The Eureka sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1902-current, 1920-09-11
RESCUE Of CREW
OF SIS IS TOLD
Thirty-eight Officers and Men
Battle With Desperation
for Their Lives

Philadelphia, Sept. 4.-The United
States submarine SIS went to the bot
tom of the Atlantic ocean of Cape
Henlopen, because a large air intake
valve faded to close when the Sub"
made a practice dive, in navy par
lance a crash dive" There were 3s
officers and enlisted men aboard.
This was revealed to-day in the Of
fetal report of the accident made by
the commander of the destroyer
Beaver.
The Beaver is standing by the bat
tleship Ohio which to-day is towing
the Inflated submarine to the Della
ware break-water, creeping along
about three miles an hour. Nothing
had been heard by naval authorities
late this morning from the Ohio, but
II was believed that the fotilla would
arrive at the breakwater, 80 miles
down the river from Philadelphia,
late to-day.
Briefly, but revealing the desperate
plight of the imprisoned men, the
Beavers report tells of the accident
and the work of rescue.
SAVED BY OWN EFFORTS
1t discloses that 1t was largely
through the work of the imprisoned
men under the direction Of Lieuten-
ant Commander Charles Cooke, Jr.,
that they were saved and that it was
their own desperate efforts and not
a telephone buoy, as first reported,
that attracted attention of the rescu-
ing ships. The crew learned that
the stern Of their ship was above wat
er. Then working as they never be-
fore worked they gouged a small hole
through the steel hull. To do this
they climbed up the side of the ship,
standing at an angle of about 60 de-
grees.
Through this hole they thrust a pole,
a sailors white undershirt tied to 1t,
and wigwagged signals of distress,
which were een by the steamship
Alanthus, the first vessel to pass, 81
hours later.
The report of the Beaver shows
that the accident occurred at 2 o'clock
Wednesday. With the boat at the
bottom in 16S feet Of water, the men
worked desperately. Some of the
water was expelled and the stern rose
slowly. but the storage batteries had
been flooded, releasing chlorine
fumes. the same gas that the Ger
mans used in the world war.
The fumes drove the crew from
the apartments. With the batteries
flooded they presumably were forced
to work practically in darkness. aid
ed only by small flashlights.
WORK IN RELAYS
The men worked in two-minute re-
lays. They could not stand it for a
longer period. The chlorine sank to
the bow Of the ship. but there was no
fresh air and the oxygen was rapidly
being exhausted.
Sweating and painting the men work
ed at the hull. It was slow work,
but finally a hole was made and a
thin trickle of fresh air fioated in.
Consider saving personnel was
splendid feat. Slightest mistake af-
ter accident on part of officers would
have resulted in loss Of some or all"
the Beaver report says tersely.
Members of the crew of the des-
troyer which arrived at the Philadel-
phia hayward after having been at
the scene of the disaster, declared the
accident was due to negligence On the
part of a member of the crew of the
SIS. officers would say nothing, re-
ferring interviewers to Washington.
CALL FOR CIGARETTES
After a large hole had been drilled
in the outstanding stern of the sub
marine by Engineer Grace and his as
sistants of the transport General Goe-
thals, which Joined the Alanthus in
the rescue work, and the men were
taken from their prison, the first re-
quest of all was for cigarettes.
Every man was wan and pale from
the nearly two days spent in the stiff
ling darkness of the sunken hull. At
ter they had INDUCED in a smoke they
said they were hungry.