The Ozark spectator., 1916-10-14

gathering additional facts, were sud denly closed to the press by an order from the Navy Department at Wash ington. It was explained that every thing learned by the government sta tions must first be transmitted to the Navy Department before being made public.
 Particulars of the attack, however, continued to come from merchant vessels to commercial wireless plants and through marine observers on shore
 The U-53 which anchored for three hours in Newport harbor, while Con- mander Hans Rose sent ashore cor respondence from Germany for the German ambassador, Count von Bern storff, and exchanged official calls with Rear Admiral Gleaves and Rear Admiral Knight, commandant of the Narragansett Bay station, slipped out of the harbor and submerged just in- side the three-mile limit.
 American Ship Not Moiested. At daylight she turned up south east of Nantucket and got in the way of the American steamer Kansan of the American-Ha Line, bound from New York for Genoa by way of Boston, with freight. The Wansan was flying the American flag. She was stopped by the submarine. As sured that the Kansan was an Ameri- can owned vessel, the submarine later allowed her to proceed
 Captain Smith of the Kansas re- ported in a wireless message to the captain of the Nantucket Shoals light ship that he had been stopped. He said the submarine showed no colors, but from his meager description of the craft naval men Were satisfied that it was the U-53.
 A half hour later the submarine en- c0untered the Strathdene, command ed by Captain Wilson and under char ter by the French Line. A subse- quent message from the Nantucket | lightship stated that the Strathdene had been sunk and that the crew
 
 steamer carried a crew of 34. so there | was some doubt as to whether the lightship had picked them all up or had correctly reported. The Stratb- dene sailed from New York for Bor- deaux. she was of 4.321 tons and 375 feet in length. She was built fin Greenwich in 1900 and was owned in Glasgow.
 Pursuing her hostile course, the l submarine next came up with the West Point, bound from London for Newport News. The fate of the Brit ish freighter was told in the follow ing wireless dispatch from her com mander. Captain Hayden, to the naval radio station:
 British steamer West Point stop. ped by submarine and fired upon getting boat ready. Position 40: 25 north. 69 west. Get cutter" West Point Was Sinking. Later messages gave further de was being shelled by the submarine when the message was sent at 11:15 a. III. A third message said that the vessel was attacked at 10:i5 o'clock 10 miles south of Nantucket. This message caused confusion regarding the exact position of the freighter. The steamer Kansan picked up the distress signals of the West Point and proceeded to her assistance. Then the Boston Navy Yard. at 1:30 o'clock, received a message from the Kansan stating that the West Point was sinR. ing and that the Kansan was going to her aid. The disabled vessel YVES then 55 miles distant and the Kansan was making F knots.
 Later a private dispatch added the information that the submarine, after stopping the West Point ordered the crew into their small boats. The crew abandoned. the ship. which was then torpedoed. It was in sinking condition when last reported. | Menatime the American line steam ship Philadelphia, which left New York for Liverpool. had gotten within the war zone and an s. O. s. wireless message was received by her com mander. He held his course for the | east.
 | During the day no word came from | the British and French patrol vessels which have been watching the Allan tic coast, from which vessels of the entente allies with munitions of war have daily set out. A message was sent to Halifax asking for the press | information as to what was being done to protect British and French ship ping from the submarine. The reply came that the British commander in chief of the Halifax station. which is directing the patrolling fleet, was con sidering whether any statement by him was advisable.
 Many rumors were afioat, including one that a fleet of German subma rines were off the coast. Another had it that the Germans had estab- lished submarine base on the Cana dian coast.
 Another speculation was that supply