NAVY HEROISM

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20047, 20 September 1939, Page 6

NAVY HEROISM

COURAGEOUS’ END ABSENCE OF PANIC MEN FACE DEAtH CALMLY U-BOAT BLASTED IN AIR GALLANT RESCUES MADE SURVIVORS’ STORIES (Elec. Tel. Copyright—United Press Assn.) (Reed. Sept. 20, 1.30 p.m.) LONDON, Sept. 10.

Survivors of the British aircraft carrier Courageous, which was sunk by a U-boat, brought home stories such as England expected of her seamen.

William Britten, Glasgow, a stoker pensioner, aged 45, said: “I saw a young able \seaman go overboard twice to save his shipmates. Officers in the boats carried on after the Courageous sank and gave orders. There was no panic. “About 7.50 p.m. I was playing rummy on the mess deck. The others were yarning and writing letters when there was an. explosion and 'I waj shoulder deep in water. In complete darkness;, I "roped mv way on to the top deck, but only 12 of the 50 in the mess deck thus escaped.” A seaman named Andrew Logue, Dumbarton, said lie felt the suction of the Courageous as she went down while he was swimming. A whaler took him to a destroyer. He passed a float on which all the men were singing.

Another lad of 17 years described how a boatful of 30 men sank forcing the occupants to svvim as the storm of the Courageous went aloft and she plunged to the bottom. Royal Marine’s Hero

A gunnery officer declared that the weather conditions and everything else favoured* the submarine. Many of those aboard the Courageous, owing to the vessel listing, failed to jump clear of the side and for this reason many were killed. “I was torpedoed in the last war and have seen 25 years' service, but I have never seen anything finer than a sergeant of the Royal Marines swimming enormous distances from man to man, exclaiming: Keep going, my lad. Keep your heart and head up. There were heroes in plenty, but he was the greatest of them all. Before that I saw two seamen lash a frightened little drummer boy to a raft and heave the raft into the sea. I hope the poor little devil cam*' through. A man appealed for help while I was swimming. I grabbed his hair and kept him afloat. His long absence from the barber saved his life.” A 16-year-old Exeter lad told how swimmers cheered when the destroyers attacked the submarine.

"I don’t think anyone aboard her survived. They dropped depth charges and blew her straight out of the water. Then tshe disappeared. When I last saw the captain he was standing on the bridge.” Another survivor said there was no doubt the submarine was blown up. The conning tower went one way and stern another. Oil shot up from the water after the destroyer dropped depth charges. Others told similar stories which varied in individual particulars, but were alike in establishing the absence of panic.

One typical sentence was: “There were a number of men aboard as the ship went down. It was amazing how composed they were."