Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-10-18

,vAsIIINGTON, oct. IS. - 4 German
.,,hrnarine torpedoed an American destroyer
an natrol duty in he war zone on TUESDAY.
ona man was killed and five wounded.
mn DESTROYER managed to make port in
snite of severe damage.
sp1.S g,,. man killed was Osmond Kelly In
..arn eunner's mate He was blown over
soerd by the explosion and his body was
~ recovered Ingrams mother, Mrs. Betty
IUgram, lives at Pratt City, Ala
The wounded were not seriously hurt
They are Herman H. Pankratz' gunners
tc ST Louis: William Il. Merritt, sea-
nnan New York city; Frank w. liruse.
sran,an Toledo: Patrick Rutledgc, oiler,
%ow York city. and William Seimcr fire.
man. Dundas, MINI.
vice Admiral Sims cabled a brief report
.f the incident to the Navy Department late
sssterday. lie gave few details, but it is
sssuNned there was no fight and that the
IT.hoat made good her escape after launch
ing a torpedo without showing herself.
NAME OF VESSEL WITHHELD
In accordance with the policy of secrecy
.oncerning American naval operations. the
Ssnartment did not divulge the name of the
Ssstroyer or the exact place of the en-
counter.
This is the first time an American war;
shp has been hit by the enemy since the
var began. DestrOyers conveying troops
and merchantmen have engaged submarines
and are believed to have accounted for some
of them, and the ships patrOlling the Eu-
ronean shipping lanes undoubtedly had
made many an encounter of which nothing
has been heard but until Tuesday none
had been touched by hostile shot.
Naval gun crews on armed American
merchantmen have not been so fortunate.
MANY of them have had to abandon their
nd fal-a tp tho hngtG ngnAlly after
an unwarned torpedo attack, and one officer
and thirteen men have lost their lives, while
four men now are in German prison camps
In ALL the navy has lost one officer and
sixteen men-the only men of Americas
fighting force actually killed in action
Lieutenant Clarence G. Thomas, COM
handing the gun crew of the tank steam
ship Vacuum, and four of his men were the
first Of the naVy'S casualty list. In addi-
tiOn to the men lost on merchantmen and
Gunners Mate Ingram, two naval flyers
have lost their lives at the French front.
Naval officers do not doubt that the
torpedoed destroyer was taken unaWareS
b. the submarine and had no chance to
bring her guns into play. They think II
probable that the U-boat cruising in search
Of merchant victims, stumbled upon the
patroling destroyer and was fortunate
enough to get into position to launch a
torpedo and dive to safety without ever
showing more than her periscope.
General Pershing advised the war De-
partment Yesterday hat First Lieutenant A.
Graham medical officer. United States Re-
serve corps, attached to the British forces,
has been severely wounded in the thighs
by gunshot.
General Pershings report was without
details Lieutenant Graham's next Of kin
IS Mrs William ]. Graham, 1913 Park ave-
uue, Paterson, y. j.
II Lieutenant Graham was shot while
serving at the front. as is assumed here, he
was the first American of the eXpeditiOnary
forces to be wounded on the firing line one
American officer was killed and several en-
listed men of the medical department were
wounded In the recent bombing of hos
pital behind the front. They also were at
tached to the British forces.