The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1918-04-26
Vindictive Lay Beside Mole
for Hours While Marines
Fought Above f.
HELD TO SEAWAIL
BY ANOTHER SHIP
Daring Operation Performed
Creditably Under Hot
Enemy Fire.

Aboard II. NJ. s. Nindlctive in Dover
Harbor, April 25.-A correspondent of
the Associated Press visited the cruiser
Nindictive today as the guest of Cap
tain Alfred +. b. Carpenter, who COM
handed her in the expedition last Tues
| day against the German submari
base at Zeehrugge, on the Belgian
coast.
Captain Carpenter received the COR
respondent with his arm in a sling
from shell splinter wound. The ship
showed innumerable signs of conflict,
her decks and supcrstructure being
covered with the scars OF shells and
! machine gun hits.
Our chief purpose in the expedition
was to distract attention of the bat :
terry, while the block ships ran in, es-
pecially the battery of ll-inch guns
which occupied a commanding position
at the tip Of the mole. Our ship was
deliberately prepared for the business
| of landing soldiers on the mole, which
| is of stone; 40 feet hign and l5 feet
above the Vindictive's top deck at the
| state of the tide when the attack took
place.
1--WE had u special superstructure
over the upper deck and three long
gangways or 'browS,' which were de
signed to take the men up To the level
Of the mole az soon as we got along
side. Exactly according to the plan.
we ran alongside the mole. approa ching
it oh the portside. where We were
equipped with specially bull, buffers of
wood two feet wide
| Daffodii Holds Ship Firm.
| AS there We're nothing for us To tie
mp TO, we merely dropped anchor there
while the Daffodn kept us against the
mole, with her nose against the oppo-
site side of our ship. In the fairly
heavy sea two of our three gangways
were smashed, but the third held and
500 men swarmed up this onto the mole
This gangway was two feet wide and
80 feet long.
"The men who went up IL included
800 marines and $50 stormins seamen
from the Vindictiye and so or 40 from
1.-The Daffodii. They swarmed up the
steel gangway carrying hand grenades
land Lewis guns. No Germans succeed
ed in approaching the gangway, but a
lizard hand to- hand fight took place
labout 200 yards up the mole toward the
shore.
.The Vindictive's bow was pointed
toward the shore so the bridge got the
full effect OF enemy fire from the shore
batteries. One shell exploded against
the pilot house. killing nearly all Of Its
Item occupants. Another burst in the
Fighting top, killing a lieutenant and
eight men, who were doing excellent
work with two pompoms and fonl
machine guns.
Upper Works Shot Away.
The battery of ll-inch guns at tbs
end OF the mole was only 300 yards
Iaway and it kept trying to reach us
The shore batteries also were diligent
Only few German shells hit our hull
because 1t was we'll protected by th'
wall of the mole, but the upper struc
ture, masts. stacks and ventilator
showed above the wall and were rid
died A considerable proportion Of ou
casualties were caused by splinter
from these upper works.
Meanwhile, tire DaffodiI continued
to push US against the wall as II n
battle was on, and II the Daffodil ha'
failed to do THIS ilone OF the Hehpe'
lof the landing party would have bee'
able to return 10 the ship.
Block Ships Are Sunk.
twenty-five minutes after the Vim
dictive had reached the wall the firs
tbiock ship passed in and heaGed FOR tn
tcanal. Two others followed in leisurel
fashion while We kept up the fight o
L. - In. 3rrE oh
} stranded outside OF the canal, but In
1.-TWO others got 200 or 800 yards inside
Iwhere they were successfully sun
tacross the entrance.
zone difficulty. We had in preparin
this expedition was that We could ne
have open practice OF what We con
|tempiated doing for fear the enem
might get information Of the plan.
Fifteen minutes after the Findicti'
!arrired alongside the mole. our usbma