New Britain herald., 1919-02-21
MINE LAYERS HAD DIFFICULT DUTIES
l7O,tOO Mines Laid in Great North Sea BarraSG.

Washington, Feb. 21.-The Amerl- can mining squadron which, in con- Ajunction with the British navy, plazed Ya 230-n1ile trail of mines across the g gNorth Sea from the OrkneEs to the Acoast of Norway has returned home uith the story of how this great Reinforcement in the campaign to < throttle the German submarines was contributed
 Captain Reginald R. Belknap, com mander of this fleet of ten ships-two Blight cruisers and eight converted merchant craft-graphically describes in statement the work of laying the 70,10O mines which made up the so- @ ca He'd North Sea barrage and an- nounced that at least seventeen enemy Asubmersibles were known to have come to grief in attempting to pass Through this field.
 The American ships laid 56,570 of 1.-the total number of these American binvented and manufactured engines of destruction The field averaged 25 Ymiles in width and nowhere was 1t Hess than 1 5 miles across, an hourS run for a subma rine. If a safe course were sought underneath, several hneS of mines would be found there equaliy deep, and if the submarines went ydown even deeper, mines were ready Efor them there, too and one touch was enough.
 Before the barrier was half way sacross." said Captain Belknap, "the Rbarrage began to yield results. Early Fin July, 1918, after the second eXcur- Sion of the mine layers and from time A1o time reports would come of sub- marines damaged or disappearing Tn that area. From the nature. of the case it may never be known definitely how many actually did come to grle1 #theSe, but-the best information glVes .Sa probable ten before the middle of @October with final total of seventeen Tor more. In addition to this toll the ssauadron should be credited with two Submarines lost in the fields of British Rmines laid by the Baltimore off the 6rish coast"
 The American squadron arrived at kInverness last May 26 ready to begin operations and twelve days later started on it's first planting .excursion.'' On these trips which lasted from 40 to so hours, the Aso,1a dron was part of the British grand fleet, and for protection against subnarines and raiding cruisers It was accompanied, by British destroy ers and battleships or battle cruisers.
 'tOn the second mining eXcurslon' said Captain Belknap, ''the sixth pat #tle squadron was the support consist ng Of four American battleshlpS' com knanded by Rear Admiral Hugh Rod n7an of the United States navy, in the gaaeship New York. One may Imagine with what feelings we saw bur own ships file out of Scapa FLOW sforin line and slowly disappear Tn the haze as they swept off to the south x Eastward. It will be readily under stood that the way had to be made smooth for the mine planters. A single well placed torpedo or mine or
 few enemy shells. would certainly anish one vessel and probably de- 4x, all +an of them Each mine b,Iarter carried from 24 to 120 tons of hipb explosive, a total of nearly 800 +ons in the squadron, many times rnora than the amount that devas- ated Halifax.
 .rThe operation as a whole was done n conjunction with a British mine laying squadron of four vessels which Worked from a base at Grangemouth' Edinburgh, under command of Rear Admiral Clinton-Baker of the Royal navy The American and Brltlsh mine suuadrons often went out at the san1A time under the protection or the anne heavy squadron, but except on wo occasions they always Wofked < 6eparately, in different parts or the Darrag ge area.
 ."Altogether the American squadron made IS excursions, the British
 ouadron eleven and the barrage was 1nisHed at the end of October. On
 he first excursion the squadron ,Ianted q mine field 47 miles long, kontaining 3,400 mines, in hours ana sc ,7oinutes, Everything went with &nt a hitch. The new mine lnstalla- gsons worked perfectly. On this first hperation one ship emphed herself or
 75 mines without single break, bne mine every II l-Z secoio3 ahrol1gh more than two hours the longest series ever planted anyWhere'
 .@The squadron was always ready
 o make excursions as fast as the hines could be furnished and never Tailed in any operation
 Not only that, the casualties were
 erv few. One man fell overheard al 8aa from the SaraIac and there were &our other deaths among the 4,00C @1o,7 which might have occurred un- Fer any conditions There was nc #+har loss of life nor other injury And despite the close navigation, neal #oine fields no ship ever came tC #a.ief. thanks largely to Captain But
 er and Navigator Cunningham ot 8be flagship San Francisco.
 "In addition to the value of the N #larrage itself, in keeping the enemy Submarines in or near their bases, the Anine squadron was expected to servl