The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1916-09-26


masts and four huge turrets, two for
ward and two aft They were notified
like the cruisers. gray and darker gray.
at distance of eight miles or ten-at
which such ships should ight-the
nothing must make doubtful their SIT
houettes, but at three or four miles
Wendell knew them-three of the most
powerful superdreadnaughts of the
American first line of battle.
The blood burned in Wendelrs face
as he saw them and he raised his
prismatic giasses to his eyes Which
is which, he asked of WAYNE
'4The Nevada is nearest" Wayne re
piled The Oklahoma lies next.
Wendell nodded He had made out
lines of the two nearer monsters
Their lower turrets. bow and stern
mounted three guns each. three of the
huge fourteen inch rifles. The other
turrets showed but two guns apiece
ten fourteen inch rifles on each vessel
1.-The next is the Pennsylvania
Wendell referred All of its four tur
refs showed three guns each-twelve
fourteen-inch guns together.
Eyes. sir. She came in just this
morning"
'aThen the Arizona's at the nav,
yard?"
Eyes. sir. We're taking on ammuni
ton"
"I see" Wendell looked an instan
across the water to the estuary OF the
Elizabeth where the city of Norfolk
lay on the left Portsmouth. with -
navy yard. was on the right He
turned l.ls gla$sc; then back TO the
loads and the bay Beyond What's
but farther"
''Some of the mine layers. We've
put out most of the mines at night. d.
course, but the regents aircraft were
here right after daylight and spoltet
most of them. so were adding fen
more now-miXing the dummies and
the real ones"
Wendell nodded Aloft in an aero
plane at Pensacola he had seen how
distinctly the mines, hidden by water
from lookouts on ships decks. stood
out to the pilot and observer far over
head. Every mine at the entrance of
the bay might be spotted on such a
sunshiny day, but the observers in
the air could not tell the real mines
from the dummies.
$50 our friend up there"-W Wendell
searched the sky for the blue streak
Of the enemy aeroplane-"isn't our first
vfsitor?''
mo, sir; / should say not!''
Where have they been coming
from"
Some say that they must be coming
from secret shore base in a swamp
somewhere or a backwater along the
coast. They're all hydroaeroplanes, but
they're more probably coming from
some mother ship which is with their
battle cruisers"
"Where are the battle cruisers?"
A flush stained Wayne's face as be
answered: Haven't you heard. sir
They've been raiding the coast all day
Two cruisers up above Boston, they
say, shelled Salem and Newburyport
There's some more have been shelling
AAAOAC anu L<OllS 1SIdlu anu
| New Jersey. They're all battle cruis
ers of their Carthage class or armored
cruisers Of the Pera type, six or seven
knots faster than anything we've got
except our destroyers. Our ships al
| Boston and in New York have tried
to drive them away, of course, but
we've got to send out our first line
ships to do that. Their battle cruis
ers give us the laugh and keep just
out of range of us and shatter the
coast. Atlantic City was on fire this
noon, with 200 or 800 dead, and the
squadron down this way-which thai
plane comes from, probably-shelled
Ocean City, in Maryland. this morn
Ing, and another ship killed twenty
women and children at Virginia
| Beach,
| Wendell gaZed at the great dread
naughts lying IN the roads. He felt
| the flush which had famed to the en-
/ signs cheeks as he confessed the help
lessness of the feet against the re
gents battle cruisers now burning In
his own veins. The two tall cage masts
Of the Arizona, toward which he was
bound, showed above the other ship
ping before Portsmouth. and the OBJ
jective of the aeroplane. at which the
anti-aireraft guns of the destroyers had
been firing for twenty minutes, now
had become clear. Twice while the
launch had been crossing the James
the enemy's plane had dashed over the
city, but had turned In long ellipse
to swoop back again. On the third re-
turn now the pilot appeared better
pleased with his position. As he pass
ed over Portsmouth something dropped
which glinted in the sunlight, and
where it fell flame and black smoke
and flying debris billswed up At the
roar of the explosion the anti-air craft
guns redoubled their racket, but the
aeroplane only banked" and swung
about short and dropped another bomb
| which blew up a second black cloud of
| destruction
Hes deviling the Arizona. you see'
| Wendell handed his glass over to
Ross, who was beside him-"or he's
trying to get the navy yard arsenal"
| The red warning flag-the signal for
other craft to keep away while the
battleship took aboard it's powder
shells and guncotton-fiuttered from
| the Arizona's halyards. Wayne steer
ed directly for the great ship. The
aeroplane Of the enemy had passed on
From a field near the water an Ameri-
can biplane whirred into the air. II
was all white wings and brown body