Four Days On A
Nazi U-Boat
- I < -
(Editor's Note: How is life on
a German U-boat? Archie Gibbs
of the American Merchant Ma
rine was an involuntary guest on
one for four days after his
freighter was torpedoed off Trin
idad. In diary form, he describes
that experience. Gibbs has re
cently written a book, “U-Boat
Prisoner” (Houghton Mifflin).
- iri
By ARCHIE GIBBS
Written Exclusively for AP
Features *
June 14th
Stll on our little cruise. Every- ,
one is happy that we will be in
port tomorrow—or will we?
7:00 P. M.—Got two tin fish
in our side. They don’t give a I
damn who gets hit. Looks like a I
swim.
June 15th
A nice pleasure trip during the
night with 12 other men and a
(black eat in a life boat.
6:00 A. M.—Went over to the
other boat. Also took seven men
off a raft. Five men are missing.
A plane flew over—looking for
the sub, I hope.
3:00 P M.—Just went aboard
another old rust pot (ship). The
food was O. K. So was the water.
9 P. M.—A ship just got hit
in the distance astern.
9:20 P. M.—A tin fish just got
us. It looks like another swim
for some of us as one life boat
can’t hold 111 men. So here goes
it.
9:50 P- M.—Am I in hot water!
Prom the sea into a U-boat. Got
to smell the business end of a
gun. Didn’t like the smell.- Had
a question and answer hour. Did
n’t win a $64 question but got
a shot of Three Star Hennessey
—not bad.
June 16th
Well, for a German sub the
crew is not treating me so bad.
The food is lousy though. Black
bread made of wood, some kind
of grease and horrible coffee.
Talked to some of the crew.
Most were ex-merchant seamen.
The sub had been out since
March 17.
Noon—The dinner was bad—
canned cabbage, the same k;nd
of bread and tea. The whole
works were cold. If they have
tc cat like this, then wp have
won the war. Gave away my
pipe and tobacco. Don’t think I
will need them any more.
5'0C P M—They are taking up
******** *4.*** A***** A.****.
TO
ARCHIE GIBBS
. . the food was lousy!’’
the floor plates in the torpedo
room. One man just got knocked
down for heiling Hitler.
8:00 P. M.—The crew just sang
“Deep in the Heart of Texas” in
German.
June 17th
1:00 A. M.—Was taken to the
control room. Had a hot time
with the Nazi party man. He
came out second best, and is he
sore! The crew is tickled. They
don’t seem to like the Nazi.
3:00 P. M.—Oh, oh, what’s go
ing on Gun fire on deck. Ex
plosions just behind me. Must
have been bombed. Yep, here
comes a man down the ladder.
We were bombed, but they miss
ed. Was rushed into the torpedo
room. Crew is working like mad
to get a tin fish bedded down so
we can crash dive. I don’t like
it at all. We are way down deep.
Nothing moving. The only noise
is the air blower. Got knocked
down for trying to blow air bub
bles to the surface on the sani
tary lines.
Late Evening. Surfacing at
last!
June 18th
1:00 A. M.—Back in the con
trol room. Everything is as be
fore. Looks like daylight will
'catch us on the surface. Back
in the torpedo room. Looks like
they picked up three more tin
fish during the night. Well, it
looks like they don’t trust me.
Here I am in the aft torpedo
room. We got a treat, cheese for
breakfast. Boy! What cheese. It’s
alive. The crew is burned up
about the cheese. Are they mad!
j Got my papers back this morn
ing.
June 19 th
Early in the morning. Got a
chance to go on deck for some
fresh air. Was warned not to go
to sea any more. Also had to an
swer more questions but didn’t
win any prizes.
9:00 A. M.—A crew member
j came into the torpedo room. He
| tells me: “You are lucky. You go
ashore and see America again”.
So back into the control room.
A wait for a couple of minutes.
Shots sounded. Was told to go
up ladder. Coming alongside was
a small boat. Was told to jump
over the side and swim to her,
i with a final warning not to go
back to sea.
3:00 P. M.—Landed at Curacao,
Dutch West Indies. Well, here
I go back to New York and an
other ship.
The Army Service Forces (for
merly Services of Supply) is the
organization charged with sup
plying the Army will all services
and materiel including transpor
tation, keeping personnel records
and supplying mail service.
Tall them you saw it adver
tised in The Nugget
Twelve-month twosome: Tai-'
lored black stepin of Bordo kid
skin and brown oxford of un
lined Nurocco goat.
By DOROTHY ROE
(AP Fashion Editor)
Even if Uncle Sam allows you
only two pairs of shoes a year,
there's no need to be down-at
j the-heel.
Spend your two precious ration
Istamps on the best and most
practical leather shoes you can
find, and for fill-ins, invest in
some of the new and numerous
unrationed numbers, with soles
of wood, plastic or rope.
For all-round wear, supple,
f
[polished calf or some of the new
and sturdier kidskins are hard
to beat. Keep them well-polish
ed, have them repaired at the
first sign of wear, and they can
still look neat and chipper even
at the end of two years.
i
If the sole-leather shortage
grows, trust our Yankee ingenu
ity. 'Wooden-soled shoes are now
being made in street versions,
in neat oxfords and step-in styles,
with supple polished calf uppers
and highly flexible soles made of
tiny quarter-inch wood blocks,
based on the principle of the old
fashioned pacing block. (With
leather uppers, they still cost a
I
1
Wooden Shoes: Hinged soles,
leather tabs, linen uppers, swank
for sports.
ration stamp, however.)
Plastic-soled shoes with cloth
1 uppers are also on the market,
available without a ration stamp,
■ and designed in neat pump and
oxford types, suitable for all
round wear.
For sportswear, your choice is
practically unlimited. Smart as
well as unrationed are numer
ous wooden-soled sports shoes
with rough linen or duck up
pers. The soles usually are hinged
with leather tabs as sound
deadeners. and often wear long
er than leather-soled versions.
(Editor’s note:—It is needless
to remind our many readers that
ration cards have not as yet be
come needed in the Territory.
But. rather than be forced to en
dure such a measure in the fu
ture. tips such as the above, we
believe, are in order at this
tune.)
ij NEILL CLARK AND COMPANY j
; PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS—AUDITORS J
:: TAX COUNSELORS T !
j: I
4, 201-MS LA VERT BLDG. FAIRBANKS, ALASKA +
v KINLOCB N. NEILL JOHN W. CLARK J
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LINCOLN HOTEL j
I; AND COCKTAIL BAR
j! JOE MULLINS, Prop.
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J| DON’T BUY WHISKEY—BUY WAR BONDS!
11 Bat if you mast bay whiskey, by it from US so
J ’ WE CAN BUY WAR BONDS!
mmmViimuTitiiiiiit-:
NORTH POLE
BAKERY
:: AND RESTAURANT \\
II . A
|| WE SERVE WHOLESOME FOODS—
<1 ] |
NONE BETTER!
< > r r " >, * II
OPBlN: 7:00 A. M. TO 11:00 P. M. ; |
j | Front St. Plume Ma. 159 ;;
«» ; [
I
C(> We in China, like you, want a better
world, not for ourselves alone, hut for
r(Tf* all mankind, and we must have iL It is not
wjj enough, however, to proclaim our ideals
JtHf or even *° be convinced that we have them.
In order to preserve, uphold and maintain
them, there are times when we should
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throw all we cherish into our effort
to fulfill these ideals... ^
V
’ .— Madame Chiang Kai-shek
Speaking Ref one the (angress
oj the United Stales —
.. UeOruary, 1943
J , ••
.. ' 'ft
I : i ;■/ ' i.i .
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'ALASKA STEAMSHIP COMPANY
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