TRAGIC DIARY

Gisborne Times, Volume LXX, Issue 11126, 8 February 1930, Page 9

TRAGIC DIARY

JAPANESE OFFICER’S LAST HOURS.

WRITTEN WITHIN SUNKEN SUBMARINE.

Every once in a while we read that again the submarine lias taken a bdl of brave Vves. The sea once more lias: proved that it can resist the best efforts of man.

A .recent disaster emphasises anew that tin’s arm of sea power remains one of extreme hazard. "While mechanical ingenuitv has intensified the snhmarine’s striking power to a high degree, the safety factor for the men 'M these steel shells has only slightly increased. The latest submai'Mio. ocirliaps. holds some advantage over one of ten years’ ago in the margin i f safety, hut no combination of caution or mechanism can wholly end the danger of collision. Submarines have gained largely in numbers and deadlinoss singe the war. Range of action and possibilities of destruction far surpass these of vessels used in the World War. hi which the 'subma.rino took its place as a major weapon. The day has arrived when it is possible for large undersea cruisers to cross the Allan b'c or Pacific at will. THE PERIL OF COLLISION. Yet the peril of the submarine tc its own crew apparently grows, rather than diminishes. In an expanse so large as the ocean it might l:e thought that one vessel runs practically no risk of hitting another. But experience gained by submarine dis-

asters indifiates collision to he a fatal danger four times out of five, eertnriily more than three. Next comes the danger of running aground in shoal waters, a common cause of wreckage. Finally there is the dauge- of explosion, hut this is much reduced compared with the other two. The modern submarine has reached a point of development where it. ranks as a. mechair.ism that seldom fails; its special perils lie outside the hull instead of inside.

Now, what happens when a sid marine sinks Y It is nut pleasant to think about.

If rescuers could penetrate into the torpedo room of a sunken submarine they would find a narrow, cramped spa ,e as black as night. Inlens:tv tills blackness by the sort of • old that dulls the mind, and the fiaue-s of gas and impure air, couple to all this the stress that comes from hunger and mental anguish, and there is a picture of suffering that men tn a sunken sub-marine have to endure before death.

A -IA HANE>F OFFICER'S DIARY

If we may not know the thoughts of the men in.the doomed submarine, we at least have a parallel, and all men’s thoughts are much the same in their last moments. In 1910, Lieut. Sakuuia and fourteen men were lost in a Japanese submarine. The officer left a d'ary. recounting lii.s hours of

trial. It began with an entry soon alter immersion at: 10 a,.fin. and ended at 12.-10 p.m. Here *'i’s the terse, stark recital :

“Words-of apology fail me tor having sunk li:s Majesty's submarine. .no. {?. MV subordinates aiv killed by my fault, but it is with pride that 1 inlo-nn. you that the crew to a man discharged their duties as sailors should, with the utmost coolless to their dying moments.

”We now sacrifitfo our lives for the sake of our country, hut my fear is tout tlu' disaster will affect the i'utiure development of submarines. It is. therefore, my hope that nothing will daunt your determination to study the submarine until it is a perlivvt machine, absolutely reliable. AVe van then die without regret. “It was while making a gasoline d vo that the I<oat sank lower than was intended, and in our attempt to close the sluice the chain broke. AAV endeavoured to stop the inrush of water with our hands. Tut toe la to; the water entered at the rear, and the boat sank at an incline of twenty five degVeos. “A\ lieu it touched bottom it was at an angle of tliiliTeen degrees. The current submerged the electrio generator. put out the light, and the electric wire's wore burned.

“In a few minutes bad gas was generated, making it- difficult for us to breathe. “It was at 10 a.m. on the loth inst. that the ls>at sank. Surrounded by poisonous gas. the crew strove to pump out the water. “As. soon 1 as the boat sank, the water 'in tilfe main tank was being pumped out>. 'The electric light was extinguished and the gauge was invisible, hut it seems the water in the main tank was completely pumped out.

“The electric. current is now becoming useless, gas cannot be generated and the hand pump is our only hope. The vessel is in darkness and I note thiis down bjy the light from the Damning tower at 11. To a.m. “IT TS KNTRFMEIA' COLD.” “The crew are now wet and it is extremely'cold. It is my .opinion that men embarking in submarines .must possess the qualities of coolness and nerve and nuist. lie; extremely painstaking i they must be bravo and dar-