The Waterbury Democrat., 1941-11-01
Planes Warships Search Waters Near Spot Where Destroyer Went Down FEW NAMES ISSUED BY NAVY DEPARTMENT
 - - All Officers Believed Lost; Torpedo Probably Hit
 Front of Vessel
BY MACK JOHNSON United Press Staff CorFespOndentl

United Press Staff CorrespOndentN
 Washington, November 1, -(UP) - Hope waned but was not abandoned today for the 77 unreported mem. bers of the crew of the De. stroyer Reuben James. Forty four enlisted men were known to be safe of approx irnately 121 officers and men who formed the crew of the first United States naval vessel lcst in this war.
 Among the missing were the Reu- ben James skipper Lieutenant Commander Heywood L. Edwards, and the gix other officers.
 Ofilcials continued to hope that some of the missing would be found alive, but as the hours licked by without further reports this hope diminished.
 Waters Searched
 American warslaips and planes q secured the icy waters of the North Atlantic in the area west of Icc- land where the Reuben James was sunk by @ torpedo Thursday night. The first cheerful news came last night ct 0:4o D. m, Ee5slF V - l2 hours after the ainking was. ailnOlneed when the Mavy DepaFtfAen1 this brief statement:
 The Navy Department has re- ceived report that 44 members of the crew of the U. S. s. Reuben James have been rescued. The sur- vivors who have been accounted for are all enlisted men. The Navy DC. partment has no further informa- ton at this time, but additional de- tails will be released when received"
 The navy has not issued Q list of the destroyers crew, nor dld 1t give the names of the 44 men who are safe or say how they were rescued. It was presumed that they vera picked up by ships In the area. The Reuben James was escorting Q cor- voy when 1t was sunk.
 Few Radio Messages
 It was believed that the names of the rescued were not available immediately because ships in the area would use theirs radios spare tngly to avoid further attacks by German submarines, surface raiders or 'airplaneS. The exact location of the sinking and details of the incl- dent still were unreveaied.
 The navy did release the names of the officers. In addition to Edwards, a 36-year-old Texas-born, former Olympic wrestling star, they weres Lieutenant Benjamin Ghetzler, 34, Annapolis, Md; Lieutenant (junior grade) Dewey c. Johnston, 3i, Fl Cajon, Calf; Lieutenant (junior grade) John J. Daub. Saltsburg, Pa: Lieutenant (junior grade) James M. Belden, 30, Syracuse, N. X.; Ep- \ sign Craig Spowers, 24, East Orange, N. J., and Ensign Howard V. Wade. %, Glen Ridge, N. J.
 The announcement of the rescue of ~ men was made in the Navy Department press room where ofli- cials and reporters had waited throughout the evening for some word of the fate of the destroyeg's crew.
 Good News Released
 A few minutes before 10 ?. m. Commander Robert Berry, assistane public relations chief, arrived, iHa formal evening dress. He had been summoned from dinner party to release the first word about the Reuben James sonce yesterday Rnorn- ing when tt was revealed that the destroyer had been toFpedoed and sunk.
 Fear that the casualty list might be high was heightened by many factors. It was recalled that there were ii casualties aboard the de- stroyer Kearny torpedced In the same area on october l0, even thOush it was able to keep afioat and Mnaw into 6 port 400 miles away.
 The navy revealed that the ReubGw
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