Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1918-08-07
U-BOat Sailors Live in Deadly
 Fear of Allied Depth Bombs

London, July 30.-(Correspondence of The Associated Press )-Sensa- tionals experienced in German sub- marine while depth bombs were being discharged overhead were described recently by a British merchant ship captain who was prisoner for fifteen days aboard a U-boat.
 In an interview the English com mander, captured by the Germans af- ter his vessel had been torpedoed, re- lates how the depth bombs shook the under sea craft and created conster- nation among the sailors. In one in stance the faces of the Germans be- came white with fear and all stood trembling after the first shot, which was not near enough to destroy the submersible. All were expec ting sec ond discharge.
 The English commander reached his native land after having been im- prisoned for months at Brandenburg here he said, he and other ship off cers at times had been harnessed to carts which were used to haul mall and packages from the postoffice to the prisoners camp.
 Seven vessels were torpedoed by Germans while the British captain was aboard the U-boat. Previously the English officer had been in command of a merchant vessel which had also met it's fate at the hands of subma- rine crew.
 "On the third day after l had been taken prisoner" said the captain "just after the midday meal, l gath cred that the submarine was about to carry out an attack on a convoy which had just been sighted The U-boat approached submerged for some distance and torpedoed large steamer. Our whereabouts apparently were detected, was told, by an al lied light cruiser, for we dived rap idly to a great depth.
 "Hardly had the submarine reached an even keel when we heard and felt a tremendous explosion which caused the U.-boat to vibrate from stem to stern. It was depth charge from the cruiser.
 "The effect on the crew was evl- dent. All stood trembling with faces blanched with fear, not attempting to speak, expecting second charge, the result of which might mean the des- truction of the boat and without the slightest. chance for us to escape.
 "There is no doubt in my mind of the mental attitude of the crew, for it was not the first experience of the men with depth charge, and they had learned from others in the service what terrible weapons depth bombs were in the hands of skillful seamen.
 "For some moments we waited: en- zines were stopped and all means were taken to prevent giving indica- tion of cur position. Minutes seemed like hours in such situation. I'll ad- init that l was turning over in my mind whether 1 should see my family again. No additional explosions took place, however, and after remaining some eighteen fathoms deep for a long period we continued our voyage,
 "A few days later we had another experience with depth charges, or sswasser bomben" as the. German sail ors call them. A sailing vessel had just been sunk by shell fire when two allied destroyers were sighted and down we ent. By the michophones the propellers could be heard, and as the vessels came nearer and nearer we in the submarine could hear the thudding quite distinctly. To and fro the destroyers went searching for us Evidently they picked up clue, fol there were two explosions ahead but not so near us as that from the crui- ser, but quite close enough to cause the submarine to tremble and then roll about as though in heavy sea-"
 Prison camp conditions in Germany were described by the British captain as being deplcrable.
 "Although we were merchant shll captans imprisond at Brandenberg we were made to suffer various indi' gnities." he said.
 "We' were compelled to harness ourselves to carts which we had tc draw through the streets to the sta tion or postoffice in order to fetch our parcels and any commodities tc camp. It was at this camp also that saw three hundred Russian soldiers working, all of whom were in the last stages of tuberculosis. The poor fel. lows could not get enough, to eat, anc they would eagerly scrape discarded tin cans in the hope of finding par ticles of food: I have even seen Ger man SOlulerS uO tne saIhe InHhe' we were glad to search the cinder paths at any opportunity in anticipation oi finding bits of coke or coal witf which to cook our food"
 The captain said his ship was tor pedoed without warning and that af ter he and all his men were afloat. ir life boats the submarine appeared or teh surface and he was taken prison CT, the mates and seamen being per mitted to start in; the direction oi land. Describing the submarine the British captain said:
 ssShe was fairly large craft, of re cent numbering, having three torpedo