The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1917-02-15
BY MARY BOYLE o'REILLY.

VsV"S w ~ ".u@SUs
New York, Feb. l5-With the Stars
and Stripes at the taffrail, but no
barber pole stripes on the sides or
checkerbOard flags on the mastheads,
! have just passed through the sub
marine zone of frightfulness on the
American liner New York, the last
ship for home.
A vast landing shed held by SOL
diers; one table at which Britishers
sit to be questioned, another at which
Yankees stand for the same ordeal.
A final Interrogation, grudging,
stamping OF departure cards, a swift
passage along the last gauntlet, and
I with 200 other American citizens
are "safe" on the last boat home.
No parting cheer to the towering
ship, no final greeting to the empty
dock, as the first blockade rtlnner
slipped into the stream. Such are
my last impressions Of Liverpool.
Passengers are carefully cabined
near the gangway stairs and life belts
are laid open beside every berth.
take my orders for the trip from
a calm.eyed stewardess from the lost
Titanic. =
Sleep Fully Dressed.
MADAM will dress warmly with fur
coat and sea rugs laid ready" she
tells me. There is a handbag for
money and jewels, the stateroom will
be hooked open and you will have one
nights sleep fully dressed lying upon
the couch" she added.
Obviously the orders come from the
captain on the bridge-the compre.
hensive non.committal rule of the sea.
There is no mention Of raiders or
submarines. .a... '........ ..,..
Gray, murky and fogbound sea
shrOuding the graves Of the Arabic
and the Lusitania. Gaudily painted
ships shrieking their nationality from
waterline to topmast. The Philadel-
phia limping into port with smash
ed screw Two slim, black, torpedo
boat destroyers sneaking to sea
ihs0Mghs the deepening gloom That Is
the picture the harbor presents.
Then zone of broken water, a
course inside the fastnet to avoid
vast mine fields, glimpse of the
guardian ring Of trawlert patrols-in-
defatigable, llnhonored and unsung.
fishers and fighters stoo.st @e - g
Here, if anywhere, pirate submar-
ines lie waiting. If we get through,
other American ships can follow in
safety. .,a& sdi 10 r. In. 8s..
Z .r.sa Tie on Life Belts. .,4v
Women glance at each other in sill
ence, mems faces grow grim; children
are tied into life belts. .. ......
No one mentions either the Ger
mans or the English. War-weary and
we are Americans 60
ing home. ..
Then, of a sudden, the ships long,
lean hull lunges through hills of wat
er. The blockade breaker is conveyed
through the first danger zone by the
God of storms. ...'
A wild night. On deck, the tireless
tramp of double watch, through the
dark, from the sea-swept bow, the
lookout's "Alrs well,' lonely as q cur
few's call. ggG sip lss
From the silent chamber ~ where
whispering wireless drips the worlds
news, messenger speeds to the cap
tain. He rises, tired-eyed, but conf
dent.
"Fellow citizens, the United States
has severed diplomatic relations with
Germany"
The flag under which we sailed is
M 1onpor nrOtpctiOn
An elderly lady slips to the piano.
Her cameo face, flushing family, she
begins to sing. Not Columbia, nor
My Country, but that nobler clarion
call, the Battle Hymn of the Repub-
lie. "As He died to make men Holy,
let us die to make men Free" 1t is
the creed of Americans facing fate on
the last boat home.
The ship heads into a new course,
southwest for Hatteras, along lane
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