The Maui news. [volume] (Wailuku, Maui, H.I.) 1900-current, 1919-02-21

or a few enemy shells, would certain
ly finish one vessel, and probably de-
stroy all ten Of them. Each mine
planter carried from "a to 100 tons
of high explosive, a total Of nearly
800 tons in the squadron, many times
more than the amount that devast-
ated Halifax.
THE operation as a whole was
done in conjunction with a British
mine-laying squadron of four vessels,
which worked from a base at Grange
mouth, Edinburgh, under command OF
Rear Admiral Clinton-Baker Of the
Royal navy. The American and Brit
ish mine %squadrons of ten went out
at the same time, under the protect
ion of the anne heavy squadron, but
except on two occasions they always
worked separately, in different parts
Of the barrage area.
Altogether the American squadron
made Is excursions, the British squad
ron eleven and the barrage was finish
ed at the end of October. On the
first excursion the squadron planted
a mine field AZ miles long, contain
ing 3,400 mines, in 8 hours and SO
minutes. Everything went without a
hitch. The new mine installations
worked perfectly. On this first opera
ton one ship emptied herself Of CTS
mines without a single break, n
mine every liz seconds through
more than two hours, the longest
series ever planted anywhere. The
squadron was always ready to make
excursions as fast as the mines could
be furnished and never failed in any
operation.
mot only that, the casualties were
very few. One man fell overheard
at sea from the Saranac and there
were four other deaths among the
1000 men which might have occurred
under any conditions. There was no
other loss Of life nor other injury and
despite the close navigation, near
mine fields, no ship ever came to
grief, thanks largely to Captain But
Ter and Navigator Cunningham, OF
the flagship San Francisco.
"In addition to the value Of the
barrage itself, in keeping the enemy
submarines in or from their bases,
the mine squadron was expected to
serve as a bait to draw out of the
German fleet. This ever present
possibility and the fact that the work
ing ground lay in the principal tho
roughfare of enemy submarines, with
attendant incidents OF periscope
I s~ightings, submarine reports, death
charges, smoke screens, floating
mines, and dead German sailors float
ing by, lent excitement to the work,
which was often hard but never dull"
The manufacture Of these special
mines, developed by navy experts
from an invention Of an American,
began in the United States in Deem
Der, 1917. The many parts, small and
large, going into the makeup OF a
single mine, were being constructed
by the thousands by numerous con-
tractors, who delivered them at Nor
folk. There the mine sphere were
charged with 800 pounds OF T. N. T.,
and with other parts, were loaded in
to mine carrier steamers, managed by
the naval overseas transport service.
1t required "a of these vessels, run
ming constantly, to keep the ten mine
planters supplied with mines. The
carriers were slow and good prey for
submarines. One Of them, the Lake
moor, was sunk last April with a loss
Of IL men and 5000 mine anchors and
other parts. All the other mine car
goes were safely delivered.
The flagship San Francisco was
commanded by Captain H. v. Butler
and her consort, the cruiser Baltimore
by Captain A. w. Marshall. -Four OF
the merchant vessels used in the fleet
were former Morgan liners, carrying
freight between New York and Gal.
weston, now named the Roanoke,