SUBMARINE WARFARE

The six months' period from February 1, 1917, to August 1, 1917, covers a more intensified submarine activity than any other period since the beginning of the war. It was on February 1, 1917, that the so-called unrestricted submarine warfare was initiated by the German Government. As was to be expected, losses resulting from this new type of "frightfulness" quickly became very large. As time went on, however, it became evident that the Germans were unable to maintain their submarine sinkings on an equal basis at all times. Losses varied greatly from week to week. However, even at that they soon became so severe as to cause grave difficulties to the countries fighting against Germany and her allies, which before long were joined by the United States as a result of Germany's new submarine policy.

Difficult as it had been in the past to compile an accurate account of submarine losses, such an attempt became even more impossible now. All the governments involved soon followed Great Britain's lead and stopped the publication of detailed data concerning their respective maritime losses. Figures, it is true, were published, at least by England, at regular intervals. But they were far from complete or accurate. It is now next to impossible to give even an approximate idea of the total losses.

The following data come as close to being correct as a careful consultation of official statements permits. They must, however, not be considered complete. Up to the date of writing the United States had not published any official figures covering the losses incurred by the American merchant marine. From newspaper and other accounts, however, it appears that between February 1, 1917, and July 16, 1917, from thirty to forty American ships of more than 100,000 tons were lost. The first of these was the steamer Housatonic, sunk on February 3, 1917, near the Scilly Islands without loss of life. The sailing schooner Lyman M. Law was sent to the bottom of the sea on February 12, 1917, off the coast of Sardinia in the Mediterranean, also without loss of life. Next on the list was the steamer Algonquin, sunk on March 12, 1917, near the Scilly Islands without loss of life. Four days later, March 16, 1917, the steamer Vigilancia went down with a loss of fifteen men. On March 17, 1917, the City of Memphis was torpedoed, and on March 18, 1917, the Illinois, both without loss of life. The sinking of the steamer Healdon in the North Sea on March 21, 1917, however, brought about the loss of twenty-one members of her crew, seven of whom were Americans. On April 2, 1917, the sinking of the armed steamer Aztec was reported. With her twenty-eight of the crew, including a U. S. N. boat-swain's mate, perished. The Missourian went down on April 4, 1917, and the Seward on April 7, 1917, both in the Mediterranean. On April 24, 1917, the sinking of the schooner Percy Birdsall was reported. The crew was rescued. Later that month another small schooner, the Woodward Abrahams was sent to the bottom. On April 28, 1917, off the north coast of Ireland, the oil tanker Vacuum was sunk. As a result of exposure in lifeboats, seventeen of her crew, including some naval gunners, died. On May 2, 1917, the loss of the steamer Rockingham was reported, two of her crew being lost. During May, 1917, the following American-owned boats were sunk: Hilonian, Harpagus, Dirigo, Frances M., Barbara, and Margaret B. Rouss. Between June 12, 1917, and July 16, 1917, the American merchant marine lost, besides some small boats, the following eight vessels with a total tonnage of over 38,000: Hansau, Haverford, Bay State, Moreni, Petrolite, Massapequa, Orleans, and Grace. The following list shows the losses of the British merchant marine during the period from February 25, 1917, to July 22, 1917. The figures are those published weekly by the British admiralty. During the month of February, 1917, 110 British ships of varying size and of a total tonnage of 316,204 were sunk:

These figures show that in twenty-two weeks England lost 438 vessels over 1,600 tons, 170 vessels under 1,600 tons, and 187 fishing vessels. The average tonnage of vessels over 1,600 tons has been said to be 4,500. On that basis the loss in this class alone would amount to about 2,000,000 tons. If we add to this the total loss during February, 1917, and an approximate figure representing the loss of vessels under 1,600 tons and of fishing vessels, it is safe to assume that the total loss suffered by the British merchant marine between February 1, 1917, and July 29, 1917, was about 2,650,000 tons.

On June 30, 1917, the German admiralty claimed that since the beginning of the war more than 5,500,000 tons of shipping available for Great Britain's supply of food, munitions, and materials had been destroyed up to June 1, 1917, and that, on that date, there was available for this purpose from all sources only about 4,500,000 tons which, it was claimed, could be destroyed at the rate of from 800,000 to 1,000,000 tons a month.

Of the other Allied countries only France supplied from time to time definite figures. During February, March, and April, 1917, seventeen French vessels were sunk while nine others were attacked, but escaped. During May, 1917, twenty-eight French vessels were attacked. Of these eighteen escaped and ten were sunk. In June, 1917, fourteen French boats were sunk and twenty escaped. During the early part of July, 1917, two more French steamers were reported sunk having a tonnage of almost 10,000. On June 22, 1917, a debate in the French Chamber of Deputies developed the fact that the French merchant fleet was 2,500,000 tons at the beginning of the war and since that time had lost 560,000 tons, 460,000 by acts of war. During the same period 680,000 tons had been built or bought and another 140,000 was on the stocks, so that the fleet was actually greater now than before the war.

The grand total of submarine operations during February, 1917, according to figures compiled by the British admiralty, showed the following results:

Number of ships sunk—British, 110; American, 2; other belligerents, 20; neutrals, 51.

Total tonnage destroyed—British, 316,204; American, 3,322; other belligerents, 44,272; neutrals, 93,019. Grand total February 1-28, 456,817 tons.

On the other hand the German admiralty made the following official announcement on March 19, 1917; "In February 368 merchant ships of an aggregate gross tonnage of 781,500 were lost by the war measures of the Central Powers. Among them were 292 hostile ships, with an aggregate gross tonnage of 644,000 and seventy-six neutral ships of an aggregate gross tonnage of 137,500."

The State Department in Washington on April 10, 1917, gave out the following official figures regarding neutral losses inflicted by submarines:

"Information has been received by the department that since the beginning of the war, including April 3, a total of 686 vessels have been sunk by German submarines, as follows: Norwegian, 410; Swedish, 111; Dutch, 61; Greek, 50; Spanish, 33; American, 10; Peruvian, 1; Argentine, 1; total, 686. Neutral vessels attacked and escaped: Norwegian, 32; Swedish, 9; Danish, 5; Greek, 8; Spanish, 2; Argentine, 1; Brazilian, 1; American, 8; total, 66."

On May 8, 1917, a debate in the Reichstag brought out the fact that the German admiralty claimed to have sunk during February, March, and April, 1917, 1,325 vessels of all sizes and nationalities with a tonnage of 2,800,000.

Denmark on May 22, 1917, announced that since the beginning of the war 150 ships had been lost and 210 Danish seamen had perished.

On May 28, 1917, the Athens newspaper "Patris" printed a list of 102 Greek ships of a total tonnage of 300,000 which had been sunk by submarines, leaving 149 Greek ships with a displacement of 500,000 tons still afloat.

Norway during March, 1917, lost sixty-four ships, during April, 1917, seventy-five; and during May, 1917, forty-nine.

On June 25, 1917, it was announced that from the beginning of the war up to that date Norway had lost 572 vessels of 815,000 tons, 431 of these of 680,000 tons being steamers. This made Norway by far the heaviest loser among all neutrals.

From all various sources it appears that the total tonnage sunk during the six months from February 1, 1917, to July 31, 1917, amounted to somewhere between five and six millions.

Of course the submarine fleet of the Central Powers suffered severe losses during the six months' period, February to August, 1917. The means employed to put submarines out of business were manifold. Large flotillas of small but swift patrol boats, squadrons of destroyers, guns mounted forward and aft on merchantmen, dragnets, mine fields, and last but not least aeroplanes, all contributed their share toward the combating of submarine warfare. Just how many submarines have been sunk or captured is not even approximately known. From good authorities, however, it appears that the Germans up to now have been able to put new submarines into commission at a greater rate than the Allies have been able to maintain in destroying them.

Only one case of a submarine fighting and destroying another submarine became known. This occurred on June 2, 1917, when a French submarine sank a hostile submarine just as it was sailing out of the harbor of Cattaro on the Dalmatian (Austro-Hungarian) coast of the Adriatic Sea.[Back to Contents]