The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-08-12
NINE VESSELS SUNK

Washington, August 11.-Coming to the surface in the midst of fleet of fishing schooners off the Massachu- setts coast, a German submarine today sank nine vessels of the fleet, the navy department tonight announced. The schooners sunk include the Kate Palmer. the Anita May. the Reliance. the Star Buck and the Progress. Tho names of the other four ships were not contained in navy department dis- patches.
 Four survivors from the crew of the Kate Palmer were picked up by the fishing schooner Helen Murley and have reached port in safety. No in- formation has been obtained by tho navy department tonight as to the fate of the craws of the other schooners.
 After the crew of the Kate Palmer had been taken aboard the submarine and held prisoner for one hour they were set adrift in small boat.
 OTHER VESSELS ATTACKED An Atlantic Port, August 11.--Ths rived late tonight and reported an at- 1 tack by a submarine on four other fishing vessels off the southern edge of Georges banks Saturday afternoon. Capt. Edward A. Proctor of the Cleaner saw one two-masted schooner disap- l pear, but was unable to say what be- came of the three vessels That same morning he said he had heard gun fire, but it was so far away he could sec nothing of the vessel doing the firing.
 ho ct fovv se~wsx A. L N IL partment, which, it was said. contains all the information that could be fur- nished at this time, follows:
 The fishing schooner Helen Murley has reached an Atlantic port with four survivors from the crew of the fishing schooner Kate Palmer, who reports that German submarine came to the surface in the middle of fishing fleet off the Massachusetts coast and sank the Kate Palmer. the Anita May, the Reliance. the Starbuck, the Progress and four others whose names are un- known. The survivors of the Kate
 Palmer were taken aboard the German submarine and held prisoners one hour
 and then set adrft in a dory'
 Captain Proctor said he was sword nshing, in comypany with four other schooners whose names he did not know,
 when the submarine came up in the , midst of the other ships. He was some l"sSeniIc away, Dut saw d SnOI IlrG0
 across the bow of one large schooner. As there was a brisk breeze, Captain } Proctor decided to take chance on r escaping by cracking on all sail as well
 as power from his gasoline auxiliary engine. At the same time dories were
 provisioned and made ready to launch al 7 a moments notice in case the submarine 3 burned her guns on the Cleaner Every . one was too busy to notice what fate
 hefell the others, but Captain Proctor
 said when he turned his glasses to the spot where he last saw the big schooner , she had disappeared.
 The weather was clear but the sea was lchoppy. If the crews of the vessels at tackled took to their boats Captain Proc : tor said they had rough time before being picked up, for there has been a
 strong northeast wind and Georges banH
 is rough with. the wind in that quarter
 Thirty miles from the scene of thu
 attack Captain ProNpr said he sighted f d steamer bound in the direction ol
 the submarine. The schooner's flag wal
 put union down in an effort to~attrac
 the steamers attention and warn her o \ the danger. The steamer evidently dit not see the signals. for she kept on hel course. Captain Proctor said.