The evening Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1918-1920, 1918-11-27
Twice Re-captured by
Watchful Germans Be
fore Making HIS Sue
cessful Escape
CAREFULLY GUARDED
AND BADLY KEPT
How He Escaped with a
Boston COmrade from
German Prison

London, Oct. 30.-(Colrespond-
ence of the Associated Press Here
is the story of Lieutenant E. ".
lsaacs Of the United States Navy,
watch officer Of the American trans
port President Lincoln when that
vessel was torpedoed in the Atlantic
on May 81 last. He was capaurcd
by the German submarine which sank
the ship. When off the Scandinavian
coast he attempted to swim ashore but
was caugh--. On his way to d prison
camp in Germany he jumpe3 from a
train but was recapturcd, He es-
capped from the prison and swan
across the Rhine river to safety in
Switzerla 1d
The story has been told briefly in
the Associated Press dispatches but
its details arc so filled with the spirit
of adventure as to be'well worth the
telling.
When the President Lincoln went
to the bottom of the ocean Lieutcn-
ant Isaacs, who is from Cresco, Iowa,
climbed up0n a raft. Soon aftcrWard
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,
but to save, if possible, the captain
being takCI prisoner
While this was going on, Licutcn-
ant Isaacs said, he lay on the raft
with his AIMS under him to hide the
officers stripes on his uniform, but
without success, and he was ordered
aboard the submarine. 1t was the
U-90 ami her commander, Capt.
Rcmy, had resided in the United
States. and England and spoke English
fluently.
@ApptrentfF1seH7y he'd been affect
ed by our civilization" said the Lieu
tenant, "a3 he treated me pleasantly
while inQuiring as to the whereabouts
of the shipper of the Lincoln.
was told that | would tell him where
he could find our captain or go to
Germany myself as prisoner,
could not conform to his first com
mand and Of course would not have
had | been able to-"
The young officer said he was given
good bunk on the submarine and
four COOL meals daily including meat
eggs and zeal coffee. The following
day as tnc submarine was cruising
about seeking new victims she was
sighted by two American destroycrs
while the destroyers were plung-
ing toward US we were getting under
water as I&pidly as possible and f.
nally stopped at Il depth of &C
meters" Lieutenant Isaacs said
when The depth bombs began ex-
ploding every German was at his
station tense and pretty badly scared
Now and Sthen a junior officer would
sing out 10 the captain that a de
stroyer Was about so far away tt
starboard OIL port as the case NIGH
have been. They were recording thu
positions with their listening devices
Then would come a depth charge.
is difficult to describe the sensation
but it seemed to me much like o dos
shaking rat and it was anything
but pleasant to be the rat. Wit
each explosion look of horror woul'
flash over the faces of the Germans
for they expected every moment tha
one Of the charges would be fired
bit closer and they knew the Graf
could not Withstand it."
Too many dcstroyers were in tha
area 70: comfort, so Remy heade
for the Klel canal the next night
When off the Scandinavian coas
Lieutenant ISaacs said he decided t
attempt tc swim ashore when tn
submarine approached territorial wa
ters. With his life-belt on, he wa
just slipping over the side shortly al
ter midnight when he was discovere
by Remy himself and pulled aboart
On arrival at Wilhelmshaven h
was kept three days on a submarin
"mothcr" ship and three days in
land prison, carefully guarded an
badly fed. During this time he wa
taken to tie German battleship Ka
ser Wilhelm II, the flagship of II
fleet, and Questioned by a staff office
81 finally told him, that the Unite
States wtuld send so many men I
France tha5 the battle lines wouldn
hold them" said the lieutenant.
was then taken to Karlsruhe an
placed in an hotel room by myse
the first day. The next day / W;
put into another room with eigl
French officers, it having bee
learned in the meantime that | spoil
French. These rooms l afterwal
learned weIo known as the "hstenir
rooms" and they were rightly name
The FrcHchmen and I found thr,
dictatphonc5 and destroyed them. tt