The Waterbury Democrat., 1941-09-05
Submarine Attack Is
 Termed Deliberate
toontlnued from Page D

American position thus: It reminded him of an incident in which school children on their way to classes were fired upon one day by c nnarau- der who shot at them rom some bushes. The father of the children, he said, took the position there was nothing to do about it--not even search the bushes--because the chil- dren were not hit by the gun fire.
 That is not the position of this government in the attack upon It's destroyer.
 The bushes are being searched, he said, and the government of the United States specifically rejects the position of the allegorical father and takes the position that something can be done.
 The president said grimly that 1t might be said that the school teach CT of the allegory is conducting the search, identifying himself as the school techer.
 'What would be done If we find the marauder2" a reporter asked.
 Eliminate" 1t, the president re- piled. Eliminate" Is very good word.
 MT. Roosevelt, however, said that no new orders had been issued to the American naval units operating in the Atlnatic as Q result Of the incident, implying that the orders under which these units now are op- erating are broad enough to permit 4AAVaN kA ttailVtA lVs tsNn aNN a submarine should they track 1t down. As to specifically what these pres- ent orders might be, MT. Roosevelt offered broad hint with the direct question: what would you do If somebody fired a torpedo at you2
 On American Side
 The president insisted that the destroyer emphatically was on the American side of the ocean, but de- olined to say exactly what its posi- ton was when the submarine at. tackled.
 A reporter inquired whether its position might have been definitely on the American side yet still with in the belligerent zone proclaimed by Germany. The German zone ex- tends close to Greenland.
 Mir. Roosevelt answered this ques- tion by refusing to recognize the existence of such a zone of belliger- ency in the Atlantic.
 The United States government, he said, never has been notified of Hitler's belligerent zone. Secondly, he said, this area is supposed to be . blockade and everyone knows that Q blockade is completey without meaning unless 1t is effective, and the fact remains that there Is on effective blockade.
 He was asked whether 1t was pos- aible that mistake was made in the attack on the destroyer
 He replied by explaining the oper- atiomS of submarine warfare. If submarine has its periscope above the surface, he said, there is no, ex- euse for a wrong Identification.
 He added that, however, by ad- hitting that most submarines, in- cludlng thos eof Germany and Italy, have listening devices which can AOCAVS WAtIl bOLHS dCCuIHCy blG pOSA- ton of c vessel from the sound of its motors without displaying Q periscope. Therefore, the president said, 1t is physically possible for Q submarine to fire at a sound without displaying It's periscope. It was then that he said the consequences of such blind attack would be fully as grave as an attack launced after proper visual indentihcation.
 The president was specific in in- sisting that visibility conditions were such at the moment of the attack the the Greer's identity should have been established by the submarine, The attack occurred in full daylight, he. said.
 AThere was no fogP" a reporter said.
 The president again said the visl- biitiy was good.
 The Navy announced the attack in a terse communique last night. The destroyer involved was the Greer, World War variety flush- decker, 14 of whose sister ships now fly the British flag, and her com