The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1916-11-02
DESCRIBES TRIP OF SUBMARINE.
Paul koenig Gives Graphic Account
of German Deutschland.

Danish edition of Captain Paul noe
nig's book describing the voyage OF
the U-boat liner, Deutschland, says:
This book will always maintain
a prominent place because it is the
record of triumph of naval con-
struction and seamanship, both of
which seem to be the realization OF
the most audacious version of Jules
Verne.
This peaceful voyage has won de-
served recognition the world over and
and the printed record Of it's achieve
ment is bound to find grateful read
ers everywhere"
How the merchant submarine
Deutschland dived likeN a plummet
and chased bow-on to the floor OF the
ocean. then stood on her head whirl-
ing dizzily while furious storm
lashed the surface and a British de-
stroyer secured the sea in search OF
her prey, is narrated in graphic de-
tail by the U-boat's commander, Cap
tain Paul Koenig, in the following
article.
The adventures of the first under
sea merchantmen have formed the
subject of a book written by her In
trepid commander, one of the chap
ters of which is herewith reproduced.
We were carly to learn the impor-
tanee of test submersions and to find
out how infinitely necessary it is to
have the great, heavy boat firmly in
hand, with a keen and constant eye
on all the ininitesimal details.
| had decided that in the follow
ing night. between the darkest hours,
between / and IL o'clock, we would
travel submerged with the "E' en-
gines.
In the dusk of long summer day
we plunged downward; there was
only little wind, but the sea surged
high, sure sign that within a few
hours the wind would. grow into a
storm.
About 2 O'Clock l gave orders to
rise. AS the boat rose to the surface
its movements became wilder and
wilder, which proved to me that the
storm had come and with it a still
higher sea. Occasionally we made
veritable leaps, but We calmly blew
out our tanks and got to the sur
face in a quite orderly manner.
AS we reached periscope depth, |
tried to look around, but it was still
almost impossible to see anything,
for every second or so the lanky
weeds would cut into thick water
mountains. Then, too, there was the
dawn which made the waves appear
even more uncanny and bigger
through the periscope as they rolled
ON with their crushing force.
Then we came completely up to the
surface and 1 mounted the coming
tower to get a correct view of the
wildly dancing sea.
Fine weather this was!
All around US, in the misty dawn,
was a WITCH cauldron of wavebergs,
with foaming crowns, toys of the
wind, which blew off their waterdust
and sent it sizzling through the air.
The boat worked hard; it was
tough tussle. Frequently, nutshell
that she was, she had to give way
before the all-powerful element. The
whole deck was flooded, of course.
Every minute the sea dashed against
the tower and, it's force broken,
prickled past me in dense spray
rain. l clung to the rim of the
"bathtub" and searched the horizon
a curious horizon it was, mass of
water mountains moving stepwise in
and out one another.
was just about to give orders to
put on the oil engines-alas! What
was that?
Donnerwetter, Destroyer.
That dark stripe over there, wasn't
that smoke flag?
But it's already gone, hidden be-
hind the back of rising wave, rising
into the dawn-gray sky.
1 waited and stared through the
glass till my eyes ached.
There it was again; it was a dark
smoke-fag-and there, look! a mast
top, thin as a needle, but have it in
my glass, and now, now l bore my
eyes into the glass. What is it that
comes out of the veil of waves, that
dark thing over there-the smoke
above it, four low tunnels.
Donnerwetter, it's destroyer!