The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1898-11-10


aboard safc'y-was in charge Of the
Porter for the time. There was quiet
until 2:3o in the morning. Then the
one-pounder beside me woke me as
thoroughly as if it had been 13-inch
gun, and ! raced to the coming tower
tc see what had happened, and saw
what seemed to be the very biggest
ship in the world looming up on our
port bow, indistinct in the gloom, but
close enough to sink us without fail
a second after the order to fire.
Lieut.. Fremont stood before the
| coming tower. Gillis had made out
the loom of the stranger when we
| were a quarter of mile away and
| had awakened his commander. Silent
ly the Porter stole up on the dark
warship. When we were but 200 yards
away or less, and so within easy sig
nal distance, the night fleet signal was
flashed by the torpedo boat-two
white lights and one red. 1t burned
| for a second or SO and then it was
| turned off.
There was no reply. The stranger,
dark and unheeding, moved slowly
westward. That she had not seen it
was inconceivable, for there were 20
men looking out for signals on every
American warship at this time and no
one could believe that they had over
looked that well-known signal flashed
clear so close at hand.
The Porter shot close--so close that
every man on her felt that desperate
work was in hand and that now we
were in for it beyond recall. The New
York is perhaps the easiest of the
American ships to recognize, but 50
dark was it that she was strange to
practiced eyes. Moreover, the direc-
tion from which she approa ched was
such that we had her masts and smoke
pipes in confusing line.
Our blowers were making a loud,
droning noise. The movement of both
vessels through the water added to the
difficulty of hearing. Fremont's voice
rose so that thought it must have
rung through the strange ship. But
the crew of the strange ship were
rushing to their guns.
stop those blowers" Fremont said
He was calm. even deliberate. His
eyes swept forward and then aft.
"Are the guns trained on her?" he
asked.
) AYE, aye, SIR" came from both one
Founders. The torpedo, too, wa.
.. ready. 1t had been tested for pressure
but few hours earlier. At each CUR
jackie stood like statue, mis- shoul
> der bent against the rest, his eye OF
, the enemy. In such moments the ey,
notices queer details. remembel
wondering that the jackie at the bow
l gun could stand there so quietly, read,
to fight that great ship which lowered
above us with that absurd one
FOUNDER.
t As jackie answered: "Aye, aye, sir,
t his commanders voice rang out again
e This time hewas hailing and the intiec
!. ton rising:
at-ship-is-that?"
No answer.
: Fire across her bowl"
d Bang! went our bow gun, and tn
: metal ratified as the men showed an
r other shell home and trained the piec
: again.
"Show the night fleet signal" Ere
k mont said, and it flashed again-tw
d white lights above red one. w
h were under the strangers quartz
d now, close aboard. For one of us ther
was no escape. At that range a tol
: pedo must destroy the big ship ir
= eyitably.
l. A second after our signal burned tn
II strangers signal mast .blazed an
J. there hung an answering signal, bu
s. not the right one. Instead of tw
Il white lights and red one ther
]" For a moment it flashed through FIR.
e mont's mind that an enemy might b
S attempting to use the American 81.
e mails. There was no time to thin
e about it.
e There was a flash from the stra1
l. gers forward fighting top and she
r whistled over us. Some mar in tn
D. but of that we knew nothing. We sa
j. only the flash of the gun and believe
n that rifles and machine guns would
n ridd.irg us second later. The bi
d guns could not be depressed enough
d bear On us, SO close were we.
l. Fremont had been hailing at til
O moment and his face had been turne
" away from that top from which IL
T. gun was fred.
It Ibid that shot come from -her?" /
le shouted.
b, ayes, sir" said jackie and in II
,e same breath.
d For a second perhaps Lieut.. FIR
k mont stood still and silent and his me
r. and those on the decks high above ,
d, held their aim and their breath, al
q waited for a word which would tul
g. loose torpedo from the Porter and
D. hail Of fire from the flagship.
In that long second Fremont, hol
k ing the great cruiser at his mere
even more than the cruiser held us
a hers, weighed the chances and ga,
le them one more chance. 1t was to
~ their last. I read it in the sudd.
| - \: ~