Omaha daily bee., 1917-03-24
DETAILS REACH
WASHINGTONO ON
HEAL DT0N FATE
Oil Tanker Healdton Attacked
Outside the German War
Zone" and Goes Down
at Once, A
ABOUT TWENTY DROWN
Six of Thirteen Citizens Of the
United States in Grew Are
Reported Saved.
ITS CARGO TAKES FIRE

| asnlngton, MarCn ES.-l ne 1lrSl
detailed official account of the sink
ing of the American steamer Heald-
ton reached the State department late
today from American Consul Krogh
at Rotterdam. 1t follows:
American tank steamer, Healdton,
Bayonne, N. j., owned by the Stand
ard Oil company OF New York, ell
route Philadelphia, via Bergen to
Rotterdam, commanded by Captain
Charles Christopher, American citi-
zen, carrying cargo of 5000 tons pc
troleum. having forty-one officers and
crew aboard, including number Of
Americans, reported torpedoed and
sunk without warning by German
submarine at 8:l5. evening of March
81, twenty-five miles from Terschill-
ing.
Twenty Drowned.
Captain and nineteen men brought
safely ljmuiden. One died exposure
in lifeboat. Twenty reported drowned
by capsizing."
A later dispatch from Consul Krogh
said nine additional survivors had
been reported.
The Standard Oil company OF New
York telegraphed the State depart
ment as follows:
Wives of captain and chief engi-
neer received telegram advising hus-
bands are safe. Thirteen of crew
were Americans. Steamer bound Phila-
delphia for Rotterdam and had called
at Halifax and Bergen. Left Bergen
for Rotterdam March 20, captain hav-
ing been instructed to proceed by re-
ported safe route through North Sea
channel, west of Denmark. Cargo was
illuminating oil in bulk"
Rotterdam, March 23.--(Via Lon
don, March 23.)--The six Americans
saved from the Healdton are Captain
Charles Christopher of Brooklyn, J. |
Caldwell of New York, chief engi-
neer, and G, Embry of New Orleans,
first assistant engineer, all of whom
landed at Ymuiden; o. o. Wilerup,
chief mate; Y. Swenson, second as
sistant engineer, and S.-L."C.- john
son, third assistant engineer, who
landed at Tersehelling.
Amsterdam, March 23.-(Via Lon
don.)-The Handlesblad says there
are, only" six Americans among the
survivors of the Healdton. :, I
In its account of the sinking OF the
Healdton the Handlesblad says:
THE unreliability of the German
assurances. regarding the so-called
safe zone is shown by the reports of
the crew Of the Healdton and the
crews of fishing boats.
For safety's sake the Healdton
chose the northern route. Wednesday
evening at Sis o'clock a submarine
suddenly made a treacherous attack.
Without fully emerging and without
a warning it fired two torpedoes, |
which hit the steamer amidships so
that the vessel, because of the dam
gerous character of its cargo and an
explosion in the engine room, caught
fire.
The crew, in three boats, tried to
leave the ship. Two sloops with thir-
teen and seven men, respectively, sue
ceeded in getting away, but the third,
containing twenty.one men, capsized |
and nearly all were drowned.
Rescued by Trawler.
"The crew of a Dutch trawler,
which observed the fire from great
distance, believed the glow to be that
OF the aurora borealis and did not
go to the rescue. The next day, how
ever, seeing a sloop under sail, they
at once stopped fishing and steamed |
in the direction OF the soop, whose
occupants we're so exhausted that |
they were unable to maneuver their
boat along side the trawler. The cap
tain of the trawler finally managed |
to approach the sloop and some of |
the Dutch fishermen jumped into the
craft and brought it alongside the
trawler, where the shipwrecked men
were taken on board, cared for and |
supplied with dry clothes. All the
property of the crew was lost. |
After the attack the submarine at
once submerged and disappeared |
without troubling over the lot of the
shipwrecked sailors.
Among the crew Of the Healdton