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Show sis Captain and Seventeen Members of Crew of Pinar del Rio Missing; Sixteen Six-teen Reach Shore. DISASTER OCCURS 70 MILES AT SEA Washington Officials Believed Be-lieved U-Boats Had Sought Their Base Until News of Sinking Arrived. NORFOLK, Va., June 10. Chief Mate Arkes and fifteen men from the torpedoed American steamer Pinar Del Rio landed early today at the Manteo life station, on the North Carolina .coast, about fifty- five miles "below Norfolk. WASHINGTON, June 9. The American steamer Pinar del Rio was sunk by a German submarine seventy miles oFf the coast of Maryland yesterday morning. One of her boats with the captain and seventeen members of the crew is missing; miss-ing; another with sixteen men has landed on the Virginia coast. A brief dispatch to the navy department depart-ment tonight announcing the sinking did not say whether the ship was shelled or torpedoed. Hope is held that the missing boat has been picked up by some passing vessel or will turn up at some point along the coast. Until tonight the raiders had not been reported as showing themselves since the Norwegian steamer Viniand was sunk off the Virginia capes last Wednesday evening eve-ning at G o'clock. The Pinar del Rio was a freighter of 2504 gross tonnage and was built in South Shields, England, in 1S95, being christened the Saba. She was bought by an American Amer-ican firm some time ago and placed under American register. It is assumed here she was engaged either in the coastwise coast-wise or West Indian trade. All sinking's reported to the navy department de-partment since the submarines left the New Jersey coast district last Sunday have occurred off the coasts of Maryland and Virginia, with several of them due east of Cape Henry. This indicates that the U-boats are operating over a very limited area, probably of not more than a few hundred square miles, but in a very important shipping lane. Since it became known that the submarines sub-marines were in this area naval and air forces have concentrated their efforts there. Fair weather has prevailed along the coast since the Rio was sent down and even if the men in the massing boat are not rescued at sea they should be able to make land in a day or two. They may already have landed at some isolated spot on either the Maryland or Virginia coasts. BELIEVE THE HUN SUBMARINES HAVE RETURNED TO BASE By International News Service. WASHINGTON, June'' 9. Navy department depart-ment officials tonight stated that reports from the submarine patrols off the North Atlantic coast indicate that the German U-boats have sought their base. Although Al-though the last report tending to locate the enemy raiders showed that they were bound southward officials incline to the belief that the undersea craft will attempt to reach a German port, although it is admitted that there is a possibility that the first stop will be made at a Spanish port. Although all information forces the officials of-ficials in charge of operations to believe that the two raiders have escaped, there is no Indication that the activity of the American coast dofense warships has slackened. Vessels assigned to the patrol of fixed districts are being supplied with fuel and supplies while at sea and are returning to port only when engine troubles trou-bles force them to seek the repair shops. From now on, it is understood, all vessels bound for American ports( will be given convoy, and many of the vessels due to leave during the coming week will he armed and gi von gun ciuws from warships. war-ships. iOffori a to. d istovcr enemy wireless ' (Continued on. Page Seven.) lEfilCI SHIP IS SIT TP BOTTOM (Continued from Page One.) plants on the Atlantic coast and to search out every foot of territory in search of a U-boat base are being pursued vigorously. vigor-ously. U-BOAT HOLDS UP TWO WHALERS OFF CAPE HATTER AS NEW BEDFORD. Mass., June 9. Two whalers which arrived today reported they had been held up by a German submarine subma-rine off Cape Hatteras, Captain J. T. Gonsalves, of the schooner A. M. Nicholson, Nich-olson, said on his pleading with the captain cap-tain of the U-boat that he was a poor man and that the loss of his vessel meant ruin, he was allowed to proceed j with his ship and 30,000 cargo of sperm I oil unharmed. After leaving the Nicholson the submarine sub-marine headed for the schooner Ellen A. Swift, also returning from the whaling grounds, but before reaching her sighted a steamer and went after her, sending her to the bottom. The mess boy of the schooner Haup-page. Haup-page. sunk by the German raider May 25, arrived at his home here today and said that while he was a prisoner for eight days on the -U-boat he was told by the officer that they had sunk one whaler laden W'ith oil. This ship, the name of which was not given, was destroyed de-stroyed previous to May 25, according to the story. Will Be Kept Open. LONDON, June 9. American naval forces In European waters are not being weakened in consequence of the operations opera-tions of German submarines off the American Amer-ican coast, and the ocean highway for the movement of troops to Europe will be kept open, , Secretary Daniels says in a cablegram published today by the Times. Seven U-Boats Over Here. By International News Service. LONDON. June 9. Patrick Devltts, Genoa correspondent of the Express, learns from Hamburg advices that seven U-boats, three of them of the latest and largest type, and the others of a smaller size, are operating in American waters. |