1927 — Dec 17, Sub USS S-4 hit by USCG Paulding, sinks off Provincetown, MA — 40

— 43 AP. “Ill-Fated Sub 231 Feet Long; Built in 1919.” Decatur Sunday Review, IL. 12-18-1927, 1.
— 4 officers
–39 men
— 40 AP. “Rear Admiral Brumby Abandons All Hope for Submarine’s Crew.” 12-22-1927, p. 1.
— 40 Clancy, Dave. Shipwrecks of New England, City of Columbus. Accessed 11-15-2008.
— 40 Galveston Daily News, TX. “900 Men Have Died At Bottom of Sea…,” 5-24-1939, p. 1.
— 40 Submarine Force Library and Museum Assoc. “The Loss of USS S-4-SS-109.” 12-17-2013.
— 40 US Dept. Navy. “USS S-4 (Submarine #109, later SS-109), 1919-1936.” Oct. 16, 2005.
— 39 US Dept. Navy. “Casualties: US Navy…Marine Corps Personnel Killed and Injured…”
— 34 Cornell, James. The Great International Disaster Book (Third Edition). 1982, p. 406.

Narrative Information

Clancy: U.S. Navy submarine USS S-4 struck by U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Paulding about ¾ miles off Wood End Lighthouse, Provincetown, MA with no survivors. (Clancy, Shipwrecks of N.E.)

Cornell: “While on maneuvers off the tip of Cape Cod, the U.S. Navy submarine S-4 surfaced under the destroyer Pauling. The collision severely damaged the sub, and it sank in the waters off Provincetown, Massachusetts. Divers discovered that 6 Amembers of the 34-man crew were still alive, but several questionable decisions and delays in rescue operations meant they, too, would die from lack of oxygen. Although the nearest navy undersea rescue ship was more than three days away, military officials refused an offer of assistance from a private salvage firm. Once rescue operations began, poor weather and strong undersea currents hampered all attempts to reach the sub. In the end, it took the navy three months to raise the damaged hull and the entombed victims.”
(Cornell, James. The Great International Disaster Book (Third Edition). 1982, p. 406.)

USN: “USS S-4 (SS-109) sank after being rammed by Coast Guard cutter Paulding. 39 killed. 17 Dec. 1928.” (US Navy. “Casualties: US Navy…Marine Corps Personnel Killed and Injured…”)

Submarine Force Library and Museum Association: “On 17 December 1927, USS S-4 (SS-109), an eight-year-old S-class submarine, was running submerged just off the coast of Provincetown, MA, conducting speed and maneuverability tests between the two white buoys that marked the beginning and end of a measured nautical mile. Meanwhile, on the surface, the Coast Guard destroyer USCGC PAULDING (CG-17) was headed southeast, making 18 knots as she searched for rumrunners carrying their illegal product across the bay to thirsty buyers in Boston. At 3:37 in the afternoon, as S-4 began to surface, the officer of the deck aboard PAULDING, scanning the surrounding seas through his binoculars, spotted the telltale wake of a periscope close aboard on the port bow. “Hard astern! Full right rudder!” came the order, but not fast enough. PAULDING rammed the sub, a section of her bow telescoping into S-4’s hull and punching two holes, one in a ballast tank and one in the pressure hull. Freezing water flooded into the boat, causing her to heel to port and begin to sink by the bow. PAULDING’s crew immediately marked their position on a chart and radioed their superiors. When the destroyer came to a halt, one of her lifeboats was lowered over the side. All it found was a small oil slick, which the men aboard marked with a buoy.

“On the bottom, 110 feet down, S-4’s crew was scrambling to bring the situation under control. Men in the battery compartment stuffed clothing into the two-foot-long gash in the pressure hull, but it was soon clear that the water would not be denied. So the men evacuated the space, joining other survivors in the control room. At this point, the men were probably concerned, but not hopeless: seven years before, the entire crew of USS S-5 (SS-110) had been rescued after their boat sank to a depth of nearly 200 feet and they managed to elevate the stern above water. S-4 was not nearly that deep and still capable of blowing her aft ballast tanks. Better yet, thirty-four of the forty men on board were alive in control, the engine room, and the motor room. Only six men who had been stationed in the torpedo room were unaccounted for.

“But the situation deteriorated quickly. The saltwater flooding the battery compartment mixed with battery acid and formed toxic chlorine gas, which quickly filled any space not yet occupied by water. A ventilation duct running between the battery room and control remained open and soon the pressure of the water forced the deadly gas into the compartment full of survivors; the gas was followed by a flood of water. Crewmembers rushed to close the valve that would sever the connection, but to no avail; investigators would later determine that a section of curtain had become wedged in the valve, preventing it from closing. As control filled with thousands of gallons of freezing seawater, the men retreated aft into the engine room and smaller motor room beyond. Soon the water in control shorted out several of the switchboards, plunging the boat into darkness.

“As the ocean filled all the spaces it could reach aboard S-4, the sound of rushing water died away and the 34 men crammed into the engine and motor rooms were left in cold, dark silence… It had probably dawned on all of them by this point that when they abandoned control they had also abandoned any chance of getting to the surface on their own—the controls that blew compressed air into the ballast tanks were in that now-flooded space….

“At 8:00 the following morning, the rescue ship USS FALCON (AM-28) arrived in Provincetown to pick up ten Navy divers who had been rushed to Cape Cod to assist with the rescue effort; the vessel arrived on scene at 11:00 AM. Just fifteen minutes before, Boatswain Gracie, the man in charge of the local Coast Guard station, had managed to hook the sunken sub with a grappling hook, providing the critical linkage that needed to be made before divers could go down; he had been at the task, alone in a small boat on rolling seas and in frigid weather, since late the previous afternoon. At 1:45, veteran diver Thomas Eadie splashed into the water. Five minutes later he located the sub and began tapping on the hull, searching for survivors. When he rapped on the torpedo loading hatch he was met with six slow taps in reply, indicating six men were still alive in the space. But as he continued aft, his taps were met with silence. The 34 men in the engine and motor rooms had not survived the night….

“The weather finally let up on Wednesday and a diver was able to take the air-line down once more and hook it up to the sub. But when he tapped on the hull he received no answer. On the surface, an officer took a sample when the compressor was reversed and air was sucked back out of the sub. His analysis found a carbon-dioxide level of seven percent, too high for anyone to have survived. On 23 December, the Navy reported that all the men aboard S-4 were presumed dead….”
(Submarine Force Library and Museum Assoc. “The Loss of USS S-4-SS-109.” 12-17-2013.)

USN: “USS S-4, an 876-ton S-3 class submarine, was built by the Portsmouth Navy Yard, located in Kittery, Maine. Entering commissioned service in mid-November 1919….

“On 17 December 1927, while conducting submerged trials off Provincetown, Massachusetts, S-4 was rammed by the U.S. Coast Guard destroyer Paulding (CG-17). Holed in the starboard side, just forward of her deck gun, the submarine sank immediately. All of her officers and men were able to reach unflooded compartments as S-4 went to the bottom in 110 feet of water. However, the majority, who had gone aft, soon succumbed. In her torpedo room, forward, six men remained alive. In extremely cold water and tangled wreckage, Navy divers worked desperately to rescue them, but a storm forced the abandonment of this effort on 24 December. In all, forty men lost their lives in the tragedy.

“During the first three months of 1928, divers and other salvage personnel were able to raise the sunken S-4 and tow her to the Boston Navy Yard, where she was drydocked and repaired. She returned to active duty in October and was employed thereafter as a submarine rescue and salvage test ship.” (US Dept. Navy. “USS S-4 (Submarine #109, later SS-109), 1919-1936.” Oct. 16, 2005.)

Newspapers

Dec 17: “Provincetown, Mass., Dec. 17 – (A.P.) – Fate of 43 officers and men, the crew of the U.S.S. Submarine S-4, was in doubt tonight as the vessel lay on the ocean floor in deep water off this port, after a collision with the coast guard destroyer Paulding.

“Whether the hull of the submarine was crushed and her crew all drowned, or whether the crash had merely disabled her machinery and made it impossible for her to come to the surface, still was unknown. Those who witnessed the collision feared, however, that a major marine disaster had resulted, comparable to the loss of the submarine S-51 in September, 1925. When that vessel was sunk in collision with the steamship City of Rome, off Block Island, 33 officers and men perished.

Running Submerged.

“The destroyer, on patrol duty off Provincetown, was making for the harbor. Suddenly her lookout saw the S-4 running submerged dead ahead. There was no time to swerve from the course and the vessels crashed. The destroyer made port with her lower hold flooded. The Paulding was struck amidships, but the point at which the submarine felt the force of the blow was not known.

“The S-4 went down immediately. Boats that cruised about the place for hours found no survivors, giving the faint hope that the submarine’s hull had not been pierced. A fresh breeze and rough seas hampered the work of the small boats taking part in the work of rescue.

1800 Yards Out.

“The S-4 went down a bare 1800 yards from the shore off Wood End Coast Guard station, which is situated on the outer, or ocean side of the harbor. The water at that point is very deep, which, it was admitted, would increase the difficulties of raising the sunken vessel.

“The Paulding’s wireless message reporting the collision started a rescue fleet from the New London Coast Guard and submarine bases, and from the Boston and Portsmouth, H.H., navy yards. The submarine tender Wandank was the first to reach the position of the collision. The Wood End Coast Guard station sent its life boats to search for possible survivors, but without result.

Paulding Beached.

“The Paulding was beached at Long Point light in Provincetown Harbor when it became apparent that her hull had been damaged badly. A member of her crew named McMillan was seriously scalded by the bursting of a steam pipe after the collision. He will be taken to the hospital her tomorrow.

“A survey made by the Wandank indicated that the water is from 18 to 20 fathoms [36-40 yards] in depth at the point where the S-4 went down….

“It was emphasized at the navy department that the records of the S-4 personnel here were not up to the minute and perhaps are not accurate in all details….” (Associated Press. “U.S. Sub, 43 Aboard, Goes Down In Crash.” Decatur Sunday Review, IL. 12-18-1927, p. 1.)

Dec 17: “Washington, Dec. 17 – (A.P.) – The S-4 carried 39 men and four officers. She was commanded by Lieut. Commander R. K. Jones. Other officers assigned to the craft were Lieuts. J. A. McGinley, G. N. Fitch, and D. Weller.

“The submarine was 231 feet long, had a deadweight tonnage of 900 tons, was built and commissioned at the Portsmouth Navy Yard, November 19, 1919, and had just been overhauled.

“She was on a standardization tryout when rammed today.

Smaller Than S-51.

“The S-4 was the same class as the ill-fated S-51 but was built on different lines. She was smaller and had less torpedo capacity….

Going 18 Knots.

“The navy yard reported that the Paulding was traveling 18 knows (20¼ miles an hour) when she struck the submarine.

“Admiral Hughes announced that an oil slick had been found where the submarine was struck and the position had been marked. He ordered the Boston navy yard to send divers to the sides of the submarine and top for signals. The submarine is in 90 to 100 feet of water.

Pontoons at Scene.

“Admiral Hughes was informed over the telephone by the Boston navy yard at 6:40 p.m., that six pontoons had been placed in an emergency effort to raise the submarine. Hope was expressed that she merely was disabled and that the crew was safe.

“The S-4 had two propellers and her engines were of the Westinghouse type.

“The Paulding was turned over to the coast guard in 1924. She is a 740 ton ship and issued in the prohibition patrol.” (Associated Press. “Ill-Fated Sub 231 Feet Long; Built in 1919.” Decatur Sunday Review, IL. 12-18-1927, p. 1.)

Dec 17: “Boston, Dec. 17 – (A.P) – The submarine tender Wandank, which is on the position where the S-4 sank today in collision with the coast guard destroyer Paulding, endeavored to communicate with the crew of the sunken vessel tonight by sounding devices, but obtained no response.” (Associated Press. “No Response to Sounding Device.” Decatur Sunday Review, IL. 12-17-1927, p. 1.)

Dec 19: “Provincetown, Dec. 19 (AP) – Rescue operations at the scene of the sinking of the submarine S-4 were virtually at a standstill this morning as a 45-mile-an-hour northwest gale whipped the harbor into a rough sea. The temperature was 20 degrees above zero. Communication with the fleet was practically impossible. It was reported that the naval tug Sagamore and Inka bringing pontoons from the Brooklyn, N.Y. navy yard were hove to in Buzzards bay, but their delay in reaching here will seriously handicap efforts to effect the release of six men known to be alive aboard the submersible and the determination of the fate of the 34 others aboard.

“It was a fight against time today in which every minute was precious and the odds were admittedly against the slowly suffocating survivors in an almost impossible ration.

“It the ears of every officer and man of the rescue fleet from Rear Admiral Frank II, Brundy down to the rawest recruit, rang the desperate cry of the unfortunate men laboriously pounded out by hammer in the metallic dots and dashes of the Morse code to a diver along side on the sandy bottom:

‘How long will you be now,’ and then,

‘Please hurry.’

In Torpedo Room

“The message that told the fleet that men still lived on the S-4 came from the torpedo room. From the other compartments there was no encouraging word.

“A great hole ripped through the heavy steel plates starboard at midships and just forward of the ship’s four inch gun, left little doubt of the fate of the officers and men on duty there when the speeding prow of the Paulding clove its way into the submersible’s side.

“Aft of the conning tower there was silence too, tut there was also hope, however slight. Divers had been unable to elicit a response to their tappings because of the mass of wreckage which obstructed the decks.

Veterans Volunteer

“Two men are aboard the rescue fleet on whom the navy banked especially high. Both were veterans of the S-51 operations. One was Capt. E. J. King, who salvaged the wrecked hull of the Block Island disaster ship and who raced by seaplane to take over direct charge of similar work here. The other was Commander Ellsberg, retired, of Westfield, N.J., who supervised diving work there and whose voluntary emergence from the quiet of his retirement was one of the dramatic episodes from the log from the S-4 disaster.

“Commander Ellsberg was at home when he heard the news. He immediately offered his services and the navy department speedily cut the red tape involved by his status as a retired officer by ordering his enlistment in the naval reserve. No sooner had he been sworn in Saturday night than he was ordered to active duty. A fast express brought him to Boston while the destroyer Burrows raced from here to that port. The commander embarked late last night and today, after a swift run across Massachusetts bay, was ready for work.

20 Divers There

“Nearly 20 divers hastily assembled from naval ships and the torpedo school at Newport, R.I, were on hand to await his orders.

“Commander Ellsberg declared that from a preliminary study of the situation, he believed it might be possible to bring the bow of the submarine to the surface by attaching two pontoons to its nose. At least two days would be needed. If the ship could be put on end sufficiently to expose the torpedo tubes, the men in the forward compartment could be hauled out. He emphasized however, that any optimism would be decidedly premature….” (Associated Press. “‘Please Hurry,’ Exhort Men Trapped in Submarine S-4.” Lowell Sun, MA, 12-19-1927, p. 13.)

Dec 20: “Provincetown, Dec. 20. (AP) – One hundred and five feet below the storm and gale lashed waters of this harbor, six plucky members of the crew of the sunken submarine S-4, were literally at grips with death today as the hour neared when navy experts said continued life would be impossible. On the surface a rescue fleet rode out the storm or hugged port helpless to intervene.

“It was houses since Lieut. Graham Newell Fitch, leader of that desperate band, had tapped out the last message to the outside world, a message that naval officers feared to answer. “‘Is there any hope?’ that was at 4:45 yesterday afternoon. Laboriously, by hammer, the six spelled their names and for the first time it was definitely known who the survivors were of the 40 men who had sailed from here on the ill-fated trial cruise. Beside Fitch they were:

Frank Snizck, torpedo man, Ridgefield Park, N.J.
Russell A. Crabb, torpedo man, San Diego, Calif.
Roger Leslie Short, torpedo man, Booneville, Mo.
Joseph L. Stevens, seaman, Providence, R.I.
George Pelnar, seaman, South Omaha, Neb.

“Fitch made his home at New London, Conn.

“The signals were picked up by a companion underseas craft, the S-8 on its oscillator.

“A time limit of life at early Wednesday morning was fixed by Lieut. Charles E. Moinsen, navy submarine expert at Washington. Moinsen declared that a normal discharge of carbon dioxide from the imprisoned six would bring death in 87.7 hours from the time of the crash, 3:37 o’clock Saturday afternoon. Moinsen made his calculation before it was ascertained that Fitch was among the six.

“All was in readiness today to renew the heretofore abortive attempts to reach the compartment. But with the sea rougher than at any time since the rescue fleet assembled and with a forecast of continued gales, naval men admitted that prospects of an early resumption of work were doubtful.”
(Associated Press. “‘Is There Any Hope?’ Last Message Tapped Out By Men in Ill-Fated Sub.” Lowell Sun, MA, 12-20-1927, p. 6.)

Dec 21: “Provincetown, Mass., Dec. 21 (AP) – Diving operations were resumed at 12:30 o’clock today in an attempt to rescue the six men imprisoned in wreck of the sunken submarine S-4. The first man to go down was James Ingram wo was the first to be lowered when the S-51 was sunk off Block Island two years ago. At noon today preparations had been completed for sending divers down to the sunken submarine S-4 after a heavy northwest gale had forced suspension of work for two days.

“The mine sweepers Falcon and Lark and the submarine tender Bushnell were moored together above the position of the S-4 and divers were prepared to go down in relays in the effort to lead an air line to the torpedo room of the S-4 in which six men have been imprisoned.

“Meantime 10 civilian divers had been transferred from the Falcon to the submarine S-8 to enable them to study the interior of the vessel in preparation for joining in the rescue work. These divers already had studied blue prints of the S-4 but it was deemed advisable to have them gain further first hand information before going down to the wreck.

“Two more pontoons to be used in raising operations arrived here today in tow of the tug Luka, making a total of five now in the harbor. At the same time two of the three pontoons that had been in the harbor since Monday were hoisted aboard the derrick lighter Century which was believed to be preparing to go out to the scene of the disaster.

Fear All 40 Dead

“Fear that six members of the crew of the S-4 had survived three days of the horrors of darkness, cold and suffocation only to join their 34 shipmates in death gripped the rescue fleet today.

“The navy, determined that the sufferings of the men bottled up in the forward chamber of the wrecked submarine should not be in vain, was prepared to rescue them at any cost, but human resources had been powerless before the fury of the ocean. Since early Monday morning, the tossing of the seas have defeated the carefully planned campaign of the divers and no man had been able to descend in the 105 feet of water surging over the wreck of the S-4.

“A tenuous thread of hope hung from the report of the S-4’s sister ship, S-8, that it had heard seven taps at 6 o’clock last night ‘which may have come from the S-4.’ But the S-8’s oscillating sending called steadily, frantically four hours after that and no one answered. And the best minds among the navy submarine men after most careful calculations determined that the six men could not live more than a few hours without oxygen.

“It was further pointed out that at the time the S-8 heard the seven tops, 24 hours had elapsed since the signals of the prisoners had indicated that their oxygen supply would be exhausted, and 12 hours had elapsed since they had answered the S-8’s frantic calls.

No Sounds Since Last Night

“No sounds from the torpedo room of the S-4 in which six men are imprisoned had been heard since 6 o’clock last night….

“Just before 10 o’clock this morning the S-8 pulled up anchor and went away from the spot where she had been endeavoring to communicate with the S-4. The Falcon came and took anchorage and the S-8 wig-wagged for permission to charge her batteries. This was given from the Falcon.

“The S-8 had been under orders to remain in position as long as there was any hope of communicating with her sister ship. Her action in moving away was interpreted as meaning that there was no longer possibility that life remained on board the S-4 and that no more signals might be looked for.

“Two other submarines, the S-5 and the S-3 were at anchor in the inner harbor, a mile and a half from the scene of the disaster….” (Associated Press. “Rescue Operations Resumed, Diver Goes Down in Effort to Lead Air Line To Where Six Men Imprisoned.” Berkshire County Eagle, Pittsfield, MA, 12-21-1927, p. 1.)

Dec 22: “Provincetown, Mass., Dec. 22 – (A.P.) – Rear Admiral Frank H. Brumby, in charge of salvage operations at the sunken submarine S-4 admitted at 11 o’clock today that there was no longer hope that life existed on board the submarine. ‘I have not the slightest doubt that there is no life on the S-4,’ Admiral Brumby said. The admiral said he was unable to announce when rescue operations would be suspended. ‘That is up the the navy department in Washington,’ he said. ‘We have been keeping Washington informed and action of suspension of operations must come from there.

“All the officers directing salvage work here agreed with the admiral that there was no longer room for hope for the six men imprisoned in the torpedo room of the submarine.

“Admiral Brumby’s statement was made 115 hours after the S-4 was sent to the bottom in collision with the coastguard destroyer Pauling last Saturday. Thirteen hours had passed since air lines were attached to the listening tube of the S-4 and air forced into the torpedo room.

“Since rescue operations were resumed yesterday after being held up for two days by gales, the oscillator of the mine sweeper Falcon flagship of the salvage fleet, has sent signals at 15-minute intervals to the S-4. There has been no sound from the sunken ship.

“While refusing to speak officially, several officers of the salvage fleet said that when it was finally determined that no life existed on the S-4, salvage work would be abandoned for the time. The wind veered to the northwest today threatening heavy weather and it was believed conditions would be unsuitable for salvage work for some time.

“During the day Joseph J. McGinley of Norristown, Pa., whose son was executive officer of the S-4, went aboard the Falcon and conferred with Admiral Brumby for half an hour. When he left the ship he said he was satisfied that the navy had done all in its power to rescue the men imprisoned in the submarine.” (Associated Press. “Rear Admiral Brumby Abandons All Hope for Submarine’s Crew.” North Adams Transcript, MA, 12-22-1927, p. 1.)

May 24, 1939: “The S-4 sank in 100 feet of water off Provincetown, Mass. There were signs of life aboard the stricken S-4 as rescue crews above fought frantically to free those imprisoned before their oxygen was exhausted. But hours later, when divers pierced the torpedo room with oxygen it was too late.” (Galveston Daily News, TX. “900 Men Have Died…” 24 May 1939, 1.)

Sources

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Associated Press. “‘Is There Any Hope?’ Last Message Tapped Out By Men in Ill-Fated Sub.” Lowell Sun, MA, 12-20-1927, p. 6. Accessed 7-18-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/lowell-sun-dec-20-1927-p-24/

Associated Press. “No Response to Sounding Device.” Decatur Sunday Review, IL. 12-17-1927, p. 1. Accessed 7-18-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/decatur-review-dec-17-1927-p-17/

Associated Press. “‘Please Hurry,’ Exhort Men Trapped in Submarine S-4.” Lowell Sun, MA, 12-19-1927, p. 13. Accessed 7-18-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/lowell-sun-dec-19-1927-p-33/

Associated Press. “Rear Admiral Brumby Abandons All Hope for Submarine’s Crew.” North Adams Transcript, MA, 12-22-1927, p. 1. Accessed 7-18-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/north-adams-transcript-dec-22-1927-p-1/

Associated Press. “Rescue Operations Resumed, Diver Goes Down in Effort to Lead Air Line To Where Six Men Imprisoned.” Berkshire County Eagle, Pittsfield, MA, 12-21-1927, p. 1. Accessed 7-18-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/pittsfield-berkshire-county-eagle-dec-21-1927-p-1/

Associated Press. “U.S. Sub, 43 Aboard, Goes Down In Crash.” Decatur Sunday Review, IL. 12-18-1927, p. 1. Accessed 7-17-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/decatur-review-dec-17-1927-p-17/

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Cornell, James. The Great International Disaster Book (Third Edition). New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1982.

Galveston Daily News, TX. “900 Men Have Died At Bottom of Sea in Last Century,” 5-24-1939, p. 1. At: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=45239546

Submarine Force Library and Museum Association. “The Loss of USS S-4-SS-109.” 12-17-2013. Accessed 7-17-2020 at: https://www.ussnautilus.org/the-loss-of-uss-s-4-ss-109/

United States Department of the Navy. Casualties: US Navy and Marine Corps Personnel Killed and Injured in Selected Accidents and Other Incidents Not Directly the Result of Enemy Action. Washington, DC: Naval Historical Center. 2008.

United States Department of the Navy. Naval Historical Center. Online Library of Selected Images: U.S. Navy Ships. “USS S-4 (Submarine #109, later SS-109), 1919-1936.” Oct. 16, 2005. Accessed at: http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-s/ss109.htm