Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-02-13
THE YELLOWDANGER
THE STORY OF THE WORLDS GREATEST WAR.
BY NJ P. SIiIEL.
by r. Fnno&co
BY M. P. SHIEL.
TORY OF THE WORLDS GREATEST WAR.
Copyright. 1899. by r. F. Fenno & Coz

ner movement from La GlOire.
For time Ii seemed as IL the British
ship were in retreat, and the French CIV
Ing chase; then suddenly both ships were
hidden from each other. Sir Henry, taking
advantage. of his windward position. had
thrown overheard some twenty casks of
smoke producing tow and naphtna and tar,
which at once separated the two ships with
a biackness of thick brown reek mingled
near the water with pickering tongues of
H. ihs Ve'-il-s stdel ti.otl -
ing that In this fog of fume the Majestic
might suddenly turn about and ram him, at
once changed his course southwest, and was
Immediately the retreating ship. The Eng
10 .4;:fr1i J. d guessed Z. thou. d
! when the region of the smoke-making COM
position was passed. the beam of the Males
tic vas abreast of La Gioire's poop
It was the lieutenant in charge of The
fore barbette of the Majestic who first woke
the thunder of this winter morning tragedy.
simultaneously, with one bang of wrath
tnat shook the Majestic herself from stem
10 stern, both the sixty-seven- tonners of
thiS .-,lette went crashing into La Gioire 8
quarters.
AL ms moment the ships were not much
more than half a mile apart When the
sIhcke cleared 1t was at once seen that the
Wnole stern armament of La Gloire was in
ruins. her after barbette shattered the
Two heaVy guns unshipped. One of the
shelis had penetrated abaft her after-ar-
mored tube and there burst. killing fifty
IL met. From the poop of the French ship
rose wide hurry of white smoke At the
same time steady bombardment of quick
firing guns was opened from both vessels In
three minutes all unarmored or unsheltered
spots In each ship were cleared of every liv-
ing thing. Tweive-pounders, six-poundsrs,
three- Founders mingled In swift-crac king
uproar, punctuated by the brut growl Of
the Gardeners and the more rasping detona-
ton of the Nordenfeldts All the air was
wal ana all the intervening sea a commo-
ton of kissing foam
But now the machine guns in the tons
were silent, their protecting shields had
been shot away and their crews annihi-
lated One Of La Gloire's tunnels was gone,
and the other pierced. while three projec-
tiles from her had burst their way through
shields of six-inch nickel steel and put
three of the Majestics central battery guns
oul OF action. striking them fairly on the
chase. Within three minutes the two ships
had belched forth a flaming hail of some
twenty-five thousand rounds of shot rid
ding all except the most heavily armored
parts of each other. tearing to shreds all
light gun screens and turning unarmored
ends and box batteries into shambles
Already 1t seemed improbable that either
ship, unless the other were at once de-
stroyed, could come out of this anarchy of
thunder and live.
The starboard side of the Majestic was
still presented to the port of La Gloire, but
| La Gloire's speed had been greatly re-
duoed. owing to injuries to her tunnels and
the Majestic had forged forward abreast.
then somewhat ahead of the other
Vice Admiral Stephenson was every mo-
ment awaiting the second crash of his
after barbeIte into the French ships beam,
when La Gloire's two ore-barbette guns
sent out their voices simultaneously
One OF the shots glanced against the CEN
ter armor belt of the Majestic at the water
line, leapt, struck her fore-armOred tube
and went diving far forward into the sea,
where it burst in high water lily of spout
ing foam.
NH
struck the Majestic's central battery at the
height of the deck. burst inside, blew away
the chief part of the hurricane deck and
turned all the guns in that battery into a
mere heap of twisted and crumple1 metal.
But as the British ship staggered at this
blow her bluejackets sent up cheer
for the next Instant the after barbette in
their own ship was talking, too; and a few
Sseconds afterward 1t was seen that La
: floire's forecastle was on fire, that she had
gone down by the bows and that her
Yscrews, half out of water, were furiousy
revolving in a broad mound of wheeling
spume.
Was she sinking, then? The British vice
admiral expected now to see her strike her
flag. But even as he looked he was unde-
ceived
Yonder hundred yards astern. some
what to his port side, he saw sight which
might have made even the heart of Nell
son leap. 1t was a small object, looking
like cubical box: and even as he glanced
at it, 1t disappeared utterly beneath the
waves.
He knew this to be one of the ingenuities
from the FORCES ct Chanters de la Medter-
rance. 1t was submarine boat and the
object which he had seen for a moment
was the top of her coming tower as she
rose for an observation of distances and di-
rections.
The submarine boat had been secety low
cred into the water from La Gloire's star
board side. Her motor was electric, sup
piled from storage batteries and her speed,
ct do. 1NfA too
Admiral Stephenson knew that her aim was
to pass under his torpedo nets, carrying an
electrically fired torpedo, TO be attached to
his already half-ruined ship.
ct once he went circlng at full speed to
starboard. crossing the bows of the now
slowly progressive La Gloire, one of whose
fore-barDette guns was useless, and the
other unready to fire..
At the same time he had rapidly lowered
from his port side second-class torpedo
boat which he then carried on deck By
means of hot water from the Majestic S
boilers, she was already under steam, and
with careful handling, in spite of the parent
ships now headlong, wheeling flight, she
touched the water In safety, and at once
went fretting fussfly through the pillows, a
mere cloud of hurrying spray, at a speed
of fourteen knots Like some buzzing bee
with deadly sting, she drove straight upon
La Gloire.
The alarm on the French ship at this hast
ing ruin resembled panic. Disregardng the
movements of the Majestic, her commander
at once put his helm-a-port, and turning
upon his small foe the comparatively I'M
injured armament of his starboard side.
poured forth. in one continuous roll of ar
tillery a bombardment of some twelve thou
sand pounds per minute. La Gloire was
now, however, well In the trough of the sea,
which flowed in bulky swells from east to
west; the greater portion of her huge out
burst of fire failed to take effect; and still
the putting thing came near and yet nearer,
overwhelmed. but steadfast, drowned, but
headlong tiny, but terrible.
(To be continued tomorrow.)