Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-06-05
GERMANS MINED
DELAWARE BAY
Sweepers Pick Up 8 and
Explode Two Others by
Rifle Fire
PRATT: DUE HERE TODAY
From a STAFF Correspondent

waters adjacent to the mouth of the
Delaware river, according to well au.
thenticated reports received here.
Eight of the enemy's mines have
been picked up at the mouth of the
!. Delaware by American mine sweepers.
Two others were exploded by rifle fire.
Search for the mines was made late
yesterday as a result of an examina.
ton. of the hull Of the STANDARD Oil
Company tanker Herbert L. Pratt,
sunk Monday off the Delaware Break
water, which led to the belief that ihe
had not. been torpedoed
Lewes slept more peacefully last
night than at any time since last
Saturday. The presence of one of
the fastest destrovers of the Amer.
lean Navy, just inside the Breakwater
had much to do with returning con-
f1dence and a feeling of safety.
Every movement of small craft in.
side the breakwater is made under
the closest scrutiny of naval author.
tiles here. Several motorboats which
came over from Cape May late yes
terday, were not permitted to return
Martial law, which had been in force
at Cape May for the last twenty.
four hours, was lifted this morning
II was said.
Pratt Due at Philadelphia Today
The Pratt has been raised and
brought inside the Ereakwater, almos,
twenty-four hours after Eaving been
sunk. She proceeded, this morning
for Philadelphia under her own steam
The survivors of the Carolina landed
here by the British steamer Appleby
were: Passengers, Belmont Won Jenney
New York; Gabriel n. Rinach, San
Juan; James NJ McCaffrey, New
York Andres Sanchez, San Juan; Juan
Jose Emanuelli Guayamila, P. r. Jose
B. Illanes. Ponce, P. r., and William
virella and Enrique G. Puig, of San
Juan.
Members of crew: Richards Law
renee, Emanuel N. Debeneditty, Thomas
Yanga, Josef Venitez, Lorenzo Romaro
Trygue weig, George Howard. steward
and Christian Nielsen, chief deck en-.
gineer
All of these were IN one lifeboat OF
which Nielsen was in charge. Nielsen
particularly praised the conduct Of weie
and Howard.
Upon their arrival here, bringing none
of their, belongings except the scant,
A1- 81.
taken in charge by officers from the
naval station. Later their immediate
wants were supplied by D. w. Burbags
& Co., steamship agents of Lewes
who furnished them transportation
to New York
After they had told their version OF
the disaster to the naval authorities
most of the survivors were permitted tc
leave on an early afternoon train. Thi:
morning only Won Jenney and Nielsen
who were detained by the naval authori
ties. were still here.
Nielsen, who had his first experience
on torpedoed ship when the American
steam Gulflight was sunk May l, 1913
told the story of the Carolina's destruc'
ton here today
''At $50 o'clock Sunday night" HI
said. ."the submarine came upon us un
aware and fired three shells across ou,
signaled US to take to the lifeboats
We lost 40 time in obeying the order
we were then about 100 miles off Scot
land Light Ship.
Most of the passengers were at din
ner at the time. There was an entire
absence of panic every man Of the crew
was at his station and in very few
minutes everybody had been taken off.
by that time the U-boat had ap
preached within 200 yards Of us and W,
could see her plainly. She must hav
been $50 feet longf she was flying th
German flag and had guns mounted for
and aft. =
"On leaving the ship, ! was. in No.
lifeboat with Captain Barbour; when i
became evident that the men in No.
boat. which was a motorboat could no
handle it properly, was transferred t.
take charge. We then took No. 5 boa
in tow.
we had drawn away from tn
Carolina about a mile and a half whei
the submarine circled in close aroun,
p the ship, apparently to make certain n
one had been left on board; then sh
launched a torpedo, which struck ou
va amidshps. A few minutes late
sheN "a seven shells into the steamer
Shich went down. with her flag flynn
twenty minutes after the torpedo struc
her.
In a little while it was dark an,
rain began to fall; with the rising o
the wind, the hawser by which we wer
towing No. boat snapped. All tn
other boats had been lost sight of il
the darkness; we never saw them again
Boat Upsets in storm
I'VE. recovered No. S boat with grea
difficdHy. but a few minutes later tn
hawser broke again, and that was tn
last of her. There were thirty-fiv
persons on board her. including Captai
Barbour, I do not know whether h
was among the thirty later picked up.
in the middle of the night the squal
struck us with all its force and ou
the horror of what followed, the criei
and screams and useless struggling il
the water, every man for himself ant
the women. too, Fortunately all of VI
had on life belts or none would hav,
survived.
I'VE clung desperately to the sides o
the upturned boat and. after what seem
ed like ages, toss of the sea rightet
her again Miss Nieves and myself man
aged to climb in,' but the boat was 81
full of water that we had to bail 1t ou
! with our cupped hands before 1t wa
safe, to take any Of the others aboard
Those in the water suffered terribi
from the cold. BY daylight We had got
ten seventeen of them into the boat. TIL
other, seven had succumbed and wer
floating dead in the vicinity Miss Virell
had saved herself from going dow
by clingng to two of the dead bodies
which helped keep her afoat,
cot course. we had lost our foo
supply but later in the morning W
recovered some of 1t from the sea an
broke our long fast with water-soake