Evening star., 1923-09-20
RADIO STATION LOG
WILL Be WITNESS
Record of Signals Given to
Wrecked Destroyers Is
Ordered by Court.
BY the Associated Press.

| BY the Associated Press
! SAN DIEGO, Calf, September 90
The log of a radio compass station,
signals of which the nevigator of
destroyer squadron IL yesterday testi-
fed were disregarded on the night
of September 8, when change Of
course to the eastward carried seven
vessels of the squadron squarely into
the rocks off Honda, Calf, is sched-
before the naval court of inquiry in
lvestigating the disaster when it's ses-
sions are resumed here tomorrow.
Both the log itself, which shows
what signals were sent and received
at Point Arguello between noon and
| midnight on September s, and the
radio men on watch there during that
time will be brought before the court
| for comparison with the previous
| testimony of witnesses concerning
radio compass signals, it was an
nounced today by Lieut.. Commander
Leslie Bratton, judge advocate of the
court
! According to the testimony of Lieut..
| Laurence F. Blodgett, navigating off
Ger aboard the Delphy, flagship of the
| squadron. the bearings sent out from
Point Arguello were entirely unsat-
| isfactory." so much so, in fact, that
when they indicated the squadron was
north of Point Arguello. where il
would be perilous to turn east, he as
the commanding officer of the Delphy
did not hesitate to decide on an east
ward change of course in spite of
themg secure in the belief that the
radio station was turned around" in
its signals and was sending them ex-
actly the reverse of what they might
expect.
Receipt of repeated bearings indi-
eating that the squadron still was
north of Point Arguello did not raise
any doubt in Lieut. Blodgett's mind
as to the exact location of his ship,
he testified. even though the last of
such bearings, received about two
minutes before the change of course
and seven minutes before the crash
showed them still several miles to the
north of the point
Is Made Defendant.
In the midst of his testimony Lieut.
| Blodgett was interrupted to be in
formed by the court that he had been
found an ,"interested party" to the in
quiry and should know that it was his
right as a defendant to obtain coun-
sell
His efforts to have his testimony
stricken from the record after this
announcement was overruled by Ad-
miral W. V. Pratt, presiding member
of the court.
Thirteen naval officers now stand
cited as interested parties" in the
status of defendants with respect to
the destroyer disaster investigation
Besides Lieut.. Bodgett. they are
iCapt. Edward II. Watson, command
erin chief of the 18th squadron:
lCapt. Robert Morris, command ,divi-
sion '33; Commander William S. Pye,
commanding division 81: Commander
I. p. Davis. commanding u. S. S.
Woodbury.; Commander William p
Gaddis, commanding L. S. S. Somer;
Commander William l.. Calhoun,
commanding u. S. S. Young: Com
mander William H. ToaZ, command
ing U. S. s., $. P. Lee: Lieut. Com
mander John +. McClain, command
ing U. S. S. Farragut; Lieut. Com
mander Donald T. Hunter, command
ing L. S. S. Delphy; Lieut.. Command
er Walter ID. Seed. commanding L. S.
S. Fuller; Lieut.. Commander Herbert
olas; Lieut.. Commander Richard K.
Booth, commanding L. S. S. Chauncey.
Two Vessels Escaped.
The Farragut and Somers grounded
the night of September 8, but escaped.
The other seven ships were wrecked.
Lieut. Blodgett told his story lean
ing over large chart of the waters
about Santa Barbara channel, plotting
with rule and divtders the Delphy's
course as laid out by himself and the
commanding officer of the Delphy,
Lieut.. Commander Donald T. Hunter.
About him clustered the naval off,
GERS conducting the inquiry, eagerly
scanning the chart as the witness indi-
CO ted the course of the squadron, the
point which he thought the Delphy
was at o'clock on the night of Sep
tember 8, and the point where she
4 actually was at that time.
These two points were more than
ten miles apart, Lieut.. Blodgett's tes-
timony showed. Their supposed posi-
ton was well south of Point Arguello,
where 1t would have been necessary
to make change of course to the
eastward to clear San Miguel Island.
Their real position was some distance
north of the point.
Received Radio Bearings.
Were radio compass bearings OBJ
tanned from Point Arguello?" Admiral
| Pratt asked the witness.
Yes" answered Blodgett, "just prior
to $3.50, at which time we thought we
| were abeam of Point Arguello, we OBJ
tanned a bearing which showed US to
be to the nosthward; but the line was
obviously so far out from the correct
position that we Immediately request
ed the reciprocal (reverse) bearing
from the station, which laid down on
the chart would show us down the
channel somewhere south of Point
Arguello."
Just before o'clock, when the
change of course to the east was
made. the navigator added, two more
bearings were received, both of
which showed the DelphY still north
of Point Arguello.
Asked if any of the bearings as first
received showed the Delphy south
ward of Point Arguello, Blodgett re-
piled that none had indicated they
were to the southwark, except one
at 6:16 pm. and one early in the
afternoon.
Created No Doubt.
!, did the receipt of the radio COM
pass bearings raise any doubt in
your mind as to the exact location
of the ship?"
mo SIR" the navigator replied. mot
after several radio compass bearings
had been received and shown to be
at so. great a variance with each
other"
When you received these radio
compass bearings, all of which placed
| you to the northward of Arguello
light he inquired. did you take into
} | account the possibility that these
bearings might be correct in indi-