Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1917-04-01
FOUR SHIPS SUNK
WITHOUT Warming:
AMERICANS LOST
Official Dispatches Reach
State Department of Lat
est U-BOat Activities.
% U. S. CITIZENS
EITHER KILLED OR MISSING
Three British Steamers and One
Portuguese Vessel Victims
of Submarines.
RESCUED MEN SUFFER MUCH
Left Hundreds OF Miles at Sea in
Lifeboats During Rough and
Cold Weather.
RESCUED MEN SUFFER MUCH
fRy Associated pre,s.l

fBy Associated Press.i
WASHINGTON. March 3l.-DcStruc-
tion without warning OF four merchant
ships carrying Americans in their crews
was reported to the state Department
to-day in official dispatches indicating
that several Americans lost their lives.
The vessels were the British steamer
crispin. on which two American negroes
probably perished, and from which
eighteen other Americans are reported
missing: the Portuguese sailing ship
Arso. from which three American ne
groes missing. and the British
steamers Eptafolos and Snowden Range,
on which there apparently no
loss OF life, though Americans in the
crews suffered from exposure.
The departments latest dispatch on
the Crispin. sent to-day by Consul
Washington. at Liverpool. follows:
experimenting consul Swansea's
Crspin cable 3oth. join, affidavit four
American seamen indicates two Amer
leans. colored frcmen. names so far
unknown. killed explosions; eighteen
Americans so FAR unaccounted for in
captains boat: sixty-nine Americans
on Crispin--ten aremen. two seamen.
ffty-sevcn cattlemen: carried ono gun
aft: submarine German: ordered rescu-
torpedoing."
No VESSELS IN SIGHT
WHEN BOAT Is ATTACHED
Previously, Consul Moorehead. at
Swansea. in dispatch da ted yesterday.
had reported:
British steamer crspin. Newport
News 10 Monmouth. WITH horses. tor
pcdocd without warning. p. NJ,
March % Off Minehead, Ireland
Weather mod rate. northwesterly
winds. Fairly heavy swclls. No yes
sells in sight when attacked Torpedo
not seen. First intimation of subma-
rine was explosion in vessel No at
tempt to escape. Vessel Abandoned
sank 3:l5 =. VI. Boats. in charge of
chief officer. picked up by fishing
trawler. taken TO Milford Haven No
casualties among crew In these boats
Captains boat landed in Ireland.
Forty-n!nc OF crew sent direct to
Liverpool. Foregoing information OBJ
,ained by telephone from chief officer"
Destruction OF the Argo was reported
by Consul Armstrong. at Bristol. in this
dispatch. dated to-day:
William Pitts and Spencer Kennedy,
colored. American seamen Portuguese
sailing ship Ar2o. from New Orleans
y
swear Arso shelled without inten-
,ional warning by submarine flying
German Nag. 500 miles off Gravesend.
o'clock March e3. Weather rough.
cold: occupants lifeboats at sea four
days; suffered from exposure: when
picked up by British hospital ship
brought into Avounouth: one lifcboat
with three colored Americans unac-
counted for their names unknown
Two other Americans. Troy Thomas.
Charley Jackson. rescued. suffering
from exposure. No other boats near
by. Submarine offered no assistance;
Argo no resistance
SUBMARINE FIRES TWELVE
SHELLS INTO sHIr
Consul Gaulin reported the sinking
of the Eptafolos. from Marseilles. in
tho following dispatch dated yester-
day
Mailing aflldaviis Roy Adams. FL
berton, Ca: James Dennis. Hampton,
Va; Edward Ryan, Suffolk. Va, fire.
men on British steamer Eptafolos sunk |
by submarine without flag or ndica !
tion nationality. about fifty miles from !
Malta. March %: weather fine. sea calm. !
Eptafolos bound Malta 10 Gibraltar, in |
ballast. without passengers troops, |
carried one gun, two gunnera. Vessel |
torpcdoed without warning by unseen |
about 1890 noon. Ryan. on |
deck, saw torpedo approaching. Epta- |
folos Immediately stopped: crew en-
tered lifeboats, for which ample time.
then appeared. took pris- |
oncr captain. first, second officers, four
engineers, one gunner and ordered crew
steer for Malta. indicating course. No /
other assistance given by subma rine. L
Eptafolos, being still afloat. submarine,
iirod about twelve shells. vessel sink
ing In one hour, at about $3.50 o'cloc t
Crew remained boats from Friday ~
tcrnoon until reaching Malta Sun6 ,,v
March %, about Z o'clock. moriSS SSine
Sufficient food and drink in l!fel..o.t.
orcM 'e .'"' ae.''eS ''bn' March
y. No 'csse' iil s'sh. ''h'e Oh tattack:
no attempt by Eptafolos escape ~ 20.
sist search. No examination $50.
papers oe".i' "u"e''hs aimed hip.
causeu =! " stok ehold
when torpedo exploded: anotshor s.o-
man reported head cut by fHau .owe
These only casualt-aa Ev,-
dence regarding display flag on Enta-
rolos contradictory. Believeat 10 otrer
Americans on board
DlsrATCh "EroHrs siMh ING
W On RANGE
Nne a'ape" ~ 'o", oool report
"S .no - '"e ''o wdon Range
ohoWo' Ell
British steamer Snow laon pa,
ICopt{nued nn Gnconnt-------