The sun., 1918-12-14
BATTLE WITH SEA
WON FOR WOUNDED
De Kalb Navigator Sails by
Dead Reckoning in Ter
rifle Four Day Gale.
MORE HEROES ARE HOME
Lone Sergeant and Gen.
Bundy's Horse on Oregon
ian Share in Welcome.

United States Coast Guard-Old Cap
Jim being all .of 35 years old. a twin
Of John Alger, the landscape painter,
and ono OF the nlftiest navigating lads
g on the seven seas-had no sun, moon,
stars or anything else heavenly to
guide him for the last four days. four
nights and for the first half of yester-
day, while acting as navigating officer
of the one time German raider Prinz
Eitel Friedrich, now the United States
Navy transport De Kalb.
Nevertheless, after his four days and
a half Of sailing by dead reckoning.
Old Cap Jim Alger smiled contentedly
early yesterday as there doomed dead
ahead Of him the glim OF the Ambrose
Channel lightship. Whereupon the
naval skipper Of the troopship, Capt.
Il. II. Dodd, U. S. N, who throughout
a voyage Of vicious tempestuousness
at times had been fearful for his pre-
cious cargo Of about half a hundred
wounded soldiers, sailors and marines,
complimented Capt. Alger with all the
susto that naval regulations per-
United.
True to the Line.
And Skipper Dodd, Commander w.
Baggaley, U. S. N. who was executive
officer of the De Kalb, and doubtless
even DIR. Judy, the naval surgeon
aboard, were unofficially quoted as
saying, after the DE Kalb had locked at
Pier 2, Hoboken, later in the day, that
IL Navigating Officer Jim Alger hadn't
veered the De Kalb slightly he would
have split the lightship with mathe-
NAUTICAL exactness the length OF her
Keel.
But the De Kalb didn't hit into any
thing but the middle of the channel
and she came up the lower and upper
bay and the river through the rain
amid glad yell of welcome which
showed tina the sirens and river front
whistles had recovered the full volume
of their voices after the comparative
rest OF Thursday.
The bays, Narrows and the North
River were not overcrowded with in
coming troopships yesterday. Just
before the De Kalb arrived the trans
port Oregonian came in bearing in
geant Leland Kaufman-not forget
ting also that below decks was Major
Gen. Omar Bundy's chestnut charger.
Joe. But IL the Maj General, in
stead Of only Sarge Kaufman and
Joe, himself had been on the bridge of
the Oregonian. waving to a grateful
people lining the shores, he wouldn't
have got a noiser greeting than that
whole water front gave to Sarge Kauf-
man.
Sarge Gets Big Welcome.
As the sergeant, lining himself up
at the rail of the transport in COM
pany. battalion, regimental and all
other formations, looked out across
the waters with wondering eyes and
at last realized that the hurrah was
all for him, he gasped at last-so It
was said authoratively after the
Oregonian had docked in Brooklyn-in
audible tones, What the hell?"
Really the arrival of the welcoming
police boat Patrol, the footing of river
and factory whistles and the cheers
as the Oregonian was being warped
into her Brooklyn berth, were the re-
suit Of the idea in everybody's mind
that the transport carried many
troops. But even II all the passengers
aboard except Sergt. kaufman were
civilians the welcomers didn't let that
fact slacken up the fervor of their
greeting.
The Police Department glee club
sang for Sergt. Kaufman just as
heartily as If he were the whole First
American Army. The Police Depart
ment band played for him. Red Cross
men and women workers and girls
Of the Women's Police Reserves threw
him all the cigarettes, chocolates and
other goodies they had brought TO the
pier-and as they had stocked up
under the expectation of pegging the
delicacies in among at least half a
regiment or so, one may get some
faint idea of how long 1t took he deck
hands Of the Oregonian to dig Sergt
Kaufman out of the pile of cigarettes
and chocolates that soon buried him
from view.
Record in Debarkati0n.
After the Oregonian had been
warped into her pier and Sergeant
Kaufman and Joe, the Generals
charger, had been landed it was stated
semi officially that never in the his
tory of the transport service had an
incoming consignment OF fighters been
disembarked so swiftly.
The De Kalb. on the other hand, had
many more fighting men aboard than
the one soldier cargo OF the Oregon
ian could boast. There were 413 SOL
diers from the fighting fronts, twen-
ty-f1ve marines. also Cof course) from
The fighting fronts. fifty-four officers
OF whom about a dozen were recover
ing from wounds received in action
and 657 sailors.
All tho sailor lads were hale and
hearty. not because they hadn't been
up against the Hun, but because they
had got the undersea coolies first
But the Alb soldiers and all of the
marines aboard had been smashed UT
while smashing the Germans In
France and Flanders. Also on the way
,.ome the entire Atlantic Ocean tried
90 smash them up some more.
THE worst storms this ship ever
went through" was the united yer.
dict OF every navy man aboard, from
Capt Dodd and Capt. Alger down tc
the hardest deck swabber. And az
for the olive drab passengers aboard
from Brighten. c. L. McCawley OF
che Marine Corps, down to the non.
Seagoing privates from Nebraska
the opinion was unanimous that thu