Evening star., 1917-04-10
ST. LOUIS GETS THROUGH
SUBMARINE BLOCKADE.
Armed Liner Sights No U-Boats on
Either Trip, Though Ships Near
Her Are Torpedoed.

! By the Associated Press.
| NEW YORK, April 10.-Running safely
through the dangers of the German
submarine blockade of Great Britain.
ana without sighting a periscope on
| either the outr.ard or homeward journey.
the American mail and passenger liner
st. Louis has arrived at her home
| dock The st. Louis was the first
American passenger boat to be armed
and travel through the danger zone
around the British Isles since Ger
many's declaration of January 81, and
she was well armed for the trip. But
her guns were used on no German
| target.
| The homeward voyage was a stormy
one. A hundred miles off the coast of
| Ireland a gale threatened the destruc-
ton of the lifeboats. which had been
| partly lowered, and it became neces-
| sary to lie to for two hours while they
| We're made secure. This was an anN-
| ious time. as the stop was made di-
rectly in the normal path of German
| submarines returning to their home
| base.
| 'If l were hunting for submarines
could not have picked more likely
| place to find them.'' said naval officer
on board. But no submarines ap-
| peared.
The st. Louis later steamed through
deserted seas. only two small steamers
| being sighted until American waters
were reached
| Now that the American ship has COM
pleted her memorable voyage it is pos
| sible to tell how good luck probably
saved her from destruction.
Submarines in the Vicinity.
] There appears no room for doubt that
the German admiralty knew of her de-
parture and took steps to destroy her.
The British patrol fleet knew this and
| so did those in command of the st.
Louis before she was far into the war
| night with the coast of Ireland and it's
Observation-Disclosures waters still in the
| distance the IS. o. s. calls of ships in
distress came to the watchful wireless
operator of the st. Louis. y ship had
! been torpedoed about seventy-five miles
| ahead of the St. Louis and directly in
her path.
| Soon another call for help showed
| that another steamer had met the same
| fate a hundred miles south. while later
a third told of the destruction of Brit
| iSh boat far to the. westward out of the
war zone and in the path the st. Louis
had travelled.
| The St Louis arrived off the bar of
the Mersey before dawn. There was no
pilot boat at hand. and the American
liner was compelled to steam outside the
bar, where it was known a German sub
marine had been working the night be-
| fore until driven away by patrol boats.
| During this time a neutral steamer
| which had been in the harbor for about
two weeks had attempted to go to sea.
She was caught dropping mines inside
the bar, eighty of them being strewn
about. it was reported. Patrol boats
picked up or destroyed all but two of
! these.
| Narrow Escape From Mines.
| The st. Louis crossed the bar and
went up the narrow channel about 10
o'clock in the morning. About an hour
| later the British steamer Kelvinhead
crossed the bar. struck one of the lost
mines and sank.
| The St. Louis could not have missed
| this mine by more than twenty feet
| How she escaped destruction was a
mystery to the British officers. and the
amazed Americans were congratulated
when they reached their dock.
| 1t was the report around the Liver
pool docks that the vessel caught
| strewing mines was a Swedish boat
This was not confirmed by the British
| Nor is the fate of the officers of the
| guilty ship known. Those things are
not given out or even talked about by
England's sailors. But the decision in
| layed.
1t was the expressed belief of the
British that the big guns aboard the St
| Louis held no terrors for the German
submarines. The fortune of war was
on the side of the Americans.