The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1919-01-06
(By Associated Press.)

| London, Jan. 4.-Dodging German
submarines in the Mediterranean, try
ing to save sinking warships in the
North Atlantic, and fighting off vicious
U-boat attacks while carrying Ameri.
can troops are some of the achieve
nlents credited to the White Star liner
Olympic during her adventurous ca
reer of the wartime. These were on
ly incidents of her experience, be
cause, on account of her great pas
senger capacity, she was steadily and
faithfully keeping to the task of trans
porting men and material for the arm
les in Europe. First 1t was Chinese
coolies for road building, then farm
or boys from Canada to replace the
losses of Vimy Ridge, and finally many
thousands of Americans to face the
German on the western battlefront.
"Her work during the Gallipo!i cam
paign," writes 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 gallant at
tempt off the north of Ireland to tow
the water-logged dreadnaught, Auda-
cious, was sufficient to put her in the
| first rank of transports, but her susb-
sequent 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 Amer
lean troops must put her in class by
herself as trooper
She has carried we'll over 100000
people while on war service.
1T would not be correct to say thai
Captain Hayes has brought her
through without scratch, but her
scars are marks .ofh onor. She bent
and fractured some of her plates
when, in the darkness early one morn-
ing she 'strafed' one Of Germany's
finest U-boats.
"The Olympic had most of her ad
ventures while she was carrying
American troops. During March,
April, and May, 1918, the German sub
marine commanders made at leas. sew
en- attacks on her. Not once did the
enemy have time to launch a torpedo,
for in every case he was greeted by a
6-inch shell or one Of the destroyers
was on his track with her depth
charges. Perhaps some OF Germany's
missing submarines are now lying be-
low 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
four o'clock when the lookout man
picked out of the almost total dark
ness the outline of a lurking subma-
rine which was lying on the surface.
Immediately after his warning shout
one of our forward guns blazed out,
and the ship, with her helm hard ov-
err spun around like a great racing
yacht and crashed into he 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 locked a few
days later the blow cut off one END
o. the submarine. The rest drifted
past the stern of the Olympic, and one
of the gun crews on the poop planted
a 6-inch shell squarely into 1; One
of the destroyers in the escore drop
per behind, and by the light of star
shells picked up 81 survivors three
of whom died on the way K uort i.
The total crew of the submarine was
over 60"
4