The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-05-11


can naval officers and blujackets, in
valided from the war zone to the ma
val hospital here, report that the Ger
man submarines have a deep respect
! for the skill of American gunners, and
apparently are giving American con
yoys wide berth. so vigorous has
i been the campaigns of humiliation
waged by the American and British
warships that the U-boats are show
ing a growing inclination to attack
only trawlers small sailing craft or
vessels which have strayed from the
projection of the conveying destroy
/ ers.
/ Ii has been no easy task to bring
| the U-boat commanders to this plan
of action. They knew that their over
lords in Berlin had promised the de
struction OF many transports. that
they had told the German public that
few American soldiers would ever
American destroyers and the gun
crews on the merchantmen knew that
| the German undersea craft must be
taught from the very beginning that
| IL was bad business to attack an
American ship. For the first six
months of the war no man slept
aboard our ships in the three days
when their vessels were going
| through the danger zone.
The orders read Every man must
| be at his post until further orders.
Fire upon any suspicious object The
order meant that gun crews and look
outs were to be on duty for three
| days and three nights.
! They are all aaxsSus to get back
TO the fun Of hunting the submarines,
| alt Il that ha
exciting days have gone and their
hopes lie in the direction of a billet
| on some warship attached to the
! North Sea service. But they have Ia d
varied and stirring experiences.
| Tells of Adventure.
| Typical of their adventures ia the
story of F. a. Negley, OF GRANVILLE,
| ILL.,, gun trainer on the tanker
Pearlshell who saw the Motana, a
Standard Oil company tanker, sink
one minute after being torpedoed,
The Pearlshen got into an English
port early one morning" said young
Negley. I'VE were all pretty we'll
tired out because every man had been
on duty for three days and nights. /
never slept so well in my life as I
did when we got inside the nets and
! the order came to knock OFF.
| We got sofne shore leave later.
and I had a chance to see some of
! the town. | met a British officer
who said that there were about fifteen
German submarines OF Eddystone
/ light. He said that as soon as the
destroyers drove them off the Pearl
/ shell would he sent on to the Isle of
Wight
well. that was only six hours
away. so we didn't dream chat there
would be anything dustin loose. But
! il was on that short trip that the
Motana got hers. I don't know how
many men were, lost, butt think they
said twenty were drowned.
We started for the Isle OF Wight
with the Motana and a British tanker.
The three boats steamed in triangle
formation, the British tank ship being
in the middle and ahead. and the
7ther two ships being on the sides.
The British ship didn't change her
course much, but the Pearlshen and
the Motana kept changing places, so
we were each running in a zig gag
fashion.
We had been out about two hours
and there wasn't sign of a subme-
riue The Pearlshell was to the star
board OF the Britisher and after run
ming a short ways swung across and
took the place of the Mofana on the
port.
Motana Was Struck
| THE Motana had hardly got into the
place we had held in the line when
she was struck. II was late in the
afternoon. but the Pearisheli was only
about 100 yards away. Gee. but those
itorpedoes make a noise. II was so
loud that Some Of our men below
decks came running up 70 Get IN the