OCR Text |
Show SIX-INCH GUN ON LIEU SUNK BY UNDERSEA BOAT Authorities at Washington Do Not Regard the Hesperian Hes-perian Incident as Apt to Cause Trouble. INQUIRY ORDERED AS MATTER OF FORM Survivors of Allan Steamer Reach Liverpool; Eleven II Passengers and 22 of Crew Missing. LONDON, Sept. 7, 3:44 p. m. The American consul at Quesns-town, Quesns-town, according to the Daily Mail, has received information that a man named Wolff, aged 21, and born in Ne-w Jersey, was lost In the sinking of the Hesperian. LIVXEPOOI-, Sept. 7. The pas-sengers pas-sengers from the torpedoed Kes-aa Kes-aa perian arrived in Liverpool at 10 o'clock tonight. It is officially announced that KS eleven passengers and twenty-two members of the crew are missing, making the total death list thirty-three. thirty-three. ty International News Service. WASHINGTON, Sept. 7. Officials f the state department admitted today bat the element of doubt in the cir-umstanees cir-umstanees of the sinking of the Allan iner Hesperian removes it from the ategory of acute of dangerous diplo-latic diplo-latic incidents. The state department indicated that yL: is not yet convinced that the Hesperian Hes-perian was sunk by a torpedo from a tierman submarine or by a mine. Accordingly Ac-cordingly it has ordered a thorough in-estigatiori. in-estigatiori. t Furthermore, the department made it lain that it is not so positive now as efore regarding the right of merchant- r len to carry guns for defensive pur-oses. pur-oses. The inference was plain that lis government realizes the difficulty t f a submarine giving warning when ealing with an armed vessel, and that ; -would be almost impossible to give me for all on board to get away. On the Arabic case the officials say icy have not yet received either a omplete report or the note from the Pf errnan government presenting its side f the controversy. A complete dis- ayowal of this incident is expected with ie formal suggestion that the question 'f compensation be referred to The ague or some other arbitral form of 'ttlement. lay Modify Position. " The state department made it known lat the opinions expressed regarding uns on merchantmen at the beginning J. the war, when submarine war methods meth-ods and possibilities had not been developed de-veloped as today, might not hold now, od that it has taken the subject un- Ner advisement with "a view to modi-ping modi-ping its position, ft was admitted by iplomatic officials that if the United fates should hold that so-called de-ansive de-ansive armament should be excluded rom commercial vessels, it would re- !eve itself absolutely of cause for pos-ble pos-ble future controversy. It is likely lat the position of the government on ne matter will be announced when it ecides the ease of the British ship faimana, which has been held up by be customs officials at Norfolk be-fiuso be-fiuso It entered port with guns mount1 iix-inch Gun on Board. Several dispatches bearing on the esperian were received at the state lepartment today. One of these con-Hftuned con-Hftuned a joint affidavit by ('aptain iftlain and two other officers of the Hesperian, Hes-perian, in which they asserted their be-ef be-ef that certain fragments of steel duch were found on the deck proved 5 them "undoubtedly' that the Hes-erian Hes-erian was torpedoed. They declared bat the torpedo struck the ship about ight feet below the water line and the Explosion was followed by a strong 'dor of a "high explosive."' They also Hsert that there was a six inch gun n board which had been "painted a ervicc gTay and would not havo beeu jonsptcuous even at short range and ilrobably would not have been observed t all through the periscope of the sub-larine. sub-larine. ' ' Some officials of the department sav hat this affidavit is i neon elusive, be-ause be-ause even if the gun was not visible o the German submarine her cora- (Continued on Page Two.) six-inch m I BOARD HESPERIAN (Continued from Page One.) mander may have known of its presence pres-ence from information he had received Msewhere aod thai probablv he rind also received information that ''atiB'lian troops were on board. It is understood that EmbaBSB'lnr Page will direct, naval exports lo examine exam-ine whatever fragments of steel the officers of the Hesperian are able to present. It in possible that the frntf ments may also be sent to Washington, as in the incident of the Oulflitrhl. Another diftpatrh from Consul PVosI at Quennstown cam a to the depart mnnt. Secretary Landing did not give it out, but the. department, referring tn its con tents, aatd officially that there w;i no conclusive evidence that the Hesperian was sunk by a torpedo "from a Oer pian suhmnrinc " Mr. Frost in bin first telegram said that the vassal 'had D60B torpedoed. Tn tho opinion of officials it is useless use-less to, dispnss whether or not the vessel was warned by a Hubtnatino if it is not proved that a submarine CauBOd the destruction of tho vessel. It is equally unnecessary to discuss whether the Hesperian was a troon Ship, That she wan a troop ship is denied By tbe British admiralty, but press Qoticai have said that the officers nf the Allan line do not confirm this statement of the admiralty. |