U-BOAT OFFENSIVE

Grey River Argus, 25 June 1942, Page 6

U-BOAT OFFENSIVE

GROWS MORE SERIOUS Allied Shipping Difficulty [Aust. & N.Z. Cable Assn.) NEW YORK, June 23. The struggle between the great German submarine fleet and tne United States Navy and merchant marine appears to be growing in intensity, simultaneously .as .word reached Washington that the Allied shipping situation is more desperate than has been admitted, 1 says the “Christian Science Monitor’s” Washington correspondent. * He adds that although new antisubmarine measures are being put into effect, Washington concedes that there is little prospect of an immediate end of the disastrous number ol sinkings which are now cutting heavily into the United Nations’ tonnage. According to some of the best information available, the situation is particularly 7 acute for two reasons. Firstly, the Navy has had little real | success in sinking enemy submarines. .Secondly, all the sinkings are not beling announced. I The losses in the Atlantic maintained rather a steady upward movement, each new protective measure apparently being nullified by more violent and efficient German efforts. The German radio, however, admits that the United States has strongly increased anti-submarine defences. | WASHINGTON, June 23. ‘ Mr. Hull said that the Argentine freighter, Rio Tercerto, was attacked ■ and sunk in broad daylight, thus pre- ' [ eluding the Nazis’ pretext that the '.vessel was unidentiable. Mr. Hull referred to Germany’s 'reply to Argentine’s protest regarding the sinking of the tanker Victoria, wherein Germany expressed regret, and contended that the ship was imperfectly marked, therefore her identity was mistaken. Mr Hull declared: No matter how Berlin states her policy, in practice it means that neutral ships are sunk by German submarines as promptly and criminally as any others. The Rio Tercerto torpedoing is one more instance of the policy of frightfulness and terrorism which the German High Command is carrying on in the Atlantic.”' i 14 MORE SINKINGS. LOSS OF 223 LIVES'. (Rec. 7.15) WASHINGTON, June 23. The U.S'. Navy has disclosed that in eleven days from June 3 to June 14, the submarines sank thirteen United ■Nations’ vessels in the C'arribean Sea. These ships included three small and two medium J sized United States, four medium-sized British and one small British vessel; one small Dutch 'vessel, a small Norwegian vessel, and a small Honduras vessel. In these vessels 135 persons are believed to have been lost, while 635 survivors have reached a Carribean Sea port, i This was the largest number of, 'sinkings that the U.S. Navy has ever (announced at one time. It is noteworthy that no sinkings occurred in [Atlantic waters, where the U-boat 'menace is believed to have been reduced by the operations of Navy convoys. On June 15 a medium-sized United States merchantman was torpedoed off the New England coast with probably a loss of eighty-eight lives. Eighty-one survivors have landed at east coast ports. The casualties were large because this vessel sank within three minutes after two torpedoes struck her, trapping victims in her under decks.