The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1935-09-28

stood, counting off the seconds in
their blind little pocket beneath
the sea. The seconds licked away
and ended in a deep, muffled
roar that shook the submarine. 1t
was a hit.
A SHOUT from the forecastle,
IA Torpedo coming in the star
board Sidel" was the only warning.
The people on the bridge had
just time to see the track when
they felt the shock and the crash
of the eXplosion-like "the slam
ming of a heavy door"-followed a
perceptible interval according to
the overwhelming" evidence of
the survivors, by a second deto-
nation.
1t seemed to have a quite diff
ferent sound from that made by
the torpedo; it may possibly" as
Capt. Turner afterward testified,
'have been internal"
The ship only trembled, but the
debris leaped up to the maStheadS,
and a lifeboat hanging 40 or so
feet above the waterline was shat
tered. Capt. Schweiger at his
periscope observed the unexpected
violence Of the effect and noted
it in his log:
"Shot hits starboard side right
behind bridge. An unusually heavy
defamation follows with a very
strong explosion cloud. (High in
air over first smokestackD Added
to the explosion of the torpedo
there must have been a second
explosion. Boiler or coal or pow
derD The SuperStructure over the
point struck and the high bridge
are rent asunder, fire breaks out
and smoke envelops the high
bridge"
TINE ship seemed to hang for
Il few moments and\then con-
tinued to heel over. Another five
minutes or so elapsed.
1t was now clear to every one
that the Lusitania was going with
a fearful rapidly. On deck they
were working at the starboard
boats in earnest. The officers and
many of the crew did their best;
everything, however, was more or
less hit-or- miss; there was dis
cipline but little order.
According to a survivor:
"One boat, full of passengers,
was being lowered. The man at
the bow was not lowering fast
enough, and an officer shouted to
him to hurry up. He threw off
blight. lost control of the rope,
and the bow dropped, throwing
the passengers into the water. A
minute later a second boat, which
seemed about to get safely away,
also got out of control and fell
upon the people struggling in the
water. 1 can see that sight yet"
A Scant Is minutes had passed
since the torpedo had struck. The
passengers were clinging in help
less masses along the starboard
side of the deckhouse, the tower
ing tunnels leaning far out above
them and the water creeping rap
idly along the deck from the now
almost submerged bow. The fore
most of the II boats on the star
board side had been cleared; two
more had been lost in lowering,
a fourth had been smashed by the
explosion.
TN her last moments the L:si-
Il tania seemed to roll back to an
even keel; her stern simply sub
sided into the water as if the
whole after part had filled.
Capt. Turner. a strong swimmer,
was floated off his bridge as the
water came over. Looking back,
he saw the tall tunnels go under
one by one; there was a great
groaning sigh. a last rush of
steam and air above the funnel
tops. the mastheads vanished and
there was nothing but the placid
and smiling sea. dotted over
great area with the immense
mass of floating debris and the
heads of swimming people. the
few lifeboats riding among them.
In just Is minutes after the
shot was fired the Lusitania was
on the bottom.
There had been 1857 passengers
and TOP members of the crew on
board-1959 souls in all-of whom
1195 we're lost. OF the 159 Ameri-
can passengers, 124 persisted. There
were many narrowing details.