It seems probable that the German Government had a shrewd suspicion that it was one of their own submarines which sank the Katwijk, even as early as the 19th April. However, this did not prevent them from sending out broadcast in their official wireless news on the 20th a strong suggestion that a British submarine was responsible—a little illustration of German official methods.
The American oil-tank steamer Gulflight was torpedoed without warning off the Scilly Islands at 12.50 p.m. on the 2nd May, 1915. One seaman and the wireless operator were drowned, while the master died soon afterwards from shock. The remaining 35 members of the crew were saved. The submarine remained on the surface for three minutes after discharging the first torpedo; then submerged, and 25 minutes later struck the vessel with a second torpedo.
On the 25th May, 1915, the American steamer Nebraskan was 50 miles W.S.W. from the Fastnet Rock. The sea was smooth and the weather calm, but at about 9 p.m. she was torpedoed without warning by a German submarine. The crew took to their boats and, after standing by the ship for an hour, returned on board, and at 10.30 started for Liverpool. At about 1.25 a.m. they met with two vessels sent by the British Admiralty in answer to a wireless call, and Liverpool was reached in safety.
The Betty was a Danish schooner, carrying a cargo of coal and coke to Copenhagen. At noon on the 25th May, 1915, in fine weather, when 132 miles from the Farne Islands, a torpedo was seen rapidly approaching the ship. She was struck between No. 3 hold and the engine-room on the port side, after which no further sign of the submarine was seen. The Betty listed heavily to port; both life-boats were swung out and manned. While the boats were standing by, a Swedish vessel, the Waldemar, of Stockholm, appeared on the scene and picked up the crew.
The Svein Jarl was a Norwegian steamship, which on the 9th June, 1915, was on a voyage from Warkworth to a port in East Finmark. Suddenly a submarine bearing no flag or sign of nationality was seen approaching at full speed. The submarine turned sharply, and a few moments later the steamer was struck by a torpedo. The force of the explosion threw the crew into the sea, their ship going down within 30 seconds. A Dutch fishing-boat picked up the master and three men and landed them five days later at Scheveningen; but 12 of the crew were lost.
The Norwegian steamer Rym was torpedoed without warning by a German submarine at 7.26 p.m. on the 14th July, 1915, the weather being fine and clear, with a choppy sea. The master had just gone below when an explosion occurred which knocked him senseless for several moments. The second engineer was killed in the engine-room, and the ship sank in three minutes. The mate saw the periscope of a submarine immediately after the explosion.
On the 18th August, 1915, the Norwegian schooner Magda was torpedoed by a German submarine without warning. It was 11.35 p.m., the weather being fine. The ship had the Norwegian flag painted on her sides, which were brilliantly illuminated. A torpedo was suddenly seen coming towards the ship, which was struck just afterwards on the starboard side. After the explosion the Magda began to go down by the head, and the crew took to their boats. They were lucky enough to be picked up 20 minutes afterwards without casualty.
The Dutch steamer Tubantia was 4 miles west of the North Hinder on the evening of the 16th March, 1916. The ship was brilliantly lighted; two arc lamps projected beyond her sides, illuminating her name, which was painted on her side in large letters. Two more lamps threw their light over the name on the stern of the vessel; while between her funnels an illuminated nameboard was suspended. There could be no possible doubt as to the identity and nationality of the Tubantia; but, all the same, she was torpedoed that night by a German submarine.
The Germans attempted to evade responsibility for the deed. On the 17th March Berlin sent this message to the German Embassy at Washington: “English mines, on account of their construction, frequently get loose and float, and, that being so, Tubantia most certainly struck and destroyed by English mine.” Unfortunately for Berlin, pieces of metal were found in two of the steamer’s boats, and these, the German Government were bound to admit, belonged to a German torpedo. A new official story was accordingly concocted by Berlin. In June the North German Gazette published the result of the German official investigation into the sinking of the Tubantia. The gist of the finding was that the Tubantia had been sunk by a floating German torpedo, which had been fired at and missed a British destroyer 10 days before.