Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1919-01-04
SALVAGE SECTIONS WORK
SAVES many MILLIONS
Rescue 100000, coo WORTH 81
Ships and S5O,OOO,OOO OF
Cargo From Seas.
TASK is BUT BARELY BEGUN
Vast Shipping Value, Thought by
Germans to Have Been Absolutely
Destroyed, Will Eventually BE Re-
stored by Ingenuity OF Scamcn.
ny CLAIR PRICE.

by CLAIR PRICE.
LONDON, January 3.--Thc Btitish
Admiralty's salvage section has saved
more than 500 ships. valued at n good
deal more than $lOo,ooo.0OO. Cargoes
worth another 35o.0OO.00O have been
saved along with tho ships. despite
the fact that many or the torpedocd
cargoes. being perishablc. were lost
when the ships went down. Alto
sether more than $l50.ooo. 900 has been
saved TO Britain by her salvage units.
although IL is impossible to compute
the value OF the saved ships as fooo
carriers returned to the seas
Before the war the ships and car
goes lost annually on Britain's shores
were valued at some $40, 900, a fact
which had given rise TO the organize
non OF salvage companies, with sal
wage experts of international fame at
their disposal. and to the construction
any to be found in the world. At the
outbreak of the war these salvage
steamers were repuisitioned by the
development OF submarine warfare has
turned their attention largely to the
savage OF torpedoed merchantmen
ana me submersible electric pump e are
the chief mechanical means by which
Hrtia,n,s savage record has been
Die pump is the newest Il is the
invention Of "a Scottish clec,ricV en-
Eneer, who has made pumping de-
Eicc In which electricity works as we'll
oeiow water as above. II carries it's
own motors ~ that IT Is adapted for
US, Use even after the torpedo has mashed
the ships dynamo. II was one Of these
pumps which succeeded in saving a
navai vessels after the battle OF Jut-
land. No ordinary pump could have
accomplished the feat, and when Tho
snip was brought into port the new
Duinps value was at once rccognIxeu
nose pumps arc powerful enough and
big enough 10 throw out water nImns,
as iast as i; enters a wound and ships
th n,eh nu garry tp as several of them when
chances OF sinking in cage thcv no
torpedoco. "e
COMPRESSED AIR USED
TO SAW. sUNKI:N SHIPS
compressed air is being used NOR.
ia 'h more 70 save sunken ships. One of
lhe most thrilling Instances of naval
savage which the salvage section ha :.
1 "a rnSor out Affords the mrs: instance
on seeor a,, of The raising Of a vessel Of
great weight by compressed air alone
y ne" British submarine. having on
e"nsu a naval constructor. who had
a view to further improvements WIN IN
them. had dived TO the bottom in he "a
n nar rn and when her commander
was ready TO come up. he found she
could not be moved. ballast iai,hs
Wef" blown and the motors set going
at tuli speed, but the bottom was hold,
ing her faEt and she was likely 10
stay there untll her officers and men
sdnocatcd TO death. '
FINALLY the com andcr ana bt, ,,s,
ff.n To try TO. &c; TO tho sur
iace In order ~ fetch "A rescue marty
helmets and entered the conniur tn,rnr
which was scaled behind them. They
t ,oua ,at the hatch. OF course, for
SO compressed air was turned into ,h ~.
sHn ~ hoy owS a, Ss soon as the pres
OF tho water outside, the hateh IIav
open; the naval constructor was caUrht
IN ne rus rush Of air and, missing The
INC undersido OF the coming ISwer's
ttHp. Ihe commander was shot out OF
picked up. ' vac
FOUND STERN LOCKED
TO BOTToM ny MUD
ne took a rescue party 10 the spot
~ a.. once nee, and divers. going down. found
me stern OF the submarine buried in
twelve feet OF mud which locked her
screw as in IL vice
ihey hnally succeeded IN making an
electrical connection between the Seri
SCOPE and the salvage vessel. and thus
Were able To communicate through the
and men by means OF suh,narips
'oo n-iin Ia Ge,ac Ihsy finally susSseasa
VIA, flexible tube was passed. Alter
~ eAad been made thoroughly water
ttignt; air and food were given the
sorciy in need of both
win the Immediate dangers of star.
the divers continued their work win
such energy that some of them col
la ,M during the process one and two
around the bow OF the sunkenp siiba
marine and made fast to the lifting
vessels; Then the lifting, machinery
submarine appeared above water Oxy-
anstylene hiowpipes cut "a hole in the
submarines huh anu the Imprisoned
officer; officers and men were brought out
This was just in time tor the seas
came up and the cables supporting
,iY,r kIN.,
submarine back into its old position
on the bottom.
Pipes were Inserted through her hull
by divers. Compressed air was forced
wa ,Hsn w I1me 81 , mem; thus forcing the
escape up other pipes to the surface.
a In this S, WY she was pumped put. but
filled with gas, she refused to come
UP. The mud held her too tightly.
Divers were at length obliged 10 cut
trench in the mud around her stern
and one OF the salvage vessels sucked
aWays the mud With her twelve-inch
was lifted to the surface by the coni-
pressed air which filled her
WONDERFUL ACHIEVEMENTS
IN RAISING NINE LAYERS
Thcre hay" been many risks taken
ny salvage units during. their opera
lions but none greater than those mnz
German mine, laying submarine uc.S.
forced to abandon her after leaving in
ner the time bombs, which finally sank
her. Naval divers went down and
made, her top layer of mines harmless
ny Withdrawing the detonators. but tho
mines below could not he gotten at and
were likely to detOnate at any mo-
nient Despite the terrific danger Of
working around these live mines.
while the ground swell bumped tho
wreck heavily ON the sandy bottom,
.lc:a was finally II Ned between two
vessels and brought into port.
There was the case too. or ~ GER
tan tanker. which was in collision In
the night with another merchantman
Tho tanker instantly cxpiodod into
one huge flame. which burned 10
death everybody aboard her, the other
ship also catching fire before the two
fell apart, both of thcm floating away
Into the night likc great torches on
the sea.
When the dawn came miles OF heavy
black oil-smoke were rolling from tho
tanker. and the salvage unit which had
bccn called saw that the only way 10
save her was 10 sink her In, nrdar "a