The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1917-04-23
is GERMANS IN
TOLL OF U-B0AT
TeutOns Die When Hospital
Ships Donegal and Lam
franc Are Sunk.
BRITISH PLAN REPRISALS
Prussian Prisoners Fight to
Enter LifebOats-75 Wound
ed Men Perish.


LONDON, April 22-The British hos
pital ships Donegal and IIanfrano, with
many wounded aboard, have been tor
pedoed without warning. rhey were
sunk on April Il. OF those on the Done
gal twenty-nine wounded men and
| twelve of the crew are missing. The
Lanfrano carried German wounded as
teen British and fifteen Germans are
believed to have perished.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer. An
drew Bonar Law. announced on April
10 in the House OF Commons that there
had recently been further losses OF Brit
ish hospital ships, which would be pub
lished soon. To-day the Secretary Of the
| Admiralty issued the following state
ment:
! On the evening of April II the
/ steamships Donegal and Lanfrano. while
transporting wounded to British ports
were torpcdoed without warning The
Donegal carried slightly wounded cases
all British. or these twenty mine
men as we'll as twelve OF the crew are
missing and are presumed TO have been
drowned.
The Lanfrano, In addition to 2s4
wounded British officers and men. car
ried 1877 German prisoners. a medical
perssnncl OF flfty-two and Il crew Of 1873
OF these the following are missing and
"a a drnwnCi
Two wounded British officers, eleven
wounded British OF other ranks one of
the Royal Army Medical Corps staf, fvs
OF the crew, five wounded German OFF,
GERS and ten wounded Germans OF other
ranks.
Rescue I52 German Wounded.
''One hundred and flfty-two wounded
German prisoners were rescued by
British patrol vessels at the imminent
risk Of being themselves torpedoed.'
The story of the sinking W the Lam
franc win rank with the uudying his
tories of the Birkenhead and lynda
reus, according to q British officer The
British soldiers stood at attention while
the ship was slowly sinking beneath
them. Their conduct was in marked
contrast to that Of the Prusslan guards
men aboard, who in the moment OF
danger rushed tor the lifeboats.
"rhe I.anfrano was attacked by a
submarine about 80 o'clock tuesday
evening" said the officer. The crash
shook the liner violently, the explosion
sending splinters Of wood and glass n.y.
ing in all directions. Within "A rev
minutes the engines stopped and the
vessel seemed 20 be sinking rapidly. put
70 our surprise she steadied herself and
: hi1
mad aboard prisoners OF the Prussian
Guard and many British wounded. in
cluding some serious cases.
The moment the torpedo struck the
Prussiaus made a mad rush for the IRE
boats When they were ordered TO walt
th.ir turn many showed cowardice by
dropping on their knees and inplorinS
pity.
: the crew and staff went 70 theii
uosts Tire stretcher cases were lowered
first to the boats. Meanwhile, In Se'
sponee 40 distress calls, many vessels
came hurrying to our assistance, Ever
= while wounded and helpless Tommies
e Law unaided IN their cots the cowardls
prisoners made another attempt ant
managed to crowd into Il llfeboat, which
however topp!ed over directly 1t Wal
lowered Then they fought with eacl
other to reach another boat containing
' some gravely wounded.
british stand at "AttentiOn."
"I shall never forget the behavior o.
our own lads They tried to stand a
attention crippled as they were, while
the Craver caS"s were ls9ing looked after
The crew and staff remained at thei
posts until tNe last man was taken of
some dofred their garments and threw
them to those in the ifeboats wantins
warm clothing. and In the midst Of tn
distress AMI tragedy our men we're abl
, to strike up some popular dittice,
!, The Admiralty report reviewing tn
sinking OF hospital ships says:
owing to the German practice o
!. sinking hospital ships at sight and t
I the fact that distinctive marking an
: lighting of such vessels render ther
, more cons picuous targets for Germa
submarines II has become no longe
possible to distinguish our hospital ship
in the customary manner, one of thes
two ships (the Donegal and the Lar
frano) therefore. though carryin
= wounded. was not in any way outward
distinguished as hospital ship. Th
distinctive markings of the other ha
z not vet been removed. Both were Pre-
r yided with an escort for protection.
;. World savaKery IL Outdonc.
I "The illegal and tnhuman submarin
. warfare which Germany has waged upo
d merchant shipping has for some tim
9 been openly adopted against hospits
ships nying the Red Cross flag an
8 otherwise acting in complete conformt
d with the requirements OF the Hagu
= Convention. This elimination OF ga,
p gerry has brought the world face ,
= face with a situnt!on that Is withol
parallel In civilized warfare. II has n
iustincation in any conceivable d!stoi
tion Of international law. nor In the mo'
brutal creed Of necessity.
."The British Government. In consider
: ing fully the measures to be adopted 1
these circumstances, have had In revie'
2 the entire facts on which the Germa
Government claims 10 have acted. Thes
NAV be recapitulated briefly for the cor
alteration Of the civilized world"
q The statement then recites that O
n January 80 Germany addressed q m,
: morial to the American and Spanis
n emba ssies for transmission to the Britis
J. and French Governments. claiming thu
'. allied hospital ships. and particular
ID those of Great Britain, were employe
e in TRANSPORTING troops and military SUI
Il ples, and declared that no hospital sh
% would he tolerated in the zone betwee
the lines connecting Flamborough Hea
% and Terscbelling on the one side al
a Ushant (Cuessant) and Lands End G
j. the other.
q On January 81 the British FOREIGN O
v Acc denied that hospital ships were b,