The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1917-10-20
CRAFT PLUNGES BELOW
SOON AFTER ATTACK
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and Admiral Mayo spent in conference
= with the president.
The only soldiers on board were re
turning to the hospital or on specia
assignment Had the full complement
of the transport been aboard, the loss
undoubtedly would have been written
I in hundreds, as she was struck in the
most vulnerable spot and went under
so quickly that few could have es
capped.
Officials are confident that those
who survived owe their lives to the
careful attention given by the navy
department to the eQuipping of trans.
ports with lifeboats and life RATS.
It's fixed rule that enough boats
and RATS shall be carried to afford a
place for every man aboard, even
though the ship keel over and put half
her boats out Of commission.
r. The loss of the Ships engineer Of
ficers indicates the probability that no
one of the engine and fire room forces
on duty escaped. Probably most of
them died in the blast of the explosion
of the torpedo, which tore it's way in
to the engine room compartments.
Must Have Been Below.
The heavy loss among the army en-
listed men indicated cannot be &C.
counted for until further details come
in. Probably they and the navy men
were in their quarters below and could
not make their way on deck before
the ship took her final plunge. The
army, navy and ships officers and the
others who were rescued probably
were, on deck or in cabins from which
q step took them to the deck and
chance for their lives.
Lacking details of the attack, be-
yOnd the fact that the submarine was
unseen, and the first warning to
those aboard the Antilles came with
the shock of the explosion of the tor
pedo, many theories were current as
to how the U-boat crept through the
destroyer screen, did it's work and es-
capped unchallenged.
A majority of the officers who
would comment thought the transport
and her conveying patrols had run d.
Iectly over a lurking submarine which
saw them coming, calculated the dis
lance and launched her deadly torpe.
do without ever showing more than
her periscope. They regard it as
probable that the U-boat commander
picked his place, lay in wait below
the surface until his microphones told
him the patrols had passed and the
transport was on him, then shot his
periscope~ above water only long en-
ough to sight and fire before he duck.
ed back to safety.
Escape Made Easy.
Any attempt to locate the submar-
inc probably was made impossible by
the necessity of rescuing the surviv-
ors. The vessel must have been vir-
tlally torn in half by the explosion to
have gone down in the time she did.
Probably the attack was made we'll
out at sea. It took two days for the
news to reach Washington and the
dispatch shows the time that must |
have elapsed before definite word
could reach Admiral Sims. The sur.
yivors are believed to be already safe
ashore somewhere in France or Eng. !
land
So far as known, no high officers
OF the army Or-navy were due to re.
turn ON the Antilles. There is no def
mite information on that point, how.
ever, as only General Pershing knows
who was sent home on the ship. The
reports so far received show merely
that number of army officers and SO
men of the army were aboard.
Evidently Admiral Sims rushed his
tidings off before he communicated
with General Pershing.
The loss of the Antilles marks the
first reduction of the transport fleet
that has been operating. A very con-
siderable number Of American troops,
and others involved in the
of the war, have been
carried safely to France and England
and the unsuccessful attack on the
first contingent is the only recorded
previous instance where the U-boats
have succeeded even in catching
sight of the vessels.
The Antilles was the second Amer
lean vessel the Germans have torpe-
doed during the past week, and on sue
ceeding days The other craft was
a torpedo boat destroyer which suf-
fered loss of one life and five
Both vessels were attacked in the
war zone. the destroyer last Tues
day and the Antilles the following