The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1916-11-11

short that they will not be visible when
Deutschland began it's trip Of triumph
up the Weser. The rain was teemlng
down, but this could not discourage tho
great popular reception when we with
masts and coming tower covered with
roses, continue our way forward. AT
about in the morning we reached
Bremen haven" The clouds hung
heavy, and the rain poured over the
thousands who were standing on the
breakwater or those who come out to
meet us on steamers and boats OF all
descriptions. The hurrahs are shouted,
the church bells ring out, but above
everything else can be heard the song
Deutschland, Deutschland Uber Allies
which is just celebrating Its twenty
fifth anniversary.
With the pilot for the Weser river on
board, the journey continues. We pass
|Nordenham, Broke, Blumenthal; fiags
greet us, salutes are fired, the factories
and steamers blow their whistles vocif-
|erously. We pass Vegesack. where the
work on Vulkan wharf is stopped and
the workers stand in hundreds on the
docks. The whole Vegesack population
is gathered on the landing stage and
also packed back on the shore. Once
of salutes and noisy and furious well
come. Thicker become the crowds the
nearer the ship gets to it's own dock.
Shortly before IL we are at Lankenau,
where on the works of the dam, "all
Bremen" seems to have gathered to
greet US. Shoulder to shoulder stands
the mass of people, waving with hats,
umbrellas and handkerchiefs. This is
an indescribable sight. This crowd
49, 70 90, en-
sands and more thousands over which
there is sea Of swinging handker-
chiefs, umbrellas. etc.
AT exactly 10 o'clock Deutschland
glides into it's home port, and lies
alongside the festively decorated quay.
After voyage of $3.50 sea miles, of
which only about 100 were made under
water, had the first merchant UNDER
sea boat again returned to its own
harbor. Deutschland's first voyage to
America was completed.
On this memorable day a dinner was
given in the courthouse of Bremen, ar
ranged by the towns senate to cele-
brate the return Of Deutschland. The
mayor, DIR. Borlhausen, made the
guests welcome and announced the
senate had coined a medal in memory
|of this day, and he asked a toast for
the owners and Deutschland's officers
and crew. 4
In the name Of the owners answered
the chief, DR.. Lehman, with a speech
for the firms of Krupp and German
iavarvet." Out Of his speech quote the
following:
at certainly must interest you to
know something about how the COM
pany of owners came into existence
and with that the Deutschland, Bre-
men, and other sister ships. When in
l c
stood that in spite of the success Of the
Central powers in the war, it would
|still go on for many months, then it
was obvious that the question of the
German supply of India rubber and
metals would be pressing. I began con-
|fidential communication concerning the
matter with the Incorporated company,
Weser of Bremen. The company de-
clared 1t was ready to make drawings
and designs for an undersea boat with
500 tons cargo capacity. 1 received the
drawings on October 8. The period
for delivery was IL months, as the
shipyard had to make the motors them
selves. This seemed a long time to wait.
We must try to get ready sooner.
AT nearly the same time, with these
plans in hand at the beginning of Oc-
tober, had without our knowledge the
Germania shipyard in We'll for their
pol CllI COhPd Tile nTul OIL hruDD
presented the plans for the building
of an undersea boat with a capacity
of 700 tons for cargo. The Germania
company would deliver the first boat
in six months or at the beginning of
April.
From both directions, independent
of each other, we had been sure it was
possible to accomplish this. We felt
confident we could rely on this and
hn
ION October 15 our agreement was
made, and the Germania company took
the contract for building two boats. The
formalities of the organization Of the
Deutsche Ocean Rhederei took some
time, so that it was registered first as
a company on November 8. But then
the boats ordered were already well
under way. Deutschland was completed
and delivered in the first part of April.
took practice trips for two entire
months"
ZETZMANN REPLIES
These statements of DR.. Lehman
were supplemented afterwards with a
speech in answer by Herr Zetzmann.
director of the Germania company. He
said among other things
The decision to build an undersea
boat for merchant purposes was not
reached so easily-not because we
feared that in the construction of it
we would meet some obstacles we could
not overcome, but because our de-
signers and builders. on account OF
the war orders, were so terribly over
worked that we hardly dared to take
upon us anything in connection with
our proposition. First we investigated
a design similar to that of the ordi-
nary undersea boat, hoping in this way
to make the work easier But it soon
proved there would not be enough
cargo space. Our designer, therefore
decided to be radical and begin from
the beginning and create an undersea
boat which from the first was con-
sidered as a freight carrier. In this
way, we succeeded in working out an
entirely new design with plenty of
plan in mind and then had the draw
ings and calculations made.
But we hardly dared to approach the
firm of Krupp with the proposition, this
company already having it's hands full.
suitable opportunity presented att
self. Our plans and drawings were like
a bomb. The firm accepted at once and
declared that such a boat had to be
built positively and as soon as possi-
Bile. The Germania shipyard must turn
out the work at it's own risk In the
meantime, some of the details must be
completed and few agreements
drawn up. Therefore we met in the
middle of October with Herr Lehman
Tor the first time, and now the matter
was settled. -
Everything moved along raridly.
The Deutsche Ocean Rhederei had