The Union daily times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1918-current, 1919-01-06
THRILLING EXPERIENCE OF
TWO ITALIAN OFFICERS

swimming into Pola harbor and
steering two small submarine motors
towing bombs that two Italian naval
officers destroyed the Austrian
dreadnought Viribus Units just be-
fore the signing of the armistice be-
tween Italy and Austria. The swim
mers were in the water nine hours and
J had to penetrate four barriers across
the harbor entrance, two of which
were composed of steel submarine
nets. After they had attached their
bomb to the side of the dreadnought,
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 Viribus 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 2O,00O-ton ship, one of the
most powerful in the Austrian navy,
were Lieutenan. Raffaele Paolucci and
Major Raffaele Rossetti. The attack
was delivered on the morning of No
vember 1, 1918.
To tow the bomb into Pola harbor,
the two Italians invented small COM
pressed air motors to which were at
tached bombs. For six months the
two naval men practiced in long dis
tance swimming. The Italian Ad-
miralty gave them the use of a motor
boat.
| Reaching the harbor entrance at
nightfall, the two daring men started
on their expedition swimming beside
their little motors and steering them.
To escape detection by sentries on
wooden pier across the harbor mouth,
Paolucci and Rossetti had hats shaped
like bottles, and the sentry saw moth
ing but a couple of bottles being
tossed by the waves. Wen his back
was turned they advanced and safely
passed the first barrier.
After infinite labor they fought
their way through the steel nets and
the Austrian feet lay 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 $3.50 a. m.
BY this time they were 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 Voucovich. At 6:15,
however, they told the admiral what
they had done and he gave the order
to abandon ship. Paolucci asked the
admiral if he az dihs friend might
also try to 'savs themselves and he
shook hands saying, "You are brave
men and deserve to live" They
plunged into the water and swan
away, but 10 minutes later the ad-
miral began to suspect the bomb story
and sent launch to bring them back
They were made to walk up the ladder
under which they had set the bomb
which was due to explode in two min
utes. The ladder was crowded with
sailors returning to their ship.
"Run. Run for your lives," shout
ed Paolucci, struggling to reach the
deck before the explosion took place
He and Rossetti had reached the deck
and ran to the stern of the dread
nought when a terrific explosion rent
the air and a column of water 300
feet high shot upward. Admiral
Voucovich again gave them permis-
sion to save themselves, and they had
been swimming away from the ship
five minutes when they heard another
explosion and saw that the other
bomb which had been left adrift had
been carried by the current alongside
the large Austrian liner Wien and
had there expletied.,,.,
| The Viribus Units was then lying
on her side, but suddenly the huge
ship turned bottom upward and Lieu
tenant Paolucci saw Admiral Vou-
covich scramble upward and stand
with folded arms on the keel, ready
to go down with his vessel.
Major Rossetti and Lieutenant
Paolucci were recaptured and taken
on board another Austrian warship
where they We're kept prisoners until
the armistice was signed and an Ital-
ian warship entered the harbor. Then
launch was sent for the two heroes
and they were sent on destroyer to
Venice where the people gave them a
vociferous welcome.