The Washington times., 1917-05-07
TALE OF U-BOAT PIRACY
RIVALS CAPTAIN KIDD
German Cruelty Reaches Climax IN
Treatment Of SchoOner's Crew.

BALTIMORE. May IA plea to
French schooner Leontine Is a tale of
modern piracy and murder which riv-
us any OF the authenticated history
of Captain Kidd. Here IL what hap
pened on the high seas during the
morning Of March %. 1917:
The schooner Leontine, carrying $50
tons of mine stakes, left France on
March % at 2 o'clock. Two days later
the LeontIne was stopped by a long
range shot from a German submarine.
The crew, eight persons in all, pre-
pared to leave the ship as the captain
rushed below for the schooner's
papers. The submarine approached
and lay 300 metres away, her COM
mander and crew watching all that
was happening aboard the Leontine.
Instead OF allowing the unarmed
men to save themselves, the subma-
rine kept up q steady fire, deluging
the little ship with forty rounds of
shrapneL The FIRST few shots killed
four OF the crew and wounded the
four others-three seriously. The
Leontine was q charnel house 30 far
as the human material aboard could
make II. Her captain, slightly
wounded, as he attempted to mount
the bridge, returned to the deck and
courageously carried two OF the VIC
tins to shelter forward.
Answer Appeals With Shots.
The Leontine was now riddled like
sieve, but did not sink. The Ger
mans then fred incendiary shells, which
started a fire in the stern. The blaze,
however, as II fate had interviewed,
lid not spread. Immediately q boat
left the submarine and q party came
aboard to sink the Leontine with
bombs. Seeing that all the crew was
either killed or wounded, the board
ing party placed their bombs and
prepared to leave. On the deck the
arst mate and cabin boy, the latter q
child of tender eyars, fearing the ex-
blossoms, appealed to the enemy. Re
yolver shots answered their appeals.
Aboard the submarine the crew,
which crowded its deck, Applauded
this act with laughter and shouts.
Shortly before the first bomb ex-
ploded aboard the Leontine the sub
marine turned and steamed to q safer
place. The explosion tore q gaping
hole In the vessels side The first
mate, who survived his double injury,
family called to the captain that an
other bomb was about to explode.
This bomb was hanging over the side
BY q cord and the captain cut the
cord. The first bomb had done It's
work. Water was tapping the decks.
The little ship wallowed In the waves.
and a sudden gust OF wind threw her
strongly to port and she capsized I'M
mediately.
Boat. Hit By shrapneI. CaDsises.
The survivors, four In number-eap-
tain, first mate, cabin boy, and q
sailor whom the captain aided to hide
himself forward-were thrown into
the sea, but managed to keep ahoat
on wreckage which surrounded their
battered ship. BY superhuman ef.
forts they detached one OF the Leon
tines boats and crawlsd into IT.
The boat, battered by shrapneL cap
sized. By this time the mate and
cabin boy had succumbed to their
wounds. The two others crawled atop
the capsized boat, while the captain.
summoning all his strength, appealed
by signals to the submarine, which
lay some distance away watching the
show. The answer to this was the
training of the U-boat's deck gun on
the two helpless men. No shot was
hred, the enemy probably being con.
tent to let the victims Gle a slower
death. The submarine then cruised
heartlessly out OF sight.
Four hours OF intense suffering
passed before the survivors were sig,
nailed and picked up by a passing ship,
They are safely ashore today. recoy,
ering and able to tell the tragic story
Of modern heartless piracy.