CRUSHING DEFEAT.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 7203, 14 September 1901, Page 4

CRUSHING DEFEAT.

GREAT IUVAL BATTLE OFF SCILLY. - DEFENDING SQUADRON ANNIHILATED. | (Daily Nail, July SO.) The naval! manoeuvres have begun in earnest, and "war" was declared- art, halfpast mine yesterday morning. Before many hours had elapsed oruJset squadrons of *ho opposing fleets me* off ! the Scillieys. The result of the encounter was the amniMotioa of the defending fleet, and *he Channel is now apparent3y ■at the mercy of the enemy. • (From our Special Coflresp'owfen*, MR CHARLES E. HANDS.) On Board 1 H.M.S. Diadem, 30 miles S.E. Scully. , It has been a saroguinary andl momentous day in make-beEeve. Before the supposititious war ds half a <d!ay soldi batttle royal has been supposed' to be fought and! the two opposing fleets ara staggering! umder the mighlty blows they are supposed to have inflicted; on one another. • The "B" fleet, which) represents the home defence force, has at one blow lost the whole of its squadron of .tew cruisers ; and the "X," or invaddmig, fleet, whose object da to harry and d^troy th© merch'aai* vessels in the Channel, has- -lost eight of its squadron of cruisers. They, witih the "B " fleafa cruisers, are supposed to be lying sixty <of seventy faith'oms dteep somewihleire about Shore.- . , "But while "Bs" cruiser strength) 3s practwaky aoniMaltedl, "X" has still four proudly sailing these waiters, ready andl able to gobble up BritisOi commence and Britain's food supply. It is a sadi day for you a* torn*, ixoodness kno-wa what you ■will be able -to scrape together for breakfast in (the morning. According l'» 'the raltes of the game, -while the battleships of fch© two fleefc toad! to befar away up worth at *ne commencement of hostilities, the a'ttachedi cruiser squadron, were under no such, limdtaitions. The invaders might be destroying <jommerce in tihe Ohamnel if they chose, ondi *h« home cruisers might also be 'there to .prevent them. Accordingly both. <srui«er Bquatßrons found one toother Hihere this afiberntoon. , When "X" flee* was someVhare abreast of Holyheadi on its way north, the cruisers, were- detached, and, led by the Diadem, and xawTer the command of its captain, Henry Leah, turned back south. ' We were a noble flotilla of cruisers, the stately four-funnelled) twenty-knot Diadem and her sister ship, ■the (Niobe— looking, however, like a poor relation in her black paint— the Hawke, Narcissus, Immortalite, Mersey, Retribution, Pactolus, Iphigenia, Rainbow, Intrepid, and Arrogant. FIRST BLOOD. This morndng we were not surprised' to find thai the Arrogant — which, <aifter it had several times got the 'better of its helm and" made wild endeavours to* ram the flagship, Captain Leah had) sent away on a mission to get'news of the declaration of hostilities from our base at Scilly — had been chased) away from its rendezvous by a squadron of seven hostile cruisers. Nor was it BUirprising to discover that our consort, Pactolus, Shadl sighted two of the enemy's cruisers with a flotilla of seven destroyers, also bearing up towards Scilly. The Pactolus was not alone. Suddenly we sighted through the haze another ship, painted yellow, and then another, painted black. They were two of the enemy's oruisers, which, had -Beem chasing our Pactolus, and! which our Pactolus, running towards us, had 1 cleverly drawn into- a trap. They were ours ! ...... We turned towards Scilly then-, in columns of divisions, recalling gaily that it was noon andl lunch time, wh^o. a destroyer was seen on our starboard beam, and' the Pactolus, which had already distinguished herself, wa9 sent off in chase. , No sooner had the Pactolus gone, and the fragrance of lunch began to be perceptible, than through the haze ahead appeared th© dim vision of a cruiser, and then another, and 1 then another. On& witih two funnels, one with three, and coming lip behind, them a third, with four. A capture, indteed!, worth making. A big firstclass cruiser, as good as the Diadem herself, for one, and 1 an easy" prey to our victorious flotilla. Up went the signal again for a general ohase, andl awwy we went once more. So full speed ahead on the enemy we ran, and 1 they ihad not run very far before we saw what they were running for. A STIFF FIOHT. Far out of the haze loomed the dim outline of tfhe fourth cruiser, and then a fifth,, anid them a moment later a sixth. Tfrsy were not such a, weak Hot after all, bub still wd were so much stronger. Then in ancither moment a seventh cruiser appeatred, and then an eighth, «nd we saw ithrat we were in for a stiff %ht, for their fire was good, awd there was a. second! big- fourfainnellfir of our own cla-ss, an<l' they wert> «o disposed in Kire of ba.ttfe 'that they could give us their full broadside. Then came Captain Leah's opportunity. The battle line, far flung, of the enemy was a 'little itc*> far flung. Between their big cruiser, which we nw recognised as the Amphiftrite, and its follower w<as a consideraT>le -interval. This was the opportunity to pursue Nekon's 'tactics, <r Vut. their fc-lilbw-ing ships.'' We ported helm anidi turnE-d for the opening. They saw what we were after, amd tried to circumvent ths movement, but too late. In eivdeaivo'uring 'ten prevent the manoeuvre the iHyadm'th- opened' fuiather breach in the line, st». while our Hawke cut through the fmt opening tbe> Diadem out through thdr s-eeond. and then/ with, their I'hre broken our superior force was able^ to take them in d'-titail. And if there had' now been any doubt- of the rosuH. -owv Factolu.*, which had 1 been away charing fleßtroye-rs, canre again* onto •line, anr!' at 1.8 the Airopanft came on the seen*. We had twelve in their eight now, and' if the fight ha-rti jrnn.-p. on we were now hi a position to sma>*h them. Buife at 1.12 they .proposed a reference: .to the umpire's, ar.d the " C&nse fir* 1 !" sounded. S-IXTEEX SHIPS SUXK. Then came our great misfortur..?. We cc-u'd fifrbl tbf enemy, but no. taotios can prsvail in mock warfare against the.supeTwr authority of a.; senior officer. Captain Cal'kgliaii, of the Edgar, was in comim ; a:n>di of the. opposing squadron, and by virtue of his authority he tc.nipora.r.'.Tv adjud-'e-atcd'. pending reference •*-> umpires. H 1 ? couM nrsfc deny that, all It is eight, ships had been destroyed, hxtt hf was partial: enough to claim thait. he tadi sunk ei«zhfr of ours. Ar.d nc.t only that, but he took the liberty of.d-eckr-ine which hs- •had'desftroye.d'. Of coiwse. he picked our best, and after a pTnloncred arjrurc^v.t of our dozen, all hoM^d the hated b^i* peter" but I.mm'orta.V't'e. Iplnsjer.'a. Retribut-i-cn, and -MfTsey. These were frep to go on h'arrymg eommarce, bwt thfi rc^t j of us h'ac! ; fn irmke. radlv for port. Tt. vw ai 1 ! over, arri sixt-een splendid slrns lia.cl been theoretically de^iinvpd 1 in lew ■thnn -an kouv. There we-ro two intore-ated'-spedtaUirs cf 'the great b:it ; tle. 0-r.e wasi a little Italian barque, whiuh was rig-lit .i.iii the m.Jddle of it 'all, ;>.nd which must haive tlimuglifc the end of the workl kitl • ccm e. The otheir avks an aged larking shark, which, knowing from old time •that Bri'tilsh tiring meant food, came inquiringly round the flagship. ■Moivfc ■cl.if=giv-= > te-d he looked when he found ii wa^ only n sham Ihjht. (