Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1918-12-27


roar and up went the deck and the
matches high in the air In splinters.
One fellow let go his hold on the lad
der and went down and he never came
up. The Germans were making for the
Moewe in the lifeboat and we reached
it just before they did. Up the ladder
we went and over the side and the
first thing we caught sight of was the
German revolvers in our faces drilling
us all into line.
The lifeboat brought back the ships
papers from the George and we had
roll call. They kept us up on deck in
our wet underwear and it was very
cold indeed. Then the first mate and
the old man and one of the German
officers called off the names and we
found we had fifty missing.
The Boche commander had gall
enough to say that he was not there
to kill men but to sink all ships that
were supplying the allies! He said
England was trying to starve Germany,
but that they would never succeed and
that Germany would starye the allies
very soon.
After roll call some of us asked the
Germans for clothes, or at least a
place to dry ourselves in, but Fritz
could not see us for the dust on the
ocean and we just had to stand there
and SILVER till we shook the deck, al
most. Then I went and sat down on
the pipes that feed the deck winches.
They had quite head of steam in
them and / was beginning to feel more
comfortable when got a good clout
alongside of the head for sitting there
and trying to keep warm. It was a
German garby and he started calling
me all the various kinds Of schwein-
hunde he could think of and he could
think Of lot.
Finally they mustered us all on
another part Of the deck, then drilled
us down into the forecastle and read
the martial law of Germany to us.
AT least / guess that is what it was.
1t might have been the Help Wanted
Dog Catchers" column from the Ber-
lin Lokal Taggabble for all most of us
knew or cared. 1t shows what cards
the Germans are-reading all those
four-to-the-pound words to us SILVER
| ing garbies, who did not give dime
dozen whether we heard them or not.
Fritz is like some other hot sketches
he is funniest when he does not mean
to be. Every German is vaudeville
| Slit xxhov, ho s,0tc rof11rq1
There were hammocks there and we
jumped into them to get warm, but the
Germans came down with their re-
volvers and bayonets and took the
hammocks away and poured water on
the decks and told US to sleep there.
They could not have done a worse
trick than that.
Then they put locks on the portfolios
and told US that anyone caught fiddling
with the locks would be shot at once.
This was because we might sight a
British or French man-of-war at any
! time and as the Moewe was sailing I'M
der the British flag and trying to keep
out of trouble they did not want us
at the ports signaling our own war
ships for help If they had bucked
any of the allied ships and had fight
we would have died down there like
rats.
The Moewe had already captured
the voltaire, Mount Temple. Cambrian
Range and the King George and had
| the crews of these vessels between
decks with us. These men told us
how the Germans were treating them
and it looked to me as though the eve
ming would be spent In playing games
and pleasant time would be had by
all-not.
The crew of the Mount Temple were
on deck working when the raider sud-
denly opened fire on them. Two or
three men jumped into the water and
the Germans turned gun on them
while they were swimming and killed
them That was just sample of what
had happened to them.
The men now began running up and
down in a line to keep warm, but
took a little run on my own hook and
treated myself to as much of once
over Of the ship as could. / do not
believe the Moewe had more than a
three-fourths-inch armor plate, but be-