The Washington herald., 1915-12-12
NORTH SEA PATROL NOW
BRITAIN'S DEFENSE WALL
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exist. He has done il all too otter
at sea, and ashore.
watched a little party working
under leading hand at job. which
eighteen months ago, would have re-
uuired a gunner in charge. IL was
comic to see his orders tryins TO over
take the execution of them. Ratings
coming aboard carried themselves with
1, TO me, new swing-not swank but
consciousness of adequacy. The high
dark foc'sles which, thank goodness,
are only washed twice week, re-
ceiyed them and their bags, ana they
turned to on the instant as a man
picks up his life at home. Like the
submarine crews they come TO be a
breed apart-double jointed. with brazen
bowels. and no sort of nerves.
1t is the same in the engine room,
when the boats come in for their reg
uIar looking over Those who love
them, which you would never guess
from the language, know exactly what
they need and get il without fuss.
Everything that steams has her indi-
yidHal peculiarity, and the great thing
is. at overhaul, to keep to 1t and not
develop 4 new one. If for example.
through some trick of her screws mol
synchronizing, destroyer always
casts to port when she goes astern,
do not let any Jealous soul try to make
her run true: or you will have to learn
her helm all over again. And il is
vital that you should know exactly
what your ship is going to do five sec
onds before she does it Similarly with
men. If any one from lieutenant COM
mander to stoker changes his personal
trick or habit-even the manner In
which he clutches his chin or careSses
his nose at a crisis-the matter must
be carefully considered in this world
where each is trustee of his neigh
bor's life, and, vastly more important.
the corporate honour.
oh. Just Running About.
What are the destroyers doing just
now?" ! asked.
''Oh-running about-much the same as
usual"
The navy hasn't the least objection
10 telling one everything that II Is
doing. Unfortunately. ii speaks its own
language which is incomprehensible to
the civilian. But you will find it all
in THE Channel Pilot and The Rid
die of the Sands"
1t is a foul coast, hairy with cur
rents and ripe and notified with shoals
and rocks. Practically the same men
hold on here in the same boats with
much the same crews for months and
months. most senior officer told me
that they were good boys"-on re-
hection quite good boys" but neither
he nor the flags on the chart explained
how they managed their Iightless. un-
marked navigation through black
night, binding rain and the crazy
rebounding North Sea gales. They
themselves ascribe it to Joss that they
have not piled up their boats a hum
dred times.
Il expect il must be because We're
always lodging about over the same
ground. One gets to smell it, We've
bumped pretty hard, of course. but we
haven't expended much UP to date.
You never know your luck on patrol.
though"
Personally Has His Objections.
Personally, though they have been
true friends to me. / loathe destroy
ers, and all the raw. racking, ri
chochetting life that goes with them
the smell of the wet '1ammies" ana
damp wardroom cushions: the galley
chimney smoking out of the bridge:
the obstacle-strewn deck; and the per
vading beastliness of oil. grit and
greasy iron. Even at moOrings they
shiver and side like half backed
horses. At sea they will neither rise
ID and fly clear like the hydrOplanes.
nor dive and be done with il like the
submarines. but initiate the vices of
both. A scientist Of the lower deck
describes them as: Half switchback; A;
half water-shUte, and he'll continU-
ous," Their only merit from lands
mans point OF view is that they can
crumple themselves up from stern to
bridge and Il have seen it, still get
home. But one does not breathe these
compliments to their commanders.
Other destToyers may be-they Will
point them out to NOu-poisOnous bags
of tricks, but their own command
never! Is she high-bowed: That is the
only type which OVerrides the seas in
stead of smOtherinG. Is she low? Low
bows glide through the water where
those Collier-uoSed brutcS smash II
open. Is she mucked up with subma-
rne CatChers. They rather improve
her trim. y" other boat has them.
Have they been denied TO her? Thank
heaven, we 90 to sea without 4 fish
curing plant on deck. Does she roll.
even for her class" She is drier than
Dreadnoughta. l. She perma nently and
Internally wet" Stiff. sir-stif-the
first requisite of a gun platform.
Sad-cyed Engineers.
Thus the Caesars and their fortunes
put out TO sea with their subs and
their sad-ey ed engineers. and their
long suffering Sienallcrs - do not
even know the technical name of the
sin which causes a man 10 Ice born
a destroyer sigualIer in this lifc). and
the little yellow shells stuck all about
where they can bc the easiest reach
ed. The rest of their acts Is written
for the information of the proper au-
thorities. II reads like A page Of Tod
hunter. But the masters of merchant
ships could tell more of eycless shapes,
barely outlined on the foam Of their
own arrest. who shout orders through
The thick gloom alongside. The stray
ed and anxious neutral knows them
when their searChlichts rin him across
the deep. or their SyrenS answer the