• SS Floridian, torpedoed and sunk on February 4th, 1917, with a Luton lad on board.

From appearing at a Luton court, an unnamed 17-year-old local fatherless youth was found a berth as an assistant steward on the cargo ship SS Floridian. But on a return journey from Canada the ship was torpedoed and sunk on February 4th, 1917, by German submarine U-54, with the loss of five crew and 19 ship's cats and with three senior officers taken prisoner.

Fortunately, the lad was rescued by a British warship and lived to tell his tale to a Saturday Telegraph reporter over a cup of tea in a well-known Luton restaurant on February 16th, 1917.

"I signed on the Floridian, a transport ship belonging to the Leyland Line, at £7 a month and we sailed about eight weeks ago from Newport to Halifax, Nova Scotia. It is usually a 12 days' run, but it took us 22 days as we had a propeller broken when 800 miles from land, and could only make about eight knots an hour.

"Coming back with oats and grain and 6,000 bags of flour, we had a worse mishap, for we were torpedoed 140 miles from the Fastnet lighthouse on the west coast of Ireland on February 4th.

"The newspapers said only 16 were saved, but as a fact 33 were. My mother read it in the paper and thought I was gone, but on the first chance I had I sent her a telegram.

"We sighted a submarine four miles off, and had we had a gun aboard we could have settled her easily. We had plenty of chance, but instead had to stand all she liked to give us, and the shells did fly, too.

"We caught sight of her about 7.30 in the morning, and for four hours she peppered us and we could not reply. Shame, I call it.

"The shells fell all over us. Two lifeboats were smashed to pieces, a funnel was blown away, and one shell burst on the bridge, where the captain bravely stood.

"At 20 minutes to 10 o'clock the submarine came alongside and demanded the ship's papers, but they had been thrown overboard, and the captain soon told them so. One of the submarine officers spoke excellent English, but the other had a distinct German accent, and said 'Vot' for 'What'.

"Our crew had got into the remaining boats, and the submarine took the captain, chief engineer and wireless operator prisoners.

"One of the boats was waterlogged for 20 hours, and the other, which was a sound boat, was in the water 10 hours. When it was found the Floridian was sinking, an SOS call had been sent out, and HMS Primrose, which was 130 miles away at the time, came steaming to our rescue.

"I ought to have told you that on sighting the submarine our captain had ordered 'steam ahead' and did all he could to dodge the brute. The Primrose took us to Bantry, where the Irish peasantry showed us the warmest hospitality.

"Finally we landed in good old England, and the Admiralty fitted us out with a suit and a mackintosh all round, and despatched us to our several homes. I had wired mother at Bantry and Cork, and when I arrived home on Saturday [February 10th] she cried tears of thankfulness.

"I saw the poor old Floridian turn turtle and go down. She was a ship of 4,777 tons, and a useful transport. There were five drowned - a junior mechanic aged 17, a boatswain and three firemen.

"I had signed on for 12 months, but now I shall have to get another ship, but I don't think there will be much trouble about that, and I shall never forget the kindness I have received since I came home. It will help to keep me straight. I am returning to Newport on Tuesday."

[Beds & Herts Saturday Telegraph: February 17th, 1917]