U-BOAT VICTIMS

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20075, 23 October 1939, Page 7

U-BOAT VICTIMS

HERGNSPOOL’S FIGHT

FOUR-HOUR BATTLE

FATE OF SUBMARINE

MID-ATLANTIC RESCUE

(Klee. Tel. Copyright—United Press Assn.) (Reed. Oct. 23, 11 a.no.) LONDON, Oct. 21.

According to George Haresnape, the ladio operator on the Horoiispool. | which was sunk by a submarine on j October 13, who has arrived at New ! York with other survivors aboard the I President Harding, tloe submarine! sank the Hercmspool only after a four-’i hour night fight. "A few hours after leaving the pro- j tection of the convoy 300 miles off! Ireland,” he said, “we came upon a j submarine sinking the French tanker ! Emile Miguet. .She was firing shot i after shot into her. We started run- j ning, looping to be unnoticed. Plow- [ ever, the submarine started for us. j

“We had only one gun, and we ] fought back as best we could. Tloe j submarine canoe to tloe surface and ! dived, continually firing. I think she ; wanted to save the expense of a tor- j pedo. We zigzagged, firing for lour ' hours in tloe darkness. The submarine j failed to land a single shell.

“At 12.45 a.m., the commander must j have tired and let go a torpedo, and j ,he fight was over. The torpedo struck j us so unexpectedly and we abandoned j ;hip so quickly .that I had no time tr- j send an.SOS. The submarine cruised! round the bobbing lifeboats for an j hour until the President Harding was I lighted.” I Survivors Welcomed Antonio Cutajar, a Maltese fireman on a British trader bound from Bristol to South America, who has ! returned to Cardiff, related how the trader brought a gun tc) bear when i U-boat attacked her, holding the enemy as a British destroyer steamed at full speed to the scene and finished off the U-boat, which was unable to submerge. The steamer Independence Hall arrived at Bordeaux to-day bringing, survivors of the Yorkshire and the City of Mandalay. Hundreds gathered on the pier, on which ambulances were waiting, and sang the British and \merican anthems. They cheered the roaster of ihc Independenc Hall, Capain MacKenzie, who, describing the .orped'oing, said: 'T received an SOS Tom the Yorkshire and hurried to the scene. I found the City of Mandalay standing by. The Yorkshire suddenly broke in two and sank in nine minutes. The City of Mandalay foundered in 45 minutes. The U-boat caprun came close and thanked me no English for saving the victims.”