TORPEDOED.

Press, Volume L, Issue 15121, 10 November 1914, Page 9

TORPEDOED.

STOBY OP THE NOBTH SEA

DISASTEB.

(From tho IVondon Corrcspoudent of tie •Sydney "Telegraph.")

PERTH, October 28;

An account of the loss of the three British cruisers—Aboukir, Hojjue, *»ud Crossy—which wero eunk by German ! submarines in Boa> is. given'" in the "Daily Chroniclo" by Chief Gucncr Dougherty, of iho Creasy. - Dougherty said that the first abro was struck about 5 o'clock in the tnorri- ? ing "The water was fairly roagiij" he said, "and wo were steaming dorrjy in lino. Suddenly, I heard a groat crash, and, looking in the direction, I saw the middle ship, the Aboukir, heel- , ing over and going down rapidly. Wo came to the conclusion that 6ho ha?l been struck by a torpedo, and "wo kept a, Kharp look-out for theso craft. While' steamixig to the . assistance of th» Abookir, the llogue was aleo do&injt up towards tho einking ship, v/itb the object of assisting tho crew who were, dropping into the water. "Wh.ea.-iro'. - ' heard a second crash and the Hogno \ began to settle, wo knew that eho abo had been torpedoed. W© got closer to both ships to save as many of thearas* wj could, and tho bravo fellows calmly ' awaited -our approach. W« dtow '■ near, and at jthat moment eomoorio ehouted to mc, 'Look out, sir; thero'e " a submarine on our port beam.' J" " saw her. She was about 400 jfarde ffwtJV and only her periscope showed above, the waves. I took careful aim at her: with a 13-ponnden The 'shQt- vrenb over her by about two yards, and that gave mo the range- I fired, again, and hit tho periscope, and she* <Sm»peared. Up she camo again, and this •■; time part of her conning-toivei Trae ripiblo, so I fifed my third ehot,, and smaelied in the top of her oonninptower. The men etanding by eliouted, 4 She'e hit. sir,' and then they lei oui» a groat cheer as the submarine sank, and she was 501 ug down two German sailors floated up from her, both ewimming hard. After th.if, wo shot &t a trawler flying tho Dutch fiog, which was a thousand yards away, and evidently a German boat; in disgofa", directing operations. She must hare tlio approach of iho onen>3"'« submarines, and wo trained oor gim.s on her with tho first ehot, and j eefc her on lire. I don't know what j her ultrmate fate was. By tin's time two had. already. been struck by oni> torpedo, but the damage was not in a j vital soot, r.nd w« should'have ke»t afloat, ail "We 6aw another sub- ; warino on. our starboard eide, and wo . inado a desperate effort io get her. but we failed.-and her torpedo gofc homo in our engine-room, and the Creasy began to *iirn over. The seen acted like British sailors, and . died liko Briton* ebonW. - Oar captain iras on tho bridge, and in theso critical minutes ho sooke ec-me words of advice to the crew, 'Keep ©oW, m? lads; keep cool,' he said in a ; steady voice. 'Pick up a 6par, my lads, acd pnt :i under voar iarsos? that.'!] help you to keep afloat until the destroyers pick you up. . That wws iho last I caw- of Captain Johnson. Unfortunately, there is reason to believe that Hβ -was drowned, aod went dowa with his chip." ""We wero first torpedoed -at f o'clock," tho gunner proceeded, "aai oc.o torpedo actually pawed under our fctern. They ■were diecharjjing torpßdoos afc n* while the water was thjiik with drowning men. Altogether I personally observed five taxA although our guns pegged, away afe them, only one was nit so far as nr* know. We sank at 7.43, end when t dropped into the sea, clinging to > bit at wood, thcro were men all round mc, and their spirit wa& splendid. WV shouted chrery messages to 0110 another, and I remember a seaman calling to mc, 'It's a Ions; wav to Titvporary this way, , and I cried "hack, 'It is. if yon are s°i"S 'to swim.' "