The Battle of the Falkland Islands 7
As soon as the collier and all that remained of the wreckage of the
_Cap Trafalgar_ was lost to view the gallant Cunarder was turned
to the north-westward in the direction of the anchorage. She was
unseaworthy, nearly all her navigational instruments and all the
communications to the engines were destroyed, making the steering and
navigation of the ship difficult and uncertain. When wireless touch
was established, the _Cornwall_ was called up and asked to meet and
escort her in. But as she had only just started coaling she asked the
_Bristol_ to take her place. The next day the _Bristol_, which was in
the vicinity, took the _Carmania_ along until relieved the same night
by the _Cornwall_, which escorted her on to the base, where temporary
repairs were effected.
One of the enemy's shells was found to have passed through three
thicknesses of steel plating without exploding, but in spite of this
it set fire to some bedding which caused the conflagration under
the fore bridge. Where projectiles had struck solid iron, such as
a winch, splinters of the latter were to be seen scattered in all
directions. The ship was hit seventy-nine times, causing no fewer
than 304 holes.
There were 38 casualties. Five men were killed outright, 4
subsequently died from wounds, 5 were seriously wounded and 22
wounded--most of the latter were only slightly injured. All the
casualties occurred on deck, chiefly among the guns' crews and
ammunition supply parties. No one below was touched, but a third of
those employed on deck were hit.
The following remarks may be of interest, and are taken from the
author's letters, written on September 16th, after having been shown
over the _Carmania_:
"When I went on board this morning, I was greatly struck by the few
fatal casualties considering the number of holes here, there, and
everywhere. Not a single part of the upper deck could be crossed
without finding holes. A remarkable fact was that only one officer,
Lieutenant Murray, R.N.R., was hurt or damaged in any way, although
the officers were in the most exposed positions, and the enemy's
point of aim appeared to be the fore bridge.
"They had only three active service ratings on board; some of the
gunlayers were old men, pensioners from the Navy.
"One of the senior officers told me that the first few rounds made
him feel 'a bit dickey,' but that after that he took no notice of the
bigger shells, though, curiously enough, he thoroughly objected to
the smaller pom-poms which were 'most irritating.' He added that the
men fought magnificently, and that the firemen worked 'like hell.' As
flames and smoke from the fire on deck descended to the stokeholds by
the ventilators instead of cool air, the states of things down below
may easily be imagined.
"One chronometer was found to be going in spite of the wooden box
which contained it having been burnt.
"The deeds of heroism were many.
"I liked the story of the little bugler boy, who had no more to
do once the action had commenced, so he stood by one of the guns
refusing to go under cover. As the gun fired he shouted: 'That's one
for the blighters!' And again: 'There's another for the beggars--go
it!' smacking the gunshield the while with his hand.
"Again one of the gunlayers, who lost his hand and also one leg
during the engagement, insisted upon being held up when the German
ship sank, so as to be able to cheer. I talked to him, and he waggled
his stump at me quite cheerily and said, 'It was well worth losing an
arm for.'
"It is good to feel that the spirit of our forefathers is still
active in time of need."
CHAPTER VI
THE ACTION OFF CORONEL
"Then let him roll
His galleons round the little Golden Hynde,
Bring her to bay, if he can, on the high seas,
Ring us about with thousands, we'll not yield,
I and my Golden Hynde, we will go down,
With flag still flying on the last stump left us
And all my cannon spitting the fires
Of everlasting scorn into his face."
--ALFRED NOYES (_Drake_).
The wanderings of the German squadron in the Pacific have been
briefly traced as far as Easter Island, where it arrived on October
12th, 1914, and found the _Dresden_. The _Leipzig_, which had been
chased from pillar to post by British and Japanese cruisers, and
succeeded in eluding them, joined up shortly after to the relief of
the German Admiral.
The contractor at Easter Island, an Englishman named Edwards,
who supplied the Germans with fresh meat and vegetables, was a
ranch-owner, and had no idea that war had even been declared. One
of his men, in taking off provisions to the ships, discovered this
amazing fact, which had carefully been kept secret, and informed
his master. The account was not settled in cash, but by a bill made
payable at Valparaiso. The German squadron sailed for Mas-a-Fuera
a week later, so the ranch-owner took the earliest opportunity of
sending in his bill to Valparaiso, where it was duly honoured, vastly
to his astonishment and relief.
For the reasons already adduced, it seemed almost certain that
Admiral von Spee would make his way round South America. That there
was a possibility of his descending upon Vancouver and attacking
the naval dockyard of Esquimalt is acknowledged, but it was so
remote as to be scarcely worthy of serious consideration. The three
Japanese cruisers, _Idzuma_, _Hizen_, and _Asama_, were understood
to be in the eastern Pacific at this time, and this was probably
known to the German Admiral. The risk, too, that he must inevitably
run in attacking a locality known to possess submarines was quite
unjustifiable; besides, he had little to gain and everything to lose
through the delay that must ensue from adopting such a policy.
The vessels engaged in the action off Coronel, with their armament,
etc., were:[5]
_Names_ _Tonnage_ _Armament_ _Speed_ _Completion_
_Good Hope_ 14,100 2--9.2" 23.5 1902
16--6"
_Monmouth_ 9,800 14--6" 23.3 1903
_Glasgow_ 4,800 2--6" 25.8 1910
10--4"
_Otranto_ (armed 12,000 8--4.7" 18 1909
liner) gross
Speed of squadron 18 knots.
_Names_ _Tonnage_ _Armament_ _Speed_ _Completion_
_Scharnhorst_ 11,420 8--8.2" 22.5 1908
6--5.9"
20--3.4"
_Gneisenau_ 11,420 8--8.2" 23.8 1908
6--5.9"
20--3.4"
_Leipzig_ 3,200 10--4.1" 23 1906
_Dresden_ 3,544 12--4.1" 27 1908
4--2.1"
_Nürnberg_ 3,396 10--4.1" 23.5 1908
8--2.1"
Speed of squadron 22.5 knots.
It will be noticed that our two armoured cruisers were respectively
six and five years older than the Germans'. Our armament was much
inferior in size, number, and quality on account of the later
designs of the enemy's artillery. The range of the German 4.1-inch
guns was _nearly equal to that of our 6-inch guns_. But perhaps the
greatest point in favour of the enemy was the fact that Cradock's
ships, with the exception of the _Glasgow_, were only commissioned
at the outbreak of war, and had had such continuous steaming that
no really good opportunity for gunnery practices or for testing the
organisation thoroughly had been possible, whilst von Spee's had
been in commission for over two years and had highly trained crews,
accustomed to their ships.
The following account has been compiled from personal information
received from officers who took part, from letters that have appeared
in the Press, from a translation that has been published of Admiral
von Spee's official report, and from the official report made by
Captain Luce of the _Glasgow_.
Admiral Cradock, as we have seen, joined the remainder of his little
squadron with the exception of the _Canopus_ off the coast of Chile
on October 29th. The latter was following at her best speed. The
squadron proceeded northwards, whilst the _Glasgow_ was detached to
Coronel to send telegrams, a rendezvous being fixed for her to rejoin
at 1 P.M. on November 1st.
No authentic news of the movements of the Germans was available at
this time; in fact, the last time that von Spee's squadron had been
definitely heard of was when it appeared off Papeete and bombarded
the town toward the end of September. That the enemy might be
encountered at any moment was of course fully realised, but it was
hoped that either the _Dresden_ and _Leipzig_ or the main squadron
might be brought to action separately, before they were able to
join forces. Time was everything if this was to be brought about,
so Admiral Cradock pushed on without delay. The anxiety to obtain
news of a reliable character may be imagined, but only the vaguest
of rumours, one contradicting the other, were forthcoming. Reports
댓글 없음:
댓글 쓰기