Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1917-02-09
CALIFORNIA DEATH
TOLL IS Al LIVES
Help Arrived Promptly, but
36 We're Drowned in Launch
ing of Lifeboats.
FIVE KILLED BY EXPLOSION
Liners Gun Was Being Trained
on Submarine When Fatal
Torpedo Was Firid.

LONDON. Feb. S.-C7:40 p. M
The British passenger steamer Cali
tornil of the Anchor line. bound from
New York for Glasgow, was tOrpcdoed
at o'clock Wednesday morning off
the Irish coast and sank I'm nine min
utes with the loss OF II lives. The
stricken ship was able to send out
IS. O. $" calls and help arrived
promptly. Nevertheless five persons
were killed by the explosion and SO
were drowned in the launching of the
liieboats.
The news of the sinking of the CAL
ifornia reached London yesterday aft
ernoon, but publication was not per
mitted until more than p hours later.
The California was an armed liner
carrying single A. gun mounted on
the stern. The gunner was just train
ing the weapon on the spot whore oil
bubbles had revealed the presence of
the underwater enemy when tor
pedo struck the port side with an eN-
plosion so violent that most of the
people aboard were thrown off their
feet. five being killed and a score in
jured.
Second shot Missed.
The submarine fired a second tor
pedo i'm an apparent effort to accel-
crate the sinking, but the second shot
missed. altho both tOrpedoes were
fired from distance OF less than
three hundred yards.
Captain Henderson, commander OF
the California, declares that the CON
duct of the passengers and crew was
exemplary There had been careful
drills on the ship on the way across
and every person aboard had been as
signed place ia a lifebo3t and pro-
Vided with a life belt, but despite the
CColncss OF the passengers and the
Seamanship Of the crew. the success
full launching Of the boats was made
impossible by the shortness of the
time between the torpcdoinG of the
vessel and her disappearance beneath
the waves. which did not permit wait
ing until the ship had lost headway.
While thc boats were being lowered
from the sloping decks. the California
continued to move forward, luTchlng
like - drunken man. and the roar of
the water rushing thru the gaping
wound IN her side could bc heard
above the shouts Of officers and men.
In number Of cases II was necessary
for the passengers to jump into tie
boats after thev were in the water,
and i'm one case, q boat with its ap-
portioned load was swamped and sank,
many of the occupants being swept
under the shin before the other boats
could give help.
Some Of the lifcboats In the after
part Of the ship were actually in the
water when released from the davits
SO rapidly did the ship settle by the
stern II was extremely fortunate
that the weather was calm and the
sea CLASSY; otherwise II would prob
ably have been impossible to launch
n siagle boat.
TownSpcoplc Give Md.
The townspeople Cuame of port
omittcd) who crowded the quaNs
carried blankets. clothing and food
ance 10 the survivors.
According To the reports received by
the American embassy from some of
the survivors there was only one sub
marine. II was the captain from the
bridge who disCerned suspicious oil
bubbles on the surface of the water
three hundred yards distant He in
stantly OWNED that a submarine was
there and ordered the gunner to fire.
Before this could be done the ship
was torpedoed. The track of the tor
pcdocs and the periscope of the sub
marine could he seen, but no warning
was civen and the submarine did not
speak the boats after the survivors
were In the water.
captain Henderson and the other
: >officers remained aboard the Cali
Nlnia until the ship went down.
Engineer Smith. Engineer Cunning
a..