
naval tug Navajo and other vessels
are graphing for the submarine. Short
ly after midnight the Navajo and the
tug Intrepid reported their lines fast
at a depth of 35 fathoms to what was
believed to be submarine F-4. Other
vessels of the submarine fleet went
to investigate.
The flotilla of submarines stationed
here were engaged in target practice
Yesterday near the harbor entrance
when the F-4 was submerged. The
three other divers of the F-4type noted
the disappearance but no real appre.
hension was felt for her safety until
several hours had passed.
Lieutenant Alfred L. EIDE was In
command Of the F-4 during yesterdays
target practice.
Little Hope For Crew.
Washington, D. c., March 26.-If
submarine F-4 is sunk in 120 fathoms
of water-72O feet-as Honolulu dis
patches report, naval officers have 10
hopes whatever that any of her crew
is alive. At such a depth they say the
submarine must be crushed and full of
water.
Early today the navy department re-
ceived this dispatch from Commander
Charles E. Smith, commanding the
first submarine division Of the Pacific
feet off Honolulu:
GA left tender at a. M, for sub
merged run March 25th. Failed to
return to surface. Entrance of har-
Dor in thirty fathoms Of water cover
ed with fuel oil. Diving and drag
ring"
Commander Smiths mention of the
entrance of the harbor being covered
with oil created grave alarm at the
navy department. 1t was feared that
the F-4 had struck rock although it
was pointed out that Lieutenant Eide
might have blown out the Yessels
oil to tighten her burden.
But the alarm of officials was in
creased by the omission in Commander
Smiths report of any reference to
signal from the submerged craft. She
was equipped with marker buoy at
tached to the outside Of the submar-
Inc and capable of being released from
within. AS no mention was made OF
the appearance Of the marker buoy, Of
ficials concluded it has not come to
the surface.
The usual diving radius of a submar-
inc is between $50 and 200 feet. The
worlds record for diving, made by the
I'll, sister ship of the sunken F-4
In San Francisco bay two years ago, is
pS3 feet, at which depth she remained
for ten minutes and cruised at speed
of six knots. At that depth the hull
creaked and groaned under the tre-
mendous pressure, and Lieutenant
James B. Howell, her commander, re-
ported that the water seeped through
the seams.
Early today the navy department
was without full information from
Rear Admiral Moore and merely had
one brief dispatch saying the F-4 had
gone down and had not returned and
the other from Commander Smith.
Commander Smiths dispatch men
tioping a thirty fathom depth gave
some hope that the F-4 might not be
more than 1870 feet down, IN which
case there might be chance for the
rescue of her crew if the work were
done promptly.
ARGENTINA'S NEW