Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-08-10
HOW DESTROYER
EvADES U BOATS
Speed and SkillfuI Handling
Keep Submarines Wary.
REPORTER SEES ATTACK


Torpedo Missed It's Mark by a Scant
Six Feet Swarm of Fast Patrolo
Making 1t Increasingly Perilous For
Germans to Show Themselves Above
the Surface.
Just how a British destroyer acts
when attacked by a submarine was I'M
expectedly demonstrated to a CORE
spondent willie travelling on one of the
modern oil driven torpedo boat destroy
ers from England to France.
The correspondent had been taken
aboard the destroyer for the purpose
batting the submarine menace, when
the boat was suddenly attacked by a
q boat, a torpedo missing it by a scant
six feet, thanks to the vigilance and
quick action Of the crew.
The destroyer was one of a certain
number which We're conveying in the
Usual some large transports
carrying British troops to France. The
group of ships was halfway across the
channel when suddenly one of the look
outs spied u pair of periscopes rise fol-
a N a few inches out of the wa,
ter a half mile away. They were gone
the next instant. but almost before
they had gone came the shout, Sub
marine on port bow!' accompanied BY
a shrill call of warning from the de-
stroyer's whistle and the futtering out
of the flag which notified every other
ship in the convoy of the enemy's pres
ence.
Guns Brought to Bear.
On every ship things began to hap
pen more quickly than the telling.
Guns were swung in the direction from
which the p%eriscope had been seen,
ready to speak if the periscope appear
ed again. Torpedo tubes likewise were
swung into line, and the numerous
anti-submarine devices along deck
were In the hands of their skilled eX
pert crews.
But even while this was being done
came the torpedo, plainly visible from
the deck, its cleaning brass body glis-
tening in the bright sunlight, its pro
pellers pushing it at express train
speed straight toward the destroyer.
Something was wrong with the mech
anism of this particular torpedo, for y
| slaAld haYe-x0yeled twelve or UA
feet below the surf Instead, it
came bounding along In plain sight
now and then leaping out of the water.
like a fiat stone made to skip W. the
surface.
Even thus it might have found its
target but for the presence of mind OF
the sixty-year-old coxswain. He had
been first to sight the ~periscopes and
had rushed Immediately to an emer-
gency lever, whereby he instantly
stopped the port engine, thus swing
ing the ship with a lurch to the left.
The torpedo whizzed through the wa
ter six feet behind the stern of the
destroyer, it's gradually lessening speed
as it sank into the swirl of the en-
gines indicating that its possibilities
TOT mischief were nearly dOue.
Except for the coxswain's action in
twisting the ship from its course. the
missile would apparently have made a
square hit in the stern magazine.
Meanwhile the wireless was at work
notifying the hundreds of patrols In all
directions that the enemy was near.
1--WE sighted a submarine on the port
I0xr- ;,,.4 zee hIo,,ly H,1ou 600 ~
Torpedo passed just behind our stern,
missing US. We are proceeding with
our convoy" said the captains mes
sage.
Many Vessels Quickly In Pursuit.
1t was caught simultaneously, ashore
and afoat, by a hundred v~igilant wire
less operators. The destroyer's cap
tain, according to his orders. must NOT
leave his convoy to seek out and attack
the U boat. Others would attend to
that. Already they were gathering for
the chase-trawlers, chasers, drifters.
~destroyers. Even a dirigible airship far
off on the horizon had caught the wire
less call and with the quick turn of d
seagull was swooping down to the pur
suit.
The transports and destroyers, a.
though fairly confident that the Z beat
would scarcely dare show herself again,
V for a pot shot, were nevertheless
taking every precaution. Every ship
vas at full speed, oil burning destroy
ers constantly protecting their charges.
The whole attack occupied bare sec
onds. Convoy and charges We're out OF
range in a few minutes at the most
Nowhere had there been the slightest
panic or furry, but movements OF men
and ships made with almost automatic
precision and peed. The efficiency OF
the British naval man is the efficiency
of clockwork. Every cog knows its
place. There is no meddling. no clash.
ing. no interference, but a confident rap
IL 4H,aso,a- N-hs1I. -A-,-la,- Ir-Aa,1. |