The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1918-01-14
Writer Discovers British Grand Fleet
Securing Seas Fearless Of Submarines
Newspaper Man Finds Ships
Cruising Waters in Big
Battle Maneuvers.
aY KENNETH w. PAYNE.


With the British Grand Fleet, Jan. !
ia vast living organism, thrilling |
through and through with energy and !
still high on It's toes eager for action
after three years of monotonous wait
ing--that is the British navy today.
II or when the American fleet joins !
forces here with its elder sister, II viii !
find the Grand fleet base a scene OF 4
such amazing activity as to belle at the
very first glimrse the German charge
that the British navy has been reduced
to Imprisonment and staEnaton.
Not only III Germany. but even in
England. and more widely in America
than anywhere else, critics of late have
been trying to paint the British fleet as
an accumulation of monstrons units Of
useless junk, penned up behind mines
and nets. rusting AT anchorage, and
helpless to affect the future course OF
the war.
Policing Sea.
Yet az a matter OF fact, at this far
northern spot, there come to q head the
mighty forces which rule over two
hundred square miles of the oceans OF
the globe And the immensely OF that
task Of policing the worlds seas is re-
flected In the central activity here.
flight In n seaplane over the Grand
fleet anchorage reveals, as no other
experience can. the great stir and bus
lie through which the fleet goes daily
~ II prepares itself more strenuously
each week to meet the Germans II the
latter dare.
As one of the only two American cor
respondents who have ever made such
q flight, have Just had an extraordi-
nary opportunity to picture for The
-Alissoulian a typical birdseye view OF
the Grand fleet base.
A former student of Wisconsin uni
versity, now star pilot Of the fleet,
took me aboard his seaplane. II stood
on the deck of a former transatlantic
liner. whose gf1ded saloons have been
converted into repair shops, whose
board decks harbor fat observation bal
looms, and from whose TANKS and
prows as SHE plows along in the wake
Of the Grand fleet speedy airplanes
can be sent up for observation. like SO
many doves from modern Noah's ark
AS clambered aboard this particu-
lar seaplane. Its wings were folded
back along its side. In a moment the
wings had been spread. deity locked
In place and we had been hoistea cas-
ily into the sea. In anotller moment
the awkward mother-ship was wallow-
Ing below us and we were soaring
high over the vast body OF water where
the Grand fleet lay.
Half a mile into the air we climbed
ana still from this vantage point the
further fringes OF the fleet in remote
corners of the anchorage were invis-
fble. vast an extent of water does the
British navy gathered here occupy.
Much Target Practice.
In one spot a superdrcadnaugh was
cruising about at target practice A
squadron of battleships at anchor
point were experimenting with some
new maneuver. A light cruiser came
tearing in over the level blue floor Of
the anchorage and cut loose with her
guns on a floating target.
Our mother ship. towing a balloon
was describing foany circles over the
water far below us, while her planes
lowered around her. Ugly drifters
with one sail hoisted astern, were plod
ding patiently about among all the I'M
counted units of the fleet. For this
huge floating city of power contain,
the population of a considerable sizef
town, and carried on "A mass of traffic
over It's watery thoroughfares thai
would rival municipal traffic. Tiny
nickel boats travelling at high speed
4. l.. - t.
tributing officers and men, parcels
mails and messages among the horde
of ships.
AT one spot vessel was coalins
Alongside another vessel "the fro2e,
meat ship was tied up The latter dis
tributes supplies during the day, but a
night one of her huge cabins is tille'
with an enthusiastic audience of sea
men, and on the stage AT one end anna
teur theatricals are held. only the he
stuff on the stage saves the audienc
from frostbite, on that strange refris
orator ship.
As our seaplancs circlcd about, lin
OF battle cruisers which had only Jus
sped IN from sea, dropped anchor wit
beautiful precision. Some destroyei
were unobtrusiveiy slipping out at II
same time. Near the spot which the
had left. II row of submarines wei
being industriously groomed and pain
ed by tiny black dots swarming oV'
their f1anks.
1t was growing do SIX, and the flasi
ing OF the searchiights, which had be'
winkine signals back and forth throus
the fleet all day long, became mo
brilliant in the dusk And then f
out to sea long line of small bla
dots, each with its white crest of foa1
appeared 1t was a destroyer sore
for 4 squadron Of hattlesnips, which
self was soon revealed beyond. as lar
er dots strung out along wakes
white.
what is the British navy doing .
why does 1t hide in a prison behi
iron nets2"
why doesn't it ever put to sea -
These questions. so often heard
home. came TO my mind then az I s
these ponderous battleships return
&c. ,s..a