The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1925-09-29

ROUGH 81
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would be sent down merely to pre-
serve a spirit of activity where
none seemed possible.
Diver Finds Body
A diver was lowered. For long
minutes, he prowled depths and
anxious walters lost their vigilant
air. 4 sudden pull on the ropes
from below notified them that
something unusual had taken
place. BY means Of signals, the
news was communicated and the
body lifted by ropes. 1t was in
good condition and easily identi-
fled.
Message Fragmentary
The message containing the news
Of the discovery Of Gibson's body
was fragmentary. 1t having been
broadcast as soon as identification
was effected. It read as follows:
First body removed from bat
terry compartment was that of John
L. Gibson, engineman. He lives
at $50 Hall street, Portland, Ore,
and has wife at % Spicer ave-
nue.. New London.
Some minutes, another brief mes.
sage arrived, augmenting the de-
tails to some extent. It gave Glib
SON s rank again and said that the
body was in good condition.
The discovery of Gibson's body
there" Lieutenant Commander Elan
igan said, Indicates that the divers
are going through the entire hull
and removing what bodies they
may find.
II would regard the news just
received as the most discouraging
we have had"
Clings to Hope.
Lieutenant Commander Flanagan
would not say, hoover, that he re-
garded the latest development as
conclusive evidence that all life
was extinct below
The widow of Gibson lives in New
London and Lieutenant Commander
Seaman was despatched as a special
deputy to break the sad news at the
Gibson home.
The news was broken to Mrs.
Gibson shortly after 10 O'Clock and.
according to Lieutenant Com
mander Seaman. she took it well.
tfShe seemed to be braced for the
ordeal he said, land when she
saw me coming, think she knew
that my news was not Of the best.
At that, believe the news. in SOME
cases. might come with something
like relief after the long suspense.
The families have been able to view
both possibilities-the finding OF
the body dead or alive-and there
fore. the shock after three days
may be lessened by preparedness"
Commander Flanagan said that
Admiral Christy undoubtedly was
delaying further word on the vic
time until he was certain OF his
facts.
Sticks to Guns
This probably will continue all
day he declared There are other
bodies, we concede, to be brought
to the surfact, and now that the
divers seem to have free access 10
the hulk, developments are likely to
follow rapidly.
He would not, however, admit
that the finding of TWO bodies
meant that all below are dead.
I'VE are sticking by our guns,
he said. Our conviction is that
men still live on the SCI, and we
are going after them"
Two Divers Working
Another message received from
Admiral Christy stated that two
divers were working on the hulk
simultaneously, one inside and the
other outside. The man working
inside, it stated, had found the air
line in the battery compartment
severed and that it had been
gagged" by a plug in order to
prevent the further escape OF air
and insure that it penetrated to the
other compa rtments. The air line
feeds the entire ship.
The divers, the message conclud-
ed, were clearing away wreckage
and working forward.
Although the message, confirm
ing Teschamacher'S death, contained
only the barest details, it was
assumed by Lieutenants4Comm nder
Flanagan that the body was found
in the Coming Tower Hatch, indi-
eating that the doomed seaman had
made an heroic effort to reach the
open before the S-51 nosed into
her final plunge.
The assumption Of the body's
position. Lieutenant Commander
Flanagan pointed out, was based on
the purport of a. preceding mes.
sage, which declared the divers
were working forward. This indi-
Gated to him that they had pro.
ceeded Through the battery room
without finding further evidence of
the submarines dead.
Was Only 10
That dead there were, however
was the presumption upon the dis
covery of the second body after
less than three hours Of search
about the hulk.
Teschamacher was only nineteen
years old. His family was notified
immedists ly by wire and the bodies
of both men ordered removed to
the Naval Hospital at Newport
Owing 10 a freshening Of the wind
off Block Island and the consequent
high seas the wreckers Monarch and
Century were sent TO Newport and
the attempt to lift the hulk of the
S-51 was abandoned temporarily for
the secondOtine in the last two days.
Diving operations were resumed
in an effort to ascertain the exact
condition OF the submarine. This,
K9wever, meant a further delay in
reaching the thirty.two men i'm.
prisoaed below, upward Of seventy
hours having elapsed since the craft
took its final plunge on Friday night.
News of this latest blow to the
work of human salvage was trans
united from the scene of action
by Admiral II. III. Christy on the
mother ship Camden.
AZ pointed out by, Lieutena nj