The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1917-11-01


" The International News Bureau.)
"A The Italian naval authorities have
Trecently lifted the veil of mystery
shrouded the story of subma-
Crime U-C-12. The facts as they stand.
revealed are so striking and illustrate
$50 clearly German methods of war
Ware of all kinds, whether by land,
H7sea, or air, that it seems well that
4 British READERS should hear the fasci-
u mating story of U-C-12, for it is not
every submarine which has had such
"a chequered career and which has
been in turn German, Austrian and
v italian
The story begins in May, 1915; a
+ very short while after the declaration
HMof war by Italy upon Austria. 1t will
be Remembered that, in spite of the
alliance In arms between Austria and
Germany Germany was not included
lin the declaration of war and remain
ed outwardiy. at all events. on friend
3sly terms with Italy until August, 1916.
& There was, however, plenty of
EEround for supposing that the friend
1iness Of Germany was outward only,
4 and that she was in reality secretly
adding Austria in every possible way.
ETowards the end of June, 1915, the
italian mine-sweepers, while per-
MORNING their daily task near one Of
1.-THE Italian naval bases in the Adriatic,
fEudden1y came upon a new form of
secret destruction, consisting of a
barrier of IL mines in the water.
& They were carefully cleared away
Eand the mine-sweepers continued day
after day their accustomed work,
when suddenly another barrier OF
mines was found in very much the
- Ia 80 -
kguess how the mines had got there;
they could only have been placed
there by submarine, which was able
to cruise below the water and in Sc.
cret to lay her deadly eggs The Ital-.
'ians determined that the next attempt
On the part Of the submarine should
be less successful and should, on the
cher hand, result in her own destruc-
ton
They. had to wait for some time and
possess their souls IN patience until
March Is, 1916, when the enemy sub
marine ventured once again into the
waters OF the naval base to lay
another batch Of eggs She ventured
< An, but this time she did not make her
escape silently and unobserved, for
she fell victim to the Italian mines
which were lying In readiness for her.
"a loud explosion made it known to,
The Italian watchers that their plan
had succeeded. That might have
been the end of thes tory of U-C-12,
nnd end which has doubtless come to
many another U-boat during the pres
emit war.
But the enterprise of the. Italian
cornmander of the. naval base gave a
fresh turn to the story and brought
TO light facts which proved the du-
plicity Of Germany once again. The
water In which the submarine met her
fate was not particularly deep, and
brilliant idea occurred to the COM
xnander of attempting to salve the
vessel and to send her out repaired,
rented and re-equipped as a unit in
the Italian Submarine Service
I ri II was not an easy task to under
take, for the commander knew well
+, that the sunken submarine almost
certainly carried her usual cargo of
Mines. After divers had first been
sent down to ascertain where the SUBJ
marine lay and the condition in
which she was, she was cautiously
1lshed up to the surface a broken,
tangled mass apparently quite USE
less 1t was not, however. until she
reached the surface that her previous
history began to be understood. She
.lt11cA clJOQ ISsCdd0Q as the O-C-lH,
built In Germany. at the Weser dock
K yard, by the firm Ditta Siemens
Schuckert.
It was now clear that while Ger
many remained nonfna11y on terms
Or friendship with her former ally
Italy. she had lent one Of her sub
marfnes to operate in the service of
Austria In the Adriat1c and to lay
mines In Italian waters. But how did
the submarine make her way from
the harbor of her birth to the Adri-
alter That is a question which may
( well be asked. and 1t would not be an
4 easy one to answer were it not for
ythe fact that on board the U-C-12
\ was found her log from birth to
death. She had made her trial trip
to the Weser, after which she was
kowed through the Kiel Canal In May,
1915: at Kiel she took on board the
mines which she was to be sent to.