Williston graphic., 1919-04-17
With The Boys in France

record round trip was made by the
Agamemnon in sixteen days. The
ship is Of twenty thousand tons dis
placement and carries . crew Of 100
officers and men. In January she was
still fitted out fore and aft with four
and six inch guns for protection
against submarine attacks. While
all the gun crews were aboard, they
did not stand by the guns through
the day and night as was the prac-
tice before the cessation of HOSTILE
ties on November II. During our trip
over, gun practice was indulged in
by the gun crews to keep in condi-
dition for any possible future need
of their services. The Agamemnon
made great many voyages to and
from Europe during the war and had
several narrow escapes from being
torpedoed. In September, 1918, while
carrying troops to France and when
about 250 miles west from Brest,
two German submarines were sight
ed close along side the Agamemnon.
One of the submarines passed be-
tween the U. S. s. Mount Vernon and
the Agamemnon and torpedoed the
Mount Vernon, while the crew of the
Agamemnon were looking on and en-
deavoring to sink the submarine by
gun fire. The Mount Vernon is a sis
ter ship Of the Agamemnon and be-
fore being taken over from the Ger
mans, was known as the Kronprinzes-
sin Cecilie. At the time the Mount
Vernon was torpedoed, she was about
400 yards off the port side of the
Agamemnon. A number of members
of the crew of the Agamemnon told
US that when the Mount Vernon was
torpedoed, the Agamemnon did not
stop to assist the torpedoed ship but
proceeded full speed ahead to get out
Of range of the submarines. Amer
lean torpedo boat destroyers which
were guarding the convoy Of troop
ships in which the Mount Vernon and
Agamemnon were, raced to the aid
of the Mount Vernon and drove off
the attacking submarine. On the way
over, due to the courtesy of Captain
Klemann of the Agememnon, I had
an opportunity to make a thorough
inspection of the ship from the Cap
tain's cabin to the boiler rooms. In
the engine rooms l saw the injury
that had been done by the Germans
to the machinery of the ship when it
became known to the German officers
in command of the ship that Ger
many was to make open warfare up
on the United States. The injury to
the machinery was not at all as ex-
tensive or as serious as l had ex-
pected to find. In fact, only a few
of the driving rods on one of the en-
gines and one of the steam chests
had been broken. The reason for
this slight damage was ascribed by
our naval officers to the fact that
German naval officers held American
engineers and navigators in supreme
contempt, and were of the opinion
that this country would not be able
to supply marine engineers capable
of putting the. Agamemnon to sea
before the war was over and won by
Germany. This is also the reason
given by our naval officers for the
small injury done to the machinery
Of the largest of all ships, the "Levia-
than," formerly the "Vaterland," of
fifty thousand tons displacement.
German officers in command of the
"Vaterland," openly expressed the
opinion in New York that American
officers and seamen could not be
found who had the technical knowl-
edge and ability to put the ship to
sea and navigate her. How badly
they were in error is shown by the
fact that within a few weeks after
war was declared, her damaged en-
gines had been repaired by the
genius of American engineers, and
under the guidance of American naval
officers and seamen, she was on the
highseas, carrying on each trip to
France, thousands of American SOL
diers who were restined to be the in
struments of destruction of German
At Brest
The morning of the seventh day
out from New York, we were escort
ed into the magnificent and beauti-
full harbor of Brest by one of our bat
tie cruisers. Landing in Brest on a
sunshiny day, we were told that it
was the first day that the sun had
shone and the first day without rain
for six weeks. The streets showed
evidences of recent
heavy rains and none of the Ameri-
can boys had a good word for the
in that part of France. The
camp for embarkation Of
soldiers for home we found in very
bad condition. In a hurried prepara-
tion made to embark troops from the |
port of Brest, suitable quarters had |
not been provided for the soldiers.
Mud was knee deep everywhere in
and around the camp. The Com
officer at the camp showed
IS that work was being pushed to the
Utmost to put the camp in the best of |