The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-01-14
HOW TWO ITALIANS SANK TIE V|R|BUS
 UNITS OF AUSTRIA
Swan for Nine Hours Steer ing Little Submarines Motors Towing
 Bombs
Qv Aesosiatea pra.~

Rome, December l2.--It was by swim ming into Poia harbor and steering two small submarine motors towing bombs that two Italian naval officers destroyed the Austrian dreadnought Virbus Unitis just before the signing of the armistice between Italy and Austria. The swimmers were in the water nine hours and had to penetrate four barriers across the harbor entrance, two of winch were composed
 of steel submarine nets. After they had detached their bomb to the side of the
 drea thought they were captured and taken on board the vessel and were there when the warship was blown up.
 They escaped without injury and have
 returned to Rome to tell of their eX-
 ploit which is characterized as one of the
 most daring and successful in the history of naval warfare. Only the fact that the
 Viribus Untis had been destroyed by
 Italian naval forces previously had been
 made known. but now the details have
 been given out by the Italian admiralty.
 The officers who thus sent to the bot
 tom a 20000-ton ship, one of the most
 powerful in the Austrian navy, were
 Lieutenant Raffaele Paolucci and Major
 Raffaele Rossetti The attack was de-
 ivered on the morning of November l,
 1918.
 To tow the bombs into Pola harbor the two Italians invented small compressed air motors to which were attached bombs
 For six months the two naval men prao-
 ticed in long distance swimming, The
 Italian admiralty gave them the use of a motor boat.
 teaching the harbor entrance at night- fall. the two daring men started on their lexpedition swimming beside their little motors and steering them TO escape de- lection by sentries on a wooden pier across the harbor mouth. Paolucci and Rossetti had hats shaped like bottles, and the sentry saw nothing but a couple of bottles being tossed about by the waves. When his back was turned they advanced and safely passed the first
 barrier.
 After infinite labor they fought their
 way through the steel nets and the Aus
 trian fleet lay before them. Reaching the
 side of the Viribus Unitis they attached
 the bomb to her hull beneath the ladder
 which led to her deck and timed the
 bomb to explode at 6:30 a. m.
 By this time they were exhausted, hay
 ing been in the water more than nine hours. As they were leaving they were discovered and taken on board the dread
 nought At first they refused to answer the questions asked them by Admiral Voucovich At 6:l5, however. they told the admiral what they had done and he gave the order to abandon ship. Paolucci asked the admiral if he and his friend might also try to save themselves, and he shook hands, saying: You are brave men and deserve to live They plunged 'nto the water and swan away but 10 minutes later the admiral began to sus- pect the bomb story and sent launch to bring them back They were made to ra.k up the ladder under which they had ,et the bomb, which was due tC explode n two minutes The ladder was crowded gith sailors returning to their ship Run. Run fer yodr lVes. shoute l aoluccl, struggling to reach the dec' 1 efo the eXplos on took D ace. He aad l .ossett had reached the deck and ran l the stern Of the dre2dnought when a | errific explosionerent the a.d aud col | lmn of water 200 feet high shot upward. | Admiral Voucovch again gave them per i mission to save themselves, and they had been swimming away from the ship five l minutes when they heard another explo- | sion and saw that the other bomb which had been left adrift had been carried by I the current alongside the large Austrian liner Wien and had there exploded. | The Viribus Unitis was then lying on ] her side, but suddenly the huge ship
 turned bottom upward and Lieutenant l Paolucci say Admiral Voucovich scram- | ble upward and stood with folded arms
 on the keel, ready to go down with his | vessel
 1 Major Rossetti and Lieutenant Paolucc were recap aptured and taken on board an other Austrian warship where they were 1 kept prisoners until the armistice was | signed and an Italian warship entered the | harbor Then launch was sent for ;he two heroes and they were sent on de-
 stroyer to Venice, where the people gave i hem a vociferOus welcome.