The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1918-08-06
MYSTERY SHIPS s
OF BRITISH NAVY
ARE EDESCRIBEDBY
CORRESPONDENT
s'Wonan And Baby'' Sent
One German U-Boat
To The Bottom
X
MANY. TRICKS
ARE EMPLOYED
One German Received a
Broadside From Hay
stack on Ships Deck
MANY. TRICKS
ARE EMPLOYED
eBv Associnted press.l

London, Aug. 6.-ReYelattonS re-
garding the work of British mystery
ships, which have played an i'm
portant part in anti submarine war
fare are made. by the naval CORE.
aspondent Of The Times. They show
how British seamen have met Ger
imam craft and cunning with craft
Land cunning.
Until this week the public has
flnown nothing about the mystery
sships, known in the navy as the 20
ships, although several officers, not
ably Captain Gordon Campbell, .haYe
these vessels. Details now can be
made public as the Germans are be-
coming aware through bitter expert
ence of the methods used against
J them. =
How a Woman and baby ac-
Fcounted for a u -boat is told by the
correspondent. The submarine ord
kered q vessel to surrender and fired
/ a few shells into her. The boats then
! left the ship, leaving on board a
woman, who ran up and down the
deck with baby in her arms as if
mad. The U-boat came alongside
the vessel and the woman hurled the
baby into the open hatch. The
baby exploded and blew out the
bottom Of the submarine. The
woman" was decorated with the
Victoria Cross. -
The correspondent says that the
first mention Of a. mystery ship was
the case of the iBaralong, which on
August 19, 1915, sank a U-boat after
the .torpedoing OF the British liner
Arabic. 1t will be remembered, he
says, that the German government
protested that there was nothing to
indicate the Baralong's warlike char
,acter. The BaralongS case was prob
ably not the first In which a ruse
was used and since then the dis
guising Of armed vessels as innocent
marines has attained considerable
dimensions.
British "Treaeaery'
Howls and moans" adds the naval
correspondent, went up in Germany
about the treachery OF British sea-
men, but the German allegations
curiously ceased at the beginning of
1916. These allegations afforded a
typical example OF German mentality
for they ignored the fact that in
every case the U-boat was an actual
or potential assailant and any ruse,
OF war is considered legitimate by
them except when employed against
Germany.
It should not be forgotten, he con-
tinues, that the Germans designed
mystery ships for commerce destruc-
tion., The British commanders
showed much ingenuity in devising
plans for trapping submarines.
In addition to the woman and
baby" case, the correspondent men
tions the story of a retired admiral,
serving as captain, who placed al
l1aystack on board an ancient look
ing craft. When the U-boat ordered
her to surrender. the Germans were
astonished to receive q broadside
from the haystack.
On another occasion a sea-Worn
tramp steamer was crossing the
North sea, when a submarine
ordered the crew to abandon ship. So
sure was the German of his prey
that the bombs with which he in
tended to sink the vessel were
brought on deck around the coming
tower. The commander OF the tramp
steamer by careful maneuvering
brought the submarine within range
OF his concealed armament so that 1t i
required only a shell or two to ex-
plode the bombs and blow the U~boat
ont Of the water.