OON

that Sunday evening, to join forth one of our few remaining the Ninth Cruiser Squadron; small eruisers-the Isis-and and accordingly, first, north- to her, on the following mornabout round Ireland we fared, ing, was entrusted our first then southward-ho! for the prize (which had been kept open sea near the Canary closely under view in the Islands, where the tracks of searohlight all night), and we the Atlantis trade routes resumed our southerly course. from South Amerioa and South She was taken into Berehaven, Africa converge.

and subsequently was On Wednesday morning, demned in the Prize Court. early, a sailing-ship was sighted Our next experience of waron our starboard bow. We like conditions took place on were then in the sheps of the arrival at the Canaries, in seeChannel, well southward of ing the serried rows of GerIreland, and we altered course man and Austrian merchant slightly to bear down on her. steamers anchored at Las As we approached she hoisted Palmas and at Santa Cruz de the German merchant flag Teneriffe, and afraid to move and made her number." She one yard outside those neatral was the Excelsior, a barque of Spanish waters. Many others about 2500 tons, homeward of the same soared oompany bound to Bremen from Now we saw later on, who had Orleans with a cargo shiefly takon refuge at the Azores, of tobacco, and was forty days at Madeira, and in the Cape out.

de Verde Islands, where they Consequently she knew lay sheltering and swelternothing about the war; but ing until Portugal, to which when informed, by inter- oountry these groups belong, national code, of the state of "came in” to the war. But

affairs and that she was our those in the Spanish harbours I prize, she made no diffioulties remained at anohor for over

whatever; nor did there ap- four years, their bottoms rustpear to be very muob exoite- ing, their engines deteriorating, ment on board.

their soal and stores dwindling, It was too rough at the their oargoes gradually being ing to send a boat to visit sold to pay for the upkeep of ber, taking a prize crew, 80 their diminishing crew, objeotabe was ordered to haul as lessons of sea.power. Even close to the wind (which was had they been able to get south-westerly) as she could, clear away from their island and to prepare to be taken anohorages, each would have into port in our company. We become a homeless wanderer sitered course suitably, and -a Flying Dutchman-barred promptly and meekly she fol. from every home port and from lowed us.

It was a bloodless every German colony. We ristory!

felt like terriers looking at & A wireless message to the cage of rats! They were for Searest admiral soon brought us a spectacle as thrilling as

it was tantalising; but while succeeded in its mission. Of the latter feeling always re- the remainder, many were premained, our compensating en- vented from so much as leaving joyment of their helplessness Amerioan waters, and of those was swallowed up in anxiety that got away some were sunk, lest any one of them should some were captured, and the make a bolt for it, and get rest were detained in neutral a way to join the Karlsrühe ports. It was an expensive or other commerce-destroyer in experiment in straining neuthe Atlantio, to bring her aid, trality. ooal, and provisions.

Besides the three so-called This anxiety was rendered “neutrals” that reached our even more poignant, shortly side, there was a fourth steamer after, by the several arrivals at on whom our straining eyes Santa Cruz of steamers fitted oontinually were fixed, named out as supply ships by the Ger- Telde.

She w88

a genuine mans in America, and sent tosea German, brand-new, and origi. under neutral flags, one after nally employed, under German the other. After fruitlessly colours, in the island fruit scouring the Atlantic for sev- trade; but now, since war eral weeks, searching for the broke out, sheltering at Santa Karlsrühe or dodging our pa- Cruz. She was of about 2500 trols, three of them arrived tons, fast, convenient, inconand anchored in the neutral shel- spiouous; and accordingly she ter - already tautly strained had been loaded with stores of -of the Canaries. It now be- all sorts, including gold in oame necessary, indeed, for the boxes—the whole discreetly oovstrain to be relieved somewhat; ered over with coal(her nominal and accordingly “shelter” was “cargo "); and having been

W88 " converted into “internment” given a Spanish “olearance by the Spanish authorities for Antofagasta, in Chile, we (after eloquent representations, expected her to sail at any and may God guard Your Ex- moment. Nothing would have sellenoies many years !) But been easier for her, on some we kept just as close a guard, moonless night, than gently to The little less, and what miles slip the cable, and gently to away might not these ships have move away, under the high been, “internment” and all! dark eliffs of Teneriffe. Even

Sixteen or seventeen of these had she been seen by us to be German Fleet auxiliaries, it moving, she might easily have was discovered by the justly been mistaken for one of the indignant United States an. small Spanish inter - island thorities, had been chartered steamers she 80 greatly rein Amerioa. They cost Ger- sembled, and thus to have many, to fit out, and for the eluded pursuit. Close and saborning of the various cap- anxious watch was therefore tains and others oonoerned, necessary.

Ono still rememabout £400,000. Out of the berg the agonised and frequent

bors whole lot only one, the Berwind, moments when something put

an

forth from the anchorage at 1 the German commeroe-destroy. A.M. (or at any old time at dead ers had gone to Davy Jones's of night), the sudden forcing of Looker, and our watoh over steam - the palpitating pur- their supply-ships had theresoit in darkness—the abortive fore lost much of its souteness ending when, off Anaga Point and intensity. Visits were (the northern end of the island), made periodioally, however, to certainty was established, and “count heads", and on the

"; we recognised that we had night of the involuntary flight been chasing, not the Telde, of the Telde it chanced that but the authentio Spanish the Essex was away on such steamer " on its lawful 2008- an expedition, at the time that sion”!

intelligenoe of the drifting Hun Bat the Telde didn't sail out reached the Admiral, That of Santa Cruz, at least not “bird of the air,” wireless, volantarily; and, later on, she then "carried the message” to fell into our hands in the fol- the Essex, with the abovelowing manner.

recounted satisfactory result. After eighteen months of Let us get back again now watobing-namely, in May to the autumn of 1914, and to 1916 - there 0&me

un- the earlier days and deeds of expected, fierce, squally N.-W. the Canaries patrol. wind which blew down the First among these was the steep arid slopes of Teneriffe sinking by H.M.S. Highflyer, with such vehemence that it on August 28, of the German carried away the Telde, body armed merchant oruiser Friedand bones, anchor, cable and rich der Grosse. all, away out to sea, until, The great liner had started presently, she was outside ter- forth from her home port ritorial waters. This happened before war with England had late at night, and the Germans aotually been deolared, fully ashore, in frantio haste, ohar. equipped, and commissioned tered a tag to rush to the to sink, burn, and destroy. soene. But “Mañana por la She began off Iceland with Mañana" is the admirable law some fishing vessels of ours,

Spain, and it was daylight which she sank, capturing the before she actually got away. crew,

With them on board She reached the Telde, how she sailed southward to the ever, got her safely in tow, and more interesting and more started to steam, for dear life, prolifio trade-route from Cape back to Santa Cruz and safety. Town. The unfortunate North Too late, though! While they Sea fishermen, fully accoutred were still on the high seas in their thick “lamby” suits and there descended on them, out immense thigh-boots,-their all, of the blue, H.M.S. Essex. The-began to melt inside them, tow was transferred, and the in rapidly increasing rivers tug returned to her island of perspiration, as the mild bome, sad and lonely.

warmth of the Channel graduLong before this event all ally deepened to temperatures

for which Ioeland, most cer- of his ship slowly filled, turned tainly, had not prepared them. over on its side, and so ended All in the dark as they were, the affair. The dead floated between decks, on an unknown out of her, and the captain, course (except that it led, evid- with other survivors, swam ently, to the Infernal Regions), ashore to the small Spanish the diary of one stout skipper fort that guards the desolate -stout of heart as of body, harbour. Here, at least, was -reads pathetically, with an honourable exponent of its unfailing announcement, the best sea - manners and “ Weather still warmer to- traditions. day.”

When we visited the soene, It must, in fairness, be re- three months later, the encorded of the captain of the ormous rusty bilge of the Friedrich der Grosse, however, Friedrich der Grosse still hove that he behaved with human- up its bulk out of the water, ity, and even chivalry, towards bearing so plausible & resemhis captives. He released, prac- blance to a smooth, rounded, tically anoonditionally, one sandy islet, with sloping ends, steamer that he had captured, that at first it was thought saying that he had no wish to to be one. As we got nearer, inoonvenience the lady passen. a propeller blade just showing gers. And when, eventually, above the water, and a large he was overtaken at the Rio dark cleft down the centre of de Oro, on the African coast the supposed islet – tragio (where he had gone for coal witness to the vessel's "broken and repairs), and the unequal back”-made us realise that it action between his ship and was indeed the mortal remains the Highflyer began, he sent of the commeroe-raider that away at onoe all his prisoners confronted us. As her beam by the Spanish steamers, from dimension was about 75 feet, which he had been coaling, to- and she was resting on her gether with all the non-fight- port-side on the sandy bottom ing members of his crew, in ten fathoms of water, 15 stewards and so forth - to feet of her must then have get them out of the way of been visible above it. the shells. When

Behind her, at about a mile called on by the Highflyer to distant from where she was surrender, he signalled back lying, was the low and com. “A German ship never sur- pletely desert shore of Afrioa, renders.” After an hour and quivering in the heat. Its & quarter's respite given him monotonous outline is, at this for reconsideration,” the point, broken into by the Highflyer opened the

the ball, shallow and swiftly-narrowand he replied — helplese at ing indentation named Rio de anchor as he was — with a Oro. It is not any longer a broadside. Thereafter he stuok river, whatever it may have to it, with hopeless tenacity, been in far-back geologio ages. until at last the great hull The fourteenth-century navi.

he was

9

S

gators of Prince Henry of man was making off hotly to Portugal, in their search for the south-west, as hotly pur. treasure and slaves, gradu- sued. Hot indeed !

Both ally pushing their adventures ships were in flames: the Cap southward into the mysterious Trafalgar from end to end; and terrifying heat of the the Carmania in the fore-part tropios, saw the gleaming only: a distinotion due to a mica in the sand, and sup- oharaoteristically German taoposing themselves to have

to have tio, The Cap Trafalgar had

. reached & River of Gold, so concentrated her fire on the named it. It must have been navigating bridge of the Cara desperate disappointment to mania, evidently expecting those thirsty fortune-hunters that when the R.N. captain when the true state of affairs had been killed, and his oon-salt water and shiny sand ning instruments — compass, - disclosed itself.

engine-room telegraph, oharts A fortnight after this first -had been destroyed, there destruction by a ship of our would then be “nobody” left equadron of a German armed to carry on, and nothing to merchant cruiser, there took carry on with. place that famous and mon- The captain was not killed, strous battle of leviathang- however. Even had that disthe action between the Car- aster befallen, it would oerminia (also of the Ninth C.8.) tainly not have wiped out the and the Cap Trafalgar, off fighting ability of our side. Trinidad Island in the mid- There were plenty more, though Atlantio, on September 14, not R.N., still R.N.R., eager 1914, ending in the victorious and able to “take on"! As destruction of a second enemy to the navigation, there was A.M.C. The German was coal. a second conning station at ing near the island; but im. the after-end of the ship-to mediately on sighting the Car- which, indeed, the executive mania she cast off her colliers, were presently driven 'by the and stood away to the west- flames in the fore-part. ward at 18 knots. The Car- Our tactios, unlike those of mania stood south-west, also the Germans, were to drive as at full speed, to cut her off, many shots as possible into and opened fire at four miles' every part of the great hay. distance : a space which the stack opposed to us. She converging courses of the two couldn't be missed; and so it ships reduced, in ten minutes' was that, after a chase of an time, to only two miles, or hour and a quarter, the Cap 4000 yards. It was like an Trafalgar, burning like Sodom action of Nelsonio times. At and Gomorrab, swerved round the end of a second ten min. a complete half oirole, till she ates, of such hammer and headed the pursuing

pursuing Cartonge on one side, and sturm mania, then oapeized to starand drang on the other, as board, and went down, head has rarely been seen, the Ger- first, with oolours flying.