The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1918-07-11
IMMENSE CROWD :. SEES LAUNCHING OF A SUBMARINE. Lake Yards Scene of Initial Dip of New Craft to Fight
 the Kaiser.
 PATRIOTISM THE
 KEYNOTE OF TALKS The R-21 Takes Water With out a Mishap- Cheered by Thousands of Workers.

Fifteen minutes before schedule time and amid deep throated roar from thousands of workmen and spectators U. s. Submarine R.21, the latest product of the LaKe Torpedo Boat Co. slid down the ways and into bar clement yesterday eftArRoon, waile sirens on factories, ships and | hundreds of autos footed, shrieked l and howled in a deafening din. According to the announcement | made by the officials of the yard the | boat was to slide into the water at 1:40 but the tide was very favorable, | at 1:25 and the naval authorities at the yard urged that the opportunity l be taken advantage of. As Mrs D. c. Laizure, wife of Lieutenant Commander LaiZure, U. & N. standing far out on the beautiful ly decorated stand which had been erected around the stem of the un- ! dersea boat, broke the bottle of I champagne against the bow and at the same time said a prayer for the future success and victory of tho fighting craft, pandemonium broke loose. Whistles, sirens, horns and hammers intermingled with the wild cheering of thousands created a tu- mutt, the echo of which will be heard in Berlin. On top of all this the air was thick with waving flags and hats of the men who had pitched them high in their enthusiasm as the gray fighter took to the water.
 Immediately the R.21 was safely off the slip she was taken in tow by a tug and escorted to the Lake dock, where a crew immediately set to work at the installation of her ma chinery. Not a moment was lost for things began to move immediately she was brought abreast of the huge lifting crane and the pile of machin- cry standing ready on the dock.
 The thousands assembled were then addressed by Lieutenant Governor Clffford B. Wilson, who gave one of the most rousingly patriotic talks the people of Bridgeport ever heard. He reminded the men of their great mis- sion in constructing machinery for the fighters of the country and he told them that every rivet they drove into the hull of a submarine for the United States Navy was a rivet in the coffin of the Hohenzollerns and Kais- erism.
 r Lieutenant Governor and Mayor Wilson, was followed by the Rev. Alexander Allison, Jr., pastor of the First Presbyterian church, who of- fered up a prayer before the big United States flag which was raised on the new government store build ing. As he finished the prayer the halliards were pulled and the huge flag broke on the breeze, releasing thousands of little flags which were pinned within it's folds. These little flags rained over the thousands ot people about the speakers stand and were eagerly sought as souvenirs.
 Dr. Allison then launched into ar enthusiastic patriotic talk whict kept his audience for more than ar hour. In the meanwhile many o. the people missed seeing one of the completed U boats go on her f1na trials before being accepted by th' U. S. Navy. Officials of the yarC thought that they could get the crowC to pay attention to the big sub jus starting out for a run on the Sound but so intent were they upon wha Dr. Allison had to say that even false alarm failed to detract thei attention.
 Officials of the plant also address ed the men and after they had lis tened to A l.. Vernon, of the Wheele t2 Wilson band play a selection of pa triotic airs on cornet ending wit
 the Star Spangled Banner in whic
 everyone joined in mighty choru
 the men returned to their work an
 once more the deafening chatter (
 the rivetting guns sounded like ba fter4es of machine guns in action.