Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1917-06-14
SOME HORRORS OF
(Continued from Page Ore. }

phistries of " frightfulness ''-and calls
murder by its real name.
Now that the submarines have beer
driven to attack ships submerged-us-
ing the torpedo almost exclusively
the murder roll is bound to grow, Frost
explained. Most ships when struck by a
1 torpedo, 90 down in two or three min
utes, which gives no opportunity of es-
| cape to those below decks
Some Recent Sinkings
/ Recent sinkings which came under
his observance since the beginning of
! the ruthless warfare show this con
clusively.
A freighter loaded with iron ore and
conveyed by destroyer went down in
I two minutes Eighteen of her crew of
twenty six drowned
Another sunk in two minutes after
being struck. She was hit in daylight,
but the submarine was not seen. Twen-
Nv eight of her crew of 80 perished.
The Abosso sank in three minutes
and thirty women and children died.
"Sinkings of this sort from now on
will be the rule-not the exception, "
Frost said.
"Only the larger passenger ships
will remainn afloat long enough to
launch the boats and get off the crew
and passengers; and those will not
float SO long if struck in vital spots by
more than one torpedo.
The submarines are now so fearful of
exposing themselves to the deck guns
of slowly sinking ships that they sell
dom come up to question the escaping
crews of passenger ships. Out of six
passenger ship sinkings Investigated by
him, this happened in only one case
that of the Laconia, which was sunk
near midnight
Murder from Ambush
HideOus as this assination from am
bush is, it does not equal the wanton
crimes committed in the days before
ruthless warfare-when the subma
rines came to the surface and attacked
with gunfire.
The warning given in these cases was
simply the beginning of the attack and
sailors were often killed by the "warn- |
ing shots,' Frost said. This sort of
was given only to save the ex-
penisve torpedoes $1,000 apiece |
of which a submarine can carry only |
a few. When the ship gave signs of !
the firing generally stopped |
and q boarding party from the subma
rine destroyed her with bombs. The !
rev took to their boats. Unless pick i
I'd up they were left 10 certain death ,
Dy starvation or drowning as these at !
tacks took place $50 and 200 miles off /
shore. 1t only one case did Frost find
hat the submarine Offered to assist the
victims by towing their boats toward
he land. The sufferings OF these crews
who were picked up by patrol boats
we're terrible. Many of them were new
n picked up. The men probably went
mad and leaped into the sea. In the
'ase of the Cairnhall, British freight
pr with a crew of sixteen men, five of |
whom were Americans, the Germans de-
iberately Quilted the lifeboat, took the
provisions which the men had placed in
he boat and threw them into the sea,
'mptied the water keg of fresh water
md. to make their work complete, fill Il
d it with salt water. The boat s sails
we're taken off and that was practical
y the only hope of getting to land if 1
he wind were favorable. She was at
acked $50 miles out at sea.
Some Prussian Kultur
While the Germans were indulging ,
n these pranks with the lifeboat, a ,
ombing party was wreeking the ship
nd the men were kept standing ON the
eek of the submarine The German of l
icers searched them. Most of them had t
title kitty bags or bandana handker I
hicfs in which they carried a few lit {
lie personal keepsakes such as photo |
raphs of their sweethearts, mothers or |
'ives. These were taken from them
nd thrown into the sea. The first Of t
ieer, Matthews, was kept below decks !
or an hour and put through the third +
egree as to the routes of other ships.
The Germans overplayed this little 4
rama of frightfulness as they used mp G
whole hour in preparing the lifeboat S
) a torture chamber for the men who e