The Washington times., 1918-01-13


fts ROYAL NdVdl Reserve from tchoBI
ttis information IUGs secured, Gnf
1ak0se name for obvious reasons cG'i-
ut be used, has made affidavit (Rol1
q our possessioR) that this stOTp IS
correet IN eUerT detail. In addition
ID British admiralty has consented
tie publication Of the stOrg of the
-, Emmy fleet.
From q White Star liner to the flag
a1lp Of the British Suicide Squadron"
The gray armada which never
bunted a single gun nor fired a
I,,pt, yet patroled the North Sea, keep
< the German navy huddled behind
Il .minefields, and played an impor-
at role in the battle OF DoggeTbRnk
was my experience in doing my bit
= the allies.
No such colossal war jest has been
rhysd upon an enemy since the days
81 the Trojan Horse. The cunning
I NOR OF the British Admiralty tan
ized the German navy with the
rsterious maneuvers of Its mighty
r.nadrons, some of them made of barn
Ilnber, until German kultur was com
teIy baffIed at the unexpected num-
OF It's enemies.
Wooden warships, without a single
tsapor of war aboard, helped Brit |
1hIa rule the waves during the first |
fteen months Of the war. and lorded |
x over the covering Germans, who /
rtSer once suspected that they were !
a1ght but what they seemed. To SO |
1nccessfuHy hoodwinlI German eff !
ncy surely vindicstes British humor /
all charges ever brought against 1t. !
Never. Caught On.
And the Germans never caught on |
the Joke, even when one OF their
bmarines sank a dummy at the |
lrdauelles, where It was serving |
= mailship for the allied fleets.
hey announced and rejoiced that "a
itiEh battleship OF the - class
% sunk by one OF our submarines"
lhougn the huge guns and turrets
g. the dreadnaught flORted for days
about the entrance to Stamboul! 1t |
Is no matter for wonder. then. that |
British seamen have so little respect |
for GermRn official intelligence.
t1les Of a mysterious special |
I|tt toiiadron" OF the British navy |
U1iaDered among the seamen of |
NJ r1rt. keen interest took possess
rtr d an q US. and many and varied |
|- the eonjectures we ventured J
81 = Etfucture and purposes. At
It lime the fascination OF these |
NHEn1IFn ulits of our grand fleet wac !
only Bought in regard to them
14 reFer dreamed that l was soon
g tr7e On the flagship o. the squad |
Pay Much HIEher>
IRE whole secret came 20 me |
ttfcl7h thA company depot steward |
N1er ~ oTsred to transfer me to that 7
ssrfIce. Gle work was patriotic and |
The pay vas much higher. 1 &C
cspted, and after becoming a member |
o. the roFal naval sererve, were |
off1eFPd to- report for duty at a tiny
scotch toNn on the North sea- Its /
nsiae o. location l will not make
pe5lle even now, as il Is still, prob
J. ably, n uss by the naval forces OF 1
GTst1 Fttsin, although for two years
tte neet of dummies has ceased 10
aaopt its waters.
fhe special service squadron"
11sds a eppalling show Of fighting
1tfenEth a. II lay at anchor within
ne Httle iandlocked harbor, which
He1 ~ bsse- The ships seemed in
Ettl ior aa8- daring venture that the
- - wartime could AFFORD, and ] /
"ppdersd u the tale that they were
4rnrzlss we're not q farce for the
trstinpticn s. Of spies Never have i
90 warships with appearance more
eldniht.
Huge gay monsters they were.
Vic anlble turrets fore and aft.
frort which great guns protruded;
wicftr Inasts with crow'suestS and
sEust naval bridges lowered above
decks stripped for action. and anti.
aircraft guns and range finders
pointed in every direction. All Of
them had steam DIP as II ready to dash
to sea and engage a prowling enemy
at any moment. Never in my twenty
years at sea, in which time ] have
seen the navies OF ali the powers,
have I ever gszed upon a more
formidable squadron, II the eye alone
were Judge.
Joke Was Evident.
But on board the joke was evident
At a glance. Nothing in sight proved
the real thing. The fighting turrets
were little wooden barns. with bare
rafters inside. The great guns were
logs, graduated from a saw-miIl, ts-
pered aud bored in exact imitation OF
naval cannon. Not a single real gun
aboard We could not have sunk
rowboat!
The dek was covered with tightly
stretched canvas, painted gray to rep
resent tie smooth steel deck of a
rHaan-of-WRr, so that even reconnoIter-
ttE aeropfanes would be deceived. A III
1un1nnT snokestock aft made the ship
tqtiS norS like a war vessel and less
E4 the nerchantman she had been
ietorc dbnning this disguise. The
ticEe WIS no longer than that Of a
y Irtr outan exact duplicate Of those on
sAftle8hps. Below deck, all fixtures
lI1d bseA removed save those OF sbso.
Irte fnportance to the ship in Its new
rIe. 4 dining salon and drawing
ttofr Adjolning the officers quarters;
~ InW them the crews quarters, store
roer1z gallery and engines-otherwIse
~ hcld was vacant except for chunks
81 concrete used as ballast
Old Liners RenodeIed.
'Antiquated merchantmen Of about
tqp3 tons burthen, unfit for sea traf-
10 - ordinary times, were the ma
terias out OF which the admiralty
epe 3 ructed this squadron of make
poIIe7e warships- Some OF the old
tuoe had been in the Canadian Pa
eieif fervice prior to 1914, carrying
ttfS4-claSs passengers across the At
fFt-lr such as the Montezuma, Non
nu.l|a MorfrnvaI ana N.zk-n..