Norwich bulletin., 1919-01-16
STORIES OF TIE WAR
How Two Austrian Dreadnoughts
Were Sunk.

Correspondence of The Associated |
Press) 1t was by swimming into |
Pola harbor and steering two small |
submarine motors towing bombs that
two Italian naval officers destroyed the |
Austrian dTeadnoughts Viribus Uni |
It's just before the signing of the ar
mistice between Italy and Austria.
The swimmers were in the water nine
hours and had to penetrate four bar
riers across the harbor entrance two
of which were composed CT steel SUBJ
marine nets. After they had attached
their bomb to the side of the dread
nought, 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
exploit which is characterized as one
Of the most daring and successful in
the history of naval warfare Only
the fact that the Niribus Units 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
| bottom a 20000-ton shin. one of the
most powerful in the Austrian navy.
were Lieutenant Raffaele Paoluccf and
| Major Raffaelc Rossetti, The attack
was delivered on the morning of No
yember /, 1918
To tow the bombs into PoIa ilarbor.
the two Italians invented small com
| pressed air motors tofwhich were at
! tached bombs. For six months the
/ two naval men practiced in long dis
! lance swimming, The Italian Admir-
atty gave them the use of a motor
| boat.
Reaching the harbor entrance at
j nightfall, the two daring men started
on their expedition swimming beside
their little motors and steering them.
| To escape detection by sentries on a
wooden pier across the harbor mouth,
Paolucci and Rossetti had hats shaped
like bottles and the sentry saw moth
ling 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 thToughSthe steel nets and the
Austrian fleet before them. Reaching
the, side of the Viribus Units, they
attached the bomb to her hull beneath
the ladder which led to her deck and
timed the bomb to explode at $50 a. m
By this time they We're exhausted
having been in the water more than
nine hours. AS they were leaving,
they were discovered and taken on
board the dreadnought, At first they
refused to answer the questions asked
them by Admiral Noucovich. At els
!, however, they told the admiral what
they had done and he save 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 plung-
ed into the water and swan away
, but ten minutes later the admiral be
: gan to suspect the bomb story anG
sent a launch to bring them back
! They were made to walk up the lad
, der under which they had set the
bomb which was due to explode il
, two minutes. The ladder was crowd
! ed with sailors returning to- thei
! ship.
Run. Run for your lives" shouted
Paolucci, struggling to reach the decl
before the explosion took place H
3 and Rossetti had reached the decl
S and ran to the stern of the dread
nought when a terrific explosion rem
S the air and a column of water 30
d feet high shot upward. Admiral You
q coVlch again gave them permission t
save themselves, and they had bee
? swimming away from the ship fiv
minutes when they heard another ex
plosion and saw that the other bonn
g which had been left adrift had bee
carried by the current alongside tn
t large Austrian liner Wien and ha
d there exploded
a The Viribus Units was then lyin
on her side, but suddenly the thug
t ship turned bottom upward and Lieu
a tenant Paolucci saw Admiral Voucc
vich scramble upward and stand wit
folded arms on the keel, ready to g
down with his vessel.
/ Major Rossetti and Lieutenant Pao
u lucci were recaptured and taken G
% board another Austrian warshi
,e where there were kept prisoners unit
lie the armistice was signd and an tia
ian warship entered the harbor. The
is a launch was sent for the two herot
~ and they were sent on a destroyer
IN Venice where the people COVE them
al