No. 3434.] The Secretary of State to Ambassador Gerard. [Telegram-Paraphrase.] DEPARTMENT OF STATE, Washington, September 29, 1916. Mr. Lansing informs Mr. Gerard that the master's statement of the steamer Owego in his last telegram was transmitted to him in the language of the United States Steamship Company, and further informs him that he now has the master's own statement made afterward which is as follows: Ever since early morning of that day we heard sounds of heavy cannon coming from the direction of the French coast, which was nearer to us than the English coast, but not discernible. About 12.40 p. m., on that day I was below eating my dinner when my first mate, H. Hattfield, came to me and stated that he heard guns of smaller caliber and closer to us, but nothing could be seen. I then went on deck with said first mate, and the first thing I saw was a shot dropping in the water about 100 feet from our stern, which shot dropped directly in the wake of the vessel. I looked with the aid of glasses, as did all of the officers of the vessel, but none of us were able to discover any boat in sight. I ordered the wheel put hard starboard and the engines stopped, which was done. About 15 minutes later we made out the submarine coming slowly toward us. At that time, to my judgment, she was about one mile away. Said submarine had signals hoisted but, owing to the entire lack of wind, they were lying flat against the flagstaff instead of being carried out by the breeze and we were unable to make out what the signals were. We were laying still at that time. Then there was a shot fired which came within about four feet of the broad side of the vessel and the submarine kept coming slowly toward us. When she was about one-half mile away we were able to make out one flag and guessed at the rest. We immediately proceeded to lower a boat and I dispatched the first mate with the ship's papers. The Owego was displaying a large American flag on her stern and also a large American flag amidship. Her name and the letters U. S. A. were painted in white letters 6 feet long, extending nearly from bow to stern on either side. I did not know the exact number of shots which said submarine fired, I having seen but four shots which struck near the vessel. There was no shot fired across the steamer's bow as stated in the German note. The commander of the submarine informed my first mate that he had fired 11 or 12 shots at us and that was the source of my information when I gave the number of shots fired. The first mate returned from the submarine with said papers and a permit written in German and signed by the commander allowing the vessel to proceed, which she did. The boat which I sent out to the submarine was launched as quickly as possible after I discovered the submarine signal to send same. I did not know we were being fired upon by reason of the heavy firing in the direction of the French coast, but stopped the vessel and waited as soon as it was discovered that the firing was near to us and sounded differently than what we had been hearing. Mr. Gerard is instructed that if he can discern no objection he is permitted to submit this further statement to the Foreign Office, augmented by the information contained in Mr. Lansing's last telegram, and is also informed that this information is being forwarded to the end that he may have all the facts necessary for the information of the German Government. SIR: I have the honor to transmit herewith an affidavit executed by one, John S. Brennan, claiming American citizenship, who was a member of the crew of the British steamship Sebek, which is alleged to have been torpedoed by a submarine near Malta on the 12th instant. This affidavit was executed before the American Consul General at Marseille. I have, etc., [Inclosure.] ROBERT WOOD BLISS. Affidavit of John S. Brennan. I, the undersigned, do hereby declare under oath as follows: My name is John S. Brennan. I was born at New York City July 20, 1891. My permanent residence in the United States is 877 Tindon Avenue, in said New York City. I last left the United States on the Norwegian ship Nordfjeld, which sailed from Norfolk, Virginia, bound to Naples, Italy, about the 10th day of June, 1916. On September 30, 1916, I signed as A. B. on the British ship Sebek, which sailed from Liverpool on that date with a general cargo, about one-half consisting of coal, bound to Alexandria, Egypt. On October 12, 1916, at about 6.55 o'clock p. m., while the Sebek was about 10 miles east of Malta, and while I was in the forecastle, I heard a crash. I ran out with the other sailors in the forecastle and we immediately entered into the lifeboats and lowered the boats. There were several trawlers in sight, but I saw no submarine. After we had been about 25 minutes in the lifeboats we were picked up by a French patrol boat, then transferred to a British patrol boat, and for about 12 hours we cruised around our ship the Sebek while she was being towed away by another British ship. We were landed in Malta at about six o'clock p. m. on the following day, October 13. There were no casualties among our crew. So far as I am aware, I was the only American on board. While the seaman on the lookout stated that he saw the wake of a torpedo when our ship was struck, I have no personal knowledge of this matter. JOHN A. BRENNAN. Subscribed and sworn to before me this twentieth day of Consul General of the United States [Seal of American Consulate General.] No. 3586.] The Secretary of State to Chargé Grew. [Telegram-Paraphrase.] DEPARTMENT OF STATE, Washington, November 18, 1916. Mr. Lansing states that the Department has been advised of the torpedoing without warning of the British ship Sebek, with Americans aboard, bound from Liverpool to Alexandria, while ten miles east of Malta, on October 12. Also the Department is advised that the ship Delta, of Norwegian registry, bound from Naples to Wales, in ballast, and on which there were Americans, was sunk by cannon shot on October 31, fifty-five miles off Cape Palos, Spain, by a German submarine. Mr. Grew is instructed to bring to the attention of the German Government the above cases in which it appears the lives of American citizens have been jeopardized by German submarines, and request an immediate investigation and report. Chargé Grew to the Secretary of State. No. 4702.] [Telegram.] AMERICAN EMBASSY, Berlin, December 8, 1916. The following note with regard to the sinking of the Sebek has just been received: FOREIGN OFFICE, Berlin, December 6, 1916. The undersigned has the honor to reply as follows to the note of Mr. Grew, Chargé d'Affaires of the United States of America, dated the twenty-first ultimo. Foreign Office No. 14221, relative to the sinking of the British vessel Sebek by a German submarine. According to the investigations of the German Naval authorities. a German submarine attacked without warning and sank on October twelfth last, close to the warport of LaValeta, Malta, a ship which was under way with lights smothered and without position lanterns, and which therefore had to be considered as a warship by the German commander. A completely darkened ship which contrary to the international provisions relative to the carrying of lights at sea displays no streamer (?) and a position of lights thereby characterizes itself as a warship, in the war area at any rate or still more in the neighborhood of a warport as in the present case. Should then the darkened ship sunk off Malta actually have been identical with the British steamer Sebek the blame for jeopardizing lives of the Americans hired on the Sebek attached solely to the captain who, in order to evade measures of prize by the German cruisers recognized by international laws, took upon himself the danger involved in neglecting, contrary to international law the international provisions relative to the carrying of lights. The undersigned requests that the above be communicated to the American Government and avails himself of the opportunity to the Chargé d'Affaires, et cetera. (Signed.) ZIMMERMANN. GREW. No. 313.] CASE OF THE "BARBARA." Consul Lathrop to the Secretary of State. AMERICAN CONSULATE, Cardiff, November 16, 1916. SIR: I have the honor to enclose a copy of the declaration of Alle Dorsey, a colored American citizen, relative to the loss by submarine attack of the vessel on which he was engaged, the British S. S. Barbara. I have, etc., [Inclosure.] LORIN A. LATHROP. Deposition of Alle Dorsey. AMERICAN CONSULATE, I, Alle Dorsey, do solemnly swear that I am an American citizen. I was born at 22 Water Street, Norfolk, Virginia, in September, 1890. My father, Ben Dorsey, lives now at 26 Water Street, Norfolk, Va. I was a fireman on the British S. S. Barbara of West Hartlepool, England; H. Mayne, master. I left Barry Dock, Wales, in the Barbara on June 12, 1916, and went to Genoa and Gibraltar and then to Santiago, Cuba, and to Philadelphia, Pa. I left Philadelphia with the vessel at the end of August last. The vessel was bound for West Hartlepool with a cargo of sugar. There were no guns on the vessel. There were two other American seamen on the Barbara, one was named George West, but I do not know the name of the other. The vessel called at Dover for orders on its way to West Hartlepool and about twenty-four hours after leaving Dover, on the twentieth day of October at four o'clock in the afternoon I was coming up to the forecastle when the watch told me there was a submarine in sight. I saw the submarine which was about half a mile from our vessel on the port bow. It was flying the German flag, but I could not see if there was a number on it. The captain said it was not a submarine. I returned to the forecastle and then I heard the report of a gun. The captain ordered the engines to be stopped and all the crew to stand by the boats. I ran out on deck and went to the port side boat, then I went back to the forecastle to try and save my clothes but I heard another shot and returned to the boat. The captain was then in the starboard side boat, and both boats were lowered. All the crew were in the two boats and no one was injured. No flag |