The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1923-10-20

SOSSuS SuS StVty " ssNb
smack Of the tales Of the old |,
sea doss7
Washington.-Capt. Herbert Hart
ley, the new skipper Of the Leviathan,
is q typical son of the sea. He has
spent most Of his life on ships, has
seen and served on the old sailing
beauties and remembers the skepti.
cism that greeted new tangled wire
less ideas.
He is the sort of q sailorman who
truly pities the people in the cities"
on wild, stormy nights. Ocean wealth
er to him is divided into two cate
gories: 1t is either "a bit fresh" or
"calm as the palm Of your hand" He
seems to have heard or read Of hur-
ricanes or gales, but in his tongue
they are no more than little squalls"
or "kickups." -~s~>s- .,..~.,
His associates on the American
line-he has been with that company
ever since he began his nautical
career-say he is lucky; not because
he landed the prize post in the Ameri-
can merchant marine but because in
all his career he has never had an
accident to his ship or any ship on
which he has sailed. It IL partly be-
cause Of his reputation that he has
advanced through all grades in the
American Line to the bridge Of the
largest ship In the American feet.
Huneh Fails Him.
His worst half hour on the high
seas was when during the World war
q giant German submarine came to
the surface within gun range Of his
ship. the Louisville, and opened fire.
1T was just after daybreak," he
said, "and we were about two days
sail from France when q lookout
sighted this sinister black body about
q mile away and slightly astern Of US.
'This object broke one Of my real
lunches, because I had a distinct
feeling on starting the trip that we
weren't going to have any trouble.
and usually those lunches work out
for me.
Hardly had the sailor given the
alarm when q column Of spray raised
by q shell almost showered our port
bow. had four six-inch guns, two in
the bow and two In the stern, and I
made up my mind right there that the
only ones to be used were the stern
guns, because intended to 60 away
from there az fast as could.
1.-THE Louisville could outsteam any
submarine that knew Of, but whether
she could get out of range before she
was MORALLY hit was the question
most vital to all Of us just then. I
gave every full-speed signal that
could help us and turned tail in the
direction that would take us away
from the menace, which whistled it's
second shot just about where our bow
would have been If we hadn't changed
our course.
1T took US more than thirty-fve
minutes to get out Of range. During
that time the submarines other shots,
which were plentiful, did not come as,
close as her first two. Ours, I am
sorry to say, did her no damage and
did not frighten her enough to make
her submerge."
Wears Navy Cross.
The Louisville, under Captain Hart
ley's command, was the first armed
ship to leave an American port after
President Wilson decided that Ameri-
can vessels should carry their own
protection. As the old st. Louis she
had served with honor in the Spanish
American war, and, while Captain
Hartley doesn't say 50, it is evident
that the Leviathan will have a difficult
time replacing her in his affections.
Captain Hartley wears the Navy
cross for efficient command Of his ship
during the war, and it is the only
honor which he does not seem to take
lightly. The cross, he says, is his
most treasured possession and he
wouldn't trade it for the Leviathan or
any other craft af1oat.
He is forty-eight years old and is
the first cadet of the American line to
rise to the position Of commander. He
took the place Of Capt. John G. Jami-
son as commander of the st. Louis
in 1917 when that skipper was taken
Ill on board, and he brought the ship
in and locked her so skillfully that
his job as a skipper in his own right
was secure. His most recent COM
mand has been the big liner Mongolia
of the American line.
He. began his career twenty-eight
years ago as a cadet on the training
ship Saratoga with Rear Admiral w.
s. Sims, loaned by the navy, as one
of his instructors.
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