Evening journal., 1918-07-22
FR|CnTFULHES! AIM
OF new U-RA|DERS
desperation Shown in Vast
ing Shells.on Vessels of
No Military Value
MAY PREY ON
ARMY TRANSPORTS

WASHINGTON. July 22.-ConvinceC
that she is waging losing fight on th'
Western front unless she can stop The
steady flow Of American troops &c
France, Germany has ordered her L.
boats to concentrate their efforts on
the American transport lane. This is
the theory entertained by naval officers
here as a result OF the reports showing
that a German submarine had shelled
a tug and three barges of Cape Cod
after giving an exhibition Of German
lfrightfulness.
The appearance OF the submarine OF
the Massachusetts coast explains the
mines found OF the Long Island shore.
Officials here are still OF the opinion
that it was a mine laid by the sU-boat
and not orpedo that sunk the cruiser
San Diego.
They reason this from the fact that
either the periscope OF the submarine
or the wake Of the torpedo would have
been seen by lookouts on the ship or
by the seaplane operator, whose prompt
work led 10 the rescue Of most OF the
crew
Interest largely oeniers In the ques-
tion whether the U-boat which shelled
and sunk the barges OF Cape Cod is
alone or is one Of several sent out by
the German admiralty to interfere with
American troop ships.
Yesterdays reports TO the Navy De
partment regarding the submarine came
entirely from Coast Guard Station No.
40 at Orleans. on Cape Cod, and were
provokingly meagre.
The first report Of the actual presence
OF submarine reached the Navy De-
partment Just before noon yesterday. |
Soon thereafter the following statement
was issued:
"The Navy Department at noon re-
celved a dispatch from the First Naval
district stating that Coast Guard sta
ton No. 40 at Orleans. Mass, on the
coast between Cape Cod and Chatham,
Mass, reports sighting tug on fire and
three barges being shelled by subma-
rine"
Folo~>pg the receipt of later
message from th Coast Guard station,
this statement was issued:
The Navy Department yesterday af-
ternoon received dispatch that the tug
and barges shelled by a submarine of
the Massachusetts, coast yesterday morn
ing were sunk. All the crew OF the tug
was rescued. the report stated. one man
being injured by she'll flre. The men |
were taken to the Coast Guard Station
No. 40 at Orleans"
Immediately upon receipt OF yester-
days report another warning was sent
out TO shipping and all patrol craft in
the First and Second Naval districts
were ordered after the U-boat. A pre-
sious warning had been Issued when
Lhe San Diego was sunk, so that all |
ships having wireless have had ample !
time. 1t is believed, to take precaution- |
Rry measures. This. OF course, does not l
cover the sailing vessels, some Of which
may again fall victims 10 the new
conner.
The position of the U-boat Is regard
ID here as having great significance. |
On the first visit the U-boat or U-boats 7
,onflned operations to the shipping :
anes south OF New York, the first n
linking being of Barnegat and the later n
mes some distance out from the Vir- !,
inia capes. Surprise was caused at Z,
he time that on this visit no attempt
pparently was made to interfere with
be main transport lane.
Indications that the U-boats have
hanged their tactics is seen in the n
1oation OF the San Diego sinking and 4
be position of the submarine observed
9th being apparently in the route
( the transports. d
Until late last evening no reports had NJ
cached here to show that more than I,
his one U-boat had been seen but the n
'avy Department would not be sur II
irised TO receive such reports al any n
minute. =
While the testimony of those who p
we're victims Of the last submarine raid A
lere at first seemed TO indicate that .
here were two submarines on the prev I
Gus visith Admiral Benson, after a
sarefui examination Of reports bearing
on the subject reached the conclusion p
hat all Of the vessels lost in May and !
lune were sunk by one U-boat, the r
J-i5i. While some officers were In Z
,lined to differ with him, Admiral Ben I
ION has persisted in this theory. I
But with Germany's growing desper- >
Itlon the possibility Of a larger raid
,eing attempted has never been over I
ooked here. It was recalled today that >,
he captain and crew Of U-i5i said that 4
hey would be back in July. All the \
in the German press has also
not only a return visit F
iut has indicated that operations r
would probably be attempted on a n
arger scale. The German papers hailed d
he first visit as being merely the be-
shining Of a work Of destruction that
would chill the marrow Of Wilson's
zones"
That disappointment was caused in pl
Germany by the fact that the first visit :
lid not result in the loss Of a single
transport there is no doubt. This has u
been reelected in several eaustc COM u
ments which have appeared following y
Bakers announcement that u
more than 100000 men had been land 81
ed in France on the inability Of the q
D-boats 20 interfere with troop ship u
ments. All this Is believed here to have u
undoubtedly spurred the German Ad- G
miralty to renew its attempts and to o
aim this time at destroying transport
both by mines and torpedoes.
Because Of the reappearance Of sub S