The Boy Allies at Jutland - Robert L. Drake
The Boy Allies At Jutland
or
The Greatest Naval Battle of History
By Ensign ROBERT L. DRAKE
AUTHOR OF
"The Boy Allies Under the Sea"
"The Boy Allies In the Baltic"
"The Boy Allies on the North Sea Patrol"
"The Boy Allies Under Two Flags"
"The Boy Allies with the Flying Squadron"
"The Boy Allies with the Terror of the Seas"
1917
CHAPTER I
H.M.S. "QUEEN MARY"
A great, long, gray shape moved swiftly through the waters of the
Thames. Smoke, pouring from three different points in the middle of
this great shape, ascended, straight in the air some distance, then,
caught by the wind, drifted westward.
It was growing dark. Several hours before, this ocean greyhound--one of
Great Britain's monster sea-fighters--had up-anchored and left her
dock--where she had been undergoing slight repairs--heading eastward
down the river.
Men lined the rails of the monster ship. These were her crew--or some
of her crew, to be exact--for the others were engaged in duties that
prevented them from waving to the crowds that thronged the shore--as
did the men on deck.
Sharp orders carried across the water to the ears of those on shore.
The officers were issuing commands. Men left the rail and disappeared
from the view of the spectators as they hurried to perform their
duties. Came several sharp blasts of the vessel's siren; a moment later
her speed increased and as she slid easily through the waters of the
river, a cheer went up from both shores.
The crowd strained its eyes. Far down the river now the giant
battleship was disappearing from the sight of the men and women who
lined the banks. In vain, a few moments later, did many eyes try to
pierce the darkness. The battleship was lost to sight.
The vessel that had thus passed down the Thames was H. M. S. _Queen
Mary_, one of the most formidable of England's sea fighters. It was
with such ships as the _Queen Mary_, supported by smaller and less
powerful craft, that Great Britain, for almost two years of the great
war, had maintained her supremacy of the seas.
This great ship was new in service, having been completed only a few
years before the outbreak of the war. She was constructed at a cost of
$10,000,000. She was 720 feet long, of 27,000 tons burden and had a
complement of almost 1,000 men. For fighting purposes she was equipped
with all that was modern.
In her forward turret she carried a battery of six 16-inch guns. Aft,
the turret was similarly equipped. Also the _Queen Mary_ mounted other
big guns and rapid firers. She was equipped with an even half-dozen
12-inch torpedo tubes. She was one of the biggest ships of war that
roved the seas.
The _Queen Mary_ was one of the fleet of battleships that had patrolled
the North Sea since the outbreak of hostilities. Already she had seen
her share of fighting, for she had led more than one attack upon the
enemy when the Germans had mustered up courage enough to leave the
safety of the great fortress of Heligoland, where the main German high
sea fleet was quartered.
It had been in a skirmish with one of these venturesome enemy vessels
that the _Queen Mary_ had received injuries that necessitated her going
into dry dock for a few days, while she was given an overhauling and
her wounds healed. True enough, she had sent the foe to the bottom; but
with a last dying shot, the Germans had put a shell aboard the _Queen
Mary._
Her damage repaired, the _Queen Mary_ was now steaming to the open
waters of the North Sea, where she would again take up patrol duty with
the other vessels that comprised the British North Sea fleet, under
command of Vice-Admiral Beatty, whose flagship, the _Lion_, had taken
up the additional burden of patrolling the _Queen Mary's_ territory
while the latter was being overhauled.
Aboard the battleship, the British tars, who had become fretful at the
delay, were happy at the thought of getting back into active service.
While they had been given an opportunity to stretch their legs ashore,
they, nevertheless, had been glad when the time to steam back into the
open sea had come. Now, as the _Queen Mary_ entered the mouth of the
Thames and prepared' to leave the shores of Old England for the broad
expanse of the North Sea, they sang, whistled and laughed gaily.
They were going back where they would get another chance at the enemy,
should he again venture from his lair.
Forward, upon the upper deck, stood two young officers, who peered into
the darkness ahead.
"To my mind," said one, "this beats a submarine. Just look about you.
Consider the size of this battleship! Look at her armament! Think of
the number of men aboard!"
"You may be right," returned the second officer, "but we have had some
grand times beneath the sea. We have been to places and seen things
that otherwise would have been impossible."
"True enough; but at the same time, when it came to a question of
fight, we have had to slink about like a cat in the night, afraid to
show ourselves to larger and heavier adversaries. Now, aboard the
_Queen Mary_, that will be done away with. Now we are the cat rather
than the mouse."
"It may be that I shall come to your way of thinking in time," said the
second speaker, "but at this moment I would rather have the familiar
feel of a submarine beneath my heel. I would feel more at home there.
Besides, we have lost one thing by being assigned to the _Queen Mary_
that hits me rather hard."
"I know what you mean," said the first speaker. "We indeed have lost
the companionship of a gallant commander. Captain Raleigh undoubtedly
is a first class officer--otherwise he would not be in command of the
_Queen Mary_--but we are bound to miss Lord Hastings."
"Indeed we are. Yet, as he told us, things cannot always be as we
would like to have them. He was called for other service, as you know,
and he did his best for us. That is why we find ourselves here as minor
officers."
"Yes; and it's a whole lot different than being the second and third in
command."
At that moment another young officer hurried by.
"Coming, Templeton? Coming, Chadwick?" he asked as he passed.
"Where?" demanded the two friends.
"Didn't you hear the call for mess?"
"No; By Jove! and I'm hungry, too," said the young officer addressed as
Templeton. "Come along, Frank. We have been so busy talking here that
we had forgotten all about the demands of the inner man."
The two hurried after the officer who had accosted them; and while they
are attending to the wants of the inner man, as Templeton termed their
appetites, we will take the time to explain how these two lads came to
be aboard the giant battleship, steaming into the North Sea in search
of the enemies of Great Britain and her allies.
Frank Chadwick was an American youth of some eighteen years. Separated
from his father in Naples at the outbreak of the great war, he had been
shanghaied aboard a sailing vessel when he had gone to the aid of a man
apparently in distress. There he was made a prisoner.
Some days later he had been rescued by Jack Templeton, a young
Englishman, who had boarded the vessel off the coast of Africa, seeking
payment for goods he had sold to the mutinous crew. The two lads had
been instrumental in helping Lord Hastings, a British nobleman, put
through a coup that kept Italy out of the war on the side of Germany
and Austria. Lord Hastings had become greatly attached to the lads, and
when he had been put in command of a vessel, he had both boys assigned
to his ship.
Through gallant service Frank and Jack had won their lieutenancies.
Later Lord Hastings had assumed command of a submarine and had made
Jack his first officer and Frank his second officer.
Through many a tight place the lads had gone safely, though they had
faced death more than once, and faced it calmly and bravely. Also, at
this period of the war, they had seen service in many seas. They had
been engaged in the first battle of the North Sea, when Great Britain
had struck her first hard blow; they had participated in the sinking of
the German Atlantic squadron near the Falkland islands, off the coast
of Argentina, in South America; they had fought in Turkish waters and
in the Indian Ocean, and also had been with the British land forces
when the Japanese allies of the English had won the last of the German
possessions in China.
In stature and disposition the boys were as different as could be.
Frank, though large for his age, looked small when alongside of Jack.
The latter, though no older than his friend, was a huge bulk of a boy,
standing well over six feet. He was built proportionately. Strong as an
ox, he was, and cool of head.
Here he differed from Frank, who had something of a temper and was
likely to do something foolish on the spur of the moment if he became
angry. Jack had served as a damper for his friend's anger and
enthusiasm more than once.
That they could fight, both boys had shown more than once. Jack,
because of his huge bulk and great strength, was, of course, harder to
beat in a hand-to-hand struggle than was Frank; but what the latter
lacked in this kind of fighting, he more than made up in the use of
revolver, rifle or sword.
Frank was a crack shot with a revolver; and more than once this
accomplishment had stood them both in good stead. Each was a good
linguist and conversed in French and German as well as in English. This
also had been of help to them in several ticklish situations.
On their last venture, at which time they had been under command of
Lord Hastings, they had reached the distant shores of Russia, where
they had been of some assistance to the Czar. In reaching Petrograd it
had been necessary for them to pass through the Kiel canal, which they
had done safely in their submarine in spite of the German warships and
harbor defenses. Also they had managed to sink several enemy vessels
there.
Returning, Frank and Jack had gone home with Lord Hastings, where Lady
Hastings had insisted that they remain quiet for some time. This they
had done and had been glad of the rest.
One day Lord Hastings had come home with the announcement that he had
been called back into the diplomatic service. It was the aim of the
British government to align Greece and Roumania on the side of the
Allies. Realizing that they could not hope to accompany Lord Hastings,
and not wishing to remain idle longer, Frank and Jack had requested
Lord Hastings to have them assigned on active duty at once. Lord
Hastings promised to do his best.
And this was the reason that Frank Chadwick and Jack Templeton found
themselves aboard H.M.S. _Queen Mary_ when she steamed out to the North
Sea on an evening in the last week of May, 1916.
CHAPTER II
A BIT OF HISTORY
Up to this time the German Sea fleet, as a unit, had suffered
comparatively little damage in the great war. Sheltered as it was
behind the great fortress of Heligoland, the British sea forces had
been unable to reach it; nor would the Germans venture forth to give
battle to the English, in spite of the bait that more than once had
been placed just outside the mine fields that guarded the approach to
the great German fortress itself.
To have attacked this fortress would have been foolhardy and the
British knew it. The British fleet, powerful though it was, would have
been no match for the great guns of the German fortress, even had the
battleships been able to force a passage of the mine fields; and this
latter feat would have been a wonderful one in itself, could it be
accomplished.
Upon several occasions German battleships, cruisers and submarines had
ventured from behind the mine field and had delivered raids upon the
British coast, almost 400 miles away. How they escaped the eyes of the
waiting British was a riddle that so far had not been explained. But
while they reached alien shores in safety, they had not returned with
the same success. Twice the British had come into contact with these
German raiders and in each case the enemy had come off second best.
Several German cruisers had been sent to the bottom.
After occasions like these, the Germans would lie long behind their
snug walls before venturing forth into the open again. They held the
British navy in too great awe to treat it lightly.
But the fact that the British were able to keep the German fleet
bottled up was a victory in itself, though a bloodless one. Practically
all commerce with Germany had been shut off. It settled down to a
question of how long the German Empire could survive without the
necessary food and other commodities reaching her shores. What little
in the way of foodstuffs did reach Germany came by the way of the
Scandinavian countries--Norway, Sweden and Denmark; also some grain was
still being shipped in by the way of Roumania and was being transported
up the Danube, which had been opened to traffic again after Serbia had
been crushed.
But these supplies were not great enough to take care of the whole
German population. In the conquest of Russian Poland, Germany had
improved her lot somewhat, for the fertile fields had immediately been
planted and a good crop had been reaped.
And the one thing that prevented Germany from importing the things that
would in the end be necessary to her existence was the British
supremacy of the sea, abetted now somewhat by the navies of France,
Italy and Japan. German commerce had been cleared from the seven seas.
What vessels of war had been scattered over the world at the outbreak
of the war had either been sent to the bottom, captured or were
interned in foreign ports. These latter were of no value to Germany.
It had been more than a year now since the last German commerce raider
had been sunk. The German commercial flag was seen no more in the four
corners of the globe. It appeared that Germany was nearing the end of
her rope.
And yet, bottled up in Heligoland, remained the German high sea fleet
practically intact. It was a formidable fleet and one, it seemed, that
should not be afraid to venture from behind the protection of the
fortress. And some day, the world knew, when all other ways had failed,
this great fleet would steam forth to give battle to the British, in a
last effort of the German Emperor to turn the tide in his favor; and
while, in the allied nations at least, there was no doubt of the
ultimate outcome of such a struggle, it was realized that the German
fleet would give a good account of itself when it did venture forth.
Therefore, it was considered just as well that the British keep the
German high sea fleet bottled up and give it no chance to reach the
open, where, although the greater part might be sent to the bottom,
some vessels might escape and embark upon a cruise of commerce warfare.
This bloodless victory, it was pointed out, was of just as great value
to Great Britain as if all the German ships of war had been at the
bottom of the North Sea. Bottled up as they were, they were just as
ineffective.
This was the situation, then, when the _Queen Mary,_ with Jack and
Frank aboard, steamed down the Thames and out into the North Sea to
take up again her patrol of those waters; and there was nothing to warn
those on board of the great battle that even now was impending and that
was to result disastrously for Great Britain, even though the Germans
were to suffer no less.
Mess over, Frank and Jack made their way to their own quarters
amidships. Here they sat down and for some time talked over the events
of the days gone by.
"I guess there will be nothing for us to do this night," said Frank at
last. "We may as well turn in."
"I am afraid there will be nothing for us to do for some time to come,"
was Jack's reply. "I am afraid it will be rather monotonous sailing
about the North Sea looking for German warships, when the latter are
afraid to come out and fight."
"Well, you can't tell," said Frank. "However, that's one beauty of a
submarine. You don't have to wait around for something to happen. You
can go out and make it happen."
"That's so. But, by Jove! I wish these fellows would come out and
fight! Maybe we could put an end to this war real quickly."
"Yes, but we might not," returned Frank.
"Why, don't you think we can thrash them?"
"I suppose we can; but at the same time they can do a lot of damage.
Besides, some of them have come out. We've sunk some, of course, but
the others have returned safely enough. I can't see any excuse for
that."
"It does seem that they should have been caught," Jack agreed, "but I
guess Admiral Jellicoe, Admiral Beatty and the admiralty know what is
going on."
"Sometimes it doesn't look like it," declared Frank. "I suppose there
are still some of these German submarines scooting about almost under
our feet."
"I suppose so. However, ordinarily, as you know, they won't attack a
battleship. It's too risky. If they miss with the first torpedo, the
chances are they will be sunk."
"Well, we sunk a few," said Frank.
"I know we did; but we took long chances."
"The Germans take long chances, too."
"You must have a little German blood in you, Frank," said Jack, with a
smile. "If I didn't know you better, I would think you were sticking up
for them."
"No, I'm not sticking up for them; but they do things we seem to be
afraid to do. To my way of thinking, we should have gone and cleaned up
Heligoland a long time ago."
"By Jove! You want the enemy to win this war quickly, don't you?"
"No, but----"
"Come, now. You know very well what would have happened if we had tried
to take a fleet into Heligoland. They would have blown us out of the
water."
"Well, such things have been done," grumbled Frank. "I can tell you a
couple of cases. At Mobile Bay----"
"Oh, I've heard all that before. But conditions now are absolutely
different. What was done fifty years ago can't be done today."
"They aren't being done, that much is sure," replied Frank. "But this
argument is not doing us any good. Me for a little sleep."
"I'm with you," said Jack.
And half an hour later, as the _Queen Mary_ still steamed due east,
Frank and Jack slept.
Above, the third officer held the bridge. The great searchlight forward
lighted the water for some distance ahead, and aft a second light cast
its powerful rays first to port and then to starboard. There was not
another vessel in sight.
Farther to the east, other British battleships patrolled the sea, their
lights also flashing back and forth. It would be a bold enemy who would
venture to run that blockade; and yet, in spite of this, the strictest
watch was maintained. For the fact still remained fresh in the minds of
the British that upon two occasions the Germans had run the British
blockade; and both times the failure of the British to intercept them
had resulted in heavy loss of life on the coast, where the German
warships had shelled unfortified towns--against all rules of civilized
warfare--killing thousands of helpless men, women and children.
It was against some such similar attack that the British warships were
patrolling every mile of water. The British coast must be protected. No
more German raiders must be allowed to slip through and bombard
undefended coast towns.
Also, strict watch was kept aloft. For almost nightly now, huge German
Zeppelins were sailing across the sea and dropping bombs upon the coast
of Kent, upon Dover, and close even to London itself. It was feared
that one of these monsters of the air might swoop down upon the
battleships and, with a well directed bomb, send the vessel to the
bottom of the sea.
All British war vessels were equipped with anti-aircraft guns and these
were ever loaded and ready for action; for there was no telling what
moment they might be called into use to repel a foe. Upon several
occasions attacks of the Zeppelins had been beaten off with these guns,
though, up to date, none had been brought down.
But now there had been perfected a new anti-aircraft gun. With this it
was believed that the battleship stood a good chance of bringing down a
Zeppelin should it venture near enough.
With such a gun the _Queen Mary_ had been equipped as she was
overhauled in dry dock. With this gun went four men. One to stand by
the gun at night and keep watch of the sky and a second to do duty in
the day time. The other two men stood relief watches and were of
additional need should one of the first men be injured, taken sick or
killed.
And so it was that, as the _Queen Mary_ continued on her way, one of
these men stood by his gun just aft of the bridge, watching the sky.
Nor did he shirk his task.
Almost continuously his eye swept the dark heavens, following, as well
as he could, in the path of one or the other of the searchlights. He
used powerful night glasses for this purpose. Suddenly he gave a start.
He looked closely again through his glasses. Then he uttered a cry of
alarm.
The third officer, on the bridge, gave an exclamation.
"What do you see?" he demanded.
"Zeppelin," was the reply. "Douse the light aft. Have the man forward
see if he can pick up the craft with his flash. About two points east
by north."
There came sharp commands aboard the _Queen Mary._
CHAPTER III
WARSHIP AND ZEPPELIN
A bell tinkled in the engine room of the _Queen Mary_. The ship slowed
down. Captain Raleigh had been called by the third officer. He took the
bridge and issued his orders sharply.
There was no telling whether the Zeppelin sighted by the man at the gun
would attack the ship, but Captain Raleigh considered it best to be on
the safe side. That was why he had left orders to be called immediately
should an enemy appear.
Again a bell tinkled in the engine room, following an order from the
commander of the _Queen Mary_.
The great engines stopped and became silent.
"Cut off all lights!" was the next command.
A moment later the great ship was in darkness.
Frank and Jack, in their quarters, were awakened by the sounds of
confusion above. All hands had not been piped on deck, so most of the
men still lay asleep, unconscious of what was going on above, but the
two lads, dressing hurriedly, made their way on deck. They walked
forward, toward the bridge.
All was dark and it was this that told Frank and Jack that something
was going on.
"Wonder what's up?" said Frank.
"Airship, I guess," was the reply. "Can't see any other reason for
extinguishing all lights."
Near the bridge the lads stopped and waited to see what would happen.
All was quiet aboard. Not a sound came from the officers or the men on
deck. Then Captain Raleigh commanded:
"Try the forward searchlight there. See if you can pick her up!"
The light flashed aloft; and there, so far above the _Queen Mary_ as to
be little more than a tiny speck, hovered a giant Zeppelin; and even as
they looked, the airship came lower.
"She's sighted us," said Captain Raleigh to his first officer, who
stood beside him. "Try a shot, Mr. Harrison."
The first officer passed the word and a second later there came the
sound of the anti-aircraft gun. The gunner had taken his range at the
moment the flashlight revealed the airship.
The shot brought no noticeable result.
"Fifteen knots ahead, Mr. Harrison!" ordered the captain.
He was afraid that the Zeppelin might drop a bomb on the ship; and from
that moment until the end of the battle the _Queen Mary_ did not pause.
First she headed to port and then to starboard, manoeuvering rapidly
that the German airmen might not be able to reach her with a bomb.
"Another shot!" commanded Captain Raleigh.
Still no result.
"Funny she doesn't rise and try and escape," said Frank.
"No, it's not," returned Jack. "They don't know anything about this new
anti-aircraft gun. They believe they are out of range."
"Well, they're likely to hit us with one of those bombs, and then where
will we be?" said Frank.
"If they hit us you won't know anything about it," was Jack's response.
Again the _Queen Mary_ tried a shot at the Zeppelin.
A cheer went up from the members of the crew who stood upon deck; for
the Zeppelin was seen to wabble.
"Nicked her," shouted the first officer.
Jack, standing near the rail, heard something whiz by his head.
Instinctively the lad ducked. He knew in a moment what had passed him;
he heard something splash into the sea.
"Bomb just missed us, sir!" he cried, stepping forward.
"Where?" demanded Captain Raleigh.
"Right here, forward, sir," replied Jack.
Captain Raleigh gave a quick command to his first officer, who passed
it to the man at the wheel.
"Hard a-port!" he cried.
The ship veered crazily; and at the some moment, Frank, who was
standing where Jack had been a moment before, heard something swish
past.
"Another bomb, sir!" he reported.
There was no reply from the bridge. Captain Raleigh felt that, by
bringing the ship's head hard to port, he had spoiled the range of the
enemy in the air.
For some time no more bombs dropped near.
Again the _Queen Mary_ fired at the Zeppelin; and again and again.
The last shot was rewarded by another cheer from the crew. The giant
Zeppelin was seen to drop suddenly.