COURAGE AND COOLNESS.

Rangitikei Advocate and Manawatu Argus, Volume XL, Issue 11438, 1 December 1915, Page 6

COURAGE AND COOLNESS.

ORDERS OBEYED PROMPTLY.

SCENES WHEN THE SOUTHLAND WAS TORPEDOED

[By Captain 0. E. W. Bean, Official Reporter with the. Australian Expeditionary Forces.]

The scenes on the transport Southland recall the story of the Birkenhead. It was a cloudless, sunny morning, w r ith a fresh breeze and *a choppy sea. The Southland was bowling along not tar from the journey’s end. The only land in sight was the distant sun-bathed shores of one of the Greek islands.

Exactly at 9.43 o’clock in the morning some of those on deck saw the wake of a torpedo travelling straight for the ship. They watched hopelessly. Next moment there was a loud explosion. A hold 40ft. by 13ft. had been blown in on the port side forward, and some of the deck stanchions had been blown clean through the opposite, side of the ship, making a hole there also. There came the sound of water rushing in. The men turned out immediately. There had been boat drill on the voyage, and the men ran straight to their proper places and lined up there, the officers shouting, “Steady, boys. That’s the one thing—steady. ” The men’s stations were partly in the half-darkness of the tween decks and partly in the sunlight on the upper deck. The Southland was listing heavily to port. Afterwards the list changed with a lurch to starboard, but the men stood there. The discipline was perfect. In the forward parts of the ship they could see the hatch broken in and -water washing about the dark space of the hold, with the bodies of some of their comrades who were killed by the explosion floating about in it. Occasionally a man would turn his head and look down to see how the water was making. “Bad luck that two and a half months in the desert should end in this,’’ said one man. “Are -we downhearted?’’ called another. “No!” they all shouted, “Are we afraid to die?” called someone else. “No !’* they shouted again, Every now and then the sharp order would come down, “Twenty men wanted to clear boats.” A party would be immediately detached, spring up the companion to boat deck, whilst the others remained steady in the ranks below.

“Are there enough boats for all?” one of the men asked diis officer, “Donf know, ” was the reply. “The best thing we can do is to cut down some of these horse-boxes in case they are necessary,” So the party set to work with might and main, chopping down part of the temporary fittings. Meanwhile, up in the sunlight some boats had been launched, but owing to haste one or two overturned. The order came, “Six men wanted to jump into the sea and right an overturned lifeboat,” Six men came forward instantly, dived over, righted the overturned boat, and baled her out. Most of the boats were brought round to the gangways or rope ladder, and the men filed in from there. Other boats were lowered from the davits with the men already in. By 12 o’clock the last boat had left'the ship. It contained a general and his staff, who were travelling by this ship. During the long wait the men had amused themselves singing songs. There remained on the* Southland Captain Elk, his officers, some members of the crew and a number of Australian officers and men, who volunteered to stoke the ship and help bring her to port. A portion of the scratch crew of the Southland proved worse than useless from the first moment of the ecxitemeut, and though other members of the crew gave an example of courage and coolness, the great, part of the crew’s work had from the first to be done by the soldiers. A mining engineer helped to get the pumps going, officer? and priv ates stoked, and the Southland was eventually able to struggle to Mudros.

An officer who saw the incident tells me that after the torpedoing of the Southland a boat containing Brigadier-General Linton was near the ship, when the boat overturned. Brigadier-General Linton was seen in the water swimming well. Someone Shouted to him, "How are you getting on, sir?” He answered, "I am doing well; save the others first.’’ The rescuers accordingly continued picking up others, leaving Brigadier-General Linton, who was a strong swimmer, amongst the last to be picked up. When taken from the water he was alive, but much exhausted. He died shortly afterwards from shock and exposure.