New Britain herald., 1918-08-02
U-BOAT CREWS FEAR
OUR DEPTH BOMBS
English Captain, Submarine Pris-
Oner, Relates His Experiences


the Associated Press) Sensations ex-
pericnced in a German submarine
while depth bombs were being dis
charged overhead were described re-
Gently by British merchhnt ship
captain who was q prisoner for Is
days aboard a U-boat
In an interview the English COM
mander, captured by the Germans
after his vessel had been torpedoed,
related how the depth bombs shook
the undersea craft and created con-
sternation among the sailors. In one
instance the faces of the Germans
became white with fear and all stood
trembling after the first shot, which
was not near enough to destroy the
submersible. All were expecting a
second discharge.
The English commander reached
his native land after having been i'm
prisoned for months at Brandenburg,
where, he said, he and other ship Of
ficers at times had been harnesSed to
carts which were used to haul mail
and packages from the postoftice to
the prisoners camp.
Seven vessels were torpedoed by the
Germans while the British captain was
aboard the U-boat. Previously the
English officer had been in command
of a merchant vessel which had also
met it's fate at the hands of a sub
marine crew.
ION the third day after I had been
taken prisoner" said the captain, 'just
after the midday meal, I gathered that
the submarine was about to carry out
an attack on a convoy which had just
been sighted. The U-boat approached
submerged for some distance and tor
Stp where
abouts apparently was detected, [ was
told by an allied light cruiser, for we
diVed rapidly to a great depth.
Hardly had the submarine reached
an even keel when we heard and felt
tremendous explosion which caused
the U-boat to vibrate from stem to
stern. 1t was a depth charge from
the cruiser.
THE effect on the crew was evident.
All stood trembling with faces
blanched with fear, not attempting to
speak, expecting a second charge, the
result of which might mean the de-
struction of the boat and without the
slightest chance for us to escape.
There is no doubt in my mind of
the mental attitude of the crew. for 1t
was mot the first experience of the
men with a depth charge, and they
had learned from others in the service
what terrible weapons depth bombs
were in the hands of skilful seamen.
For some moments we waited; en-
gines were stopped and all means
were taken to prevent giving indica-
ton of our position. Minutes seemed
like hours in such a situation. I'll ad-
nit that I was turning over in my
mind whether [ should see my family
again. No additional explosions took
place. however, and after remaining
some eighteen fathoms deep for a long
period we continued our voyage.
"A few days later we had another
experience with depth charges, or
"wasser bomben,'' as the German sail
ors call them. A sailing vessel had
just been sunk by shell fire when two
allied detroyers were sighted, and
down we went. BY the micrOphones
the propellers could be heard, and IS
the vessels came nearer and nearer we
in the submarine could hear the thud-
ding quite distinctly. To and fro the
destroyers went searching for us Evil
IDENTIFY they picked a clue for there
were two explosions ahead but not so
near us as that from the cruiser, but
quite close enough to cause the sub
marine to tremble and then roll about
as though in a heavy sea-"
Prison camp conditions in Germany
were described by the British captain
as being deplorable.
Indignities at German Camp.
although we were merchant ship
captains imprisoned at Brandenburg,
we were made to suffer various in
dignities," he said.
I'VE were compelled to harness our
selves to carts which we had to draw
4N
postoff1ce in order to fetch our parcels
and any commodities to camp. 1t was
at this camp also that I saw three
hundred Russian soldiers working, all
of whom were in the last stage of tU-
berCulosis The poor fellows could not
get enough to eat and they would
eagerly scrape discarded tin cans in
the hope of finding particles of food.
! have seen German soldiers do the
same thing. We were glad to search
the cinder paths at any opportunity in
anticipation of finding bits of coke or
coal with which to cook our food"
The captain said his ship was tor
pedoed without warming and that after
he and all his men were af1oat in life
boats the submarine appeared on the
surface and he was taken prisoner, the
mates and seamen being permitted to
start in the direction of land. De-
scribing the submarine the British
captain said:
She was a fairly large craft, of re-
cent numbering, having three torpedo
tubes, two in the bow and one aft,
and carried ten torpedoes. She was
also armed with a gun for shell fire,
Just forward of the coming tower.
"My first meal aboard the U-boat
consisted Of a stew made with stringy
meat, probably horsetlesh, supplement-
ed by mall portions of sausage with
black bread. AS the voyage pro-
crossed this bread became widowed