New-York tribune., 1918-03-01
Daniels Would Fix Re-
sponsibility for Loss
of % Lives
Spurred by Report
Navy Was Warned
Philadelphia Paper Alleged
Vessel Was Not Fit
for Service

WASHINGTON, Feb. Is. -lnyestiba-
ton by naval board of the sinking
Of the naval tug Cherokee, with loss
OF twenty mine lives, was ordered to-
day by Secretary Daniels. The Secre
tary said he had called the attention of
the board particularly to published re-
ports that the navy had been warned
that the Cherokee was unseaworthy.
board of investigation and ap-
p"alsement, which examined the vessel
when she was taken over by the navy
on October II last, reported shat her
engines, boilers and hull were in fair
condition and needed only minor re-
pairs.
Secretary Daniels disclosed that the
cherokee, when she foundered on Feb
ruary 26, was en- route to the Wash
lngton Navy Yard to load guns and
supplies Tor transportation to a South
crn port.
DanieIs's Statement
He issued this statements:
Ihc Navy Department viii conduct
thorough investigation to determine
the Responsibility ior the loss Of the
Cherokee and the conditions u.dcr
which she was lost. have called' the
attention of the Beard of Inquiry to
the statements published in a Phila-
dclphla paper to- day, alleging that the
vessel was unscaWorthy, and have
ordered them to investigate all the
allegations made in that article.
'lhc board which surveyed the ycs-
sci pronounced it satisfactory and rec
commended it for patrol duty Tor for
olgn service. The following report on
the vessel has been made to me:
The tug Cherokee, formerly the
Edgar +. Luckenbach, was taken over
at New York about October II. 1917.
from the Luckenbach Steamship Com
nanN, and sent to the New York Navy
Yard to fit out for distant service.
She was an IRON sea-going tug
hullt IN 1891, gross tonnage 273; 120
lcet, inches long: II foot draft,
cruising speed ten knots; radius of ac-
stoned at the Navy Yard in New York
on December 5. 1917.
The report of the Survey Boar,I
which inspected her. prior 10 her beng
taken over, recommended her for patrol
duty, foreign service; stated that the
condition of her boilers and main en-
gincs was good, and that the condition
Dt her hull, plating. bulkhoads, ETC.
was fair. and that few minor repairs
70 the latter were necessary
On December 6 the cherokee
sailed from New York to Philadelphia.
arriving on December 7. She remained
at tho Navy Yard, Philadelphia, under
gong repairs and alterations until Jan
uary 81, 1918, when she proceeded to
New London, Conn. arriving on Feb
ruary 5. She remained at New Lon
don until February -, when she made
a trip to Newport.
wv hen she foundcrcd on February
rs, she was en- route to the Navy Yard,
Washington, d. G., to obtain guns and
supplies for transportation to a south
crn port.
The Casualties
The official list Of dead and missing
among the crew of the Cherokee shows
four known dead and twenty four un-
accounted for, including Lieutenant
(Junior Grade) f. d. Newell, u. S. n
K. f., the commanding officer
Those missing besides the command
ing officer arc:
Naval Reserve Force
GEHRING. b.. ensign, AZ East 10th
Street. New orll.
BAILEY. D. b. ensign. SO Baldwin Avenue.
M'GoLDRlCk. Joseph f.. boatswain, Perth
B1DDLE. Herbert Martin. quartermastcr,
ELDERS. Rudolph Frank. cuartermastcr, sos
Fourth Street, Brooklyn.
EOWLEY. Patrick, mess attendant, Letrim,
Ireland