HUN OUTRAGE

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LII, Issue 160, 3 July 1918, Page 5

HUN OUTRAGE

SINKING OFHOSP'TAL SHIP I FURTHER DETAILS. (Australian and N.Z. Cable Association and Reuter.) . LONDON, .luly 1. The Admiralty reports:— The British hospital ship Llandovery , Castle was torpedoed at 1.30 o'clock oil'xlie night of June 27 th; 116 miles south-west' of Fastnet. She sank in ton minutes. The vessel was homeward bound from Canada, and therefore there were - no sick or wounded ■on board:. The crew consisted of 164, and she also carried" eighty members of tile Canadian Army Medical Corps, and fourteen feimilo nurses. Of the total of 258, one boatful, numbering 24, landed. There is abare possibility that there are other , survivors. It must be noted. in this, as in aii Other instances, that the German sub? marine, had a perfect right to, stop .ami search /he hospital ship u>ider The ~ Ha true ''Convention. The enemy, how-' ever, preferred l to torpedo the ship, which showed all the navigating and, regulation hospital lights. SURVIVING. BOAT'S NARROW ESCAPE. / WHAT THE GERMANS INTEItfnEi) < ".SINKING WITEDOSff TRACE.'* (Australian and N.Z. Cable Association,) {Rec. July 3, 11.15 a.m.j LONDON, July" 2. ,-Survivors of the Llandbver Ciu-itle t'.,.!lieve that the German, submarine charged amidst the wreckage frying to :'nk the boats in order that ho trace of. (Lev outrage might remain. It only missed the surviving boat on two occasions by two feet. . i

I Survivors say it is evident that the German commander's aim v was to ram the boat and drown the lot.

The wireless operator did everything to send S.O.S. messages, but even the emergency dynamo was useless. The operator stuck to his post to the end. . He was drowned. - SURVIVORS INTERROGATED BY U-BOAT COMMANDER. .Australian and N.Z. Cable Associntior 1 and Beater ) LONDON, July 1.--The Press Bureau' states that Germany's awfiij. debt to the world continues .to grow. Another hospital ship has been torpedoed, this "time 170 miles from the nearest land,, her people be'ng turned adrift in boats to sink or swim, and though as it happenei she vwia a Canadian hospital ship returning from Halifax -with no wounded on • Hoard, fch-3 ta T: >. of the crime repeals wantm <!•> il «■ i-t-.on on the part' of the submarine commander, almost sugg'sting that sio hoped to find her full of helpless and irjuied s The Llandovery wc chartered by the Canadian Government to • on- • ■\ey sick and wounded- from England to and had on hoard at the" time eight'- numbers of the Medical . Corps,, including seven officers. • '-- The Llandovery -Castle was steaming . at fourteen, knots, with the usual' -naYr- ' gation ahd regulation hospital ship , lights, under an overcast sky. Sllc was plainly visible and unmistakable for anything but what 6he was. The ■ ship was immune by tvery law of war and peace from attack or molestation. No one on board saw the wak«s„ of the torpedo. The first intimation that a submarine v.-as fn the vicinity was the jar and roar of the explosion from Then tho lights went out, and" everything after that occurred in darkness except for the dim light shed' by the emergency dynamo nntil just be- • fore the ship foundered, " ( ' "* j The engines ,were immediately rung ' to stop, and then were given full speed astern,'but from the enpdne-room th;r© . came no answer. /The ship's rehearsed ■ routine, however, *ield .good, for .with, the Germans one must be pre2)ared for ' every such, emergency). f Along the darkened "decks the~crew. ! grbp.ed' their way to the boat-stations," and stood by for ordirs to leave. The captain megaphoned from the' brtdgq, "Hold on till way ofs ship." Tho" inrpeivtei* went aft amd examined' the I damage. i The Marconi operator remained in his cabin; vainly striving to transmit J the ship's position, but 3k- gained no response. The canpenter reported that the hold aft was blown in. and the ship could' not remain afloat. The order was then, given to lower the honts and abandon the ship. The officer commanding the Camdian Medical Corps riiported" that all hjs * people were out. This is important, inasmuch' as only the captain's boat' was picked up. Except for any of the ship's company' or the engine-room ■ crom who were killed by the torpedo/ . it is clear that everyone got -away. The captain and second, officer entered the last boat and got cibar just' in' time to avoid bein. sgucked under* as the vessel's stern went down. On'o boiler seemed to explode as the water . reached it. Tho ship fynk in ten minutes from th e time she was torpedoed. Tho captain's boat rescued' eleven from tho wreckage. JYVhen the submarine was seen, she hailed the boat in English, ' "Com© alongside." The second officer replied, ""We are picking up a drowning. man." Tho voice from the submar- • inc replied, "Come alongside." The boat held on "its course, but two revolver shots were fired ovpr it', the commander of the submarine About* ing, "Come alongside or I will shoot mv big gun." The. boat obeyi d, and the. captain was ordered on board the submarine \ and questioned regarding the 'name of ihe ship. The commander did not appear to be' surprised whin told it wae* i hospital ship. He said, "You were carrying, eight American flying . :ers." which tho captain denied. stat- . ng that he had seven' Canadian medi:al officers on board, and that the shir; vas chartered by the Canadian GoV'rnment to carry sick and wounded. - Replying to the commander'e reiter-. tted' statement that the vessel was carying American flying men, the cap* ain gave his word of honour that tho teamer only carried patients, medical ifficers, sisters and crew. \. The commander then ord. red one of *fe"C!nnadian medical officers on hoard. Ie was rpughly handled by the Oerians, and had the small bone of his oot' broken. Ha, when ■rot'stcd" his character as a medical' fficer, and whs ordered back into the oat with the captain. The submriane circled round ' the-,-reckage and a£«i'i stopped tho boaty- ' nd questioned the second and fourth ffic rs. Tho commander invented n. ew excuse. statinrr that the vessel rust have been carrying munitions-, wing to .the big Explosion aft. The ?cond officer explained that the ex-' losion was due to sie boiler. ' They erb' then ..allowed to return to tho' oat. The submarine bvgan firing

4 ;-v«- ■ possibly at the - .' : ;I*ish coastjr and had' proceeded seven- " "ty miles when they were "packed up . by a destroyer and .brought to Queens- - • town. V.