OCR Text |
Show I RAIDERS ARE SEEN OFF ATLANTIC COAST I KINGS CONGRATULATE WILSON WASHINGTON, April 7. President Wilson today received cablegrams from King George of England, and King Victor Emmanuel of Italy, congratulating con-gratulating the people and government of tho United States on their entrance Into th& -war- against .Germany, GERIN AUXILIARY CRUISER I BLOWN UP BY OWN CREW IN I ISLANB OF GUAM HARBOR I Interned Snip Sinks Immediately, One Warrant H Officer and One Enlisted Man Dead Five I Missing and 353 Made Prisoners by Ameri- I cans Warship Was Formerly in H Russian Fleet. I WASHINGTON, April 7. The In- H terned German auxiliary cruiser, Cor- H moran at Guam has been blown up. M The Cormoran. refused to surren- mM dcr to the American forces which went H to take possession of her and was dc- H stroyed by her crew. The German H warrant officers and five enlisted men H were killed by the explosion. H Twenty officers, twelve warrant of- ficers and 321 enlisted men were taken vM prisoners. H The navy department's announce- ment said: "The interned German cruiser Cor- H morant at Guam refused to surrender, H blew herself up, killing two warrant officers and five enlisted men. Twen- mM ty officers, 12 warrant officers and 321 i enlisted men were taken prisoners." Tho message was received at the navy j department at 9 a. m. today from VA I Capt. Roy Smith, governor of Guam IH and commandant of the naval station IH The destruction of the Cormorant took place at S o'clock last night, M Washington time. H "The German auxiliary cruiser l Cormorant was blown up in the liar- H bar of Apra, Island of Guam, by her H crew, sinking immediately. One war. M rant officer and one enlisted man are H dead, one warrant officer and four en- H listed men are missing, 20 officers, H 12 warrant officers and 321 enlisted men have been made prisoners. M "On October 2S, 1914, the 35-foot IH cutter called the 'Ocean Comber' en- Amm tered the harbor of Apra, Island of M Guam, in charge of Lietit. Von Elpons mM of the" Imperial German navy. The vM boat and party of three officers and VM i four natives of New Guiana had been VM j at sea for a long time, having left H ! H. M. S. 'Cormoran' for the purpose H of sending a cable to San Francisco H , for supplies. The date of the cipher H was October 1 and the location of H the Cormoran was not disclosed. Per- H mission was not granted to send the H cablegram and the officers and men H were interned. H l "On December 14, 1914, tho German M auxiliary cruiser Cormoran appeared H ! off the harbor of Apra and sent a H radia asking permission to enter for IH coal and provisions. She was allowed H to enter and the commanding officer H to visit the governor. H "Commanding Officer Juckschwerdt H ' stated that he had just come from the H ' South Seas and was short of coal, had jH only about 50 tons on board and re- H ! quosted 1,500 tons of coal and provi- H sions to reach his nearest home port IH ; in German East Africa. The governor H replied that he could furnish only H 200 tons of coal and 30 days' provi- H , sions only could be spared, the com- jH manding officer was given the alterna- mM j tive of departing within 24 hours or H being interned. H Internment of Ship. jH 1 "On December 15, 1914, at 10 & m., H I the commanding officer decided to re- IH ! main in port and tho ship and its per- IH sonnel were interned. IH "The following were on board: H Twenty-one officers, one midshipman, H 11 deck officers, 307 petty officers and M men, four Chinese and 29 South Sea M natives. H "Tho Cormoran was formerly a H steamer in tho Russian fleet and was H captured early in the morning of Au- H gust 3 by S. M. S. Emden, and was M formally put in service as a German MM ! auxiliary cruiser. Her name before immM capture as tho Rjeasan. During peace jB sho was in tho passenger trade be- IH tween Shanghai and Vladivostock. H She is a new, speedy ship, built at M tho Gorman 'works of Schichau. She MM was taken to Tsin Tao and was over- M hauled and could do better than 17 jH knots. She as equipped with guns, mM manned by a German" crew. Tho old M German gunboat Cormoran was being jH dismantled at Tsing Tao and the cap- fM tain and fast of her crew wero trans- jM ferrod to tho nowly converted auxili- 'JH ary cruiser. She was taken the first H night of the war and was the first H prize of the Emden. The Russians IH claim she had beon taken inside of H territorial waters of Japan, which was M prior to Japan's entering hostilities." H |