The Benson signal., 1918-06-08
Hail of Fire Sent Ship to the
Bottom of Ostend
Harbor.
SURPRISE is WELL PLANNED
Attack Comes From Sea, Land and
Air Before Germans AWake-Vin-
dictive, Screened by Smoke
From Launches, Plods ST.
lentIy to Ito Goal.

following graphic story Of the recent
raid on Ostend, which resulted in
blockading nearly all the entrance to
the U-boat base by the sinking of the
old cruiser Vindictive across the chan
mel:
"The Sirius lies in the surf some q
900 yards east of the entrance to Os-
tend harbor, which she Jailed so gal
lantly to block, and when, in the early
hours of the morning, the Vindictive
| grOped her way through the smoke
screen and headed for the entrance 1t
was as though the old fighting ship
awoke and looked on.
"a coastal motor boat had visited
her and hung a flare in her stack and
rusty rigging, and that eye Of unsteady
fire, paling in the blaze Of star shells,
or reddening through the drift OF
smoke, watched the whole great enter
prise from the moment when it hung
in doubt to it's ultimate success.
Depended on Surprise Attack.
"The planning and execution Of that
success had been intrusted by Vice
Admiral Sir Robert Keyes to Commo-
dore Hubert Lynes, who directed the
previous attempt to block the harbor
with the Sirius and Brilliant. Upon
that occasion q combination Of unfore-
seen and unforeseeable conditions had
fought against him.
"Upon this, the main problem was
An nh tn no oAf OP 1pfc z.
tack upon an enemy who was clearly,
from his ascertained dispositions, ex-
pecting him. The Sirius and Brilliant
had been baff1ed by the displacement
Of the Stroom bank buoy, which marks
the channel to the harbor entrance.
But since then aerial reconnaissance
had established that the Germans had
removed the buoy altogether and that
there now were no guiding marks Of
any kind.
'They also had cut gaps in the piers
as precaution against landing, and
further, when toward midnight Thurs
day, the ships moved from their an
chorage, it was known that some nine
German destroyers were out and were
at large upon the coast.
Night Nearly MINDLESS.
''The solution of the problem is best
indicated by the chronicle Of events.
1t was night that promised we'll for
the enterprise-nearly windless-and
what little breeze stirred came point
or so west of north. The sky was lead
blue, family star-dotted, with no moon,
and still sea for small craft, motor
launches and coastal motor boats,
whose work was done close inshOre.
"From the destroyer which served
the commodore for a flagship the re-
mainder Of the force were visible only
as silhouettes Of blackness.
"From Dunkirk a sudden brief fur
ry Of gunfire announced that German
airplanes were about. They actually
were on the way to visit Calais, and
over the invisible coast of Flanders the
summer lightning of restless artillery
rose and fell monotonously.
"There's the Vindictive! The muf-
fed seamen and marines standing by
the torpedo tubes and guns turned at
ship seen mistily through the screen
ing smoke from the destroyers' fun
nels, plodding silently to her goal and
end.
"She receded into the night astern
as q destroyer raced to lay light
buoy that was to be her guide, and
those on board saw her no more. She
passed thence into the hands Of the
small craft whose mission was to guide
her, light her, and hide her in the
clouds of smoke screen.
''There was no preliminary bonn
bardment of the harbor and batteries,
as before the previous attempt. That
was to be the first element in the sur
prise. A timetable had been laid
down for every stage Of the operation,
and the staff work beforehand even
included precise orders for laying the
smoke barrage, with plans calculated
for every direction Of the wind.
Gait Always Solemn.
monitors anchored in firing posi-
tiOns far seaward awaited the signal.
The great sea batteries Of the Royal
Marine artillery in Flanders, among
the largest guns that were ever placed
on land mountings, stood by likewise
to neutralize the bigger German artil-
lery along the coast, and the airmen
who were to collaborate with an aeri-
al bombardment of the town waited
somewhere in the darkness overhead.
Destroyers patrolled to seaward of the
small craft.
"The Vindictive, always at that
solemn gait of hers, found the flag
ships light buoy and bore up for
where a coastal motor boat command
ed by Lieut.. William r. Slayter was
waiting by calcium flare upon the old
position of the Stroom bank buoy.
"Four minutes before it arrived
there and fifteen minutes only before
it was due at the harbOr mouth, the
signal for the guns to open was given.
Two motorboats, under command Of