The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1918-11-27
AMERICAN NAVAL
OFFICER ESCAPES
FROM HUNS AFTER
CAPTURE BY SUB
Iowa Lieutenant Breaks
From Camp and Swims
Rhine to Safety

London, Nov. 5.-(Correspondence
OF The Associated Press)-Here Is
the story of Lieut.. T.. v. Isaacs, OF
the United States navy, watch ON
Ger OF the American transport Pres
ident Lincoln when that vessel was
torpedoed in the Atlantic on May
81 last. He was captured by the
German submarine which sunk the
ship. When off the Scandinavian
coast he attempted to swim ashore
but was caught. On his way to a
prison camp in Germany he jumped
from a train, but was recaptured
He escaped from the prison and
swan across the Rhine to safety IN
Switzerland.
The story has been told briefly in
the Associated Press dispatches but
its details are so filed with the
spirit of adventure as to be well
worth the telling.
When the President Lincoln went
to the bottom Of the ocean Leuten-
ant Isaacs, who is from Cresco, Iowa.
climbed upon a raft. Soon afterward
the submarine emerged and her COM
mander demanded the captain OF the
President Lincoln as prisoner. The
survivors told him they believed the
captain had gone down with the ship,
not that they were aware OF that
Out 10 save, IL pOSSlUl0s lAS SdPILAi
being taken prisoner.
While this was going on Lieuten-
ant, Isaacs said. he lay on the raft
with his arms under him to hide
the officers stripes on his uniform
but without success, and he was or"
oered aboard the submarine. It was
the U-90 and her commander, Cap
tain Remy, had resided in the United
States and England and spoke Eng
lish fluently.
Apparently Remy had been af-
fected by our civilization" said the
lieutenant, "as he treated me pleas
antly and while inquiring as to the
whereabouts of the skipper OF the
Lincoln. was told that l would tell
him where he could find our captain
or 70 to Germany myself as a prts-
oner. I could not conform to his
first command. and OF course would
not had been able to-"
The young officer said that he was
given a good bunk on the submarine
and four good meals daily including
meat, eggs and real coffee. The fol-
lowing day as the submarine was
cruising about seeking new victims
she was sighted by two American
deEtroyers.
while the destroyers were plung-
ing toward us we were getting under
water as rapidly as possible and
finally stopped at a depth Of so
meters" Lieutenant Isacs said.
when the depth bombs began ex-
ploding every German was at his
station tense and pretty badly, scar
ed. Now and then a junior officer
would sing out to the captain that a
destroyer was about so far away to
starboard or port as the case might
have been. They were recording the
positions with their listening deVic-
es. Then would come r. depth charge.
1t Is difficult to describe just the
sensation, but It seemed to me much
like a, dog shaking rat and 1t was
anything but pleasant to be in the
rat. With each explosion look of
horror would fash over the faces OF
the Germans. for they expected every
moment that one Of the charges
would be fired a bit closer and they
Knew their craft could not Withstand
IT.
Sub Heads for Home
Too many destroyers We're in that
area for comfort, so Remy headed
for the Kiel canal the next night.
When off the Scandinavian coast
Lieutenant Isaacs said he decided to
attempt to swim to shore when the
submarine approached territorial
waters. With his llIe~DelL on ne was
Just slipping over the side shortly
after midnight when he was discov-
cred by Remy himself and pulled
aboard.
On arrival at Wilhelmshaven he
was kept three days on submarine
mother" ship and three days in
land prison, carefully guarded and
badly fed. during this time he was
taken TO the German battleship
Kaiser Wilhelm II. the flagship of
the fleet. and questioned by a staff
officer.
II finally told him that the Unit
ed States would send so many men
to France that the battle lines
wouldn't hold them" said the lieu
tenant. AZ was then taken to Karls-
ruhe and placed in a hotel room by
myself the first day. The next day l
was put into another room with
eight French officers, it having been
learned In the meantime that
spoke French. These rooms I after
ward learned were known as the
s'Iistening rooms" and they. were
rIghtly named. The Frenchmen
and I found three dictaphones and
DESTROYED them. The next day was
placed in a room with three British
officers and there were dictaphones
in that room
After a few days at Karlsruhe, the