The passenger steamer _Arabic_, a vessel of 15,801 tons gross register, was outward bound to America on the 19th August, 1915, when at 9.30 a.m. she was torpedoed without warning, being then 45 miles from land. She carried 176 passengers and 261 crew, 437 in all. The submarine appears to have been hiding behind a steamer, which had been stopped and was then sinking. While hidden thus, the U-boat submerged and headed for the _Arabic_, which she torpedoed before anyone on board had become aware of her presence. The force of the explosion blew one of the boats into the air and disabled the wireless telegraphy apparatus. The ship sank in about 10 minutes. Thanks to the good seamanship and courage of her officers and crew, 390 persons were embarked in the boats before the vessel went down, only 47 lives being lost. As soon as the torpedo had been discharged the periscope of the submarine disappeared. With regard to the sinking of the _Arabic_, Count Bernstorff sent the following communication to Mr. Lansing:-- "Prompted by the desire to reach a satisfactory agreement with regard to the _Arabic_ incident, my Government has given me the following instructions:-- "The orders issued by His Imperial Majesty to the commanders of German submarines, of which I have notified you on a previous occasion, have been made so stringent that a recurrence of incidents similar to that of the _Arabic_ case is considered out of the question. According to the report of Commander Schneider of the submarine which sank the _Arabic_, Commander Schneider is convinced that the _Arabic_ intended to ram his submarine. On the other hand, the Imperial Government does not doubt the good faith of the affidavit of the British officers in the _Arabic_, according to which the _Arabic_ did not intend to ram the submarine. "The attack of the submarine was undertaken against the instructions issued to the commander. The Imperial Government regrets and disavows this act, and has notified Commander Schneider accordingly. "In these circumstances my Government is prepared to pay an indemnity for the American lives which, to its deep regret, have been lost in the _Arabic_. I am authorised to negotiate with you about the amount of this indemnity." The statement of Commander Schneider that he thought the _Arabic_ would ram him cannot be accepted. If it were true, the ship would have been struck in her fore part. This, as Colonel Concannon, of the White Star Line, has pointed out, was not the case. The _Arabic_ was struck aft. No effort was made to ram the submarine, for it was not seen, and no attempt was made to escape for the same reason. No guns were mounted on the _Arabic_.