Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1916-09-16

Ing little fellow with the Afisona rib
bon on his hat; In the next instant Bob
raj himself again and was conscious
that he was facing Louden, the firing
pointer. who still held to the firing key,
though for the moment Louden's eyes.
too. were staring at nothing-very far
away.
In the suspense the motion OF the
ship had become more menacing-the
heave of the great waves against the
steel sides. the sweep Of the spray
over the deck, and the noise of the
wind. In such a sea few would be
saved If the ship went down.
Some one behind a bulkhead swore
violently; Bob did not try to discover
who. 1t was the swapping Of nerves
during inaction: and the outburst was
against the smoke-the crazy SCOT
which the destroyers were sending up
and which shut everything away and
stopped the guns from firing.
A deep, rumbling detonation-very
different from the banging resound Of
the guns Of the destroyers-came down
the wind: the noise of the "fours"
diminished.
Wendell tried again to make out
something through his periscope but
the smoke was still all about the
Arizona.
"What do you make OF that, Hoh?'
he asked Of the turret captain. "Tor-
Teio%
"Yes. sir: one OF the destroyers gone,
I should say. sir"
One of the destroyers gone! That.
now. was plain. The smoke about the
Arizona was thinning and. as Bob's
field OF vision extended a couple OF
hundred yards forward and to the
left. he saw a destroyer sinking by the
stern. 1t was n Of the newer and
larger Of the ~destroyers--a long. four
.funneled boat with two masts and
with sharp PROV pointing to the sky.
II was the Aylwin. or the Balch. which
had been on guard ahead the few min
utes before. its guns going. its fun-
neis belching smoke for the hiding OF
the Arizona: smoke still steamed from
the forward tunnels as the destroyer
sank: but its guns were silent, leering
to the sky. Men were falling from its
slanting deck into the sea. others chung
to stays or stanchions. They made no
signal to the battleship as 300 yards
away. it rushed by in the haze OF
smoke which the other d%estroyers sus-
tanned. The Arizona. bent on the de
%struction of life. could not halt to. save
men from the vessel which had been
protecting the battleship: the men on
the destroyer knew It: n OF them
waved and Bob knew that he was
cheering. MS the Arizona passed; then
he leaped into the sea.
The clatter Of a machine gun: the
rattle of another. replying. sounded
from the air overhead. The turret
guns of the Arizona were still masked
and silent; the torpedo defense batter
les on the battleship still lacked a
target: the noise Of che machine gun
became distinct. Two a%eroplanes were
fghting-an American machine pnr-
sued BY. a monopiane OF the enemy
and driven back over the. American
ships. Bob saw the duel but a fash
ing second as the aircraft swept over
head. The smoke was disappearing;
the destroyer. which had been belching
the pail, appeared a~gain-or rather
three OF them appeared where there
had been four.
"Range. one, nine. o double Or the
telephone transmitters in the turret
were talking again. The visual upon
the bulkhead displayed the range NJ
the ~sightsetters sprang to their sights.
Commence fring!" s