Tombstone epitaph., 1918-06-09

ohu ieuP VI hathcS "ihSh cuiicu to tuO guns.
 lover the town a flame suddenly appeared high in the air and sank slowly earthwards-the signal that the airplanes had seen and understood. Almost coincidently with their first bombs came the first shells, whooping up from the monitors at sea. The sur prise part of the attack was sprung.
 ''The surprise, despite the Germans watchfulness, seems to have been com plete. Up until the moment when the torpedoes of the motOrboats exploded there had not been a shot from the land-only occasional routine star shells.
 Great Batteries Blinded.
 "The motor launches were doing their work magnificentIy. These pock- ct warships. manned by officers and men of the Royal Naval volunteers reserve. are specialists at smoke pro- duction. They built to either hand of the Vindictive's course the likeness of a dense sea mist driving landward with the wind. Star shells paled and were lost as they sank in 1t: the beams of searchlights seemed to break or short upon Its front. It blinded which suddenly. upon the warning of th' explosions of guns, roared into ac- ton.
 There was a while of tremendous uprOar The coast about Ostend Is ponderously equipped with batteries. These now opened fire into the smoke and over 1t at the monitors and ma rines. And the monitors replied.
 Meanwhile the airplanes were bomb Ing methodically. And anti-aircraft guns were searching the skies for them. Star shells spouted up and foated down. lighting the smoke banks with spreading green fires. and those strings of luminous green balls. which the airmen call flaming onions," scared up to lose themselves in the clouds.
 Through all this stridency and blaze of conflict the old vindictive, still un- hurrying. was walking the lighted wa ters toward the entrance. It was then that those on the destroyers became aware that what seemed to be merely smoke was wet and cold that the rig ging was beginning to drip. and that there were no longer any stars. A sea fog had come on.
 Ar Attack Suspended.
 'The destroyers had 10 turn on their lights and to use their sirens to keep in touch with each other. The air attack was suspended. and the vindictive. with some distance yet to go. found herself in gross darkness.
 There were motor boats on either side of her escorting her to the en- trance.
 "The vindictive then put her helm over and started to cruise to find the entrance Twice she must have washed across. and at the third turn. upon reaching the positions at which she first lost her way. there came a rift in the mist and she saw the entrance and the piers on either side. and an opening dead ahead. The vindictive steamed fin.
 ''The guns found her at once. She was hit every few seconds after she entered. her scared hull broken afresh in a score of places. her decks and upper works swept by machine guns.
 After the control tower was demol- ished by a shell which killed all the including Sublieut Angus H. MacLachan, who was in command of 1t. the upper and lower bridges and the chartroom. swept by bullets. Con- Godsal ordered the officers to go with him to the coming tower. They observed through the observa- ton slit In tho steel wall of the con- ming tower that the eastern pier was preached some 200 yards from the sea- ward end. as though at some time . ship had been In collision with 1t.
 Noss Against Pier.
 Immediately after passing the breach in the pier Commander Godsal left the coming tower and went on deck. the better to watch the ships He chose a position and called In through the slit of the con- ming tower his order to starboard the helm The vindictive responded and laid her battered nose to the eastern pier and prepared to swing her 32O feet sf length across the channel
 ''It was at that moment that . shell from the shore batteries struck the