VIII. THE DISTRESS OF THE NIBELUNGS
After leaving Penang the captain decided to cruise to the southward. We imagined that all the trading ships in the Bay of Bengal would be held up in their harbors again for a considerable time. Emden herself had given definite notice of her presence in this region when she sank the Zemtchug and the Mousquet. Also we had to assume that the hunt for the Emden in the Bay of Bengal would now be more thorough than heretofore. Therefore it seemed that the Straits of Sunda gave more promise of success in capturing merchantmen. The cargo vessels coming from Australia hardly touched the waters around India; instead, when coming from the Straits of Sunda or from West Australia they proceed across the Indian Ocean straight toward Sokotra and then into the Red Sea.
The next thing was to find our collier Buresk. We left her outside of Penang. Due to her slow speed of barely 11 knots, she could not follow us during the engagement.
The Buresk was found at her previously appointed position. The news of the fight created the greatest excitement. And now, at the customary speed of 11 knots, we proceeded south. Soon we sighted the islands lying off the western coast of Sumatra. As the main ships' route lay between Sumatra and the islands, the captain decided to remain in these straits. It was not so rough behind the islands as in the open sea. We could coal more readily. Further, we had reason to believe that the first warships to search these quiet waters would be English and Japanese torpedo-boat destroyers. It was not impossible that we might catch one or more of these.
Near the island of Sima-loer we coaled once more. The sea was so exceptionally calm that we speedily finished the job. The Emden was then about eight sea miles off the coast, well outside of neutral waters.
Soon a small fishing vessel, motor driven, came out from the beach and headed for us. It carried the flag of Holland at the masthead. A Dutch officer, who introduced himself as the commandant of the island, came aboard to ask if the Emden were not in neutral waters. In this case he requested us to go a little farther out. Whether that was the real reason for his visit, or whether he merely wanted to carry on a little conversation, I do not know. A mere estimate by eye would surely tell him that we were considerably more than three sea miles distant from the beach.
We asked him aboard. The captain also invited him to his cabin. He told us that Portugal had declared war on us. Evidently they did this for our special enjoyment. Good jokes were always welcome to us.
Unwittingly I had at first offended the commander of the island. When his boat came alongside, mistaking him for a fisherman, I asked if he had any fish for sale, which he indignantly resented. But this early misunderstanding did not mar our pleasant acquaintance. He seemed to enjoy himself in our mess room.
The Emden cruised about in the waters of Sunda Straits for some time. But nothing was sighted. Evidently, even in this region, all shipping had been entirely held up. Ordinarily, shipping is very active in the Sunda Straits.
For two months our ship had been cruising around among enemies. I have previously said that everybody on board was now certain that the Emden's operations could not continue much longer. Conditions were rapidly becoming worse. When we first entered the Bay of Bengal we knew that our enemies were not ready to thoroughly search for us and that there were few warships in the Indian Ocean. Most of their ships were after our armored cruisers in the Pacific Ocean. Soon, however, we read the reports in the newspapers and secured other information which showed us that a great number of more powerful ships were on our trail. Some of this information we received from the crews of the captured steamers.
Even the English-speaking Indians whom we captured on the steamers could speak of nothing but German defeats. Later on, however, they changed their opinions. One Indian, whom we questioned along about the end of September, said that the English newspapers contained nothing but German reverses. They also had Indian newspapers which printed articles substantially different. These papers were then suppressed by the English. But most of the Indians understood that England was not as successful as the English claimed. They were greatly pleased by this, and said: "England by-and-by finished."
Another Indian told us a characteristic story. He said that two English cruisers with two smoke-pipes and two masts always remained at Colombo. One of these was always on watch at sea, and, when relieved by the other, returned to port, etc. One day one of these cruisers returned with only one mast and one smokepipe, many wounded aboard, and the ship pretty well shot up. The other cruiser never returned again. Is this perhaps one of the cases where the Emden was destroyed?
A Chinese, coming from Hong Kong, said that one day two Japanese cruisers, severely injured by gunfire and filled up with many wounded, came into Hong Kong. Emden did not take part in this sea-fight, nor, as we now know, did the other ships of the German squadron.
All in all, the Emden was being pursued most thoroughly. The moment when her game would be played out was not far distant. The spirit of the entire ship, however, was for keeping on going. If one should come he would soon see with whom he had to reckon.
As no more ships were sighted in the Straits of Sunda, the captain decided to destroy the radio and cable station on Keeling Island. The cable connection between Australia and the home country had long since been destroyed by the other vessels of our squadron. Keeling was the last direct connection between Australia and England. Should this be destroyed, the only other connection would be via the neutral Dutch cable in the East Indies. We therefore assumed that England had made some preparation to protect their last station. It would have been an easy matter to transport several hundred men to Keeling and prevent a landing by the Emden's landing force. The only thing the Emden could do was to destroy the station with her heavy guns. But this would not accomplish much. Especially would the cables have escaped. And as for the small apparatus needed on land, a reserve instrument could have been rigged up in a few minutes, and several hours after the destruction of the building the telegraphing could have been started up again. Also the English might have known that in case the island were attacked by the Emden they would not have to fear a long bombardment. The captain would have to save his ammunition for other purposes, instead of wasting it on the superficial destruction of the telegraph service.
As we had to reckon on resistance, we made all possible preparations in order that the landing force would be as powerful as we could make it. The four machine guns were taken along. A force of 50 men was equipped. In addition to the machine guns, the offensive equipment consisted of 29 rifles and 24 revolvers. It was impossible for the Emden, with her small complement, to land more than 50 men. We had previously, .out of our own crew, manned the prizes Pontoporros, Exford and Buresk, and several men were also on the Markomannia.
During the night of November 8-9, 1914, the Emden and her tender Buresk were 50 sea miles west of Keeling. The collier Exford had been sent to another rendezvous in the ocean. It was possible that an English cruiser might be found at anchor in the harbor of Keeling. Then there was the danger of having the Buresk sighted and captured, while the Emden, returning after the completion of her task, would have to run the risk of escaping from a stronger cruiser. If she escaped she would then find her other collier at some point out of the sight of the enemy.
Buresk received orders during the night to remain 50 sea miles west of- the island and not to come to Keeling unless she received orders by radio. The captain intended, in case everything went off smoothly and after the destruction of the station, to coal in Keeling Harbor.
At sunrise on the morning of November 9 the Emden was close to the entrance to Port Refuge, the anchorage of the island of Keeling. The difficult channel through the reefs was found. Emden anchored. The strong landing force embarked in the boats and started for the landing. It was 6.30 a. m. The landing was made without resistance.
After about two hours the work ashore was completed. The landing force was making ready to re-embark when the Emden sent a signal by searchlight, "Expedite work!" Shortly thereafter the Emden blew her siren. That meant danger. The landing force saw the Emden quickly hoist her anchor, turn around and leave the harbor. The attempt to cut across the reefs and thereby catch up with the ship failed. Then in a few minutes Emden hoisted her battleflags and opened fire on an opponent that could not be seen from the boats. His presence, however, was denoted by the high splashes caused by shells striking close aboard the Emden.
Unable to be of the slightest assistance to their ship, the landing force was obliged to remain ashore gnashing their teeth and watching the unequal fight that was now in progress.
The Emden's vis-a-vis was the English-Australian cruiser Sydney. She being one and a half times larger, five years younger, equipped with side-armor, and carrying a battery with the same number of guns per broadside as the Emden, but each gun one and a half times larger, and having the superior speed, the result of this engagement was never in doubt. The inevitable and fatal hour had struck.
Soon the ships engaged in a running fight at a range of about four to five thousand meters. Broadsides of "iron-greetings" were exchanged. At first it seemed as if the enemy had suffered heavily. The Emden's salvos from the very beginning landed in the forward part of the enemy's ship. The gunnery of the English was not of a very superior order. Although our ship had been under fire for a considerable time, not one hit had been made on her. Then a heavy salvo landed on the Emden's stern. The heavy shells easily penetrated the unarmored sides of the Emden, causing extraordinary damage. Fire broke out under the poop. For about 15 minutes flames shot 20 to 25 meters in the air out of the after end of the ship. The gray clouds were streaked with white steam, indicating that a steam pipe on the starboard side must have been pierced. These serious injuries did not, however, prevent the Emden from continuing her energetic attack on the enemy. She turned with full rudder and went after him.
The stream of projectiles from her bow guns never ceased. A few minutes after the Emden turned toward him the enemy cruiser also turned away to starboard and drew away from our ship. As we had meanwhile noticed that he had been hit several times, we, on shore, silently hoped that he had received some fatal injuries. Evidently this was not the case. He headed away at full speed, but shortly after he came about again. No doubt he was trying to increase the range in order to use his more powerful guns and still keep outside the effective range of the Emden's lighter battery.
Meanwhile the Emden received some more serious injuries. While turning toward the enemy, a shell knocked the forward smoke-pipe down. This huge, bulky mass lay athwart the forecastle. Almost at the same time another shell carried the foremast by the board. When I saw, this I knew that at least one of my comrades lived no more—the control officer in the foretop.
The fire aboard the Emden continued to rage, seeming gradually to suffocate them all. Instead of flames we now saw clouds of smoke evidently caused by their attempting to put the fire out. Running along side by side, firing heavily all the time, the two engaged cruisers disappeared over the horizon.
The fight started shortly after 8.30 a. m. The Emden's landing force now had to prepare an old schooner lying in the harbor, Ayesha by name, for a trip to sea in order to be able to leave the island in case the Emden did not return. As the day Wore on we could, on several occasions, see the Emden near the horizon, but not near enough to be able to make out anything. Unfortunately, we could see from time to time large, black smoke-clouds, caused by the Indian or Australian coal which the Sydney was using. The landing force, therefore, had to assume that the fight was still going on.
Shortly before dark that evening both vessels again approached. They still continued to fire. The last of the fight that the landing force saw was shortly before sunset. The Emden was then steering at slow speed to the eastward. The ship was almost entirely under the horizon. Only one smoke-pipe and the mainmast remained standing, but they gave us the indications in regard to her course and speed.
The limit of visibility, that is, the distance from Keeling to the horizon, was about eight to ten sea miles. It was, therefore, certain that shortly before sunset the Emden not only remained afloat, but was not more than eight to ten sea miles distant from South Keeling. The Sydney was nearer the island. We could see her masts, smoke-pipes, superstructure and upper deck. Both vessels still fired, but the Emden's fire was intermittent and not very heavy. Either her ammunition was exhausted, for she had expended a considerable amount during the Madras bombardment and the Penang battle, or a majority of her guns were put out of action.
At sunset the Sydney broke off the engagement and steered in a northwesterly direction. Emden was heading easterly.
Gradually the ships drew outside of the range of their guns. The firing ceased.
The sun sets. It is getting dark. Like a shroud, night draws over both ships.
The landing force leaves Keeling on the Ayesha in order to hunt the Emden.
And so it happened that a ship, completely overpowered by the enemy, managed to continue the fighting for about ten hours. The combined advantages of armor, speed and armament need not be explained to those who are acquainted with naval affairs. On land, a small detachment, properly equipped, can utilize the natural surroundings to lie under cover behind wire defences with decked-over field-pieces and machine guns, and withstand a decidedly more powerful attacking foe for long periods, and even prevent his attaining his goal, as, for instance, an attempt to break through his line. The attacker cannot gain any decided advantage because of his superior numbers. His superiority is offset by the uses to which nature is put by the weaker defending force.
But at sea it is very different. There is no protection. The result is invariably decided in favor of the personnel enjoying the superiority of gunfire, the greater thickness of armor, and the superior speed.
Considering these factors, it becomes very evident that the Emden fought against heavy odds. Unarmored, decidedly smaller, handicapped by an inferior battery and slower speed than her armored opponent, she still managed to battle for half a day until darkness put an end to the engagement.
During the night the landing-force failed to pick up the Emden. Not until three weeks later, on their arrival at Penang, did they learn of the fate of their ship.
The song is ended. Emden is no more. The rocky reefs of North Keeling became her grave.
But just as long as the monsoons whisper through the high-crowned palms of this now world-famous island, joining the white, foaming surf of the Indian Ocean in singing the death song of the Emden, that long will people speak and sing of "The Flying Dutchman," the little German ship that, in the great World's War of 1914, cruised in great circles around in the open ocean, and, for months at a time, put the fear of God into the enemy.
Schiff ohne Hafen, Schiff ohne Ruh,
Fliegende, fliegende Emden Du.
Deutscher Lorbeer urn Mast und Bug,
Hinter Dir her der englische Fluch.
Schiff urn Schiff in den Grund hinein
Und das Meer, und das Meer, und das Meer war Dein.
Schiff ohne Haf en, S.chiff ohne Ruh,
Herrliche, herrliche Emden Du.
Warst nun getroffen von feindlicher Hand?
Warst nun vergangen in lodernen Brand?
Warst nun versunken im weiten Meer?
Warst nun gestorben? Nein, nimmermehr, nimmermehr.
Schiff ohne Haf en, Schiff ohne Ruh,
Unvergessliche Emden Du.
Kannst ja nicht sterben, es jagt daher
Ewig Dein Schatten fiber das Meer.
Ewig dem Feinde zu Fluch und Leid.
Ewig in deutscher Unsterblichkeit.
TRANSLATOR'S NOTE.—The foregoing is quoted verbatim in German so that the German reader may not lose the sentiment in these verses. The following translation is submitted with many apologies, etc, to the author.
Ship without harbor, ship without rest,
Our fleeing Emden, we love thee best.
Singing thy deeds in German verse,
Ever behind thee the English curse.
Ship after ship sent down to the deep,
But the sea, the broad sea, was thine to keep.
Ship without harbor, ship without rest,
Wonderful Emden, we love thee best.
Even though struck by the enemy shell,
Even though burned by -a. raging hell,
Even though sunk on a far away shore,
Hast been forgotten? No, nevermore.
Ship without harbor, ship without rest,
Memorable Emden, we love thee best.
Thou hast not died, ever we see
Thy flying shadow racing the sea.
Always the curse of the foe to be
Ever thy deeds in our memory.
PRESS CLIPPINGS
[Norddeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung, November 12, 1914]
THE "EMDEN" AND HER COMPULSORY GUESTS
The adventures of four English captains whose vessels were sunk by the Emden in the Indian Ocean are reported in the Ceylon Times of September 29, 1914, as follows:
Captain J. J. Tullock of the Tymerie relates: "We left Colombo on Friday (Sept. 25) and sailed along until at 11.25 p. m. we ran across a man-of-war without lights. The warship, which, as we later discovered, was the Emden, sent us a signal by lantern to stop. A boat, commanded by a lieutenant, was lowered and approached us. The officer said to me: "We are a German man-of-war and I want to see your ship's papers." Then they gave us 10 minutes to leave the ship and informed us that we were prisoners. After the Germans had searched the ship for provisions and the last boat had left our ship, we heard a muffled explosion. They had blown up the ship and she sank in the ocean. The chief engineer and I were taken aboard the Emden and treated very decently. They would not provide us with lights at night. But the officers gave us cards so that we could play during the day. The ship was full of living things, and even though they had many provisions which they took from captured ships, they seemed to be using them very sparingly."
Captain J. Isdale of the Ribera (sunk 300 miles west of Colombo) said: "My mate saw him first. Cruiser in sight, captain,' he called to me. Then the cruiser made the signal Stop immediately!' I said to the mate, 'Tell him, he has no right to stop us before he shows his flag.' The next instant the flag was hoisted. 'Damn we are finished!' Then an officer boarded us and said, Gather up as much clothes as possible and be quick about it, your ship is about to sink.' Then he asked about provisions and took everything along with him because, he said, they had to have them to live on. Otherwise he was very friendly. What would you, captain, 'tis the luck of war.' He gave me a half hour to take everything we wanted to the Grypevale, a captured ship, that was to take the prisoners to Colombo, the nearest English port."
Captain W. H. Gibson of the Foyle (sunk 315 miles off Colombo): "The German officers were very polite. I may say extraordinarily polite. Before we left in the GryPevale for Colombo, they all wished us a pleasant journey."
Captain D. Harris of the King Lud: "'Unfortunately we have no harbor to which to send you; as you all did to our ships,' said the officer who came on board my ship. Get ready to leave your ship. She must be sunk within one hour.'"
[Norddeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung, November 8, 1914]
How THE "EMDEN" SHOT UP MADRAS
Brief news reports are now drifting in regarding the bold deed of our Emden, who, when she bombarded Madras, gave the Englishmen a wholesome scare.
"The night of September 22d was quiet and peaceful," says a reporter from Madras in describing the event. "The moon was not shining, and thick clouds hid the skies, when suddenly, about four kilometers outside of the harbor, there appeared an unusual light. A series of detonations followed, suggesting heavy explosions. Several seconds later the grayish, white light was replaced by high red flames that illuminated the whole sky, accompanied by powerful crashes and booming, and then all was still. I ran from my veranda to the roof of my house where the rolling flames could be seen much more easily and where I could hear many other noises such as the rattling of autos, tooting of trumpets, and the ringing of bells in the new court house. What had happened? We had known for several days that the German cruiser Emden was in the Bay of Bengal. She had captured and sunk several ships in the northern part of the bay and it was rumored that she would probably eventually visit Madras. Evidently that is what had happened. The cruiser had quietly approached until she was a short distance from the harbor and, from there, she sent her messengers of destruction into the city. One projectile fell in the bed room of the director of the Burmah Oil Company. He ran down stairs in order to get his wife and family to safety, when he saw a shell hit on the petroleum tanks; a few minutes later a shell set fire to one of the other tanks. Giant flames burst forth. One of the men on night watch was killed, another wounded. Also an Indian policeman was killed down in the harbor; his body was found later on in the water. One shell fell on a ship in the harbor, killing and wounding several people. As soon as the oil tanks caught fire, the Emden fired a few more shots into the town that fell in various different localities. The defences of Madras are not very strong, but there are several guns here that now came into action. After the third shot from these guns, Emden put out her searchlights, which were in use during the bombardment, and disappeared into the darkness. Unfortunately, Madras has no searchlights with which she might have been picked up."
In another letter concerning the bombardment, an officer from Madras writes: "The captain of the Emden is a Sahib (gentleman). He wanted to do some damage to the town, but to spare as many lives as possible. He had officers and men aboard who knew Madras perfectly. The ships in the harbor were easier prey than the petroleum tanks. Why did he not shoot at the ships? He knew that if he managed to set fire to the oil tanks the burning oil would flow into the harbor and set fire to the ships. For this reason I say that the Emden's captain is a Sahib. But his shells struck empty tanks and those that contained refined illuminating oil. So he did not quite succeed in his task."
BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF EMDEN AND SYDNEY
"EMDEN"
Built at Danzig. Commissioned, Fall of 19°8.
Authorized, 1906. Laid down, June, 1906. Launched, May 26, 1908.
Length, 386.6 feet. Beam, 44.3 feet. Draught (mean), 15.8 feet.
Displacement, 3592 tons.
I. H. P., 16,168, equals 24.1 knots.
Coal capacity, 393 to 836 tons.
Engines, two sets triple expansion reciprocating.
Boilers, 12 Schultz.
Armor, deck, 2 inches to .8 inch. Conning tower, 3.9 inches.
Armament, to 4.1-inch (40 caliber); 2 machine guns. Torpedo tubes, 2 18-inch submerged on broadside.
Complement, 361.
"SYDNEY"
Built at Govan.
Laid down, April 14, 1911. Launched, May 30, 1912.
Length, 456.5 feet. Beam, 49.8 feet. Draught (mean), 15.7 feet.
Displacement, 5400 tons.
I. H. P., 22,000, equals 24.7 knots.
Fuel capacity, coal, 650 to moo tons; fuel oil, 250 tons.
Engines, 4 shafts, Parsons turbines. Boilers, Yarrow.
Armor, belt, 3 inches; deck, 1 inch.
Armament, 8 6-inch (50 caliber); 4 3-Pdr.; 4 machine guns. Torpedo tubes, 2 21-inch submerged on broadside.
Complement, 376.
THE EMDEN-SYDNEY ENGAGEMENT
Extracts from a letter written by an English naval officer aboard H. M. S. Sydney, describing this engagement, taken from the London Times of December 15, 1914.
"On November 9 we were steaming about 50 miles to the eastward of the Cocos Islands (southwest of Java), heading for Colombo, when at 7 a. m. we took in a very interrupted wireless message from the Cocos wireless station: Strange warship . . . . off entrance.' The Melbourne, as senior officer, ordered us to raise steam for full speed and go and investigate.
"At 9.15 a. m. the tops of the cocoanut trees of Keeling Islands were sighted. At 9.20 we sighted the Emden, or rather the tops of her funnels, 12 or 15 miles away. At 9.40 a. m. she opened fire at a very big range, and shortly after that we started in on her.
"Throughout the action I was almost constantly engaged running backwards and forwards between the ammunition hoist and the forecastle gun or between the hoist and No. 1 starboard or No. 1 port.
"The hottest part of the action for us was the first half-hour. We opened fire from our port guns to begin with. I was standing just behind No. I port, and the gunlayer (Atkins, 1st class petty officer) said, Shall I load, Sir?' I was surprised, but deadly keen there should be no 'flap,' so said, No, don't load till you get the order.' Next he said, 'Emden's fired, Sir.' So I said, 'All right, load, but don't bring the gun to the ready.' I found out afterwards that the order to load had been received by the other guns to minutes, and my anti-'flap' precautions, though they did not the slightest harm, were thrown away on Atkins, who was as cool as a cucumber throughout the action.
"Later I heard a crash and looking aft saw that a shell had hit near Gun No. 2 starboard. But owing to the screen being in the way, I did not know it had knocked out practically the whole of that gun's crew. Not seeing any flame or smoke rising (we cope with the smallest fire immediately) I went on with my job. This required continual attention. The men are splendid at loading drill, but to practise supply of ammunition is almost impossible in peace time. To have a big supply stacked on the upper deck is far too dangerous a proceeding in action, and what with getting an even distribution of projectiles and cartridges between the two guns, getting the safety caps off, with fiddly pins and things to take out, attending to misfires, cheering up the one or two who seemed to be pulling dry,' you can imagine I had little time to be thinking much about the Emden. I noticed once or twice when going forward the starboard side to the forecastle gun that we seemed to be in the thick of it. There was a lot of Wheee-oo, Wheee-oo, Wheee-oo,' and the 'But-but-but' of the shell striking the water beyond, and as the range was pretty big, this is quite possible, since the angle of descent would be pretty steep.
"Coming aft, I heard a shot graze the top of the shield of No. x starboard. A petty officer now came up limping from aft, and said that he had just carried an officer below (he was not dangerously hit), and that the after control position had been knocked right out and every one wounded (they were marvelously lucky). I told him if he was really able to carry on to go aft to No. 2 starboard and see there was no fire, and if there was that any charges about were to be thrown overboard at once. He was very game and limped away aft. He got aft to find a very bad cordite fire just starting. He with others got this put out. I later noticed some smoke rising aft, and ran aft to find that it was just the remains of what they had put out, but found two men, one with a badly wounded foot, sitting on the gun platform, and a petty officer lying on the deck a little further aft, with a nasty wound in his back. I found one of the men was unwounded, but badly shaken. However, he pulled himself together when I spoke to him, and told him I wanted him to do what he could for the wounded. I then ran back to my group.
"All the time we were going 25 and sometimes as much as 26 knots. We had the speed on the Emden and fought as suited ourselves. We next changed round to starboard guns and I then found the gunlayer of No. x starboard had been knocked out close to the conning tower, so I brought Atkins over to fire No. x starboard. I was quite deaf by now, as in the hurry there had been no thought of getting cotton wool. This is a point I won't overlook next time.
"Coming aft the port side from the forecastle gun I was met by a lot of men cheering and waving their caps. I said, What's happened?" She's gone, Sir, she's gone.' I ran to the ship's side, and no sign of a ship could I see. If one could have seen a dark cloud of smoke, it would have been different. But I could see no sign of anything. So called out, "All hands turn out the lifeboats, there will be men in the water.' They were just starting to do this when someone called out, She's still firing, Sir,' and every one ran back to the guns. What had happened was a cloud of yellow or very light colored smoke had obscured her from view, so that looking in her direction one's impression was that she had totally disappeared. Later we turned again and engaged her on the other broadside.
"By now her three funnels and her foremast had been shot away, and she was on fire aft. We turned again, and after giving her a salvo or two with the starboard guns saw her run ashore on North Keeling Island. So at 11.20 a. m. we ceased firing, the action having lasted one hour and 40 minutes.
"Our hits were not very serious. We were ' hulled' in about three places. The shell that exploded in the boys' mess deck, apart from ruining the poor little beggars' clothes, provided a magnificent stock of trophies. For two or three days they kept finding fresh pieces. The only important damage was the after control platform, which is one mass of gaping holes and tangled iron, and the foremost range-finder shot away. Other hits, though 'interesting,' 'don't signify.'
"We started chasing a collier which had been in attendance on the Emden, and when we boarded we found they had opened the sea cocks and the ship was sinking fast, so we took every one off her and returned to the Emden, getting back there at about 4 p.m..
"They sent a man aloft to cut down the colors, and waved a big white flag from forward. It was getting dark and we did not know for certain that the cruiser K5nigsberg might not be near, so we could do no rescue work that night and had to steam away. A cry in the darkness, and we stopped, and lifeboats were lowered to pick up a nearly exhausted, but very lucky German sailor. The fourth rescued from the water that day.
"November 10.—Early in the morning we made for the cable station, to find that the party landed by the Germans to destroy the station had seized a schooner and departed. The poor devils aren't likely to go far with a leaking ship and the leathers removed from all the pumps. Although they had broken up all the instruments, the cable people had a duplicate set buried, so that was satisfactory.
"At 11:10 a. m. we arrived off the Emden again. I was sent over to her in one of the cutters. Luckily her stern was sticking out beyond where the surf broke, so that with a rope from the stern of the ship one could ride close under one quarter, with the boat's bow to seaward. The rollers were very big, and the surging to and fro and so on made getting aboard fairly difficult. However, the Germans standing aft gave me a hand up, and I was received by the captain of the Emden. I told him from our captain that if he would give his parole the captain was prepared to take all his crew on board the Sydney and take them straight up to Colombo. He stuck a little over the word 'parole,' but readily agreed when I explained the exact scope of it. And now came the dreadful job of getting the badly wounded into the boats. There were 15 of these. Luckily we have a very good pattern of light stretcher into which men can be strapped. We got three badly wounded in each boat. The Germans were all suffering badly from thirst, so we hauled the boats' water casks up on deck, and they eagerly broached them, giving the wounded some first.
"I took an early opportunity of saluting the captain of the Emden and saying, 'You fought very well, sir.' He seemed taken aback, and said 'No.' I went away, but presently he came up to me and said, Thank you very much for saying that, but I was not satisfied. We should have done better. You were very lucky in shooting away all my voice-pipes at the beginning.'
"When I got a chance, with all the boats away, I went to have a look round the ship. I have no intention of describing what I saw. With the exception of the forecastle, which is hardly touched from fore-bridge to stern post. she is nothing but a shambles, and the whole thing was most shocking. The German doctor asked me to signal for some morphia, sent me aft, and I never came forward again.
"Of the German officers, Witthoef, the torpedo lieutenant, was a thoroughly nice fellow. Lieutenant Schal was also a good fellow, and half English. It quite shook them when they found out that the captain had asked that there be no cheering on entering Colombo, but we certainly did not want cheering with rows of badly wounded men laid out in cots on the quarter deck. Captain von Muller is a very fine fellow.
"At Colombo we dropped all our wounded cargo, English and German. From the number of men we rescued, i. e., 150, we have been able to reckon their losses. We know the number of men who landed at Cocos and got away, and the number of the prize crew in the collier. They cannot have lost less than 18o men killed, with 20 men badly wounded and about the same number slightly.
"There are lots of redeeming points in the whole show. Best of all was to see the gun's crew fighting their guns quite unconcerned. When we were last in Sydney we took on board three boys from the training ship Tingira, who had volunteered. The captain said, I don't really want them, but as they are keen I'll take them.' Now the action was only a week or two afterwards, but the two of the three who were directly under my notice were perfectly splendid. One little slip of a boy did not turn a hair, and worked splendidly. The other boy, a very sturdy youngster, carried projectiles from the hoist to his gun throughout the action without so, much as thinking of cover. I do think for two boys absolutely new to their work they were splendid.
"It was very interesting talking to some of the German officers afterwards. On the first day they were on board one said to me, 'You fire on the white flag.' I at once took the matter, up, and the torpedo lieutenant and an engineer both said emphatically, 'No, that is not so, you did not fire on the white flag.' But we did not leave it at that. One of us went to the captain, and he got from Captain von Muller an assurance that we had done nothing of the kind, and that he intended to assemble his officers and tell them so.
"The day Captain von Muller was leaving the ship at Colombo, he came up to me on the quarter deck wounded, shook hands and saluted, which was very nice and polite of him. I think, acting under their rules, he and his crew refused to give parole after their arrival at Colombo, but he conscientiously observed it while in the Sydney, which was more like a hospital ship than a man-of-war, while running to Colombo. Prince Hohenzollern was a decent enough fellow. In fact, we seemed to agree that it was our job to knock one another out, but there was no malice in it."