The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1889-05-04

Subject to order or not, the ALBANIAN
did not remain passive. Every gun oI
board which could be sufficiently de
pressed was made ready 10 fire upon thu
crabs should they attempt to get away
Four large boats, furnished with machine
guns, grapneIs, and with various appli
ances which might be brought into us'
on a steel plated roof were lowered from
their daVits, and Immediately began Fir
ing upon the exposed portions of the
crabs. Their machine guns were loaded
with small shells, and if these penetrated
under the horizontal plates of u crab
and through the heavy glass which was
supposed to be in these intersticcs, the
crew of the submerged craft would be
soon destroyed.
The quick eye of the captain of the
Adamant had observed through his glass
while the crabs were still at a consider
able distance. their protruding air pipes,
and he had instructed the officers in
charge of the boats to make an especial
attack upon these. If the air pipes of a
crab could be rendered useless the crew
must inevitably be smothorod.
But the brave captain did not know
that the condensed air chambers Of the
crabs would supply their inmates for an
hour or more without recourse TO the
outer air, and that the air pipes, fur
nished with valves ut the top, were
always withdrawn under water during
action with an enemy. Nor did he know
that the glass blocks under the armor
plates of the crabs, which were placed
in rubber frames 90 protect them from
conclusion above, were also guarded by
steel netting from injury by small balls.
Valiantly the boats bcsct the crabs,
keeping up a constant fusillade and en-
doavoring TO throw GrapneIs over them.
III one Of these should catch under an
overlapping armor plate it could be con
necte1 with the steam windlass Of the
Adamant and plate might be ripped Off
or a crab overturned.
But the crabs proved to be much more
lively fish than their enemies had sup
posed Turning, as if on Il pivot, and
Aitll VII, llylll DAAl' W oAbl''s NllNN ttAltI
to be playing with the boats. and not
trying 10 get away from them. The
spring armor Of Crab X iutcrltrcd some
what with its movements and also put it
in danger from attacks by grapncls, and
it therefore left most of the work to its
consort.
Crab J, after darting swiftly in and
out among her antagonists for some time,
suddenly made turn, and dashing at
one Of the boats, ran under il, and rails
ing it on its glistouing back, rolled it,
bottom upward, into the sea. In a mo-
ment the crew Of the boat wore swim
ming for their lives. They were quickly
picked up 10y two Of the other boats,
which then deemed it prudent to return
TO the ship.
But the second officer OF the Adamant,
who commanded the fourth boat, did
not give up the fight. Hayi-g noted the
spring armor of Crab X, he believed that
if he could get "a grapncl between its
steel ribs he yet might capture the sea
monster For some minutes Crab X con-
tented itself with cluding him; but, tired
Of this, it turned, and raising its huge
nippers almost out OF the water, it seized
the bow of the boat and gave it q gentle
crunch, after which it released its hold
and retired. The boat, leaking rapidly
through two ragged holes, was rowcd
back TO the ship, which it reached half
full of water
The great battle ship, totally bcreft of
the power Of moving herself, was now
rolling in the trough of the sea, and a
signal came from the repeller for Crab
* TO make fast to her and put her head
to the wind. This was quickly done. the
crab attaching itself TO the stern post of
the Adamant by pair of towing nip
pers. These were projected from the
stern of the crab, and were so constructed
that the larger vessel did not commune
cate all its motion to the smaller one,
and could not run down upon it.
AS soon as the Adamant was brought
up with her head TO the wind she opened
fire upon the repeller. The latter vessel
could easily have sailed out Of the range
of motionless enemy, but her orders
forbade this. Her director had been in
structed by the syndicate TO expose his
vessel to the fire of the Adamants heavy
guns. Accordingly the repeller steamed
nearer, and turned her broadside toward
the British ship.
Scarcely had this been done when the
two great bow guns of the Adamant
shook the air with tremendous roars,
each hurting over the sea nearly ton Of
steel. One Of these great shot passed
over the repeller, but the other struck
her armored side fairly amidship. There
was crash and scream of creaking