The Oskaloosa herald., 1918-06-27
ACT or GERMAN
FRIGHTFULMEss
STORY OF ToRPEDolNe OF THE
aPREsIpENT LINcoLN.p
BY ONE WHO WAS ON THE SHIP
Art Lewis Gives Graphic Account OF
The Sinking Of the Big Trans
port by an Enemy
Submarine.

Art Lewis, son of hrs. Mary Lewis
of this city, and who was aboard the
i'll f-ted transport, President Lincoln,
which was sunk by a submarine on
MAY 81 is home on a fifteen day fur
Tough. Art arrived home Monday and
tells a very interesting story of the
sinking of the President Lincoln.
at occurred on the morning of May
81 at about nine O'Clock, about three
hundred miles off the French coast"
said Art. Il had just come on watch
and was in the wash room washing my
clothes, when bang and l knew
right away that we had stopped a tor
pedo. In about ten seconds. after the
first shock, a second one rocked the
ship. This time it hit aft of the en-
CINE room and it was not long until
the entire room was flooded with wat
er. The first one had hit in the coal
bunker where about awenty men were
busy shoveling coal, but luckily none
or them were hurt They had just
started and were not down very deep
and so had just time to get up the lad
der before the water came in but were
all swimming before they got out.
The second torpedo would have
caused quite toll of lives had it hit
ten feet forward of where it did. This
would have been the engine room and
nobody would have been able TO have
escaped.
Abandon Ship.
"All hands began to throw RATS
over the sides and to lower away the
life boats but although there We're 100
men on board there was not one
who got excited, and not a one went
over the side until the captain gave
the order to abandon ship. AZ ] had
nothing on but my underclothes l ran
into an officers cabin and grabbed
what could in the dark. managed
to get a white shirt and a pair of dun
gaTees which ! put on. By this time
most of the men were over the side.
/. ran to the portside and jumped in
the center of a raft and as it was the
closest raft TO the ship we waited for
the captain TO come over. l did not
need to jump but that ladder looked
too slow for me. Just as the captain
came over the side the gun crew fred
1--WE shots of distress. AS they fired the
star board side was taking water and
at the last shot they jumped over the
bow just as the ship was taking ner
last plunge, aft end first. The ship
ficated for thirty-two minutes after We
were hit.
"As the ship went down we tried TO
get the raft away from her side but
could not So just as the captain call
ca 10 hold tight and look out for the
suction big wave took US up over the
bridge and across the bow. When we
turned to look back the ship was gone
and nothing TO be seen but the stack
which mad broken loose and fioated.
1t was then that / saw one of the aw-
fullest things imaginable One of the
sailors was sucked into the stack
and went down with it.
Sub Comes Back.
In about ten minutes after the ship
sank we saw what looked like a sail
boat coming toward us. We began to
cheer and thought we would soon be
picked up and taken to land Imagine
how we felt when we discovered that
IL was the submarine coming back to
the surface. We thought it was good
night for US and that we would be
fired upon. They came back and
drilled among US just as big as you
please. They were looking for our cap
tain and taking pictures of US. BY that
time | had picked up along with the
captain by life boat. The submarine
picked up sailor who was drifting by
himself and gave him some brandy
and coffee and thereby saved his life
as he would have drifted OFF and been
lost. They then took our first lieuten-
ant and put the sailor in life boat
Captain Escapes.
zone OF the Germans could talk
good English and he would call out
to the lifeboats 10 pull along side
while they gave us the once over in
order to find our captain but as he
had on hat and sailors sweater, they
did not find him Just before they left
one Of them went out TO one Of the big
guns and again we had the feeling that
things were all OF and that they were
going 10 springle few shells among
us. Ard maybe you think we were not
releayed when he took out the shell
and covered the gun. Just before they
left they told us TO be thankful we
were not EnglIshmen or they would
kin every last one OF Us. And we were
sure thankful that our home was in
America.
Rescued From Sea.
AFTER they had left we all felt bet
ter. We began to get the RATS to-
gether and thanks to II being warm
day and night. we were able to get
our clothes dry. Just al dark Icrowled
up in the end of the boat and went to
sleep. right away. was sure all In
after pulling nj the oar trying TO col
lecf the RATS 4 did not wake up un-
I'll midnight when somebody saw a
light over the port rail- When / got up I
e $50 ~ tas