FIGHTING U-BOATS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 98, 27 April 1935, Page 8 (Supplement)

FIGHTING U-BOATS.

A SUBMERGED CHRISTMAS

'PANIC' PARTIES AND P-BOATS

QUE ENS TOWN REMINISCENCES.

Christmas has been celebrated in many queer ways in many odd the world. But for an Englishman to spend it inside a, German submarine under the sea must be unique. 111 December, 1910, U4O was busy in the Bay of Biscay sinking British steamers. One of her victims was the Bayhall, whose captain she to6k prisoner. But on Christmas night, says Mr. E. Kcble Chatterton, the U-boat stopped its grim work and submerged: —

A small Christmas tree was produced, with electric lights, and presents for each member of the German crew. The commanding officer first made a speech, and then from the bright tree handed his gifts, not forgetting the unwilling British guest Vlioso steamer had been sunk a week earlier. Even this master mariner received a packet of writing paper and an indelible pencil. Caught by a Q-Ship. As a rule, however, life on a U-boat was anything but a holiday. The wolf never knew when one of the sheep might hit back! For the Q-ships from Queenstown, the British Base in Southwest Ireland, were on patrol. Fired at by the U-boat, an innocent-looking ship would stop, and the "panic party" launch a boat and "abandon ship": —

Twenty minutes of unbearable sus[pense! The submarine now came so near as to foul the schooner's patentlog line and wrench the fitting from its screws. Excellent! For now Spiegel starboarded and came on to the schooner's port quarter, which —at last —enabled the Prize's guns to bear. So "Down false screens!" "Up White Ensign." "Range seventy yards. Open fire!" The hatchways slid back and a gun rose into position, deckhouses collapsed and within two seconds the first British shells jumped forth.

And the U-boat would bo lucky if it got away. Or if it was not a Q-ship it might be a P-boat! At four o'clock one morning ÜB4 was sighted, and H.M.S. PO2 immediately made for him, but before the latter had time to dive, rammed him good and heartily at rightangles. Now. the P-boats had been designed specially for ramming, and this one was travelling at 17 knots. She smote the submarine just abaft the conning tower and was brought up all standing in the darkness of night. _ A magnificent occasion! Down disappeared ÜB4, and when dawn came it showed a sea smooth, with large quantities of oil; but a depth-charge, set to 200 feet, was dropped as a final full stop.

The Admiral Accepts. Wo were fortunate to have a magnicent commander at Queenstown in Admiral Sir Lewis Bayly. He was president of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich, when ho was offered this arduous appointment in 1915: The admiral's reply was characteristic. He took a pencil and chart, then, with Queenstown as a centre, drew a circle which included the Scillies, Milford Haven, Irish Sea, North Channel, and all tho waters round Ireland inclusive of the base at Berehaven.

"If I can have command in that circle," ho stipulated; "and if you will give mo a fast cruiser, I will go to Queenstown."

Ho was a martinet, worked hard himself, and would allow 110 slackness in others. One of his ships might be waiting for tho fog to lift before getting to sea. Suddenly tho churning of a propeller would bo heard, and then the admiral's voice:

"Good morning!" "Good morning, sir!" "Going to sea?" "Yes, sir! Pilot says he can't find the gate till it clears a bit." "Oh! Is that what you're waiting for'? Como on! I'll show you the way." So the übiquitous barge went ahead and located the boom, the sloop hove in anchor and crept close after her,, "with our stem almost rubbing against the barge's stern." Another few minutes and tho fog-bound Sunflower was beyond the gate heading for her Atlantic patrol. Not even a thick fog must now keep a ship in harbour.

The Americans Arrive. When the first American destroyers arrived they were not met with stuff about "Hands across tho sea," but with tho following: "Captain Taussig, at what time will your ships be ready for sea?" "Ready as soon as we have fuelled, sir," came the perfect response. "Do you require any repairs?" "No, sir." "Any stores?" "No, sir. Each vessel has enough 011 board to last seventy days." "You will take four days' rest," concluded the admiral. "Good afternoon." At one time three up-to-date destroyers were sent to Queenstown from tho North Sea. The delighted admiral met them with his usual "When will you be ready for sea ?"

"Well, sir, my boilers require cleaning," said one. "My destroyer needs to bo drydocked," apologised the second. And the third had some other complaint. That settled the destroyers' Queenstown fate, and they were (in Navy parlance) speedily "returned to store," which means that they were ! sent back to the North Sea. Their commodore on that bleak coast felt a little hurt that three of his very "topline" force should be dismissed so lightly, and the following two wireless messages were exchanged: — "Commodore to Vice-Admiral Commanding: Sorry my destroyers were not much use to you."

Reply from Queenstown: — "Vice-Admiral Commanding to Com modore: Whv say 'much'?"

The two 'most powerful forces in Queenstown were the Admiral and tho Roman Catholic Bishop of Cloyne. They worked astonishingly well together: — "About the end of 1910," says the admiral, "the bishop told me that the 42 bells of the cathedral were at Liverpool waiting safe transit to Queenstown. Could I help him? I said: 'Yes. Send them over in the next steamer, and we will obey the Scriptural injunction to watch and pray. I will watch. And you pray?' The scheme succeeded, and the bells arrived safely."

He Thought He Was Eligible! After the war there was founded a Queenstown Association of British and American officers who had served under Sir Lewis Bayly. One officer happened to be a a big German shipping yard when the invitation to the annual dinner was sent to him. Someone read it out to him 011 the telephone:— 1

When he returned to t£e works' office he was met by a man who said: "Excuse me, commander; just now I happened to be standing by and overheard the message in your telegram. Would you tell me, please, wljjl, is this Queenstow# Association!"

"A band of oflicers who were serving afloat during the war off Queenstown."

"Then/' asked the other —and with perfect seriousness—"do you think I might be eligible for membership?"

"Why ?" "Because I, too, served in those waters. I was captain of a U-boat." During the trouble in Ireland Marines were posted to guard Admiralty House, Sir Lewis's residence. At one o'clock one morning, during a fog, the sentry heard a footstep and challenged:—

Getting no answer, lie fired at a moving figure very dimly seen in the fog and darkness. The gates were shut, so the footstep must be that of someone who had 110 right to be there. The sentry advanced and examined the corpse: the shot had gone straight to the victim's head, and death had been instantaneous.

But the body turned out to be that of a donkey, which had somehow strayed into the grounds.

The Frying Ham. Even in the tragedy of a torpedoed ship amusing incidents could occur. The master of one stricken vessel, who went back to try to save his chronometers and other tilings, had to jump over the side hurriedly, being picked up by the boat:-^

"To my astonishment, I saw the cook struggling in the water about 20 yards distant; and it appears that after I went below to try to save my chronometers, he left the boat and went back to try to fetch some ham which was frying. When the explosion occurred he was blown clean through the door and over the ship's side, but eventually picked up unhurt." It was a bored seaman'* who summed up the Queenstown district as nothing but "rocks, sea and Sinn' Feincrs." But there was 110 lack of excitement from these three —as well as from the U-boats. 111 one critical week they sank 510,394 tons of British merchant shipping. In fighting this menace the command did wonderful and vital work.