The sun., 1919-07-06
,Ilneola late this afternoon or to-


night.
The Navy Department has ordered
NIineola and all other stations to keep
the R-34 Informed Of the weather
through the commandment of the First
Naval District at Boston.
The gravest fears for the safety of
the big craft were expressed at
Mineola last night. 1t was pointed
out that in the plight in which she
finds herself there are but three
things she can do. One is to make d
good landing, and that is impossible
without the ample accommodations
and trained men available this side
the ocean, only at Mlneola. A sea
anchor might enable her to ride over
the water, and grapnel dropped
while she Is over the land might by
chance bring up on something solid
enough to hold her. But in both the
latter contingencies the chances OF
disaster are heavy.
A message telling of the loss of the
R-34's high power wireless and of
her desperate need of help was re-
ceived by the Navy Department about
II o'clock. 1t read:
"P Q d. Rush help. Making for
Boston from Bay of Fundy, twenty
three knots. Come quickly. Case.
lene giving out. Send slip. High
power Off, except half kilowatt
set. R-34.'
Two other late messages were re-
ceived from the big dlrigible. One
reported by the naval communications
office in Boston as coming from Otter
Cliffs radio station said that the R-34
was running low on gasolene and
hydrogen and that she was expected
TO reach Yarmouth at midnight.
Followed Rail Line.
The other, through Washington,
and also purporting to be from Otter
Cliffs, quoted the commanding officer
at that station as saying that the
Canadian press told him that the
R-34 was following the Dominion At
1antic Railway from Digby to Var
mouth about 5 z. NJ, and asking &C
cordingly that destroyers be as
sembled off Yarmouth.
Previously there had come n plea
which the naval authorities had been
forced to turn down. This was the
request of the R-34 that she land a
Thara /,
40 hydrogen at Chatham, but no field
and no men to receive such visitor
and the officers in charge OF this enc
of the flight at Mineola wirelessed the
R-34 to try to make Montauk Point.
The failure of the hydrogen gas l.
undoubtedly due to the hot weather
of the last few days. The expansion
of the Volume Of gas In the fixed con
tainer made it necessary to expe
some, and the loss of buoyancy through
two such days and nights as thos'
which have greeted the R-34 sine
she sighted the north tip of the New
foundland coast at dawn on July
is estimated as enough to bring he
very low indeed.
There Is but one favorable featur
of her situation tonight. That i
that better weather is promised TO
her as she steers her erratic cours
over Massachusetts Bay. No soone
was she out of the fogs of Newfound
land and Nova Scotia yesterday morn
ing than she ran into frightful sue
cession of thunderstorms that mad
her zizzag orally all down throug
Nova Scotia, across the Mlnas Basi
and from one side TO the other of tn
Bay of Fundy, which she spent mos
of the day in traversing.
Washington had not yet given u
hope of the landing at Mineola earl
in the evening, however, when a tel.
gram 10 Secretary Daniels from AZ
miral GlennOn told him that the re-
would arrive here this morning an
that dinner will he held at Garde
City Hotel about noon"
All were convinced that I'll
R-34 was in n desperate state an
that n tow line and stout escort
the nearest land, whatever its Il,
commodations for so gigantic II CUES
was her only salvation. Every or
concerned was paying tribute TO Cap
SCOTS gameness in trying TO complet
his voyage from Great Britain
The United States. This, they col
slider, he manifested when he put
sen again from Yarmouth after pas
ing over 1t, Digby and other possib
landing places in Canadian territor
Appeals from the R-34 became 4