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UPROOTING THE DEAD 0-
UPROOTING THE DEAD 0- EFFECT OF THE BOMBARDMENT OF NEUVE CHAPELLE. Eye-Witness," in a message issued by the Press Bureau on Sunday, gives sonic more details of the fighting at Neuve -Chapelle. The havoc wrought by the artillery of both sides was terrible, the shells bursting in the churchyard of the village even uprooting the dead. "Eye-Wit cess' message is as follows:— The lull on our front has continued during the last four days, though the enemy's artillery has been somewhat more -active. On Monday, the 22nd, besides other results recorded in the last llmman. -we succeeded in destroying one of the Ger- man anti-aircraft weapons which had beer annoying our aviators. A machine gur was also knocked out and an ammunition store exploded. Neuve Chapelle has been heavily shelled from time to time, and or Tuesday, the 23rd, various points along the centre of our position were bombarded. Wednesday passed comparatively quietly. The weather has become warmer, and in spite of some rain the country is drying fast. Various accounts have been given of the action at Neuve Chapelle. A summary of the part played during the last six month by this place and a description of the general appearance of the battlefield as seen after the last engagement will, perhaps, do more than anything else to convey a true impression of the character of the fighting and of what led up to it. Neuve Chapelle first came into prominence during our eastward advance to the north of La Bassee in October, 1914, when the Ger- mans held it as one point in the series of rearguard positions they were taking up to tdelay our progress until their reinforce- ments should come up. On the 16th of that month the British first entered the vil- lage. Next day they drove the German6 still farther back and pressed on to Her1 ice. The neighbourhood of Le Pilly, some three and a half miles to the east of Neuve Chapelle, reached on the 19th October, how- ever, represents the high-water mark of oui advance in this quarter, for by the 18th some of the enemy's reinforcements had come up and their resistance had developed into offence. Such was the weight which they applied that by the 22nd our troops were withdrawn to a line passing east of Neuve Chapelle, which was still in our possession. THE FIGHT FOR THE COAST. I There was now continuous and fierce fight- ing in this quarter during the next few days, for the Germans were beginning that pressure along our front which preluded their great effort to break through to the eea on our left. On October 26 they drove back our troops on the east of the village vand gained a portion of it, which they managed to retain in spite of our strenuous efforts to force them back. Being still more heavily reinforced, especially in artillery, they continued to push on, and by the morn- ing of the 27th were masters of the whole of the village, our line being then to the west of it. As was reported at the time, the fighting here was of the most murderous nature, and the Germans were made to pay dearly for every step they gained. On October 28 we made a last attempt to win back this point, and by. a desperate counter- attack some of our Indian troops carried the greater part of the village, only to be driven out by flanking fire down the streets. They could not maintain themselves; and on November 2 the Germans attacked our line to the west from Neuve Chapelle, which then was entirely in their hands, and drove us back a short distance, to the position in which we remained until March 10. THE WESTPHALIANS. I One interesting point in connection with the operations in this neighbourhood is that the troops we have recently forced out of Neuve Chapelle are of the German VIIth (Westphalian) Army Corps, the same unit which drove our troops back four and a half months earlier. The village wtych has now once again come into our possession was very much like any other in this part of Flanders, being aft -unimportant collection of houses and small farms scattered about a junction of country roads, with a church in its centre. It was in reality quite a small place, but owing to the universal tendency of all these villages to straggle, each house being apparently built without any reference to its neigh- bours, it covered a considerable extent of ground. On the eastern side there is, or rather was, a row of old cottages with a few modern houses among them. North-east of the village there is a small piece of ground filled with enclosures and bounded on three tides by roads, known as "The Triangle," which figured prominently in the October fighting. On the Western side there were come detached houses of a better class, sur- rounded by enclosures and orchards bounded by tall hedgerows. The ground all round is absolutely flat, and except in the open space which extends round the village beyond the enclosures, view is restricted by the hedges and pollard trees. The German trenches—held since Novem- ber-ran some distance outside these enclo- sures, our own being situated at about 100 to 150 yards farther to the west. VILLAGE PRACTICALLY DESTROYED. I Now, from the westward, all that can be seen of the place is a few ruined, crumbling xed-bick houses, nearly all roofless, and in their midst a tall white shapeless irass, which represents the church. The ground between the main Le Bassee road and the village is an expanse of pasture and heavy arable land seamed with trenches. The original configuration of the German first line is in many places hard to trace, for the ground has been so furrowed and pitted by shells that there remains nothing but con- fused mounds, which represent the former parapets, and hollows representing the trenches and dug-outs, in which may be seen calico sandbags, articles of equipment, the- remains of food, ammunition, Pickelhauben and Jagers' shakos. In many cases, also, the original trenches have been reversed by our attacking troops, who at once prepared them against counter-attack. In spots the ground appears to be powdered with a bright yellow fungus growth, and the stag- nant water in the older shell craters is covered with a scum of the same hue. This is due to the lyddite from our high-explosive shell. CURTAINED DUG-OUTS. I There is no doubt that in this neighbour- hood the enemy's defences were inferior to ours in construction, in sanitation, and in the way they were drained. There is reason to believe, indeed, that in spite of very strict. orders on the subject the senior officers neither personally supervised the execution of their front trenches. nor inspected them. Some of the officers* dug-outs were almost luxurious, being provided with beds aid furniture taken from the neighbouring houses, oil lamps, and glass windows with muslin curtains. That the officers did not go in want of fresh milk was showen by the numerous carcases of cows found both in the houses of Neuve Chapelle and near the trenches. Once- the German first line had been cap- tured the enclosures and the village itself "Were stormed without much difficulty; it was only on the left and on the extreme right that the attack was temporarily held up. These enclosures near the village now present an extraordinary picture of the effect of modern shell fire. It must be le- membered, however, that this is the accumu- lated result of the bombardments during October, ocacsional shells during fl u months, the concentrated bombardment by us during the 10th, and the fire of the Ger- man guns since then. For instance, in the orchard close to the church near the centre of the village the fruit trees are nearly all torn about, while one large oak four feet in diameter has been broken in half about a vard above the roots. The ground is strewn with branches and pitted with craters, the older ones being full of water, and the ditches which in this waterlogged country are dug all round the houses and enclosures have had their banks blown in. One result is that the water has overflowed into the various hollows of the ground, forming large pools and patches of bog. IN THE CHURCHYARD. The appearance of the village itself SUire j gests the havoc wrought by an earthquake, tor the place is one huge rubbish-heap; it is almost impossible to distinguish the streets amongst the rubble and bricks which have been hurled across and obliter- ated them. Here and there portions of houses are still standing, but these are few and far between and are dangerous to enter on account of falling tileo and tottering walls. In the churchyard the very dead have been uprooted, only to be buried again under masonry which has fallen from the church, and crosses from the heads of the tombs lie scattered in all directions. The sole thing in the cemetery that has escaped damage is a wooden crucifix still erect amid the medley of overturned graves. There is another large crucifix still standing at the cross roads at the north end of the village, and at the time our troops entered a -dead German soldier was lying at its foot. Looking eastwards from the village our front trenches are seen at a few hundred yards distance, while close beyond them, again, lies the German line. Away to the right is the Bois du Biez-a wood of the kind usual in this country, of saplings planted v-ery close, interspersed with a few taller trees. It was in this state that the Germans massed for their repeated counter- attacks during the four days' fighting, and it was all along its western edge that they lost most heavily. In front and to the left of our position the country is more open, and in this' direction the scattered houses and farms along the roads, which were armed with machine guns, formed the centre of the enemy's resistance. They are now held by his snipers. MACHINE GUNS IN HOUSES. I Away to the north-east rises a prominent landmark, the tall chimney of the Moulin du Pietre, still in German hands, though our line approaches it closely; and beyond this, about a mile and a half away, are the rea roofs of Aubers, crowning the long ridge which dominates all the low ground to the east. North of the northernmost houses of Neuve Chapelle and a little to the west of the high road is a line of breast- works which the Germans held, and round which a terrible struggle raged on the morning of the 10th of March. It was here that our men gallantly faced the enemy's machine guns again and again, but failed to force their way through the wire en- tanglements until another battalion, work. ing round the flank of the Germans, drove them from their position and enabled us to make good the high road and to prosecute a further advance to the eastward. Mention has been made of the number of machine guns placed in houses by the Ger- mans and from information received it is believed that they had as many as fifteen defending one section of their front some 250 yards long on the north of the village. BURYING OUR DEAD. I Collected together at different points be- hind our line are the graves of many of our men. In some places the dead have been buried where they fell, either singly or in little groups; in othe-s there are regular cemeteries. All the giaves have been care- fully made, a wooden cross having been erected over each, with the name and regi- ment of the dead marked on it, and many have been turfed and have had flowers placed on them.
WAR ON NEUTRALS. I
WAR ON NEUTRALS. I U 28 SINKS DUTCH STEAMER BY GUNFIRE. The Secretary of the Admiralty makes the following announcement:— "At.10.0 a.m., March 25, the Dutch steamer Medea, flying the Dutch flag, with a Dutch crew, and with thG name Medea, Amsterdam, printed in large letters on her side, was stopped by the German submarine U 28 off Beachy Head. "The vessel was orderd to send a boat with the ship's papers to the submarine. "The crew of the Medea were ordered into the boats and the ship was sunk by gun fire. "The return of th&^ship's papers was asked for, but refused. "The crew were brought to Dover by the British destroyer Teviot." The Medea carried a crew of twenty-six, and was on a voyage from Spain with a cargo of oranges for London. The German submarine U 28 was encountered some miles south of the Royal Sovereign lightship at about 9.15 in the morning. The submarine, which was awash, ordered the Medea to pull up, and then gave instruc- tions that the ship's papers were to be sent aboard the submarine for examination. The first mate of the Medea went in a boat to the submarine, and handed the steamer's papers over for examination. In the meantime the submarine, which was a very large one, took the Medea in tow and kept a line aboard her for half an hour. Then the mate came back to the Medea, and re- orted that the submarine's commander had kept the ship's papers, and that be had allowed the crew fifteen minutes to leave the ship, which was to be sunk. Two boats were launched, and the twenty-six members of the crew got away. As soon as they were clear the submarine commenced to fire upon the Medea, six shots being put into her. It took an hour and a half before the ship sank, the crew having her in sight the whole of the time. They were row- ing for four hours in the Channel, and were then picked up by a patrolling destroyer. The Medea was a ship of 1,235 tons register, owned by an Amsterdam firm. She was built in 1913.
SHELL-FIRE EFFECTS. I
SHELL-FIRE EFFECTS. I PEOPLE WHO HAVE A CRAVING FOR SHRAPNEL. The strange effects worked on the special sense by the terrific explosions of modern shells are occupying the attention of medi- cal men. "Data concerning the effect of shell explosions upon taste and smell have not yet been forthcoming in sufficient detail for any conclusions to be drawn," says the "Lancet"; "and in any case we should not expect it to be as immediate in its mani- festations as the effect upon the sigpbt and hearing." So many remarkable and varied are the noises of modern battle, so different in note and intensity the explosions of different shells, and so new and dreadful the bodily mutilations, that the psychological and physiological effects of the great war will occupy scientists for years to come. It is incredible, but apart from the pleasurable excitement some smart people have found in motor-scorching within the fire zone, it has been noted .that a few men and women are affected by shell fire as by drug-taking, the more they have of it the more they want. They have been known to return deliber- ately, and for no obvious reason, to places where shrapnel seemed to be bursting in every square yard of air. There they would be found walking casually to and fro amid detonations and falling masonry. It is well known that some woikers, such as those employed in shipyards and iron foundries, and railwaymen, at last become deaf to certain sounds as a result of a long- continued, monotonous noise, especially if the latter is intermittent. "Those terminals of the auditory nerve apparatus which re- spond to notes of a certain pitch aie over stimulated and their function inhibited." Gun fire causes the same trouble, though it is likely to pass off; yet the question arises whether there is any organic change in such nerves and nerve mechanism, entail- ing more or less permanent defect of func- tion. So complex may be the physical effects of shell fire on a subject that there have been rare cases of unwounded men with forms of deafness, deafmutism, or deaf- mutism and blindness, though these may be phenomena more or less tra nsitory.
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The promotion of Captain John Wilkins, of the Royal Marines, Gosport, from lieu- tenant has been gazetted, but unfortunately his death had occurred just previously. He was aged 55 and had served in the Egyp- tian campaign. A sentry named William Elford, of the Royal Garrison Artillery, with rifle and fixed bayonet, was found lying dead on a verandah at Cliffe Fort, near Rochester, at five o'clock in the morning, after he had been on sentry- go at the top of the fort. At the inquest a verdict of "Accidental death while on duty" was returned.
FRENCH SUCCESS.I
FRENCH SUCCESS. GERMANS DRIVEN FROM HEIGHt IN ALSACE. An important success has been gained by the French troops in Alsace. After fierce fighting lasting several days they drove the Germans from the summit of the Hart- manswillerkopf. Over 400 prisoners were taken, and in spite of desperate attempts by the Germans to recapture the ,crt of the hill the French have consolidated their positions. In a despatch to the "Daily Chronicle," Mr. Philip Gibbs, special correspondent of that journal in Paris, says that the oapture of the height of Hartmanowallerkopf is ex- tremely valuable. For many months this strategical position' has been the scene of desperate fighting. Commanding the whole district of Thann, Cernay, and Steinbach, French and German troops have struggled repeatedly for its possession, and the tide of battle ebbed and flowed upon its spurs and crests, leaving in its wake its awful toll of dead and wounded. It is here that many of the most heroic exploits of French soldiers have been achieved, for the character of the fighting allowed more scope for individual gallantry and personal craft of war than in the siege work of entrenched positions. DASH OF THE "BLUE DEVILS." It is to the Alpine Chasseurs, the "Blue Devils" of France, as they are called, be- cause of their blue bonnets and hunter's dress, that the success of the final attack last week is due. Last Tuesday, after a tremendous artillery fire from the batteries of French 75's, they assaulted and took the first line of the enemy's position on the lower ridges of the hill in a splendid rush, regardless of their owr. losses. On the following day they secured the second line and climbcd higher towards the summit, in spite of the stubborn defence of the enemy, who fought with great courage, and swept the hillside with a devastating rifle fire. Hand-to-hand fighting took place for several hours, but the "Blue Devils" had the best of it, and made many prisoners. The great assault, however was still to come on the crest of the Hartmanswiller- kopf, 1,125 metres above the plain. A great body of German troops, belonging to the famous XV. corps, held the ground with a formidable number of guns, and every method of German warfare was used to thrust back those "blue bonnets" surging up the ridges. Hand grenades were hurled down from the heights; and burning liquid come in streams from the trenches dug in the hill- sides, so that many of the Chasseurs were badly burned, though they continued to fight with charred clothes. The order had been given them to take the hill at all costs, td they behaved during these last three days with a splen. did devotion, which, I am told, will be fully recognised in an official despatch narrating one of the most heroic chapters in this war. It is a victory which gives the French Army a secure position in this part of the front, and proves the spirit of the French offensive, which will soon be revealed ail along the line.
END OF U29.
END OF U29. GERMAN SUBMARINE SUNK WITH ALL HANDS. NOTORIOUS RAIDER. On Thursday night the Secretary of tie Ad- miralty made the following announcement:— "The Admiralty have good reason to believe that the German submarine U 29 has been sunk with all hands." It is believed that the officer in command of the U 29 was the one who sank the Cressv, the Aboukir, and the Hogue on September 22 last. This was generally understood to be Captain Weddigen, and he was then in com- mand of the U 9. Probably by way of reward for his services he was placed in command of the U 29, one of the largest and most formid- able of German submarines. The U 29 has only been in service a few months.. A POLITE PIRATE. 'j Unfortunately, authentic details of Ger- many's submarines have been kept secret. But it is known that even the earlier German boats are of very large dimensions, and the fact that such boats as U 8 and U 12 each carried a crew of twenty-nine shows that they must have displaced 800 tons at the very least. In all probability the displacement of U 29 was 1,000 tons or thereabouts, and she had a speed on the surface of not less than eighteen knots, which enabled her easily to overhaul tramp steamers and other slow-going vessels. She would carry five or six torpedo tubes and two quick-firing guns, the latter being mounted on deck on disappearing carriages. The nomi- nal radius of action is given in most works of reference as 2,000 miles. The U 29 began her career as a commerce destroyer as late as the lth inst., when she attacked and sunk the British steamer Aden- wen off the Casquete. The submarine captain was remarkably polite, and told the master of the Adenwen how very, very sorry" he was to have to scuttle his ship, but that "war is war." The crew were given ten minutes to launch their lifeboats, as the commander of the submarine said, "We wish no lives to be lost." While the boats were being lowered one of the British sailors fell overboard, and the German officer, noticing his plight, sent a suit of dry clothes for him. The same afternoon U 29 stopped and sank the French steamer Auguste Conseil off the Start. In this case also the crew were treated with every consideration, and given ample time to take to their boats. On the following day, March 12, the sub- marine appeared off the Scilly Isles and made a rich haul. Her victims were the three steamers Indian City, Headlands, and Anda- lusian. PREVIOUS GERMAN LOSSES. I The U 29 is the seventh submarine which Germany is known to have lost since the begin- ning of the war, and the subjoined list gives particulars of the sinking of the six previous boats:— U 15—Sunk by H.M.S. Birmingham, Aug. 9. U ? —Rammed by H.M.S. Badger, Oct. 2A. U 18—Rammed off Scotch coast, Nov. 23. U ? —Rammed by S.S. Thordis, Feb. 28. U 8-Sunk by destroyers, March 4. U 12-Sunk by H.M.S. Ariel, March 10. In three cases all or part of the crews were saved.
BIG GUNS BREAK WINDOWS. I
BIG GUNS BREAK WINDOWS. I When big guns are fired windows any- where near them are shattered, and the reason for this is very simple. When the explosion takes place the air about the gun is "pushed away," and powerful air currents are set up, which strike against the window panes and smash them. The effect is much the same as when you place a powerful fire- work underneath, a flower pot, only on a much larger scale. The air currents in that case are powerful enough to lift the pot high into the air, as any schoolboy will tell you. Windows that are opened are less liable to get broken, because they offer less resistance to the air than closed ones. The flower pot does not get smashed because it can jump up, but if it were fixed to the ground it would probably break.
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A Caledonian goods train laden with pig- iron broke in two on the steep incline to Beattock Summit. One part ran backwards, and the engine was driven over an emlM-uk- ment. The brakesman was critically i- jured, but thce driver and fireman escaped. Dr. Sven Hedin/ the Swedieh explorer, has been excluded from the Russian Im- perial Geographical Society. The death is announced of. Sir William Smiles, younger brother of. Dr. Samuel Smiles, of "Self-Help" fame. He was ainety-one years old.
MURDER BY TORPEDO I
MURDER BY TORPEDO I GERMAN PIRATES SINK TWO LINERS. OVER A HUNDRED LIVES LOST. The most atrocious crime yet committed by the German submarine pirates was briefly narrated in an Admiralty announce- ment on Monday. The Elder Dempster liner Falaba, with 250 persons on board, has been torpedoed at the mouth of the Bristol Channel and over we lives, mostly those of passengers, have been lost. According to accounts given by the survivors the ship was torpedoed before all those on board had time to get into the boats. Passengers and crew were thrown into the water. The sub- marine remained near and the Germans callously watched the drowning people, laughing at their struggles and making no attempt to save them. In another attack on a helpless vessel, the Aguila, of Liverpool, the Germans again showed an utter disregard for the lives on board. The submarine kept up a heavy fire even while the boats were being launched-. Two women and ten men were drowned, one woman and three men being struck by gun- fire. The Admiralty announcement is as follows:— British SS. Aguila, 2,114 tons, belonging to the Yeoward Line, when on passage from Liverpool to Lisbon, was torpedoed off Pem- broke at 6 p.m on March 27. The vessel sank. Twenty-three of the crew and three passengers are missing. The master and nineteen of the crew have been landed at Fishguard. British SS. Falaba, 4,806 tons, owned by Elder, Dempster and Co., Ltd., was tor- pedoed at 12.25 p.m., March 28, to the south of the St. George's Channel and sank in ten minutes. The ship carried a crew of about ninety persons with about 160 passengers. About 140 survivors have been picked up, eight of whom, including the captain, died after being picked up. It is feared that many were killed by the explosion of the torpedo. Dutch SS. Amstel, 853 tons, belonging to P. A. Van Ess and Co., of Rotterdam, when on passage from Rotterdam to Goole, struck a mine at 4 a.m., March 29, in the German minefield off Flamborough. The crew have been landed in the Humbef by the Grimsby trawler Pmewold. I DROWNING MEN LAUGHED AT. In an official statement the Elder Demp- ster Company state that the Falaba carried a crew of 98 and 146 passengers, making a total of 244. The, number of passengers saved is 88, and of the crew 51. The total of dead and missing is 105, 58 being pas- sengers and 47 members of the crew. The Falaba left Liverpool on Saturday evening, bound for the West Coast of Africa. On Sunday afternoon, when she was off Mil- ford Haven, a submarine appeared and whistled three times as a signal to her to get out her boats. Before she could launch her boats the Falaba was torpedoed near the engine-room. Three boats were swamped, and their occu- pants were seen struggling in the water. Others who were still on the liner were also thrown into the water, for the Falaba quickly settled down and sank. All reports agree that the submarine stood by, and that her crew laughed at the drowning people, making no effort of any sort to render assistance. A drifter, the Eileen Emma, of Lowestoft, came on the scene, and her captain, Mr. George Wright, picked up a great number of survivors. He stated on reaching Milford Haven that he saw the submarine at 12.15 on Sunday. He then saw a torpedo strike the Falaba, which quickly sank. He was 200 yards away from the submarine, which was a similar distance from the Falaba. The crew of the submarine, Mr. Wright declares, made no attempt to rescue the scores of men struggling in the water. Skipper Wright states that he laboured for two and a half hours rescuing survivors, and he picked up 142, of whom eight, including Captain Davis, of the liner, have died from exposure. The submarine stood by while the liner sank, and then headed away to the south- westward. SURVIVORS' STORIES. I Thrilling stories were told by some of the rescued passengers. Mr. Johnstone, of London, said that when the periscope of the submarine was seen the submarine signalled to the Falaba to stop. "But," continued Mr. Johnstone, "the vessel put on full speed, and tried to get away. The submarine, however, was very fast, and soon overhauled us. Some of the passengers said they saw her fire a torpedo across our bows. The submarine came right alongside the ship, and gave us ten minutes to leave. There was no panic, and we at once tumbled into the boats as fast as we could. I managed to get into the gig, which was the last of eight boats to leave. When we had got about 500 yards away, the submarine fired a torpedo at the Falaba. One shot was sufficient. The boat heeled over and went down in ten minutes. The submarine- then disappeared." Mr. Unwin, of Southgate, London, another passenger, said the boats of the Falaba were hung ready to drop during Saturday night in case of eventualities. It was about midday on Sunday when we sighted a Ger- man submarine. She was about a mile away when the passengers first saw her. We tried to bolt and escape. We went full steam ahead, but it was of no use, as we were quickly overhauled. We were signalled to heave to, and we did so. The commander of the submarine, by word of mouth I believe, ordered us to launch the boats and leave the vessel, and while we were doing so the enemy craft manoeuvred to get into a good position from which to strike us. In a very few minutes, before all the passengers had had time to be clear of the vessel, the submarine discharged the torpedo and struck her. The Falaba foundered in about ten minutes. I managed to get into the jolly-boat, which carried about seventy pas- sengers. We were clear before the Falaba was torpedoed, and I think were about 300 yards away when she foundered. Some of those on board jumped into the water, while others—perhaps the majority—died from ex- posure. Chief Cook Marchbank said the explosion blew one of the lifeboats out of the davits, and it fell upside down in the water, and the eighteen passengers in it were drowned. Marchbank added: "As I saw the Germans on the submarine laughing at us, face to face with death as we were, I shook my fist at them and called out, You murderers.
PIRATES' WOMEN VICTIMS. I
PIRATES' WOMEN VICTIMS. I FIRED ON WHILE LEAVING SHIP. I Captain Bannerman, of the Liverpool steamer Aguila, and nineteen of the crew of that vessel were landed at Fishguard on Monday-by the trawler Ottillie. The Aguila was sunk by a German submarine, believed to be the U28, off the Bishops, on Saturday night. She reported that some of her sailors had been murdered by the pirates, who fired upon them as they were taking to the boats. A. lady passenger and a stewardess were also killed. The submarine fired across the Aguila's oows as a summons for her to stop, but Cap- tain Bannerman speeded up to fourteen knots in an effort to get away. The pirate, however, made eighteen knots, quickly over- taking them. Four minutes only were given the crew to clear, but even before these had passed the submarine opened fire with her guns. Rapid fire was kept up while the 2rew were .launching the ship's boats. Ed- ward's, the chief engineer, Anderson, a boat- swain, and the donkeyman, McKirkman, all of Liverpool, were killed. Thomas Crawley, one of the crew, said that he was assisting the boatswain to launch a boat when shrapnel hit the boat- swain in the left side, causing a frightful wound. He left him lying on tne boat deck. The donkeyman, McKirkman, fell overboard dead. Crawley added: "The shots were fly- ing all round me, and I don't know how I escaped. I was the last man to leave the Aguila. Seeing my chance, I caught a life- line and swung myself off the 3,de!?t a life One of the Aguila's men, who assisted in launching the boats, said that one boat with ten of the crew and one lady passenger, who was with the stewardess, came to grief. The lady passenger cried out, "I'm shot!" and at the same time fell over the side of the gunwale next to the ship's side. At the next moment heavy seas capsized the boat, and neither the lady passenger nor the stewardess was again seen. Captain John Randell, master of the Ottillie, stated that the U28 fired over his own bows when the trawler was about sixty miles south-west of the Smalls. The sub- marine came alongside, and the German commander said in broken English, "Eng- lish ship sunk. West, 11 degrees North; four boats launched." Captain Randell asked how many men, but the pirate only repeated the first message, adding "You want to know too much." The Ottillie had passed the Aguila earlier in the day, and to try and save the crew he steamed off, and made a circuit of fourteen miles. Two hours later he came up with a boat containing Captain Bannerman and nineteen officers and men, and after getting them aboard he steamed for Fishguard, where everything was done for the men's comfort. No fewer than twenty shells are stated to have struck the Aguila, which continued afloat. Then finally the submarine fired a torpedo, and she opened out amidships and went down in two parts. I Mr. King, the third engineer of the Aguila, had a very narrow escape. A piece of shrapnel entered the band of his cap. There was a slight abrasion on the right side of his head caused by the fragment of ?cheekbone. seaman was cut on the right shell. One seaman was cut on -the ri-ht
ISHELLED BY SUBMARINE.
SHELLED BY SUBMARINE. BRITISH STEAMER FIRED ON FOR TWO HOURS. ENGINEER KILLED. A stirring story of a. British ship's. at- tempted escape from a German submarine, which shelled her for two hours, killed the chief engineer and wounded five others on board, and finally sank the vessel, was told by the crew and passengers of the steamer Vosges, who were landed at Newquay on Saturday night. The Vosges was a Liverpool steamer of 1,300 tons, and was on a voyage from Bor- deaux to Liverpool with a general cargo. When the steamer got sixty miles past bhe Longships a German submarine was sighted about half a mile distant. She opened shell fire on the steamer. The chief engineer ordered all hands available below to get up speed, and the splendid seaman- ship of Captain Green in manoeuvring and keeping the vessel on a zig-zag course pre- vented the submarine from torpedoing the steamer. A heavy shrapnel shell fire was kept up by the raider for over two hours, and one shel! struck the stern, and the steamer com- menced taking water. The chief engineer was killed by a shrapnel wound in the breast, and by later shots the mess-room boy, the second officer, and three others were wounded, including the only lady pas- senger, a Belgian. A shell pierced the steamer's funnel and stopped the draught, thus reducing speed. Rockets were fired for assistance, but were not observed, and Captain Green ordered all hands to the lifeboats. The Germans con- tinued to shell the crew whilst they were en- deavouring to get into lifeboats, and they had again to take shelter in the steamship. Later another shell pierced her bow, and this time the crew were compelled to take to the boats at all-risks, as the steamer was sinking. Fortunately the steamer's distress signals were eventually observed by a ship, which immediately came to her assistance. The submarine at once submerged, and was not again seen. Before the funnel was pierced the Vosges was making fifteen knots. A member of the crew was ordered to put up the British en- sign, which was knocked down by submarine fire. It was again hoisted, and the ship sank with flying colours an hour after the crew left her. Captain Green said the submarine had given up the chase when the last unlucky shot hit the ship on a vital spot. "I always said," he continued, "that I would not give in to a submarine without a struggle, and if I had had a gun there would have been one submarine the less There is only one thing I'm thankful for, the enemy cleared off be- fore she knew we were vitally hit and didn't see us sink. The submarine was apparently one of the newest and fastest boats, but dis- played no number. While the shooting was going on the enemy's crew could be plainly seen carying ammunition to the gun. The boat, it was estimated, was as long a's the Vosges, and was evidently one of the latest pattern." SUBMARINE SUNK? A circumstantial story of the ramming of a German submarine is told by the captain and crew of the steamer Lizzie, which arrived in Llanelly on Saturday from Dieppe. What happened can best be told in the words of the chief engineer of the Lizzie, Mr. John Charles. "We left Dieppe," said Mr. Charles, "on Thursday morning, and when about fifty miles from St. Catherine's Point, Isle of Wight, we sighted three boats, full of men, being towed by a submarine. (They were the crew of the Liverpool steamer Delmira, which had been sunk by the submarine.) When the submarine saw the Lizzie approaching, she immediately cut the painter, allowed the boats to drift, and made straight for us. Our captain, seeing this, ordered the Lizzie to be turned towards the submarine, and telegraphed to the engine-room, Full-speed ahead.' "I was on duty at the time, and we let her go for all she was worth. The result was that we went right over the submarine, and undoubtedly rammed her. She dis- appeared from sight, and the surface of the sea took on an oily appearance. We were in the vicinity for fully half an hour, and saw no further sign of the submarine. Had we not rammed her, no doubt, she would have endeavoured to torpedo us, because they must have seen our deliberate attempt to go for her." Mr. Charles concluded by saying that neither the men of the Lizzie, nor the officers of the Delmira, had any doubt but that the submarine had been rammed. Captain Evans, of the Lizzie, confirmed the story of the engineer, and added that. as far as he could see, the submarine was U37. PIRATES' POOR WEEK. I The usual Admiralty statement of British shipping losses due to enemy action during the preceding week was issued on Saturday night. It shows the German "blockaders" made a poor showing in the week ending March 24. In all four ships were attacked by German submarines, but one of them kept afloat after being torpedoed and even- tually came into port. The aggregate ton- nage of the three vessels that were sunk was 11,650. Considering the large number of enemy submarines which are known to be continually prowling about the Narrow Seas the poor result of their joint effort is re- markable. The total number of vessels lost since the war began and the cause of their loss are as follows:—Sunk by cruisers, 54; sunk by mines, 12; sunk by submarines, 33; total, 99. .During the week ending March 2A no fewer than 1,450 steamers (over 300 tons net) of all nationalities entered or left United Kingdom ports, and, as stated, only three of these came to grief at the enemy's ha ads. Since Feb. 18, when the German "blockade" officially began, only. twenty-seven British steamers have been sunk by submarines, and this number includes the Vosges.
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In view of the favourable state of the labour market, particularly in reference to shipyard work, there are now only very few calls on the war relief fund at Sunderland. The bulk of the money subscribed has been deposited with the corporation, and is bear- ing interest.
ICLUB WINDOW.
I CLUB WINDOW. Mr. Phillips Oppenheim, the brilliant novelist, says he gets most of his ideas for writing a story by having his meals in Lon- don restaurants, and feeding with 1ù8 eyes open. • IF Vedrines, the famous French aviator, is achieving fine things against the Germans,. and small wonder, for no passion is stronger in him than hatred of the Germans. This hatred is nothing new; he felt it long before the war. Once, when the world was at peace, Vedrines flew over German terri- tory. "And," he says, "when I was a few kilometres up, I looked down upon Ger- many, and- spat upon her-not once, but three times!" General Ruzsky, who commanded the Rus- sian Army that overran Galicia, was con- spicuous, as a young lieutenant, for the daintiness and elegance of his dress. There is a story about him as there is about all famous soldiers. In the Russo-Turkish War of 1877 Ruzsky, then a young lieutenant, served as aide-de-camp on the staff of one of the Russian Generals. In the heat of the Battle of Plevna he was ordered to take a. despatch to the Commander-in-Chief, the famous Skobelef. He found Skobelef stand- ing in a rather exposed position, surrounded- by his staff. As young Ruzsky delivered hia despatch a shell from a Turkish battery struck the ground near by, and, exploding, flung a shower of dust and dirt over tho party. Most of the officers involuntarily ducked their heads; but young Ruzsky stood firm and erect. Then. as calmly as if' he were at home, he drew from his pocket a spotless linen handkerchief and flecked tho dust from his immaculate uniform. A smilo of derision passed across the faces of the staff officers; but Skobelef looked at the young lieutenant with sudden interest, and,. asked his name. "You will remain with me- as a member of my staff," he said to the- astonished young officer. "I am in need of such men as you." < President Wilson is noted among his inti- mate friends for his ready wit. Of course,. he is a continual prey to the "autograph fiend," and, like most famous people, he i* not fond of giving away his signature to, collectors. On one occasion, however, when asked to write in a friend's album, he con- sented to do so. He noticed that someone before him had written in the book the words, "Do right, and fear no man." With- out a moment's hesitation Dr. Wilson wrote underneath it, "Don't write, and fear uo, woman!" < < < Mr. Taft, ex-President of the United States, is a gifted writer, and at one. time he had a high reputation as a poet. On one occasion, however, when he was a very young man, he received a nasty shock from an esteemed relative of his. This was an,, aunt who lived in the country, and the future President went to dine with her one Sunday evening. Proudly he carried with; him some cuttings from a newspaper- nothing less, in fact, than his own publishecll verses. After the meal he took them exult- ingly from his pocket and gave them to his aunt to read. Adjusting her spectacles, she went through them carefully, while her poetical nephew watched her anxiously. Pre- sently she put down the cuttings and glanced over her spectacles at the poet. "William," she asked, innocently, "do they print those things for nothing' if you send; them in?" < It is a curious fact that Lord Feilding, of the Coldstream Guards, eldest son of Lord Denbigh, should be descended from the Hapsburgs, the reigning house of Austria. It is known that Geoffrey, Count of Haps- burg, having been brought to poverty and' misery by the tyranny of Rudolph, Em- peror of Germany, came to England in tho reign of Henry III. and settled here. One- of the sons born to him Was given the name- of Feilding, in memory of the Rheinf elides. that had been his father's estate. Admiral Boue Lapeyrere, the Com- mander-in-Chief of the French Navy, en- tered the sea service of his country when lic- was seventeen, and although, prior to this war it was a hundred years since thp French Fleet had seen any serious fighting, he has been in several little fights. In Chinese waters in 1884, for example. Here he helped in the bombardment of Foo-Choo as second officer of the flagship one day, and was promoted to the command of another ship of the squadron the next day. He also- in Chinese waters had several brushes with pirates, and on one occasion he and some picked men boldly boarded a Chinese gun- boat and captured it and its crew. He is very quitk to act in an emergency, and one delightful story, which amusingly illus- trates this side of his character, is told. He was in charge of the Brennus on the occa- sion of her collision with the destroyer Framee. He was sleeping in the navigation room, in order to be near at hand in the event of anything untoward happening, and at the first shock of the collision lie appeared on deck dressed in his sleeping attire, and carrying his nether garments in his hand! It was only when the confusion was over, and all necessary measures had' been taken to secure the safety of the vessel- that he finished dressing. < < When King Alfonso of Spain is staying at San Sebastian, he frequently goes across to Biarritz for an afternoon of recreation. A short time ago he arrived at the station there and hailed a fiacre. The driver recog- nised him, and when his Majesty asked, what the fare was, said, "For the King of Spain it will be ten francs." The King- smiled and merely paid the ordinary fare as. provided by the tariff. To that* amount, however, he added a tip of the usual size. A few days later he was again in I Biarritz", and also took a fiacre; but on this occasion* the driver was more diplomatic. When- asked the amount of the fare, he replied, "Your Majesty owes me nothing for the small service I have had the honour to. render him." His Majesty replied to this courteous speech by presenting the cabby with a onq hundred franc note. Mr. John Hassall, the artist, is very un- conventional in his methods, and says that he shudders to think what would happen if some of his friends knew how he got certain) effects. If he thinks burning will help him to get the right shade of brown, he dropa his brush and uses the red-hot poker, whilst once, when he found difficulty in getting- the dirty grey he wanted, he used a little damp earth from the garden with very satis- factory results. < General Sir Archibald Hunter, who has just been placed in command of the third section of gritain's new Army, oncer had a a amusing experience in Egypt. Sir Archibald. is a very strict disciplinarian, and all who-, are under him are fully aware of the fact. On the particular occasion in question, the general was dining with some friends when, an orderly entered the apartment and an- nounced that a messenger was outside who. wished to speak to Sir Archibald. Tha general was annoyed at the interruption and, said that he could not see the visitor at that moment. "What shall I do with him then, sir?" asked the orderly. "Oh, knock him down!" replied Sir Archibald impatiently, as he went on with his dinner. The orderly, left. the room and the matter was tempo- rarily forgotten in the flow of conversation round the table. About five minutes later, however, the orderly returned, bearing on his person the evident effects of a 6cuffle. Saluting the astonished general, he re- marked calmly: "I had a bit of a job, air,, but I knocked him down at the finish!"
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George Leek, a brickworker, of Ruabon, died in the Llangollen accident hospital tho- other night from injuries received 88. a. result of trying to cycle down the steep- slopes of the Alltybody mountain from- Glyncerog to Llangollen on Sunday after- noon. His body was found terribly mangled at the foot of the ascent. A man's excuse at Dudley when charged with failing to take out a dog licence was that. twice when he went to a post office for the, purpose he could not get attention because- of the crowd of soldiers' wives waiting for their allowances. The BenqTi dismissed summons against the dog owner.