The Cordova daily times., 1919-02-01
DID GOOD WORK
IN PLANTING
OF MINES

the British navy, blazed q 25O-mlle
trail of mines across the North sea
from the Orkneys to the coast Of Nor
way, has returned home with the story
of how this great achievement In the
campaign to throttle the German sub
marines was contributed.
Captain Reginald r. Belknap, COM
| mander of this fleet of ten ships
two light cruisers and eight converted
merchant craft graphically de-
scribed in recent statement the work
of laying the 70,1OO mines which made
up the so-called North sea barrage,
and announced that at least seventeen
enemy submersibles were known to
have come to grief in attempting to
pass through this field.
The American ships laid $3.50 of
the total number of these American
invented and manufactured engines of
destruction. The field averaged 25
miles In width, and nowhere was it
less than Is miles across, an hours
run for submarine. If a safe course
we're sought underneath, several
lines of mines would be found there
equally deep, and If the submarine
went down even deeper, mines were
ready for them there, too, and one
touch was enough. %
Before the, barrier was half way
across" said Captain Belknap, "the
barrage began to yield results Early
in July, 1918, after the second ex-
cursion of the mine layers, and from
time to time thereafter, reports would
come of submarines damaged or dis
appearing in that area From the
nature of the case, it may never be
known definitely how many actually
did come to grief there, but the best
information gives as probably ten be-
fore the middle of October, with a
final total of seventeen more. In ad-
dition to this toll the squadron should
be credited with two submarines lost
In the fields of British mines laid nv
the Baltimore off the Irish coast"
The American squadron arrived at
inverness last May rs, ready to begin
operations, and twelve days later
started on its flrst mine-planting eex-
curs1on." On these trips, which last
ed from forty to eighty hours. the
squadron was part of the British
grand fleet, and for protection against
submarines and raiding cruisers. it
/ was accompanied by British destroy.
ers and battleships or battle cruis-
ers.
ON the second mining excursion"
said Captain Belknap, "the sixth hat
tie squadron was the support, con-
s1sting of four American battleships.
commanded by Rear Admiral Hugh
Rodman of the United States navy, in
the flagship New York. One NAV
imagine with what feelings we saw
our own ships file out Of Scapa Flow,
form line and slowly disappear in the
haze as they swept Off to the south
eastward. It will be readily under.
stood that the way had to be made
smooth for the mine planters. A sin.
gle well-placed torpedo or mine. or
few enemy shells, would certainly
finish one vessel. and probably DESTROY
all ten OF them. Each mine planter
carried from "a to 100 tons Of high
explosive, total of nearly 500 tons
IN the squadron, many times more
tnan the amount that devastated Hall
fax.
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 often went out at
the same time, under the protection
'no sane neaVy squadron, but 9x-
cept on two occasions they always
worked separately, in different parts
OF the barrage area. 81
Altogether the American squadron.
maze fifteen excursions, the British
eleven, and the barrage was finished
at the end Of October. On the first
excursion the squadron planted q
mine field forty-seven miles long. con
tanning S.400 mines, in three hours
ana thirty-six minutes. Everything
went without hitch. The new mine
installations worked perfectly. on
this first operation one ship emptied
herself Of CTS mines without ! single
break. one mine every liz seconds
through more than two hours, the
longest series ever planted any.
where" . 4,
The Daily Times job plant q
ven equipped for all classe o. com.
II A&naA& H. f4 81