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Show IBOCHE SKIPPER'S POOR SPELLING HIS UNDOING Exciting Incident in the Life of a Raider Patrol of British Navy. SINKING CF THE TU3RITELLA Germans Nearly Fooled the English but Were Betrayed When They Spel led Aden With a "T" Destroyed the Vessel Themselves. London. Little by" little the world Is learning some of the romance and excitement that at times punctuated the rather prosaic lives of the men who patrolled the seas and kept the ocean traffic lanes open for allied shipping. The dangers that lurked iu the Arabian seas and Indian ocean have been known in a general way from the too frequent admiralty reports of ships .sunk there by submarines and raiders. An episode in the life of u raider patrol pa-trol Is told by a correspondent of the London Times, as follows: At the beginning of March, 1917, I was in II. M. S. on the Aden patrol a dull job, as all patrolling jobs are. Hut we did not pretend to be pining for the more thrilling occupation occu-pation of searching for Ihe German raider Wolf. Her guns could outrange the guns of our little ship, so effectually, effectual-ly, that, had we met her, we should probably have been blown out of the sea before we could put a shot anywhere any-where near her, and, frankly, we had no great desire to meet her. About 10 o'clock one evening a sig-nnlniau sig-nnlniau appeared at the wardroom door with 11 message from the bridge, "From, the officer of the watch, sir. Ship on the starboard bow showing no lights." "Probably an old tramp scared out of his wits by those yarns about the Wolf," suggested someone. "All these merchantmen are going about without lights nowadays." The captain and the navigator went up to the bridge, where they were presently joined by the first lieutenant. The moon was nearly full, casting a white track across the dark blue carpet car-pet of the sea. It was the kind of night that brings back memories of a Thames regatta, of lounging in a well-cushioned well-cushioned punt, and listening to a good baud. To connect such a night with German raiders, guns, mines and torpedoes tor-pedoes was quite Impossible ; the whole setting was entirely wrong. The mysterious ship was now two points on our port bow, and about three miles ahead. A thick volume of smoke pouring from her funnel suggested sug-gested that she was in a hurry, or, at nil events, was not disposed to be sociable so-ciable with us. We had been ambling along comfortably at eight knots; the order was given to increase to ten. The shutter of our signal lamp began to rattle. "What ship is that?" Claimed British Registry. The signalman had to repeat the question twice before he evoked an answer. "Toritella," was the belated reply. "What nationality?" we asked promptly. "British," was the answer. "What are your signal letters?" was our next question. "J. F. K. L.," came the answer. We hunted up the name In Lloyd's list, but without success. "Are you sure you have got his name right, signalman? Ask him again." "What Is your name?" asked the patient signalman. This time the mysterious mys-terious stranger expanded volubly. "Turritella, London. Runs for British Brit-ish admiralty, Port Said for orders.!' What manner of ship was this, who spelled her name at one time with an O and one II, and at another time with a U and two K's? And that expression. expres-sion. "Kims for British admiralty." Would an Kngllsh merchant skipper talk about the British admiralty. Would he not say. "ruder admiralty charter." or some such phrase? The signal lamp of the unknown vessel began to scintillate again. "Who are youV" run the simple message. There was certainly a directness about the question suggesting a bluff old English skipper. "A British man-of-war," was our answer. A little later we followed it up by a peremptory order to the stranger stran-ger to stop. When the signal lamp began to flicker again, It seemed to show Just a trifle of hesitation. Night of Suspense. His meaning was plain enough. We could have ordered iiim to stop when we first sighted hint, when we were within range f the shore batteries, and where tisere were British, men-of-war lying Just round the corner inside the harbor. He evidently suspected us of being the German raider. All these merchantmen were in a state of high nervous tension. The mere fact of being be-ing ordered to stop was enough to make him run as hard as he could. It was clear that we could not overhaul him. The only question was, had we sufficient grounds of suspicion to justify jus-tify us in taking steps to compel him ' to stop? No one cares to go to the length of firing on a strange merchantman merchant-man in the middle of the night unless there are grave reasons for doing so. And If this fellow was not a British merchantman, as lie professed, what else could he be? He might be the Wolf? It was at least a possibility. In that case the prospect of an engagement engage-ment opened up visions of a glorious death, but little else. Wireless messages were sent to the other ships of the patrol, stating the circumstances, and the position, course and speed. The first watch was over. The officer who had been relieved had dropped Into the wardroom for a cigaret before turning in. As he lighted up he remarked: "I should like to get hold of that old merchant skipper and give him a piece of my mind." "The question," observed one of the pensive members of the mess, "Is whether he would understand your language. They are not all good lin-1 guists." It was an observation which clearly needed amplifying. "If you were an English skipper under un-der the impression that you were being be-ing chased by a German raider, would you expect him to go on chasing you for two hours without firing?" The officer just relieved fvom the bridge became meditative. Spelled Aden with a "T." "There was something funny," he said, "even about that last signal asking ask-ing us why we did not stop him at Aden. The signalman tells me that he first spelled Aden with a 't' and then corrected it." Even the technicalities of a flug-wagger flug-wagger may be fraught with impor-1 impor-1 tance. When a messenger came down from the bridge to say that the ship on the port bow seemed to be drawing away from us, the captain sent back a message to the officer of the watch to put on the best speed he could. The little ship began to throb with her exertions, ex-ertions, while her funnel grew red-hot. Just before the morning watch the moon went down, and darkness fell upon the face of the water. It was evident that we had gained very little, if at all, on the stranger. The captain, leaning over the bridge rail, sang out for the signalman. "Make 'If you do not stop I shall fire.' " "Ay, ay, sir." "If-you-do-not-stop-l-shull-fire." . I 'Ihe signalman closed bis shutter on the final word with a snap. There followed fol-lowed a few minutes of suspense. Then came the answer. "1-am-siopping-now." "Number One, tell them in stand 0 the searchlight." said the captain tithe ti-the first lieutenant. "Signalman, tell him to place his navigation lights." Wry promptly in response to the sig nal the lights appeared upon fbi strange ship. "Now make, 'lieinalii where you are. I will board yon at daylight.'" What the Searchlight Revealed. When fbe distance bet ween t be ships had been reduced to about a mile the order was given to switch on the searchlight. The great white streak shot across the sea until it settled on the mysterious craft. In large letter across her stern ran the legend, "Turritella, "Tur-ritella, Loudon." "1 believe I have been fooled affr all," said the captain tc l.mself. Thf searchlight also revealed a party shov Ing off in a bout, presumably contain ing the irate skipper, wanting to Knu what 1 lie blank blunk all this businesj. meant, for in the eastern waters the wen.1 not accustomed to it. Presently there came a strange voice through a megaphone from the stranger's bridge: "Switch off that damned searchlight." search-light." "He seems to be getting a bit ratty Shall I switch off?" The order was given, and darknes, prevailed once more. Some minutes later the eastern sky begun to glow, feebly at first, casting a kind of half light over the face of the seas a mere glimmer In which objects appeared without shape. Out of this gloom there arose such a babe!, of sound as brought us all to the ship's side. Dimly we could discern two boats, one on the port and one on the starboard side of us, both crowded with occupants, who were jabbering in some strange tongue like a lot of excited monkeys. Germans Sank Their Own Ship. Just as we came abeam of the strange ship we saw a cloud of smoke shoot up from her, which was followed by the heavy thud of an explosion. Next moment there came another heavy thud, and we saw that the Tm-ritella Tm-ritella was beginning to sink by the head. We steamed past her and begun to circle round her at a respectful distance, dis-tance, for ships which carry explosives may carry them in the form of torpedoes. torpe-does. Gradually the eastern sky began to flush red ; the hue was reflected by the sea, until one could have fancied that the stricken ship was staining th waters with her blood. And then we saw a third boat rowing away from the wreck in the direction of the other two. We swung round to return and pick them up. As we approached the first two boats we realized why we had failed to understand un-derstand the language. They were full of Chinamen all talking at once, in a state of hysterical agitation. We waited wait-ed eagerly for the third boat. As It-drew It-drew up alongside one gangway two officers stepped briskly up the ladder, and were followed by twenty-six men, each wearing a round blue cap" with two black ribbons falling'down behind. Across the front of the cap ribbon was printed In gold letters "Kaiserliche Marine." We had not been fooled after all. The Turrltella's Story. The story of the Turritella Is briefly this. She had been captured from the-Germans the-Germans early in the war. In February, Febru-ary, 1937, she set out from Shanghai with a Chinese crew and British officers; offi-cers; she put into Rangoon to pick up cargo, and again into Colombo, where she spent some days loading up. She-left She-left Colombo on Feb. 28, 1917, and four days later walked straight Into the jaws of the Wolf. Her British officers and men were taken aboard the raider as prisoners, but the Chinamen remained re-mained in her. A German prize crew then took possession of her; she was loaded up with mines, and sent off tci Aden to lay her eggs just outside the harbor. Her subsequent movements had all been carefully planned to fit In with the program revealed by the ship's papers. On March 0 she was due in Prim, where she intended to call, looking as innocent us a lamb, with her Chinese crew on the upper deck and her German ratings stowed below. Thence she wan to proceed to the Bed sea to lay more mines, and afterward to rejoin the Wolf at a rendezvous. ren-dezvous. Could she have curried out this program pro-gram if she bad not happened to fall In with us? There was al least a sporting chance. Her second officer spoke English us fluently as bis own language, and without any I nice of an accent. He had spent eight years in our merchant service, and bad the manner.-! urd bearing of an English officer. But Ihe weak spot in the company com-pany was evidently the signalman. That signal "Why did you not stop me when I was passing Aden?" was brilliant. bril-liant. It. showed real genius. Bui the signalman complelely ruined it by spelling Aden with a "t." |