LUSITANIA CRIME.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 5, Issue 154, 10 March 1916, Page 1 (Supplement)

LUSITANIA CRIME.

CAPTAIN TURNER SAYS NOTHING COULD PREVENT DISASTER.

In reply to criticisms, especially directed against the crew, Captain William T. Turner, who commanded the Lusitanja when she was torpedoed last May. and who now commands the cargo steamer ITtonia, Ims made a long statement regarding the pirates' latest crime.

The gist of the story is that everyth'ng possible was aone to avoid disaster, but that the Germans had laid their plans so well that nothing could have prevented their success. Two, or even three, submarines, in Captain Turner's belief, were concerned in the affair.

"It has been suggested," he remarkI cd. " that I might have slow.ed down, I and thus passeu the Irish coast at night. All I can say is that my instructions from the Canard Company were to arrive at the lightship in the Mersey at four o'clock on Saturday morning, so that I could take the ship over the bar without stopping for a pilot. I did not slow down on Thursday (the day It lore the disaster' because there is a good deal of fog off the Irish coast at that season of the year, but all Friday forenoon the Lusitania was down to 15 knots, and was put up to IS knots about two hours before she was torpedoed. Going by at night would no thave obscured my ship from the look-out on the submarine, becnusei n that latitude in May the night only lasts two hours and a half, and, further, there was a moon. Xo matter what we had done or at what speed the Lusitania had been going, the submarines would have got her, as they had planned it all by getting the angles on the course approaching the Irish coast. Nothing could have prevented one- of the torpedoes from striking the ship. They were fired from an angle off the starboard how. and they travelled at a speed of 45 knots, so that no matter at what speed the Lusitania had been going she would have sunk. If the fog had continued taht day the German submarines might possibly have missed her. but unfortunately it cleared up at the wrong time."

Captain Turner concludes: "I have no fault to find with anything that occurred foMowing the torpedoing of the ship. lam satisfied that every precaution was taken, and that nothing was left undone that might have helped to save human lives that day.''

SAVED BY THE TOE OF HIS BOOT. An English soldier writes home :—. "Last night w,o blew up a German trench; to-night they blew up ours. The force of the explosion sent nip. flying over the parapet, and my officer to'fd me to get hack to the dressingstation, as 1 was badl'y shaken and couldn't stand still. "As I was going back down tho com munication trench a shell hursi an'', buried me in earth. A sergeant passing saw the toe of my boot and dug me out."

OLDEST CHOP HOUSE SAVED. "Baker's." of Change Alley, Oornhil'. said to be the 01-.Vst chop house in London, is after all to enjoy a newlease of life. The lease had come to an end and an auction wn-s fixed. Subsequently, however, customers read with gratification a posted on the windows of the "house" to the effect that the aueion "advertised for Thursday next, the 16th inst., will not take nlace." It was learnt that a firm of caterers have arranged to erry on the business. Thev will continue it under the old stvle s " Baker'-." and the place, which wa* built just aft,->r the Great Eire of 16GG, may go on for another century. "Why don't yon marry that girl' She is a real pearl." "Ah. ves; but I don't like mother-of-nearl."