South Bend news-times., 1915-09-28

announce the loss Of any important
ships by submarine attack IN the vi
cinity OF the British islands: second,
the British have transported least
a million troops across the channel
to France without losing a single
transport; third. regular cOmmunica-
ton by fast boat IS maintained even
for passengers across the channel in
spite Of the theoretical menace OF the
submarine: fourth. no British war
ship in the vicinity of the British is
lands where the submarines have
been principally active has been tor
pedoed: i've. less than one per cent
Of the ships making and leaving Eng
lish ports have been destroyed by the
submarine campaign Of the Germans.
Question: How has this been
brought about2 What are the British
doing to meet the danger OF the sub
marines As the story finds its way
TO Washington, they are doing several
very effective things. In the first
place, IL is found that the dirigible
and the aeroplane are natural enc
mics Of the submarine. An airship
lowering over the water can look
down directly into the water and see
below the surface as far as a sub
marine dives. whereas a boat looking
slantwise across the water cannot see
below the surface. An aeroplane
locating the submarine and at times
even in dropping a bomb upon il.
More effective, however, has been the
work Of the oil-burning rapid scout
boats operating wire nets
Set Wire Trap.
These nets are made OF strong
steel wire with 15-foot mesh
with wooden bouys at the top anI
sinkers on the lower edge like a huge
seine fHhaE 1T0 ardC 1nnO M
approximately 80 feet from top to
bottom. The submarine, through its
periScope, is limited in it's sight be-
ing able TO see only about a mile or
TO see smoke about three miles. The
scout boats, or their aeroplanes, are
able to see the periscOpe of the sub
marine because OF the wake il leaves
in the water. and to chart it's course.
Then, being much more rapid the
scout boats can head off the subma
rine, and taking a position three or
four miles ahead unObserVed, they
drop the net and pay out some cable
with bouys and retire. Presently the
submarine noses into the net and the
scout boats return, close in the net,
and dispose of the submarine at theiI
leisure. This method, il is said, has
been used most successfully.
Another instrument used against
the submarine is the high-powered
gasoline boat armed with one light
gun. Hundreds of these scout in all
directions and if they see a periscope
shot from the gun does the bust
ness. They can run away from the
submarine and being small, offer
difficult target.
Still another plan has been to de-
coy the submarine. An attractive
looking trawler is sent out or an
chored where the presence of the
submarine is suspected and when the
latter rises to torpedo it d gun is un-
masked and gets in the first shot.
One story is told of decOy cooperat-
ing near an estuary with an aero
plane On the decOy the sailors were
hanging out a washing. When they
observed the submarine approaching,
in accordance with plan, a red shirt
was hung on the line and at the sig
nal an aerOplane darted from behind
hill where il had been in wait and
dropped a bomb on the submarine.
Stories tell also of fixed nets at GER
tain points into which the subma-
rines are led by a boat ostensbly en-
deavoring TO escape.