The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1915-11-11
ANC0NA Warned
BEFORE PLUNCER
SENT Her DOWN
Panic Among Passengers
Caused Big Loss of Lives.
One Hundred and FOrty-Nine
Now Believed Dead.
ONE AMERICAN AMONG MISSING
Submarine Fired While Passen-
gers Were Leaving Ship.
Destroyer Was an Austrian
Boat, the Survivors Say.
ONE AMERICAN AMONG MISSING
Submarine Fired While Passen-
gers Were Leaving Ship.
Destroyer Was an Austrian
Boat, the Survivors Say.

London, Nov. ia Stefani
News agency dispatch from Tunfs
says:
coma who reached here Thursday,
declares the submarine gave mis-
vessel no signal to stop. The first
sign of the presence of the sub
marine was a shell from dis
tance of five miles, which grazed
the steamer. The Ancona stopped
dead.
9SubseouentIy, shells hit the
boats which were being made
ready for launching and many
passengers were killed or wound
ed on the deck and in the boats.
Some of the passengers who had
been thrown into the water ap-
preached the submarine, but were
repelled and derided.
'.Ffnany shells and torpedoes
were fired at the AncOna from a
distance of 800 yards"
London, Nov. 1.-THE Italian
steamer Ancona was not SUNK without
warning, according to information OBJ
tanned from survivors landed at Malta
by the Reuter- correspondent and
cabled here. The Austrian submarine,
which overhauled the Ancona after
long chase, gave the commander a
brief respite to permit the removal of
passengers but the indescribable panic
which began among the immigrants on
board as soon as the underwater craft
was sighted was responsible for the
loss of many lives
In ad rush for safety, men, wOm-
en- and children overwhelmed the
boats several of which were cverturn-
ed before they could be lowered Many
were drowned, the passengers agree.
The correspondent says shots fired
around the steamer by the submarine
apparently to hasten the loading of
the hOat9 added fO the manic The
Reuter- dispatch, which contained the
first connected story of the sinking of
the Ancona Monday afternoon, TWEEN
ty hours after she had left Messina,
Sicily, follows:
Story of Sinking.
I'VE left Naples with a fairly large
number of passengers, intending to
sail direct to New York but soon after
leaving port received a wireless mes
sage directing us to stop at Messina
for more passengers and cargo. The
people aboard were mostly Greeks and
Italians with large families on their
way to the United States to settle
there. The majority, therefore, were
women and children.
I'VE left Messina at 5 p. m. The
captain havi--g been warned of the
present of enemy submarines, took all
possible precautions.
"At exactly 1 o'clock Monday after
noon we sighted an enemy submarine
at a great distance She came to the
direction, firing as she did so a shot
which went wide across our bow. We
took this to be warning to halt.
Panic Broke Out.
Immediately there was the widest
panic aboard, not only among the
women and children but among the
men as well. Women screamed, and
children clung desperately to their
mothers. Meanwhile the submarine
continued to shell US, gaining rapidly.
The fifth shell carried away the chart
house.
THE engines tten were stopped and
the Ancona came slowly to standstill.
The submarine, which we could now
see plainly was an Austrian. came
alongside. We heard the commander
talking to our captain. In a some
AustrianS had given us a few minutes
20 abandon the ship. Meanwhile the
submarine withdrew I. little distance.
I'VE turned to the boats, which be-
gan to be lowered wit out 'oss of time.
but the passengers were in a pande-
monium Men, wom> n and children
seemed to lose their heads completely.
The su bmarine presumably to accel-
around the vessel. here was a rush
for the first boats lowered and in the
confusion these were overturned be-
fore they were free from the ship, the
occupants falling Tito the water Many
were drowned before >ur eyes.
Every One for Himself.
1.-The ShriekS of women, children
and struggling men rent the air but it
seemed no help could be given. Every
one was trying to act for himself The
heartrending scenes --ere punctured
bv shot after shot delivered from the
deck of the submarine. dding to the
panic aboard Hal it not been for
these shots it might have been pos
sible TO restore SembIance of order
The conduct of the submarine was in
comprehensive. Not one shot was di-
rected at the ship but they were fired
all around the vessel as if to create as
much terror as possible.
About eight boats got away clear
some with a fair complement aboard,
others half empty. All drifted away
from each other
One of the survivors in describing
his experience said:
The boat in which / found myself
contained thirty members of the crew
and three passengers, an Italian wom-
an and her child besides myself
am certain fully half those aboard
pcrished Some time afterward we
entered the life boat, we heard explo-
sions indicating the end of the An
coma We remained in the boat all
the time and were picked up in the
morning by a British steamer which
brought US to Malta"
347 Reported Saved.
Washington, Nov. 1.-THE state
department received a cablegram
from American Consul White. at
Naples, today, saying that the Societa
Italia says BAT passengers and crew of
the Ancona are reported saved out of
Do