CRUISERS RECORD SPEED

Grey River Argus, 13 March 1915, Page 8

CRUISERS RECORD SPEED

HOW THE KENT DID HER BEST LONDON, February 22. " The Kent only caught the Nurnberg i'j the Falkland Islands battle by virtue of the loyal co-operation of the engineers' department, which enabled the warship to break all her previous records. An engineer-officer on board writes:— "We got to the entrance in .quick time, to find ourselves within mod erate range of the nearest German cruis eiy the Gneisenau and the Nurnberg, and they nipped away for all the ywere worth. We chased after them working up to our fullest speed as easily and quickly as we could. Fortunately every body had been well trained and all fell into their special groove like one man. The entiro staff was doing its best, and, my word! it was a best. "We pushed her along, more, more, more. The revolution of the engines at the first time of starting were more than the revolutions the dockyard could knock out of her, and she was worked uy gently bit by bit, easing down occasionally when things looked as if they were not going quite right or when they tluentened to do so. An anxious moment was reached when we got on every ounce of steam that the engines could take. We were just then going some sixteen revolutions a minute faster than the Adimr'alty full-power, and also the designed power of 22,000 h.p., some 5.000 h.p. more than we ought to have done. "In time of peace we should have been courtmartialled for this, but we came out top. He caught the ruddy GermHUN and sank her. We were doing from 21 to 3 knots faster than tlie~old Kent had ever done'before. We were doing over 25 knots, 'full speed,' the highest ever attained being 22i knots. The captain nearly fell on the engineer-commander's neck and kissed him. when he 'blew up' after the action to see him and to advise as to the best speed to go back to harbour. He nearly shouted at him for some time. 'My dear fellow, my dear engineer-comman-der! You won the action you did it, splendid! You won the action! Without your speed we should have lost everything.' "The commander remarked that the thanks, if any, were due to the staff, who had worked wonderfully well and without exception. Nothing could have been better."