Listing heavily to port, it was feared the vessel might take a lurch and sink suddenly. Twenty-one boats were lowered, three had been smashed by the explosion. "Abandon ship," was ordered. The bugle sounded "Silence," and silently the men went down the Jacob's ladders as if they were at drill. The destroyer _Smith_ stood close by, taking the men from the boats. Thirty officers and men remained aboard with the Captain until an hour after the torpedo struck. Hoping to save the transport, a salvage party was organized, to go on board as soon as the men could be collected from rafts and boats. The little _Smith_, which in addition to its own crew of one hundred, had aboard 800 of the _Covington's_ officers and men, encircled the transport to keep off the submarine and prevent it from firing another torpedo. Another destroyer, the _Reade_, came to the rescue; at 4:20 a. m. the British salvage tugs, _Revenger_ and _Woonda_ arrived, and at 5:30 o'clock the American tug _Concord_ reached the scene. The _Smith_, which was ordered to take to port all the crew not needed, at 5:20 left for Brest. By 6 o'clock the three tugs had the _Covington_ in tow, and were making from five to six knots through the water. Two more destroyers joined shortly after to guard the crippled ship from attack. She was then listed about twenty degrees to port, and about noon took a quick list of ten degrees more. By 1:30 p. m. she had heeled to an angle of 45 degrees. Sensing sinking conditions, the working party was directed to leave the ship, the _Nicholson_ taking them off. At 2:30 the _Covington_ began to sink rapidly by the stern and disappeared two minutes later. The ship went down with her colors flying. The only fighting ship of the Cruiser and Transport Force that was sunk--in fact, the only large United States naval vessel lost during the war--was the armored cruiser _San Diego_ (Captain H. H. Christy) sunk by a mine off Fire Island, N. Y., July 19, 1918. Proceeding from Portsmouth, N. H., to New York, the cruiser was steering what was regarded as a safe course to avoid the submarines, then operating in Atlantic waters, and the mines they had laid. Lookouts, gun-watches, fire control parties were at their stations, the whole crew on the alert. There was no sign of any U-boat or mine. Suddenly, at 11:05 a. m., there was an explosion at frame No. 78, on the port side well below the water line. "Full speed ahead," was rung by the Captain, who hoped the ship could be kept afloat, and the starboard engine operated until it was stopped by rising water. Machinist's Mate Hawthorne, who was at the throttle in the port engine room, was blown four feet under a desk. He got up, closed the throttle on the engine, which had already stopped, and then escaped up the ladder. The lieutenant on watch in the starboard engine room, closed the water tight doors, and gave instructions to the fireroom to protect the boilers.