The evening Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1918-1920, 1919-01-04
OLYMPIC'S
CAREER IN
THE GREAT WAR
The Great White Star Liner
Carried Thousands of
Troops
WAS ATTACKED AT
LEAST SEVEN TIMES
Sunk One Submarine i'm the
English Channel

London, Dec 5, Correspondent of
Fhe Associated Press)-Dodging Ger
man submarines in the Mediterranean,
trying to save sinking warships in the
North Atlantic, and fighting off VIC
ious U-boat attack while carrying
American troops are some of the ac-
Movements credited to the White Star
liner Olympic during her adventurous
career of the wartime. These were
only incidents of her experience, be-
cause, on account of her great pas
senger capacity, she was steadily and
faithfully keeping to the task of
transporting men and material for
the armies in Europe. First it was
Chinese coolies for road building, then
farmer boys from Canada to replace
the loses of Vimy Ridge, and finally
many thousands of Americans to face
the Germans on the western battle
front.
"Her work during the Gallipoli
campaign, writes a member of the
crew to the Daily News, when she
carried about 5000 troops-at that
time the greatest number ever carried
by any ship-following upon her gal
liant attempt off the north of Ireland
to tow the water-logged dread
naught, Audacious, was sufficient
to put her in the first
rank of transports, but her
subsequent work in bringing Canadian
{ troops and Chinese labor battalions,
and then her wonderful career since
Christmas, 1917, when she arrived in
New York for her first load of AM
Ieriean troops must put her in class
}by herself as trooper"
She carried well over 100000 peo-
pie while on WaEe service
1T would not be correct to say that
Captain Hayes. has brought her thru
without scratch, but her sears are
marks of honor She bent and frac-
tufed some of her plates when, in the
darkness early one morning she
'strafed one of Gelmany's finest u
boats.
"The Olympic had most of her adj
ventures while she was carrying AM
crican troops. During March, April
and May, 1918, the German submarine
commanders made at least seven dar-
ing attacks on her. Not once did the
enemy have time to launch torpedo,
for in every case he was greeted by a
six-inch shell or one of the destroyers
was on his track with her depth char
ges. Perhaps some of Germany's mis-
sing submarines are now lying below
the track Of the Olympic.
"The most thrilling experience
which the Olympic had took place in
the darkness of early morning Of May,
1918, near the entrance to the English
Channel. 1t was just about O'Clock
when the lookout man picked out OF
| the almost total darkness the outline
of a lurking submarine which was ly-
ING on the surface Immediately after
his warning shout one of our forward
| guns blazed out, and the ship, with
| her helm hard over, spun around like
a great racing yacht and crashed into
! the enemy
"The blow was, of course, not a
clean one, or there would have been
| few survivors from the submarine
Judging from the damage on the bows
of the ship when dry docked a. few
days later the blow cut off one end
of the submarine. The rest drlfted
past the stern of the Olympic, and one
of the gun crews on the poop planted
a six-inch shell squarely into it. One
of the destroyers in the escort drop
ped behind, and by the light of stal
shells picked up 81 survivors, three
of whom died on the way into port
| The total crew of the submarine was
over 60"