Iditarod pioneer., 1917-02-24


 fare For many months tlocks of seagulls had screamed over a certain strip of coast | in North Africa. It was filtered and strewr l with wrecllage and dead bodies from mer- chant ships, allies and neutrals, who had met with the German submarines. A small fot!lla of trawlers and driftcrs were dis patched to these waters; and today that coast is clean.
 The value of these patrols in the Medlter- ranean has been grimly proved. For on one occasion when their numbers were smaller, a travler squadron was withdrawing from the mouth of the Adriatlc to deal with un- expected trouble in the Aegean. Promptly there were submarines out through the un- guarded gates, and more wreckage and dead on the unwatched shores.
 There are British longshore fishermen ln the White ses, patrollng or frozen in and others are even patrollng the coast ot Bull garia
 One of these tarry old shippers found that sorlething had gone wrong with hls trawi- CTS engines. in true EEzabethan style he got into his dinghy, with two men and three rifles, and sent his rusty old boat back to the base
 But where is your skipper?" asked the naval officer of the seamen.
 "E's in the dinghy, sir, blockadlng the Bulgars," was the reply.
 The sinking of unarned fishing boats was ~ne of the favorite amusements of Fritz ,n the earlier stages of the war. The sink ng of these fishing boats suddenly ceased axcept on rare occasions; and, for certain reasons, it is now an acknowledged fact that when q submarine sees one it submerges or belts immediately. Details must not be given; but these smaller fishing boats now .orm class to themselves, and they are known as auxiliar!es, or mystery ships"
 One hint l may give here. There was 7nce upon time simple fishing boat shooting her fishing nets for simple fish. A submarine appeared and gave her men five minutes to leave the vessel. Immediately there was a panic which had been part ol the drill in port. Two of the crew went to their knees for mercy and others hauled at he boat like men possessed.
 1 must pass over the details once more; but the resultant picture was this: A dummy boat on deck in four pieces, and 8 fine big gun eveled straight at the sub marine, attended by gunners of his majesty's navy, Hike gods in poor disguise" There
 ere two Germans kneelng for mercy, and after they had scrambled into safety there was an abolished submarine and oil upon many troubled waters.
 Many queer transformations have been brought about by this war; for there are not only longshorc fishermen in naval uni form, but there are also many mysteries, of which 1 will say no more. Suffice It that thing which looks like battleship may be comparatively harmless, by the side of a thing which looks like Noshs ark.
 There are more ways of producing moral effect than were dreamed of in German phi losophy; and it is enough to say that cer- tain mysteries have made German warshlps run like hares from boat that was harm less as 6 mouse
 Even the little knowledge that they pos sess perplcxes them; for they are confront rg the most terrible bluff in the gamble of war, the bluff that Is backed by realities. Passengers on American and neutral iners, with their flags flying, but oh, wise 9recaution-t rafts ready and their boats we'll stocked with food and Water-l have seen them heaving sigh of content at the tight of British man -of-war which was not really a man-of-war at all, foamlng ahead of them; while all around, from sky line to skyline, the sea was dotted with in significant and hardly noted brown sailed craft-the ships of Drake and Hawkins loaded with unimagined thunderbolts, the world patrolting battle fleets of Britain.
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