Evening star., 1941-12-25
j. ). Bomber Sinks
Submarine Off
California Coast
Direct Hits Fill
Air With Debris,
Army Declares
Continued From First Page)


yesterday. the submarine sent one
torpedo wild, but with second shot
cut hole 20 feet wide in the $685.
ton lumber freighter Absaroka.
Joseph Ryan. 63, of San Francisco
was crushed in fall of lumber on
the Mccormick Line vessel. Hun
dreds of persons, watching from the
shore and from small fishing craft,
saw the submarine submerge as
American airplanes roared to the
scene. Great spurts of water were
seen and the Navy said depth bombs
were dropped.
Part of the Absaroka's cargo was
jettisoned. Tugs towed the badly
listing freighter to port. Author
tiles said she would have sunk eX-
cept for the load of lumber, which
f1oated her.
Meanwhile, the Navy announced
that two other ships had been in
some kind of trouble and that a
third, previously listed as missing
and probably sunk, had arrived
safely at a port.
The four-masted schooner Doro-
thy Phillips was disclosed as enter
ing a California port last night un-
der her own power despite list to
the stern. The nature of the dam
age was not announced, but the
Navy earlier had received a report
that a schooner had been disabled
by a submarine not far from the
Absaroka torpedoing.
The Navy also heard report that
another lumber schooner, the Bar
bara c., was fired on near the Alb
saroka. The ships officers report
edly were uncertain whether the
shots which went wide. were from
a submarine or were being fired at
a submarine by shore batteries.
The safe arrival was the Cana
dian freighter Rosebank, two days
overdue with cargo OF newsprlnt.
Another Ship Escapes.
Capt. Thomas Hill, skipper OF the
Standard Oil tanker H. M. Storey
which was attacked by submarine
Monday, disclosed on safe arrival
in port that the Storey had been
attacked twice, but escaped damage.
Thirty-three men escaped from
the Absaroka into lifeboats and
were rescued by Coast Guard and
inshore patrol boats which rushed
to the scene. Several survivors
were injured, none seriously.
Said Seaman Herbert Tephen, 20,
Of Portland, Oreg.:
Il was in the forecastle when the
torpedo struck. There was a ter
rife impact and the ship seemed
to spin around
II heard a dull. booming sound
and as I raced to the deck and
fell the noise was horrifying. with
the lumber load on the after deck
spewed into the air in every di-
rection.'
I'VE Weren't Even Afraid"
Joseph Scott. 46 also of Portland.
said it was his fifth torpedoing
experience-the others were during
the first World War-and his
easiest"
why, mate" he grinned. I'VE
were in plain sight of land. there
were rescue boats on the way, we
weren't in any danger and We
weren't even afraid
He added:
I'm those other torpedoings there |
was always a bang or a blast. But |
this one was sort of slow jar, with |
nothing but a rumble because she |
hit us we'll below the water line.
There wasn't any panic"
This is the list of attacks along
the California coast prior to yester-
days:
December 18-S. S. Samoa lodges
submarine torpedo and five shells,
escapes.
December 2O-Oil tanker Emidio
sheued, torpedoed and probably
sunk; five missing, 81 rescued,
December 23-Tanker Agwiworld
shelled. escapes.
December o. Tanker H. M.
Storey escapes torpedo fire under
smoke screen.
December 23-Tanker Montebeno
torpedoed, shelled and sunk; crew of
SO saved. Tanker Larry Doheny
lodges torpedoes and shells, es-
capes; tanker Idaho escapes after
sighting submarine.