The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1919-09-28

were winning the war" ] remarked.
They will win, unless we can stop
these losses-and stop them soon"
the admiral replied.
rs there no solution Tor the prob
lem ?" 1 asked.
| Absolutely none that we can see
now" Jellicoe announced. He described
! the work of destroyers and showed no
optimism over their ability TO control
the depredations of the U-boats The
| stories that were being published con-
corning the numerous sinkings of Ger
man submarines l now find to be UNI
true. Since the beginning of the war.
only fifty-four German submarines
We're positively known TO have been
sunk, and Admiral Jellicoe now told me
that the Germany shipyards were turn
ing out new submarines at the rate OF
three a week. Stories had recently
found their way into print about the
voluntary surrender of German L
boats; no such surrender had taken
place; the stories had been circulated
merely TO depreciate enemy morale. I
even found that members of the gov
eminent who should have been well
) informed, and also British naval Off
GERS, actually believed that many cap
tured German submarines were care
ibiS SlONto away at the PORTSMOUTH
and Plymouth navy yards. The fact
was that the supplies and communica-
tions of the forces on all fronts were
threatned, that German submarines
were constantly extending their opera
tions farther and farther out into the
Atlantic, that German raiders were es-
Gaping. that three years constant OPP
erations had seriously threatened the
strength of the British navy. and
that Great Britain's control OF the
sea was actually at stake
Bad as the situation then was. Ad-
miral Jellicoe had every ex ,ectation
that it would not get worse. The Ger
man submarines would soon have the
long daylight of the British summer for
their operations. and they believed
that the submarine would force a de
cision in their favor i'm that period
So far i could learn there was a
general belief in British naval circles
that this plan would succeed With
losses approaching a million tons a
| month 1t was matter OF very simple
arithJletic to figure how long the allies
| could stand the strain. The best au-
thorities calculated that the limit OF en-
durance would be reached about No
vember j. 1917; in other words. that
| unless some method OF successfully
fighting submarines could be discovered
Almost Immediately, Great Britain
| would have TO lay down her arms be-
| fore victorious Germany.
What we are facing is the defeat
of Great Britain" said an American
| diplomat, then in London. after the
situation had been explained to him.
In the next few weeks / had many
| ints Views with Admiral Jeliicoe and
4 NJ he H.
| sat in conference with them every
morning. and, for all practical purposes.
| became member of their organization
| There were no secrets of the British
/ navy TO which, as an American I did
not have complete access. All members
| or the government desired that the
| United States should understand the
situation completely. so from the begin
/ ming they discussed matters with the
utmost frankness. They deprecated the
generally prevailing impression that
any new invention could control the
submarine in time TO be effective.
Forty Thousand Anti Submarine De-
vices.
Those were the days when the Amer
lean press was constantly calling upon
Edison and other great American in
ventors to solve this problem. In fact.
inventors i'm every part OF two
hemispheres were turning out devices
by the thousands. A regular depart
ment OF the admiralty, headed by Ad-
miral Fisher, had charge OF investi-
eating their roduct; in a few months
1t had rec ed and examined not Ear
from 4O,' % Inventions none of which
answered the purpose, though many
of them were exceedingly ingenious
British naval officers were not hostile
TO such projects; they declared, how
ever that ii would be absurd to de-
pend upon new devices for defeating
the German campaign. The time ele
ment was the important consideration
unless the U-boats were checked I'm
two or three months. the Germans
would have won the war: should Mr.
Edison or any other great genius in
vent an anti-submarine device, II would
not serve their purposes, because. long
Defore IL could be perfected and in
stated the shipping situation would
have forced an allied surrender.
discussed the situation with mem
bers OF the cabinet. such as Mr.. Raj
four, Lord Robert Cecil and Sir Ed
ward Carson. Their attitude to me
was very different from the attitude
winch they were taking publicly. for
IN lheir speeches these men naturally
Wouid say nothing that would improve
the enemy morale; but I'm their talks
with me they repeated practically ev-
| erything that Jellicoe had said. II wa.
| the seriousness of this situation of
course, that sent Mr.. Balfour ana .h.
British commission to the United
states. What dark moment that
vas in the history of the allied cause
NOT only were the German subrna rfne~
sweeping British commerce from tra
seas. but the Germans were also da-
feating the British and French arr,ia.
III france When we recall that ~.
high peak of success with t,e IT~t-..