Jackson County journal. (Sylva, N.C.) 19??-19??, 1919-01-03

was not a case of all dressed up and
no place to go!
Then I swan hard and caught up to
the Limeys who had jumped first. They
were asking each other if they were
downhearted and answering, "Not a
bit of it, me lads" and trying to sing,
"Pack up your troubles in your old kit
bag" only they could not do much
singing on account Of the waves that
slipped into their mouths every time
they opened them. That was just like
Limeys, though.
Some of the boys were just climbing |
up the Jacobs ladder on the Moewe |
when the old Georgia let out an awful |
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 Georgia 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 starve 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 a head of steam in
them and was beginning to feel more
comfortable when l got a good clout
alongside of the head for sitting there
and trying to keep warm. 1t 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.
l Finally they mustered us all or
: another part Of the deck, then drilled
! US down into the forecastle and reaC
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 Der
t lin Lokal Taggabble for all most of u!
S knew or cared. It shows what card:
t the Germans are-reading all thcS,
7 four-tO-thC-pOund words to us SILVER
j ing garbies, who did not give a dim,
: dozen whether we heard them or not
Fritz is like some other hot sketches
he is funniest when he does not meal
to be. Every German is a vaudeville
| skit when he acts natural.
There were hammocks there and W
jumped into them to get warm but tn
| Germans came down with their re
volvers and bayonets and took tn
hammocks away and poured water O
| the decks and told US to sleep there
| They could not have done a wors
| trick than that.
Then they put locks on the portfolio
and told us that anyone caught fddlin
with the locks would be shot at one
4 British or French man-of-war at an
time and as the Moewe was sailing vi
der the British flag and trying to kee
out Of trouble they did not want ,
at the ports signaling our own wa
ships for help. If they had bucke
any of the allied ships aud had fig
we would have died down there Ill
rats.
The Moewe had already capture
the VOltaire, Mount Temple, Cambri;
Range and the King George and h:
! the crews of these vessels betwe
decks with us. These men told
how the Germans were treating the
and j. looked to me as though the e,
it'll ming would be spent in playing gam
and a pleasant time would be had
all-not.
IN. The crew of the Mount Temple we
Id on deck working when the raider 81
denly opened fire on them. Two
Ia three men jumped into the water a
OFT the Germans turned a gun on tn
err while they were swimming and kill
TED them. That was just sample of wi
ere had happened to them.
rs. The men now began running up q
en- down in a line to keep warm, bu
KS. took little run on my own hook 6
eys treated myself to as much of a on
over of the ship as I could. I do
inu believe the Moewe had more thar
yer three-fourths-iLch armor plate, but
Ter hind that she had three rows of
llte iron, which made about a foot in thi
mo ness. There was nothing but ca
strung along the deck and when I s
up that l would have given anything
[Lef have had q crack eft har with a III