The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-05-12


 that were to take them ashore they cheered the Tanning and it's crews
 This was one case in which the au- thorities could not throw doubt on 1t by any dubious credit of slightly dam aged' or possibly sunk" There was TO doubt whatever that that subma rine, the U-5S, had gone to Dayy Jones' locker. And the prisoners were glad enough to escape with their lives
 The O'Brien, Trippe, Warrington, Jenkins, Wadsworth, Cummings, Wilkes, Benham, Parker, Jacob Jones, McDougal, Davis, Conyngham, Allen, Reid, Stewart, Porter, Patterson Beale Burrows, Allen, Sterrett and Tucker were officially credited by the British admiralty with successful attacks, and there were others which probably de- served it, but were not able to present such clear evidence. For the author ities over there required pretty good evidence before they gave any credits.
 The armed yachts, those fine craft belonging to wealthy Americans which, from luxurious private possessions were turned to purposes of war and performed splendid service on the coast of France also played well their part and h Noma, Wakiva, Piqua, Christabel and Lydonia were accorded official praise for damaging or sending down sub marines. The submarine at Plymouth and Corfu had their victories
 l But, withal, it was the gallant de- stroyers which did most to combat the submarine menace. They were the bully boys who always kept the subs on the run. At sea two thirds of the 1 time, they escorted three-fourths of the transatlantic tonnage in and out of European ports. Some of them made astounding records. The first year after we entered the war at least three, the Porter, Davis and Conyns- ham, steamed about 65,0O0 miles each, nearly three times the distance around the globe, while the Caldwell for some time averaged $500 miles a month. over 28o miles day. No class of ship, big or little, ever excelleo this record
 GIVE HIM ANYTHING HE WANTS
 Regarding the Caldwell l must tell you little story about Commander Byron McCandless. At the beginning or the war he was my naval aid. and when he begged to go to sea he was assigned to this destroyer, then build ing at Mare Island. He reached the california navy yard not long after the keel was laid. Impatient to pet his ship finished, he was on the lob day and night He banged away at is so consistently that the workmen called film Capt. Bang Bang"
 | one day the acting chief of naval l operations came Into my office with telegram from McCandless asking that laundry be installed in the Caldwell. re handeG mo letter he had pre- pared dlsapproving the request Hold on there, now" I said. That officer IS working overtime to get his ship cone. Give him anything he wants. and send 1t by express" Then the act ing chief held out his other hand. Ir hcontained dispatch approving the re- quest. T knew you would want this qispatch' MT! Secretary" he said, but would See first what I could do with the letter." '-
 McCandless finished his shin in rec- ord time and for his trial trip made another record by makig the run from san FTancfsco through the Panama canal to Hampton at a speed of 30 knots an hour. After short rest he took her across the Atlantic and made another record in the war zone | That's just an example of the wav our destroyer boys went at the job, and they kept 1t up until the last horn blew. Iheir skill in navigating, in locating conveys or vessels in distress or boats containing survivors was positively un- canny. When the President Lincoln was sunk 300 miles at sea the Smith and the Warrington hurried to the rescue. Other ships in the convoy had sent by wireless the location, as they hurried away to escape the submarine. The two destroyers were 250 miles from the scene. That wireless message was all they had to steer by. The Lincoln was sunk about o'clock in the morn Ing, and it was II o'clock that night when the rescuers reached the locality. But so accurately had the destroyer of | ficers estimated the drift that in the darkness they almost ran into the rafts Can you imagine nicer piece of cal culation than that?
 DROP BOMBS ON SUB
 As they speeded toward Brest, thei. decks crowded with hundreds of sur vivors. the Smith and Warrington dis covered signs of Submarine. Rush. ing to the attack, they dropped depth bombs all around the location. They mad estimated it So accurately that though the sub descended to so great depth that the water threatened to crush in it's sides. the depth bombs shook 1t like an earthquake. And that undersea craft, hiding beneath them turned out to be the very submarine that had sunk the Lincoln, the U-90. She got away at last, but that German certainly had narrow escape.
 thrilling example of the courage, quick decision and prompt action that characterized the destroyer force was that of the Shaw, October II, 1913
 Escorting the big British transport Aquitania, the Shaw was just complet- ing the right leg of zig-zag that brought her close to the convoy when her rudder damned. As the huge trans port turned the destroyer was aimed straight toward its side. Commander William Glassford, captain of the de- stroyer, realized that collision was inevitable. Either destroyer or trans port would be sacrificed. If the sharp proved destroyer struck the Aquitania, the big transport, with 5000 men aboard, might be ripped and sunk, with heavy loss of life
 Glassford decided instantly to sac- rifice his own ship. Unable to turn 1t aside he gave the order. Full asternp' moment later the Aquitania struck the destroyer and sliced it almost in two, passing through 1t without even slowing speed. Striking just forward of the bridge, the Aquitania cut off 90 feet of Shaw's bow and raked the whole length of her side stripping open the forward boiler room and tearing out the mainmast, which. in falling, damned the starboard engine.
 Sparks ignited the oil in the forward tank. setting fire to the vessel. The Duncan aud the Kimberly went to the assistance of the Shaw, the Kimberly rescuing the survivors in the bow, which was floating 200 yards from the remainder of the ship.
 That the vessel kept afloat at all