The Battle of the Falkland Islands 17

The Battle of the Falkland Islands 17

No further casualties had occurred on board the _Glasgow_ since

those already mentioned, as after joining the _Cornwall_ she had not

come under direct fire, although some projectiles intended for the

latter did hit her. The _Cornwall_ was even more fortunate in having

no casualties at all except for a solitary pet canary, in spite of

having eighteen direct hits not counting splinter holes, of which

there were forty-two in one funnel alone. This absence of casualties,

which was also a feature of the battle-cruiser action, speaks for the

efficient handling of the ship by Captain Ellerton.

 

Survivors stated that von Spee was originally going direct to the

Plate to coal, but that having captured a sailing vessel full of coal

at Cape Horn, he changed his plans and decided to attack the Falkland

Islands. It was also stated that the _Leipzig_ had a large amount of

gold on board.

 

One of the survivors rescued by the _Cornwall_ was a naval reservist,

who in time of peace had occupied the post of German interpreter to

the Law Courts at Sydney, in Australia. When hauled into the boat

the first words he used as soon as he had recovered his breath were:

"It's bloody cold" in a perfect English accent. It is a well-known

fact that sailors rarely make use of bad language, and the bowman who

had hauled him out of the water is said to have fainted! Evidently

the language of the Law leaves much to be desired.

 

The torpedo lieutenant of the _Leipzig_ was amongst those saved

by the _Cornwall_. When brought alongside he was too exhausted to

clamber up the ship's side unaided, but when he reached the upper

deck he pulled himself together and stood to attention, saluting our

officers at the gangway. When he came into the wardroom later on he

explained that he had been on board before as a guest at dinner at

the time that the ship paid a visit to Kiel for the regatta in 1909,

adding that he little expected then that his next visit would take

place under such tragic circumstances.

 

This officer surprised us all by suddenly asking when the _Cornwall_

had had bigger guns put into her, and went on to say that when

we fired our "big guns"--meaning when we started to use lyddite

shell--the damage was appalling, arms and legs were to be seen

all along the decks, and each shell that burst started a fire. He

went on to say that the _Cornwall's_ firing was very effective and

accurate, but doubtless most of the prisoners told their captors

the same thing. We explained that the armament had not been changed

since the ship was originally built. He also told us that the German

captain had assembled all the ship's company when their 1,800 rounds

of ammunition were expended, and said, "There is the ensign, and any

man who wishes may go and haul it down, but I will not do so." Not a

soul moved to carry out the suggestion, but about fifty men, having

obtained permission, jumped overboard and must have perished from the

cold. There were only eighteen left alive on board at the end, so far

as he could judge, and of these sixteen were saved. All the officers

carried whistles, which accounted for their being located in the

water so easily.

 

The prisoners naturally wished to glorify themselves, their captain,

and their shipmates in the eyes of their fellow-countrymen, before

whom they knew that these stories would eventually be repeated.

Therefore these yarns about the ensign, the men jumping overboard,

and the opening of the Kingston valves must be taken with a grain of

salt.

 

The _Cornwall_ had one or two interesting examples of the damage

done to a ship by modern high-explosive shell. The most serious was

a shell that must have exploded on the water-line, as the ship was

rolling, for the side was afterwards found to be indented 5 inches

at a position 5 to 6 feet below the water-line, and consequently

below the armoured belt, a cross bulkhead being at the precise point

of impact. Curious as it may appear, even the paint was untouched,

and there was no sign of a direct hit from outboard, except for the

bulge that remained and the starting of a good many rivets from their

sockets. The cross bulkhead behind was buckled up like corrugated

iron, and the two coal bunkers, which had been empty, were flooded,

giving the ship a heavy list. When we got into Port William we

managed to heel the ship sufficiently to enable our carpenters to

get at the leak, and they succeeded in completely stopping it in

two days, working day and night--a fine performance, for which Mr.

Egford, the carpenter, received the D.S.C., whilst his staff were

personally congratulated by the Commander-in-Chief.

 

Another shell passed through the steel depression rail of the

after 6-inch turret, by which it was deflected through the deck at

the junction of two cabin bulkheads; it next penetrated the deck

below and finally burst on the ship's side, causing a large hole.

An amusing incident was connected with this. The projectile cut a

fire-hose in half, the business end of which was carried down the

hole into one of the officer's cabins, where it continued to pump in

water for the remainder of the action. At the end of the day this

officer found all his belongings, including his full dress and cocked

hat, floating about in two or three feet of water.

 

Another officer was seated on a box in the ammunition passage waiting

for the wounded, when a shell struck the ship's side close by him,

the concussion knocking him off. Getting up, he saw the doctor near

by, and thought he had kicked him, so asked him angrily what the

blazes he thought he was doing. It was not until after a long and

heated argument that he could be persuaded to believe that he had not

been the victim of a practical joke.

 

In another case a shell shot away the fire main immediately above

one of the stokeholds, which was flooded. Stoker Petty Officer W. A.

Townsend and Stoker John Smith were afterwards both decorated with

the D.S.M. for "keeping the boiler fires going under very trying

circumstances."

 

It was mentioned before that some ships had leave to open up their

machinery for repairs. The _Cornwall_ was to have steam at six hours'

notice, and had the low-pressure cylinder of the port engine opened

up and in pieces for repairs when the signal to raise steam was

made. Chief Engine Room Artificer J. G. Hill was awarded the D.S.M.

"for his smart performance in getting the port engine, which was

disconnected, into working order." It will have been noticed that the

ship was steaming 20 knots two and a half hours after the signal to

raise steam. This was a remarkable performance, and reflected great

credit on her entire engineering staff.

 

A signalman, Frank Glover, was given the D.S.M. for "carrying out his

duties of range-taker in a very cool manner during the whole of the

action." He was in an entirely exposed position on the fore upper

bridge.

 

More has been said about the part taken by the _Cornwall_, as the

writer was on board her, and most of the incidents described came

under his personal observation. They are, however, typical of the

conduct of the officers and men in the other ships that took part.[9]

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER XIII

 

THE SINKING OF THE "NÜRNBERG"

 

"While England, England rose,

Her white cliffs laughing out across the waves,

Victorious over all her enemies."

 

--ALFRED NOYES (_Drake_).

 

 

We must now go back to the commencement of the action with the

_Leipzig_. At 4.30 P.M., in accordance with a signal made by the

_Cornwall_, the _Kent_ branched off in pursuit of the _Nürnberg_ and

was soon out of sight.

 

Thus a third fight developed through the high speed attained by

the _Kent_, which enabled her to catch up and force action on the

_Nürnberg_. The following description has been largely compiled from

a narrative written by an officer in the _Kent_, while from the

particulars undernoted concerning the ships two important features

stand out: the speed of the two ships was nearly equal, and the

German was built five years later than her opponent, and therefore

should have been able to maintain her speed with less difficulty.

 

_Name_ _Tonnage_ _Armament_ _Speed_ _Completion_

 

_Kent_ 9,800 14--6" 23.7 1903

_Nürnberg_ 3,396 10--4.1" 23.5 1908

8--2.1"

 

"Brassey's Naval Annual."

 

In the course of the afternoon the weather became misty, so that it

seemed imperative to get to close quarters as rapidly as possible.

That this was fully realised and acted upon is shown by what was

written by an officer in the _Kent_: "In the last hour of the chase,

helped by a light ship and a clean bottom, by the most determined

stoking, by unremitting attention to her no longer youthful

boilers--in short, by the devotion of every officer and man in the

engine and boiler rooms, the _Kent_ achieved the remarkable speed of

25 knots."

 

Both ships were steering a south-easterly course at 5 P.M. when the

_Kent_ got within range of the _Nürnberg_, which opened fire with

her stern guns. The chase had in all lasted nearly seven hours,

so the sound of the enemy's guns proved doubly welcome, since it

brought home the fact that the German was now trapped. The fall

of the enemy's shot was awaited with that eagerness combined with

anxiety which only those who have undergone the experience can fully

realise. Accurate ranges were hard to take on account of the abnormal

vibration caused by the speed at which the ship was travelling, but

it was expected that the enemy's first salvoes would fall short. But

not a sign was to be seen anywhere of these projectiles. Where, then,

had they gone?

 

Officers glanced round the horizon to make quite certain that the

enemy was not firing at another ship, but nothing else was in sight.

A light, drizzling rain was falling, so that it was not till the

third salvo that the splashes were discovered astern of the ship.

This bore out the experience of the _Cornwall_ and _Glasgow_, which

had also been astonished at the long range of the German 4.1" gun,