LIFE IN U-BOAT

New Zealand Times, Volume XLII, Issue 9630, 10 April 1917, Page 3

LIFE IN U-BOAT

NO SEA SICKNESS HOW THE PIRATES FARE UNDER WATER. There is a widely prevalent idea that a submarine, being a cramped and dangerous sort of craft, life must of necessity he a hard' thing for its crow, says a correspondent in the “Daily Mail.” This opinion goes astray in that it leaves out of account tho changes which increased displacement lias wrought in submersible vessels. Not the least notable of these is a great improvement in living accommodation. So much has this been bettered that the complement of a modern “U” boat are more comfortable at sea, all things considered, than the crew of a Hun destroyer. For while the latter must face bad weather a§ best they can (when they venture to face it at all), tho “U” boat can secure ease by “going down” until conditions, improve. She may “sleep” upon the bottom until the weather moderates, or, if the water be too deep for that, submerge so far that surface wave motion, no longer affects her. Her crow need not risk sea-sickness —and they do not! Admittedly that is only part of the story. One may avoid rough weather and still find life afloat anything but joyful. Such matters as food, living conditions, and general environment are factors not to be overlooked, and in all of these the Hun pirate does not do so badly if from “general environment” wo miss out the British Navy, which is the one hunch of bitter herbs in Hans the Buccaneer’s otherwise passable soup. One might imagine that being boxed up in a steel cylinder for hours at a stretch subjects him to much physical discomfort. It does not. In fact, so far as'the men inside her are concerned, tho crew of a “U” boat would hardly know whether their craft was awash or submerged were it not for working the machinery that has to be ?ut in motion to get her up or down, aside her they are quite warm and comfortable, not very hard worked, and able to move and breathe quite freely. For their leisure hours the “XT’’’ boat crews have gramophones and a good supply of tobacco. A long submergence may result in tho air in tho boat getting somewhat heavy. Leaving out exceptional circumstances, that is the worst to bo said of it, and a few hours on the surface at night, with the conning-tower lid open, will purify the atmosphere within the craft so that she can dive for hour after hour again without, her crew suffering any difficulty in respiration.

For tho majority of tho men, work being light and living conditions not as irksome as one might suppose, the life of a pirate is not fraught with many physical hardships, and is a fairly easy one. Tho war perils attaching to it belong to a sido of the story which we are not looking at just now. In the matter of food tho pirate is mostly able to “do himself well.” Cooking when below is out of tho question, except to warm up some water for him to dip his sausage in before ho eats it, and Iletr Kidd consequently has to content himself with cold meals for the most part, although he may dish himself np a good feast when his boat floats awash, using for the purpose the electrio cooker fitted in her. But although his meals, through force of circumstances, may have to be' served cold, they are substantial. Tho pirate sees to that. If his own larder runs low he replenishes it from the ships he overhauls. When they want food or any other stores the pirates take them from the ships they attack. In fact, they “loot” these quite systematically, even to relieving the crews of their money, watches, rings, and other personal belongings of even trifling value whenever they thing it safe to do so. At one time “U” boats were supplied. with wine and cigars, though one does not hear much of such luxuries aboard them now. None the less, they may bo there in diminished quantities. Of this much there can, however,, ho little doubt; the German pirptes do not lead such a hard life on the domestic side as is commonly' supposed.