The commander of the _Fanning_ was Lieutenant A. S. Carpender, a
Jerseyman, who in his report gave particular praise to Lieutenant Walter
Henry, officer of the deck, and to Coxswain Loomis, who first sighted
the submarine.
This was by no means the first time a submarine had been sunk by an
American destroyer, but in accordance with the British policy, the
Americans had withheld all information of the sort. However, this was
such a good story, and the capture of prisoners so unusual, that by
agreement between the Navy Department and the British Admiralty, the
salient details of this encounter were given to the public.
The idea of secrecy was devised by the British at the very outset, the
purpose being to make the waging of submarine warfare doubly
objectionable to the men of the German Navy. It is bad enough to be lost
in a naval engagement, but at least the names of the ships involved and
the valor of the crews, both friend and enemy, are noted. But under the
British system, a submarine leaves port, and if she is sunk by a
patrol-vessel or other war-ship, that fact is never made known. The
Germans know simply that still another submarine has entered the great
void.
It adds a sinister element to an occupation sufficiently sinister in all
its details. There may be no doubt that the policy of silence has had
its effect upon the German morale. That crews have mutinied on the high
seas is undoubted, while we know of several mutinies involving hundreds
of men that have occurred in German ports--all because of objections to
submarine service.
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