Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-03-20
3 ALLIES SHIPS SUNK;
$50 MEN LOST

Continued from Page One
| says a dispatch from Gallipoli. These
were picked up by small Turkish boat,
CThe official report issued today by the
| French War Office declares that 81 of the
| Bouvets crew were saved.)
1.-The Irresistible did not sink for some
! time after it received the damage that
| finally sent it to the bottom. This gave
| an opportunity for most of it's crew of
| $50 men to be reserved but many lost
their lives when the ship took its final
plunge."
BAD WEATHER HALTS ATTACK.
A Tenedos dispatch says that six bat
tleships re-entered the straits on Fri
day, but ON account of the bad weather
Were unable to pursue operations. In
the afternoon British destroyers took a
number OF bodies from the hospital ship
! and conveyed them out to sea- where
they were buried with full military
hOnors. While the burial ceremonies
were in progress all the flags of the
fleet We're lowered to half mast.
The Admiralty today was at "A loss 10
explain the Turkish official claim, wire
lessed here from Berlin, that the Bouvet.
Irresistible and Ocean We're "torpedoed.' "
While various reports have had 1t that
the Turks had mounted guns along shore
from which torpedoes could be fired it was
considered certain that the warships did
not approach close enough to shore to
make this form of attack practicable
DREADNOUGHT LEADS ATTACK,
Detailed stories of the bombardmeat
that resulted i'm the loss of the three
batteships were received here today.
They stated that the superdreadnought
Queen Elizabeth led the way into the
strait Thursday morning and that her
l5-inch guns scored the most notable hits.
Shortly before noon, one correspondent
wired, "A heavy projectile from the queen
Elizabeth exploded powder magazine
in Chanak fort sending up a column IT
smoke hundreds of feet high.
Meanwhile the allied warships, cruis-
ing in circles around the Queen Eliza
beth, continued an inCessant tire at the
forts ON both sides of the strait. One
correspondent wired that Turkish war
ship appeared in the narrows near Fort
ESilid Bahr while the engagement was
in pros ress. but quickly disappeared
when shower OF. shells flew about her.
At exactly 1910 flames and smoke We're
suddenly discovered rising from the Bou-
vet She quit the line and moved in
toward shore, while other vessels put
over boats to take off her crew.
The Irresistible was badly damaged and
atire before she was struck by the tor
pedoes Several shells from Fort Kilid
Bahr exploded on her deck, and she
moved in toward the Asiatlc side, dis
appearing in a great cloud of smoke.
The Ocean is believed TO have gone down
near the same spot
Dispatches from TenedOs states that re-
pairs are being rushed at full speed upon
the French battleship Gaulois and the
British dreadnOught lnheNible, whose
forward control position was struck by
heavy shell.
Though shocked at the news OF the
sinking of the three Allied battleships,
the English press for the most part took
the Dardanelles losses philosophically to-
day. They had been prepared TO learn OF
serious reverses by previous warnings
from the Admiralty that the Dardanelles
could not be forced except at heavy cost.
CREDIT GIVEN GERMANS.
All the papers gave the Turks, hIther-
TO held in contempt credit for producing
one of the surprises of the war, Most
of the newspapers, however, were dis
posed to attribute the loss OF the three
battleshps to German tactics. They as
serted that the Germans unquestionably
schoOled the Turks In the use Of float
ing mines that resulted in the destruc-
tlon OF the BOuvet, Irresistible and
ocean.
one paper, the Morning Post, even
went so far as to question whether the
allied feet can force its way to Con-
stantinople.
I'VE need not disguise from ourselves
that the Turks have dealt heavy blow
to the allied squadron" said the Post.
THE losses serve 20 show that II is
still an open question II ships can sue
eessfully dominate land batteries which
have the advantage OF being unsuitable
But as the squadron Is perslsting In the
attempt. We may still have good hope
that the operations VIII be successful, es-