Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 52, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 11 March 1918 — LIKE FOOTBALL GAME [ARTICLE]

LIKE FOOTBALL GAME

Yale Man Graphically Describes Fight With U-Boats. Convoy Accounts for Several German Submarines While Traveling to “ War Zone. East Haven, Conn. —How the convoy in which he traveled to the European war zone with the Yale unit accounted for several German “subs” Is graphically described by a letter to relatives by Lauren Lyman of this place. “Onfe night as we were below, fixing our bunks,” he says, “we heard the whistle and then the sharp note." of the bugle. We shouted, ‘the subs at last,’ and leaped to our posts. I had been appointed a stroke oar in a lifeboat, and our particular gang.

20 in number, were counted by cur white-faced lieutenant. “Our ship began to zig-zag, and, through a port I saw a destroyer rushing along toward a white streak in the water. Suddenly something happened aboard the destroyer—a volume of water rushed in the air directly in its wake. There was a heavy explosion, and one more sub had gone to the happy hunting ground. “The next morning our bugle again blew “to post” and our guns on the port side cut loose. In less than no time our whole fleet, transports and all, were blazing away, zig-zagging and rushing in all directions. We had plugged a whole school of subs,and Instead of zig-zagging our boat, plowed right into them. "At one time the ship next to us and our boat were shooting into the same center and it looked like a battle between the two ships. I »iaw three periscopes myself and one cut its way so close that our forward gun could not be brought to bear. “One torpedo missed bur bows by less than 80 feet. At the tame time we could see land ahead. .

“While this was going on three planes appeared. How we shouted when we recognized their nationality. Soon they were sw-ooping down like hawks, dropping bombs and marking out the places where the Boches lay. “It was simply great. I felt just as I did before the touchdown against Harvard last year. At one time four big guns on our boat were playing away at the same time. “Finally at ten o’clock the whistle blew, and our first big fight was over. Nobody scratched and from three to five Boches went to h . There were from 9 to 12 of them waiting, and, believe me, they got all they wanted. “If we’d only had a band the morning would have been complete.”'