LIGHT ON U-BOAT MYSTERIES.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume XI, Issue 3463, 17 April 1920, Page 6

LIGHT ON U-BOAT MYSTERIES.

THIRTEEN BLOWN UP IN THE _ ‘ STRAITS OF DOVER.

I Eighteen mysteries of the sea durling the war will probably never be explained. They are the losses “from .some unknown cause” of certain German submarines. The known particulars are‘ vague, but such as they are the Navy League has obtained them from the Admiralty and publishes them in the February issue of The “Navy.” The first case occurred some time in January 1915, when U 31 disappeared. The last occurred in September 1918, when NB 11 was lost, “probably in the North Sea.” Beyond that, nothing is known of the fate of ‘these vessels. '

‘About sixty ofher cases brought to

light bythe “Navy” are much more detailed, and throw an interesting light on the success of our anti-sub-marine efforts. The great “Northern Barrage,” with its 60,000 mines, that was laid in the summer of 1918, soon proved its value. Four U boats met their doom in its meshes in September, and another was blown up in ,October. The minefields in the Straits of Dover were even more successful. Thirteen enemy craft met their end on mines in those waters.

i Definitely ascertained, accidents accounted for the destruction‘ of eleven other U boats. Two of them were sunk by Sister ships, U 7 being sunk ‘in the North Sea in January. 1915, ;by another German submarine, and EUC 69 being rammed and sunk -off ‘Cape Barflour by U 96 on December 6, 1917. Several submarine mine-lay-ers were blown up by their own mines, and in this connection I may tell a story that has hitherto been kept secret.

UC 32 was blown up by her own mines off Sunderland on February 23, 1917, and the‘wl-eck lay more or less in the fairway. It was decided to abolish i? completely by a further explosion. All the preparations were made, and as the King was due to visit; Sunderland about that time it was -arranged that he should witness the explosion. Someone forgot to tell the engineer in charge about the plan, and the surbmarine Wreck Was blown up—and made a fine spectacle -—l*he day before the King arrived.