Q Ships and Their Story 36

Q Ships and Their Story 36

‘The heavy westerly gale was banking up the west-going tide, and made

the most fierce and dangerous sea that I have ever seen. The ship made

little headway and was tossed about like a small boat. Fortunately we

managed to keep end on to the sea, or I think the old tub would have

gone slick over. As it was she behaved well, though her movements were

pretty violent. Seas broke over the stern and washed away the stern

gratings, one big sea broke right over the forward deck, a tumbling

mass of foam, into the water on the other side of the ship, carrying

away a ventilator and some steam-pipes. I had one spasm of anxiety,

when in the middle of all this the wheel jammed for a few seconds, and

I feared she would broach-to. If we had done so, I think the ship would

at once have been rolled over and smothered. I have never before seen

such enormous breakers....’

 

‘Had just finished tea and was sitting at the table yarning with the

others when the alarm gong went and we all dashed out.... Immediately

before the gong went, M——, our young R.N.V.R. signalman, who had

never been to sea before, and who was on watch, remarked to W——, the

officer of the watch, “What’s that funny-looking stick sticking out of

the water over there?” W—— cast an eye at the said “funny-looking

stick sticking out of the water” 200 yards on our starboard beam,

and remarked profanely: “Good God, man, why, it’s a periscope!” and

promptly rang the gong.’ It was, indeed, a periscope, and presently the

submarine opened fire and sent a shell through the ship’s engine-room,

which disabled the ship, though she was afterwards towed into port,

where she was repaired and refitted for her next encounter.

 

‘Completed loading timber at 11 a.m. Total 599 tons. That ought to

keep us afloat if we are torpedoed.... The ship’s behaviour is quite

different to what it was with coal ballast. She moves, but with a much

easier motion, and without that terrible jerkiness she had before....

When off the —— we fell in with a lifeboat under sail, evidently

with survivors from a sunk ship. Stopped and took them on board. They

turned out to be the captain, 2nd officer, purser, 3rd engineer, and

ten men, part of the crew of the S.S. ——, which had been torpedoed at

11.30 a.m. yesterday.... Discussing the daily lie for Fritz with S——:

To-day we are from Cape Coast Castle with kernels, bound for London. I

wonder if it will go down with Fritz....’

 

And the following entry after successfully sinking a German submarine

notwithstanding many months of monotonous uneventfulness:

 

‘I then “spliced the main-brace.” We passed the S—— Light at 11.30

p.m., and just before picking up the Examination boat received a

wireless message from [the Commander-in-Chief], which reads: “Very well

done. A year’s perseverance well rewarded.”... We anchored at midnight,

and a boat at once came off with a doctor, who removed the wounded....

A tug brought off the armed guard sent ... to receive our prisoners....

We formally mustered the prisoners and handed them over, with the

signing of receipts for their custody and disposal, etc. It was an

impressive moment when I led the officer in charge to the saloon, and

handed over to him the commanding officer of the submarine. A couple of

bluejackets with rifles fixed promptly closed up at either elbow, and

he was marched out. He had the grace to pause at the door, where I was

standing, and to thank me for my treatment of him. He was no doubt very

much upset by the loss of his ship: we found him extremely glum and did

our best to cheer him up. He had lunch with us, and I think he really

did find that we were human. Similarly the other officers tendered

their thanks (they all went away in a good deal of our clothing),

and when it came to the marching off of the men, —— stepped out of

the ranks and tendered to me their grateful thanks for the excellent

treatment they had received at our hands.’

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER XVIII

 

THE LAST PHASE

 

 

One of the effects of the British blockade on Germany was to prevent

such valuable war material as iron reaching Germany from Spain. Now

Spanish ores, being of great purity, were in pre-war days imported in

large quantities for the manufacture of the best qualities of steel,

and it was a serious matter for Germany that these importations were

cut off. But luckily for her she had been accustomed to obtain, even

prior to the war, supplies of magnetic ore from Sweden, and it was of

the utmost importance that this should be continued now that the war

would last much longer than she had ever expected.

 

If you look at a map of Scandinavia inside the Arctic Circle you will

notice the West Fjord, which is between the Lofoten Isles and the

Norwegian mainland. Follow this up and you come to the Ofoten Fjord, at

the head of which is the Norwegian port of Narvik. From here there ran

across the Swedish border to Lulea what was the most northerly railway

in Europe, and Narvik was a great harbour for the export of magnetic

iron ore. Hither German ships came, loaded, and then, by keeping within

the three-mile limit of territorial waters, going inside islands, and

taking every possible advantage of night, managed to get their valuable

cargoes back home for the Teutonic munition makers.

 

Now it was obviously one of the duties of our Tenth Cruiser Squadron,

entrusted with the interception of shipping in the north, to see that

Germany did not receive this ore. But having regard to the delicacy of

not violating the waters of a neutral nation, and bearing in mind the

pilotage difficulties off a coast studded with islands and half-tide

rocks, this was no easy matter. It was here that the small ships came

in so useful. We can go back to June, 1915, and find the armed trawler

_Tenby Castle_ (Lieutenant J. T. Randell, R.N.R.) attached nominally

to the Tenth Cruiser Squadron, but sent to work single-handed, as it

were, off the Norwegian coast intercepting shipping. As a distinguished

admiral remarked, here she lay in a very gallant manner for twenty

days, during which time she sank one enemy ship, very nearly secured

a second, and was able to hand over to the Tenth Cruiser Squadron

a neutral ship with iron ore. It was a most difficult situation

to handle, for it required not merely a quick decision and bold

initiative, but very accurate cross bearings had to be made, as these

offending steamers were on the border-line of territorial waters. That

great enemy of all seamen irrespective of nationality, fog, was in this

case actually to be a very real friend to our trawler; for in thick

weather and the vicinity of a rock-bound coast full of hidden dangers,

skippers of the ore ships would naturally be inclined to play for

safety and stand so far out from the shore as to be in non-territorial

waters. A further consideration was that owing to the effect of the

magnetic ore on their compasses they could not afford to take undue

navigational risks in thick weather. What they preferred was nice clear

weather, so that they could hug the land.

 

The success of _Tenby Castle_ was such that half a dozen other

trawlers were selected and stationed off that coast except in the wild

wintry months, and this idea, as we shall presently see, was developed

still further, but it will assist our interest if we appreciate first

the difficulties as exemplified in the case of the _Tenby Castle_. On

the last day of June, 1915, this trawler was about five miles N.E.

of the Kya Islet, and it was not quite midday, when she sighted a

steamer coming down from Nero Sound; so she closed her and read her

name, _Pallas_. Inasmuch as the latter was showing no colours, _Tenby

Castle_ now hoisted the White Ensign and the international signal to

stop immediately. This was ignored, so the trawler came round and saw

she was a German ship belonging to Flensburg, and fired a shot across

the enemy’s bow. The German then stopped her engines, ported her helm,

and headed in the direction of the coast, having a certain amount of

way on. The trawler closed and ordered her to show her colours, but the

German declined; so the latter was then told to steer to the westward,

which he also refused to do. Lieutenant Randell, informing him now that

he would give him five minutes in which to make up his mind either to

come with him or be sunk, sent a wireless signal informing H.M. ships

of the Tenth Cruiser Squadron, then went alongside the German and

put an armed guard aboard; but the captain of _Pallas_ rang down for

full speed ahead and starboarded his helm, whereupon _Tenby Castle_

fired a couple of shots at the steamer’s steering gear on the poop,

damaging it. The German stopped his engines once more, but the ship was

gradually drawing towards the shore, so that when _Victorian_ arrived

_Pallas_ was about two and a half miles from the land, thus being just

within territorial waters, and had to be released. There had been no

casualties.

 

The next incident occurred a week later. At ten minutes to six on the

morning of July 7 _Tenby Castle_ was lying off the western entrance

of the West Fjord, the weather being thick and rainy, when a large

steamer was seen to the N.N.W., so _Tenby Castle_ put on full speed

and ordered her to stop. This was the Swedish S.S. _Malmland_, with

about 7,000 tons of magnetic ore. After being ordered to follow the

trawler, Malmland put on full speed and drew ahead; so she was made to

keep right astern at reduced speed, and just before half-past eight

that morning was handed over to H.M.S. _India_ of the above-mentioned

cruiser squadron. The day passed, and it was a few minutes after

midnight when this trawler, again lying off the West Fjord, sighted a

steamer coming down from Narvik. A shot was fired across the steamer’s

bows, and on rounding-to under the steamship’s stern it was observed

that she was the German S.S. _Frederick Arp_, of Hamburg. She was

ordered to stop, then the trawler closed and ordered the steamer to

follow. The German refused to obey and steamed towards the land, so

the _Tenby Castle_ was compelled to fire a shot into his quarter, and

this caused him to stop. After he had several times refused to follow,

Lieutenant Randell gave him five minutes and informed him he would

either have to accompany the trawler or else be sunk. The five minutes

passed, the obstinate German still declined, and two minutes later put

his engines ahead and made towards the shore. It was now an hour since

the ship had first been sighted, so there was nothing for it but for

the trawler to sink her, and she was shelled at the water-line and sunk

four and a half miles away from the nearest land, her crew of thirteen

being handed over a few hours later to H.M.S. _India_. Thus a cargo of

4,000 tons of magnetic ore was prevented from reaching Germany.

 

Now, it was quite obvious that the information of these incidents would

not be long in reaching Germany from an agent via Norway. The German