Boats from the ship were promptly put over and with those of other vessels which happened to be nearby cruised about the waters for several hours, but no other man of the fishing boat crew was recovered.
An hour after the disaster, the fog which had been responsible for this tragedy cleared all away, the sun shone brightly and the blue waters of the sea rolled smoothly on. The big liner steamed away on her course and thirteen unfortunate sailors lay dead on the bottom of the sea.
Those who go down to the sea in ships do not know what may be in store for them.
TERRIBLE SUBMARINE DISASTER
A certain section of the waters in and around Provincetown Harbor have for several years been used as the testing ground for new or reconditioned submarines of the U. S. Navy.
Early in December of 1927, the submarine S-4 was at this testing ground, standardizing her engines following some changes which had been completed at the Charlestown Navy Yard. Her complement of forty officers and men were on board, and two civilian visitors.
In the early afternoon of December 17th this submarine went under to test some part of her machinery and a little workout, and steamed submerged out of the harbor; when about half a mile south of the Wood End Lighthouse, and directly in the channel for vessels leaving or entering the harbor, started to come to the surface. Just at this moment, coming in from a patrol cruise along the coast, came the Coast Guard cutter Paulding, steaming for an anchorage in the harbor at a sixteen miles an hour speed, and crashed with great force into the side of the submarine, just breaking the surface water. The sharp iron stem of the Paulding tore a great ragged hole in the side of the S-4, just forward of the conning tower, and passed completely over her. The torrent of water which poured through this hole sent the under-sea boat to the bottom of the sea in five minutes, with her crew of forty-two imprisoned in her iron hull, with walls that barred their escape from certain death. Caught like rats in a trap without the possibility or hope of escape, they were sealed up in their coffin more than one hundred feet beneath the sea.
When this disaster became known, and it was within five minutes of the crash, radio and wireless messages sent it to every section of the country. It sent a thrill of horror to every point the news had reached; the awful tidings were broadcast to the whole country and even to points in Europe.
Every available means of possible rescue were hurried to the scene. A dozen deep sea divers were rushed by train and auto from New London. Provincetown was the nearest point of approach to the location of the disaster. Big ships and tugs carrying chains and appliances were rushed forward by every available means, hoping to accomplish something towards raising the sunken boat before all her officers and men had perished by drowning or suffocation.