Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-08-07

she put out Of Charlestown in the fog
OF the Summer morning, smiled. Their
work of sabotage had been done better
than the Americans knew. They pro-
phesied that everything would be all
right for time, and then something
terrible would happen. They had sawed
enc of the propeller shafts nearly
through and concealed the work SO
clevcrly that it was not noticed until
late in the war. BY marvellous bit of
luck it never rroke.
Back and forth she went across the
Atlantic, her decks loaded with those
hosts in olive drab. For many that
trip across remains the most vivid
memory of the war No longer was the
Kronprinzcssin Cecilie a place of
luXury-eXcept for a few high-ranking
officers who occupied the few ornate
cabins left. TIE soldiers had no OPP
portunity to admire the masterpieces of
the builders art. They never saw them.
Life aboard her crowded decks was about
as uncomfortable as life ever becomes.
Sick men staggered against each other.
All over the decks was the clatter of
rolling dice. Y. NJ. c. A. secretaries
watched with stern disapproval. Sail
ors in the crows nest peered through
the fog for the ever-feared submarine.
On her ninth return voyage she was
torpedoed. Thirty sailors were killed.
A great hole was blown in her hull.
The torpedo struck her about $50 miles
out of Brest. Due largely to the con-
sumate skill of her chief engineer, Lieut..
F. C. Bailey, she returned to Brest
under her own power-the first time a
torpedoed ship ever had got into port
again unaided. She was repaired speed
lily and started transporting troops
again.
After all the troops were back from
Europe she was turned over to the
Army Transport Service. In September.
1919, she went to Vladivostok and
brought to Norfolk 900 German prison.
erS and $500 CZechoSlovak soldiers.
Then she was taken over by the Ship
ping Board. with the intention of turn
ing her back into, passenger service.
S12,OOO,OOO Appropriated.
But a new day had dawned for ship
ping. Oil was replacing coal. Faster
and smoother sailing ships were in the
offing. 1t would be necessary to replace
! all the luxury that had been torn out
and to replace the old reclpcocatlng en-
gineS with modern turbines. Congress
/ appropriated S12,O00,000 to restore both
| the Mount Vernon and the Monticello
| The Kaiser Wilhelm der Zweite of the
| North German Line, the Agamemnon of
war transport days. The lowest bid
amounted to close to S14,000000. 1t
would be doubtful economy to spend so
much money. A private corporation
! could hardly be expected to take them
over 1t would be about as cheap TO
build new ships on later models.
| There have been offers to purchase
| the ships, all enormously below their
real value. Before any such offer was
/ considered the Fleet Corporation would
| have to be satisfied as to just what was
| to be done with them-that they were
! destined for legitimate passenger and
! freight service. The cost of their up
| keep is small in comparison to their
value. If the United States should have
another war they would be ready almost
| instantly to transport troops. 1t would
| require only few days to put up the
| st9nchions again.
But it is likely that both ships will
reach the end of their days here in
| the deep water beside the cornfield.
| Their heydey Of adventure is over. They
are asleep.
The Kronprinzessin Cecilie has one
room unchanged since the day she was
| launched. Into this room the artists
put the utmost of their genius. 1t is the
nursery. Its walls are covered with
| typically German oil paintings OF
scenes from fairy tales. The figures
look almost alive in the dusk. There is