EPIC OF THE SEA

Wairarapa Times-Age, 19 December 1939, Page 6

EPIC OF THE SEA

ACHIEVEMENTS OF BRITISH SUBMARINE « WARSHIPS SUNK IN INNER ENEMY WATERS. VESSEL GIVEN GREAT WELCOME HOME. By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright. (Received This Day. 11.27 a.m.) RUGBY. December 18. The British submarine which recently sank a U-boat, sighted the Bremen, and torpedoed at least one German cruiser, had an enthusiastic reception on her return to port. As she entered the harbour, sirens were sounded on every ship present —among them two destroyers of tlie Polish Navy which arc at present co-operating with the Royal Navy.

The patrol from which the submarine returned is spoken of in naval circles as the most venturesome undertaken by any submarine, either in this war of the last.

The submarine had not long been in her patrol area before she sighted a German U-boat of the big ocean-going type moving fast on the surface. The British submarine manoeuvred to attack and torpedoes were fired. In a few moments there came a shattering explosion and wreckage was thrown 200 feet into the air. The British submarine made an unsuccessful search for survivors. Next the Breman was sighted and allowed to pass unscathed and rather less than 24 hours after she had passed, as the British submarine was cruising submerged, several enemy warships were sighted through the periscope. There were two German battleships, the Scharnorst and Gneisenau and one of the pocket-bat-tleships, with three cruisers in company. Two of these were new eightinch gun cruisers, the Hipper and Blucher. When the vessels were within torpedo range, the submarine fired six torpedoes. The first hit the Leipzig. Then two more terrific explosions told that two other torpedoes had hit their mark, almost certainly upon a second heavy cruiser of the Blucher class. The submarine could not wait to determine the success of the attack, as she was hunted and depth-charged for two hours. On her return to the scene after dark, she found an area of nearly four and a quarter miles of sea thickly coated in oil fuel. It is suggested that at least one heavy cruiser, in addition to the Leipzig, was badly damaged.