6 - The Journal, Part 4. The Journal of Submarine Commander Von Forstner, by George-Gunther Freiherr von Forstner.
The Journal of Submarine Commander Von Forstner is a graphic account of WWI submarine warfare. Forstner was the commander of German U-boat U-28. His journal, first published 1916, gives a gritty picture of daily life inside a submarine and details several torpedo attacks on Allied shipping. The 1917 translation of Forstner’s journal into English was unquestionably intended to bolster the Allied war effort. In the foreword, the translator states: “Nothing at the present day has aroused such fear as this invisible enemy, nor has anything outraged the civilized world like the tragedies caused by the German submarines.”
The Journal of Submarine Commander Von Forstner is a graphic account of WWI submarine warfare. Forstner was the commander of German U-boat U-28. His journal, first published 1916, gives a gritty picture of daily life inside a submarine and details several torpedo attacks on Allied shipping. The 1917 translation of Forstner’s journal into English was unquestionably intended to bolster the Allied war effort. In the foreword, the translator states: “Nothing at the present day has aroused such fear as this invisible enemy, nor has anything outraged the civilized world like the tragedies caused by the German submarines.”
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Part four of the Journal of Submarine Commander von Forstner.
This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in
the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please
visit LibriVox dot org. Recording by Sue Anderson. The Journal
of Submarine Commander von Forstner by Georg Gunter frachervon Forstner,
(00:26):
translated by Anna Kraftskodmen, with commentary by John Hays Hammond Junior.
The Journal Part four. Before making my official report, I
inspected my two prizes that were docked just behind us.
A chain parted them from the rest of the quay,
with sentries placed on guard. I gave the preference of
(00:49):
my first visit, naturally, as a polite man should. To
the steamer. With so many of the fair Sex on board,
I hoped that by appearing surrounded by my officers, I
should dispel their fear of the German barbarians. I was
told the ladies belonged to a variety troupe that was
(01:10):
to give a performance the next evening in London, Poor London,
to be deprived by our fault of an enjoyable evening.
Among the other passengers were Belgians, and French who had
waited six weeks in Holland for a chance to get across,
and also an American reporter of the Hearst newspaper. He
(01:31):
had a camera for taking moving pictures, and we discovered
later that he had photographed the whole occurrence of the
capture of the ship by our submarine. A few days later,
the Graphic of March twenty seventh, nineteen fifteen published several
of his pictures, which eventually found their way to many
American papers. I was ordered that evening to dine with
(01:55):
the Commanding Admiral of the Marine Corps, Excellency von Schut,
and a motor called for me and took me to Bruges,
where he resided the peaceful landscape and the plowed fields
betrayed but few signs of war, and I saw Belgian
peasants and German soldiers planting together the seed for the
(02:16):
coming harvest. While the authorities were passing judgment on my
two prizes, I had a chance to visit the surrounding country.
The English had destroyed in their retreat. Everything in Zebruga,
except the new Palace, hotel, the new post office and
the Belgian bank. I made the most of this short
opportunity to observe the doings of our men in this
(02:39):
conquered land, paid for with German blood. I was interested
to note how our marines had been incorporated into every
branch of the army service, and how easily they adapted
themselves to this new life. They served as infantry in
the trenches, as artillery behind the great coast guns, and
(02:59):
also as cavalry mounted on big Flemish mares. They had
even been transformed into car conductors on the electric line
that runs behind the dunes between Zebruga and Ostend. In fact,
they filled every kind of position, and few Belgians were
to be seen. We had created here a second German
(03:22):
fatherland and home, notwithstanding the enemy's reports that we had
acted like huns and barbarians. But as neither the country
nor the people were of great interest to me, my
attention was centered on the study of our own troops. Meantime,
the unloading of our steamers had begun, and I had
(03:43):
to supervise it myself, as the cargoes were composed of
perishable foodstuffs. The usual delays were overcome, and hundreds of
sailors and soldiers were ordered to unload the ships. Out
of the hold rose newly slaughtered pigs in us, sheep
and ducks, which were at once distributed among the various regiments.
(04:06):
Two hundred barrels of the best Munich beer were rolled
over the quays, and two barrels found their way on
board our little boat, which no one could be grudge us.
On the zanstrum there were four thousand, four hundred boxes
of fresh eggs, each box containing one thousand, eight hundred eggs,
(04:27):
and I was told by an army officer that every
man of the Northern Army received eight eggs for the
Easter festival. On the following afternoon, the nationality of the
crew and of the passengers was recorded. A number of
them were sent as prisoners of war to concentration camps,
(04:48):
and many touching farewells ensued between the men and the
women who were left behind. The others were taken on
a special train under military guard to the Dutch frontier.
The German sailors on whom this mission devolved, looked very
jolly as they sat armed to the teeth in the
railway carriages by twos, watching over two pretty variety actresses.
(05:13):
And I think they would willingly have prolonged the journey further.
I walked along the train to say good bye to
the passengers who had so unwillingly made our acquaintance, and
I was warmly thanked by an old American to whom
I personally had done a small favor for my courteous treatment.
He spoke in the name of all the passengers, who
(05:34):
had experienced also the greatest civility at the hands of
the port authorities. I declined these words of thanks, for
they had only received the treatment that was their proper due.
After the train had left, the hour of our own
departure had struck. We cast off the lines that had
kept us bound for two such memorable days on the
(05:56):
Flemish coast. In passing by, I waved a farewell to
the two Dutch captains, and away we went westward ho
Chapter seven off the coast of England. Our boat carried
us speedily away, further and further towards the west, and
soon the lighthouse on the Mole and the outline of
(06:19):
the country we had conquered faded away in the evening twilight.
Before long we should be surrounded by only hostile shores.
We first sighted the French port of Bologna, where the
imposing bronze statue of Napoleon the First stands on a
marble column fifty three meters high, with eyes turned toward
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the English coast. It was built to commemorate the expedition
planned by Napoleon in eighteen o three against the Sons
of Albion, whose descendants have so recently landed on French soil,
and as they lie there encamped, they may wonder, when
gazing at the statue of the Great Emperor, if he
(07:02):
would have welcomed them with the same enthusiasm with which
they have been received by the present rulers of France.
On our very first day in the French Channel, we
were able to sink several steamers after the crews had
left in their lifeboats, and on general lines, a similar
picture was traced at every sinking. We were now granted
(07:24):
our first opportunity to steer a submarine above and below
the waters of the North Atlantic. The ocean seemed to
rejoice at our coming and revealed itself to us in
all the glory of a march storm. Only those who
have seen such a storm can realize its proud majesty.
The gigantic, blue black waves, with their shining crests, lashed
(07:48):
by the west wind, came rushing onward into the open
mouth of the channel, and the hemmed in waters, roaring
and surging, dashed themselves against the sharp rock points of
the French coast, or broke less violently but in ceaseless unrest,
on the chalk cliffs of England, which glimmered white in
(08:08):
the rays of the sun. It is a splendid sight
to watch this great spectacle from the high deck of
a steamer as it plows its way through the foaming flood,
or to be borne aloft on the top of the
waves with a ship under full sail. But it is
still more wonderful to behold nature's great display from the
(08:29):
half submerged conning tower of a u boat, and to
dive through the mountainous breakers until they close, gurgling over
our heads, and hide us from all curious glances. Our
little nutshell, in perpetual motion, is drawn down into the
deep valleys of the ocean waves, or tossed upwards on
(08:50):
the comb of the following breaker. We are soaked to
the skin, and the spray covers us like a silvery veil.
Our boat, as well as ourselves, is daubed with a
salt crust. Our eyes smart, and our lips have a
briny tang. But to us sailors, it's a joy to
be the sport of the wild waves, and even those
(09:13):
few unfortunates who always suffer from sea sickness never lose
their love of the sea. We were thus in the
midst of a strong northwesterly gale, lying in wait for
our prey at the entrance of the English Channel, but
no ship was to be seen. Most of them took
the northerly course beyond the war zone around the Shetland Islands,
(09:37):
and it was not until the next morning, north of
the Scilly Islands in the Bristol Channel, that we caught
sight behind us of a big steamer running before the wind.
Like ourselves, the wind had somewhat fallen and the March
sun was shining bright and warm. The steamer was heading
for Cardiff, and we judged by her course that she
(09:58):
had sailed from some port in South America. Turning about
and breasting the waves, we faced the oncoming steamer and
signaled to her to stop. But hardly had she espied
us than She also turned about in the hope to escape.
She showed no flag to indicate her nationality, so surely
we had sighted an English vessel. Even after we had
(10:21):
fired a warning shot, she tried, by rapid and tortuous
curves to return to her former course and endeavor thereby
to reach her home port. Meantime, she sent up rockets
as signals of distress in quick succession to draw the
attention of British patrol ships that must be hovering in
the neighborhood. This obliged us to fire a decisive shot,
(10:45):
and with a loud report, our first shell struck the
ship close to the captain's bridge. Instead of resigning himself
to his fate, the Englishman sent up more signals and
hoisted the British flag. This showed us he was game,
and the fight began in dead earnest. All honor to
(11:06):
the pluck of these English captains, But how reckless to
expose in this manner the lives of their passengers and crew,
as we shall see in the present instances. Circling around us,
he tried to ram us with his prow and we
naturally avoided him by also turning in the same direction.
Every time he veered about, he offered us his broadside
(11:29):
for a shot. With well directed aim. We took advantage
of this target, and our successful fire gave him full
proof of the skill of our gunners. The latter had
a hard time of it. The high seas poured over
the low deck, and they continually stood up to their
necks in the cold salt water. They were often dragged
(11:50):
off the deck by the great receiving waves, but as
they were tied by strong ropes to the cannons, we
were able to pull them up again, and fortunately no
lives were lost. On seeing our gunners struggling in the seas,
our foe hoped to make good his escape, but with
each telling shot our own fighting blood was aroused, and
(12:12):
the wild chase continued. A well aimed shell tore off
the English flagstaff at the stern, but the Union jack
was quickly hoisted again on the foretop. This also was
shot down, and a third time the flag flew from
a line of the yard of the foretop, but the
flag had been raised too hastily and it hung reversed
(12:34):
with the Union jack upside down, and in this manner
it continued to fly until it sank with the brave ship.
The fight had lasted four hours without our being able
to deliver the death stroke. Several fires had started on
the steamer, but the crew had been able to keep
them under control. Big holes gaped open in the ship's side,
(12:58):
but there were none as yet below the water line,
and the pumps still sufficed to expel the water. It
often occurred that in the act of firing, the waves
choked our cannons, and the shot when hissing through tremendous
sheets of water, while we were blinded by a deluge
of foam. Of course, we were all wet through and through,
(13:21):
but that was of no importance, for we had already
been wet for days. It was now essential for us
to put an end to this deadly combat, for English
torpedo boat destroyers were hurrying on to the calls of
distress of the steamer. Big clouds of smoke against the
sky showed they were coming towards us under full steam.
(13:43):
The ship was by this time listing so heavily that
it was evident we need waste no more of our ammunition.
And besides, the appearance of another big steamer on the
southern horizon was an enticing inducement to quit the battle
scene and seek another victim. We cast a last look
on our courageous adversary, who was gradually sinking, and I
(14:07):
must add it was the first and last prey whose
end we did not have the satisfaction to witness. We
had been truly impressed by the captain's brave endurance, notwithstanding
his lack of wisdom, and we knew that the men
of war were coming to his rescue. We read in
the papers on our return to a German port that
(14:28):
the Voge had sunk soon after we departed, and what
remained of the passengers and crew were picked up by
the English ships. The captain was rewarded for his temerity
by being raised to the rank of reserve officer, and
the crew were given sums of money, but all the
other officers had perished, as well as several sailors and
(14:50):
a few passengers who had been forced to help the stokers.
In order to increase the speed of the flying steamer,
we hurried away there in the direction of the other ship,
and as we approached we soon recognized the Spanish colors
flying from her flag staff and painted on her sides.
(15:11):
The captain willingly stopped at our bidding and dispatched an
officer to us bearing the ship's papers. The stormy waves
had somewhat subsided, and although the occupants of the boat
got very wet, yet they were able without danger to
come alongside our submarine. There was no contraband on board
the Spanish steamer, and before dismissing the officer, I admonished
(15:35):
him always to stop at the first signal from a
U boat. He assured me that since the English were
constantly hoisting the Spanish flag, he had lost all desire
to navigate again in the dangerous waters of the war zone.
Much relieved at getting away so easily, he went on
board his own steamer, which resumed its voyage towards the
(15:58):
lovely city of Santander on the Spanish coast. I read
an account later of our encounter with the Augustina in
a number of the Metin of April one, nineteen fifteen.
It was entitled to jour le lleu, and spoke of
our undesirable presence in French waters. A following number did
(16:19):
us the honour to represent a large picture of our
boat with the officers standing on the bridge, taken probably
by a passenger on board the Spanish vessel an Arrow,
pointed to us with the inscription for la lequipage du bundi.
The English usually referred to us as the pirates, and
(16:41):
in their rage describe our activities as those of the
German submarine pest. We are accustomed to these flattering illusions,
and it amused me to preserve and frame our picture
from the metin. In the next few days, we stopped
and searched several neutral steamers and sank many English ones.
(17:04):
The captains were occasionally stubborn and refused to obey our signals,
so a few accidents occurred. In one case, for instance,
a stray shot struck some passengers in a lifeboat which collapsed.
But as a rule, passengers and crews were picked up
by the many sailboats and fishing boats which circulate in
(17:26):
the Irish Sea and in Saint George's Channel, and it
was we who generally summoned these fishermen to go to
the rescue of their shipwrecked countrymen. The method of capture
was always the same, and now our ammunition being nearly exhausted,
we steered a homeward course with the hope of securing
(17:47):
a few more steamers on the way. We were again
favored by good luck, for at the entrance of the
English Channel we ran across a large steamer coming from
America and heading for a French port, heavily laden with
all the fine things that the Americans at present so
willingly export. The chase began in the usual fashion, as
(18:11):
we followed closely in the enemy's wake. Although the captain
made an effort to escape, yet he evidently felt certain
from the beginning that he would be unable to do so,
for he immediately swung out the lifeboats ready to be lowered.
We were economizing our ammunition and did not, according to
our custom, fire a warning shot. But as we drew
(18:35):
near the steamer, we suddenly saw dark round objects thrown overboard.
The man at the helm beside me exclaimed, they are
throwing mines, but I was not of the same opinion.
We proceeded quietly to examine these suspicious objects more closely,
and we discovered they were simply bundles of clothes. The
(18:57):
sailors were trying to save, inching them into the lifeboats.
They had missed the mark, and the bundles had fallen
into the sea. A report had apparently spread through the
English seaports that the men had but scant time to
save their belongings when they were sighted by one of
our submarines, and since that time their clothes were strapped together,
(19:20):
ready for a sudden emergency. The steamer stopped and the
crew on this occasion took to the boats with a
perfect discipline we were little accustomed to witness. The Flaminian
was sent to the bottom of the sea with one
of our last torpedoes. The following morning, before bidding the
west coast of England a temporary farewell, we made another
(19:42):
good catch. We sighted a broad bottomed, fore masted steamer,
also coming from America, laden down as we soon ascertained,
with five thousand tons of oats, and making its way
to Havre. We started after it, and as usual it
tried to escape, but a well directed shot through the
(20:04):
bridge and chart house brought it to a stop, and
it signaled that the engines were being reversed. The boats
were lowered, and on drawing near we perceived the captain
with others on the bridge, holding up their hands as
a token of surrender. As soon as those on board
had taken their places in the lifeboats. They rowed toward
(20:25):
us and showed the liveliest interest in the final torpedoing
of their steamer. They looked upon it as a new
kind of sport, and under the present conditions they could
watch the performance in the most comfortable way. The sea
was like a mirror and reflected the smiling spring sunshine,
whose warming rays were most agreeably felt. The English captain
(20:49):
had scarcely been on board by submarine a moment when
he begged that we might go together and verify the
excellent aim of our first shot through the forward part
of his ship, which which he told me, had nearly
grazed his ear. I consented to go on his lifeboat
and admire with him, to our mutual enjoyment, the irreproachable
(21:10):
marksmanship of my gunner. Although I did not accept a
drink of whiskey one of the English officers offered me.
Unseeing the gaping hole in the forecastle, the captain and
his men clapped their hands and cried out a very
good shot. The captain congratulated me for securing, as he asserted,
(21:30):
the richest prize I had ever made, but I assured
him we had sunk even more valuable cargoes than the
present one. I decided, as the sea was calm and
no ship was in sight, to spare our torpedoes and shells,
and to put an end to the steamer with little
hand grenades. The Englishman took a sportsmanlike interest in the proceedings,
(21:54):
and one of the officers even volunteered to show me
the most effective position for the explosive. I naturally did
not gratify his wish to place it there himself, for
I knew myself very accurately the most vulnerable spot in
the ship. In a few moments, a big hole was
torn in the side of the Crown of Castile, and
(22:16):
with a gurgling sound, the waters rushed in. At the
same time, long yellow threads of the finest oats floated
out on the sea, and, glistening with a golden shimmer,
gave proof long after the steamer had sunk of the
precious cargo which had lain within its flanks. You poor
(22:37):
French army horses, I fear your rations were cut short.
For a while. I had made an interesting study of
the manner in which the English crews of the present
day were composed. Apart from the British officers. There were
but few experienced seamen on board. This was made evident
(22:57):
by the awkward way the men usually handled the lifeboats.
Even with the enormous increase of wages, sailors could not
be found to risk their lives in the danger zone,
and a lot of untrained fellows, negroes and chinamen revealed
by their clumsy rowing that they had only recently been
pressed into service. Various other interesting incidents occurred on our
(23:22):
return trip, which I shall not mention now, But having
safely reached our newly conquered port of Ostend, we read,
to our amusement in a French paper that our U
boat had been sunk in the Channel by a fleet
of six fishing steamers. We were again warmly welcomed by
our comrades from the Army and Navy, all anxious to
(23:45):
hear the news we had to tell, and we had
the special honor of a visit from His Royal Highness,
the Crown Prince Rupert of Bavaria, who, after inspecting our boat,
permitted me to give him a detailed account of our
recent splendid crews. We had many other experiences during the quiet,
warm summer months, with their long clear nights, which enabled
(24:09):
us to achieve the further destruction of a large number
of steamers. It was glorious to work in fine weather
on our U boat on the waters of the Atlantic Ocean,
so peaceful at this season of the year, and so
doing we indulged in much friendly intercourse with the various
fishermen we met. Fishing steamers have replaced the old sailboats
(24:31):
to a great extent, and they represent an enormous fishing industry.
Our larder was daily replenished with fresh fish, which was
a greatly appreciated item on our monotonous bill of fare.
One windy evening in August we captured a Belgian steamer
bringing home coal from Cardiff, the crew having left the ship.
(24:55):
The latter was rapidly sinking, when, to our astonishment, a
man sprang on deck from below. He had evidently been forgotten,
and our shot going through the steamer had warned him
of his danger. He hesitated to obey my repeated orders
to jump overboard, until finally encased in two life belts,
(25:17):
he plunged into the water and began to swim, but
the screw was still slowly revolving, and he was drawn
deep down by the suction of the water. We had
given him up for lost, when we were amazed to
see him reappear on the other side of the ship.
The screw, which had slowly pulled him down, had thrown
(25:41):
him up again, and he swam towards us a big wave,
having tossed him onto our low deck. We were glad
to find he was unhurt, and we gave him the
best of care. He was a Dutchman, and after a
fortnight spent in our midst he was so happy he
no longer wished to leave us. When it came to
(26:03):
our sinking of the Midland Queen, a similar incident occurred.
A Negro had been forgotten by his white fellow countrymen,
and on finding himself abandoned and alone, he was so
greatly scared that he did not dare to leave the
sinking ship. We watched him and beckoned to him to
come to us, but he refused and swore at us furiously. Presently,
(26:27):
the Midland Queen pitched violently forward and stood nearly erect
with her nose in the water. Then, with a shrill
whistling sound, she dived below the surface of the waves.
The Negro's black head vanished in the turmoil of the waters.
Then suddenly, a loud detonation occurred. An explosion of compressed
(26:50):
air within the ship threw up sky high barrels and boards,
and among them, to our unbelieving eyes we saw the
wriggling body of the Negro. He was projected into the
sea and swam towards us, apparently none the worse after
this strange and violent experience. We rescued him and handed
(27:13):
him over to his mates, who had rowed back to
his assistance. On our return voyage through the North Sea,
we met a large sailboat with a Swedish flag flying
from the topmast. She lay completely becalmed and signaled for
us to draw nearer. We saw a large crowd gathered
(27:34):
on her deck, and we approached cautiously, fearing some trap, when,
to our joyful surprise we found she had one hundred
and fifty German officers and sailors on board. They belonged
to one of our auxiliary cruisers, the Meteor. Her captain,
after many exploits, had been pursued by several English cruisers,
(27:56):
and to save his little vessel from being captured, he
had liberately centered to the bottom of the sea, and
the Swedish sailboat had picked up the crew. Our shipwrecked
comrades told us they were desperately hungry, but our own
provisions were exhausted, so we took them in tow. For
not a breath of wind stirred the sails. By clear sunshine,
(28:19):
we merrily covered the short distance to our nearest port,
and towards midday the sailing ship and ourselves let down
our anchors, once more off the German coast. End of
Part four.
Part four of the Journal of Submarine Commander von Forstner.
This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in
the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please
visit LibriVox dot org. Recording by Sue Anderson. The Journal
of Submarine Commander von Forstner by Georg Gunter frachervon Forstner,
(00:26):
translated by Anna Kraftskodmen, with commentary by John Hays Hammond Junior.
The Journal Part four. Before making my official report, I
inspected my two prizes that were docked just behind us.
A chain parted them from the rest of the quay,
with sentries placed on guard. I gave the preference of
(00:49):
my first visit, naturally, as a polite man should. To
the steamer. With so many of the fair Sex on board,
I hoped that by appearing surrounded by my officers, I
should dispel their fear of the German barbarians. I was
told the ladies belonged to a variety troupe that was
(01:10):
to give a performance the next evening in London, Poor London,
to be deprived by our fault of an enjoyable evening.
Among the other passengers were Belgians, and French who had
waited six weeks in Holland for a chance to get across,
and also an American reporter of the Hearst newspaper. He
(01:31):
had a camera for taking moving pictures, and we discovered
later that he had photographed the whole occurrence of the
capture of the ship by our submarine. A few days later,
the Graphic of March twenty seventh, nineteen fifteen published several
of his pictures, which eventually found their way to many
American papers. I was ordered that evening to dine with
(01:55):
the Commanding Admiral of the Marine Corps, Excellency von Schut,
and a motor called for me and took me to Bruges,
where he resided the peaceful landscape and the plowed fields
betrayed but few signs of war, and I saw Belgian
peasants and German soldiers planting together the seed for the
(02:16):
coming harvest. While the authorities were passing judgment on my
two prizes, I had a chance to visit the surrounding country.
The English had destroyed in their retreat. Everything in Zebruga,
except the new Palace, hotel, the new post office and
the Belgian bank. I made the most of this short
opportunity to observe the doings of our men in this
(02:39):
conquered land, paid for with German blood. I was interested
to note how our marines had been incorporated into every
branch of the army service, and how easily they adapted
themselves to this new life. They served as infantry in
the trenches, as artillery behind the great coast guns, and
(02:59):
also as cavalry mounted on big Flemish mares. They had
even been transformed into car conductors on the electric line
that runs behind the dunes between Zebruga and Ostend. In fact,
they filled every kind of position, and few Belgians were
to be seen. We had created here a second German
(03:22):
fatherland and home, notwithstanding the enemy's reports that we had
acted like huns and barbarians. But as neither the country
nor the people were of great interest to me, my
attention was centered on the study of our own troops. Meantime,
the unloading of our steamers had begun, and I had
(03:43):
to supervise it myself, as the cargoes were composed of
perishable foodstuffs. The usual delays were overcome, and hundreds of
sailors and soldiers were ordered to unload the ships. Out
of the hold rose newly slaughtered pigs in us, sheep
and ducks, which were at once distributed among the various regiments.
(04:06):
Two hundred barrels of the best Munich beer were rolled
over the quays, and two barrels found their way on
board our little boat, which no one could be grudge us.
On the zanstrum there were four thousand, four hundred boxes
of fresh eggs, each box containing one thousand, eight hundred eggs,
(04:27):
and I was told by an army officer that every
man of the Northern Army received eight eggs for the
Easter festival. On the following afternoon, the nationality of the
crew and of the passengers was recorded. A number of
them were sent as prisoners of war to concentration camps,
(04:48):
and many touching farewells ensued between the men and the
women who were left behind. The others were taken on
a special train under military guard to the Dutch frontier.
The German sailors on whom this mission devolved, looked very
jolly as they sat armed to the teeth in the
railway carriages by twos, watching over two pretty variety actresses.
(05:13):
And I think they would willingly have prolonged the journey further.
I walked along the train to say good bye to
the passengers who had so unwillingly made our acquaintance, and
I was warmly thanked by an old American to whom
I personally had done a small favor for my courteous treatment.
He spoke in the name of all the passengers, who
(05:34):
had experienced also the greatest civility at the hands of
the port authorities. I declined these words of thanks, for
they had only received the treatment that was their proper due.
After the train had left, the hour of our own
departure had struck. We cast off the lines that had
kept us bound for two such memorable days on the
(05:56):
Flemish coast. In passing by, I waved a farewell to
the two Dutch captains, and away we went westward ho
Chapter seven off the coast of England. Our boat carried
us speedily away, further and further towards the west, and
soon the lighthouse on the Mole and the outline of
(06:19):
the country we had conquered faded away in the evening twilight.
Before long we should be surrounded by only hostile shores.
We first sighted the French port of Bologna, where the
imposing bronze statue of Napoleon the First stands on a
marble column fifty three meters high, with eyes turned toward
(06:41):
the English coast. It was built to commemorate the expedition
planned by Napoleon in eighteen o three against the Sons
of Albion, whose descendants have so recently landed on French soil,
and as they lie there encamped, they may wonder, when
gazing at the statue of the Great Emperor, if he
(07:02):
would have welcomed them with the same enthusiasm with which
they have been received by the present rulers of France.
On our very first day in the French Channel, we
were able to sink several steamers after the crews had
left in their lifeboats, and on general lines, a similar
picture was traced at every sinking. We were now granted
(07:24):
our first opportunity to steer a submarine above and below
the waters of the North Atlantic. The ocean seemed to
rejoice at our coming and revealed itself to us in
all the glory of a march storm. Only those who
have seen such a storm can realize its proud majesty.
The gigantic, blue black waves, with their shining crests, lashed
(07:48):
by the west wind, came rushing onward into the open
mouth of the channel, and the hemmed in waters, roaring
and surging, dashed themselves against the sharp rock points of
the French coast, or broke less violently but in ceaseless unrest,
on the chalk cliffs of England, which glimmered white in
(08:08):
the rays of the sun. It is a splendid sight
to watch this great spectacle from the high deck of
a steamer as it plows its way through the foaming flood,
or to be borne aloft on the top of the
waves with a ship under full sail. But it is
still more wonderful to behold nature's great display from the
(08:29):
half submerged conning tower of a u boat, and to
dive through the mountainous breakers until they close, gurgling over
our heads, and hide us from all curious glances. Our
little nutshell, in perpetual motion, is drawn down into the
deep valleys of the ocean waves, or tossed upwards on
(08:50):
the comb of the following breaker. We are soaked to
the skin, and the spray covers us like a silvery veil.
Our boat, as well as ourselves, is daubed with a
salt crust. Our eyes smart, and our lips have a
briny tang. But to us sailors, it's a joy to
be the sport of the wild waves, and even those
(09:13):
few unfortunates who always suffer from sea sickness never lose
their love of the sea. We were thus in the
midst of a strong northwesterly gale, lying in wait for
our prey at the entrance of the English Channel, but
no ship was to be seen. Most of them took
the northerly course beyond the war zone around the Shetland Islands,
(09:37):
and it was not until the next morning, north of
the Scilly Islands in the Bristol Channel, that we caught
sight behind us of a big steamer running before the wind.
Like ourselves, the wind had somewhat fallen and the March
sun was shining bright and warm. The steamer was heading
for Cardiff, and we judged by her course that she
(09:58):
had sailed from some port in South America. Turning about
and breasting the waves, we faced the oncoming steamer and
signaled to her to stop. But hardly had she espied
us than She also turned about in the hope to escape.
She showed no flag to indicate her nationality, so surely
we had sighted an English vessel. Even after we had
(10:21):
fired a warning shot, she tried, by rapid and tortuous
curves to return to her former course and endeavor thereby
to reach her home port. Meantime, she sent up rockets
as signals of distress in quick succession to draw the
attention of British patrol ships that must be hovering in
the neighborhood. This obliged us to fire a decisive shot,
(10:45):
and with a loud report, our first shell struck the
ship close to the captain's bridge. Instead of resigning himself
to his fate, the Englishman sent up more signals and
hoisted the British flag. This showed us he was game,
and the fight began in dead earnest. All honor to
(11:06):
the pluck of these English captains, But how reckless to
expose in this manner the lives of their passengers and crew,
as we shall see in the present instances. Circling around us,
he tried to ram us with his prow and we
naturally avoided him by also turning in the same direction.
Every time he veered about, he offered us his broadside
(11:29):
for a shot. With well directed aim. We took advantage
of this target, and our successful fire gave him full
proof of the skill of our gunners. The latter had
a hard time of it. The high seas poured over
the low deck, and they continually stood up to their
necks in the cold salt water. They were often dragged
(11:50):
off the deck by the great receiving waves, but as
they were tied by strong ropes to the cannons, we
were able to pull them up again, and fortunately no
lives were lost. On seeing our gunners struggling in the seas,
our foe hoped to make good his escape, but with
each telling shot our own fighting blood was aroused, and
(12:12):
the wild chase continued. A well aimed shell tore off
the English flagstaff at the stern, but the Union jack
was quickly hoisted again on the foretop. This also was
shot down, and a third time the flag flew from
a line of the yard of the foretop, but the
flag had been raised too hastily and it hung reversed
(12:34):
with the Union jack upside down, and in this manner
it continued to fly until it sank with the brave ship.
The fight had lasted four hours without our being able
to deliver the death stroke. Several fires had started on
the steamer, but the crew had been able to keep
them under control. Big holes gaped open in the ship's side,
(12:58):
but there were none as yet below the water line,
and the pumps still sufficed to expel the water. It
often occurred that in the act of firing, the waves
choked our cannons, and the shot when hissing through tremendous
sheets of water, while we were blinded by a deluge
of foam. Of course, we were all wet through and through,
(13:21):
but that was of no importance, for we had already
been wet for days. It was now essential for us
to put an end to this deadly combat, for English
torpedo boat destroyers were hurrying on to the calls of
distress of the steamer. Big clouds of smoke against the
sky showed they were coming towards us under full steam.
(13:43):
The ship was by this time listing so heavily that
it was evident we need waste no more of our ammunition.
And besides, the appearance of another big steamer on the
southern horizon was an enticing inducement to quit the battle
scene and seek another victim. We cast a last look
on our courageous adversary, who was gradually sinking, and I
(14:07):
must add it was the first and last prey whose
end we did not have the satisfaction to witness. We
had been truly impressed by the captain's brave endurance, notwithstanding
his lack of wisdom, and we knew that the men
of war were coming to his rescue. We read in
the papers on our return to a German port that
(14:28):
the Voge had sunk soon after we departed, and what
remained of the passengers and crew were picked up by
the English ships. The captain was rewarded for his temerity
by being raised to the rank of reserve officer, and
the crew were given sums of money, but all the
other officers had perished, as well as several sailors and
(14:50):
a few passengers who had been forced to help the stokers.
In order to increase the speed of the flying steamer,
we hurried away there in the direction of the other ship,
and as we approached we soon recognized the Spanish colors
flying from her flag staff and painted on her sides.
(15:11):
The captain willingly stopped at our bidding and dispatched an
officer to us bearing the ship's papers. The stormy waves
had somewhat subsided, and although the occupants of the boat
got very wet, yet they were able without danger to
come alongside our submarine. There was no contraband on board
the Spanish steamer, and before dismissing the officer, I admonished
(15:35):
him always to stop at the first signal from a
U boat. He assured me that since the English were
constantly hoisting the Spanish flag, he had lost all desire
to navigate again in the dangerous waters of the war zone.
Much relieved at getting away so easily, he went on
board his own steamer, which resumed its voyage towards the
(15:58):
lovely city of Santander on the Spanish coast. I read
an account later of our encounter with the Augustina in
a number of the Metin of April one, nineteen fifteen.
It was entitled to jour le lleu, and spoke of
our undesirable presence in French waters. A following number did
(16:19):
us the honour to represent a large picture of our
boat with the officers standing on the bridge, taken probably
by a passenger on board the Spanish vessel an Arrow,
pointed to us with the inscription for la lequipage du bundi.
The English usually referred to us as the pirates, and
(16:41):
in their rage describe our activities as those of the
German submarine pest. We are accustomed to these flattering illusions,
and it amused me to preserve and frame our picture
from the metin. In the next few days, we stopped
and searched several neutral steamers and sank many English ones.
(17:04):
The captains were occasionally stubborn and refused to obey our signals,
so a few accidents occurred. In one case, for instance,
a stray shot struck some passengers in a lifeboat which collapsed.
But as a rule, passengers and crews were picked up
by the many sailboats and fishing boats which circulate in
(17:26):
the Irish Sea and in Saint George's Channel, and it
was we who generally summoned these fishermen to go to
the rescue of their shipwrecked countrymen. The method of capture
was always the same, and now our ammunition being nearly exhausted,
we steered a homeward course with the hope of securing
(17:47):
a few more steamers on the way. We were again
favored by good luck, for at the entrance of the
English Channel we ran across a large steamer coming from
America and heading for a French port, heavily laden with
all the fine things that the Americans at present so
willingly export. The chase began in the usual fashion, as
(18:11):
we followed closely in the enemy's wake. Although the captain
made an effort to escape, yet he evidently felt certain
from the beginning that he would be unable to do so,
for he immediately swung out the lifeboats ready to be lowered.
We were economizing our ammunition and did not, according to
our custom, fire a warning shot. But as we drew
(18:35):
near the steamer, we suddenly saw dark round objects thrown overboard.
The man at the helm beside me exclaimed, they are
throwing mines, but I was not of the same opinion.
We proceeded quietly to examine these suspicious objects more closely,
and we discovered they were simply bundles of clothes. The
(18:57):
sailors were trying to save, inching them into the lifeboats.
They had missed the mark, and the bundles had fallen
into the sea. A report had apparently spread through the
English seaports that the men had but scant time to
save their belongings when they were sighted by one of
our submarines, and since that time their clothes were strapped together,
(19:20):
ready for a sudden emergency. The steamer stopped and the
crew on this occasion took to the boats with a
perfect discipline we were little accustomed to witness. The Flaminian
was sent to the bottom of the sea with one
of our last torpedoes. The following morning, before bidding the
west coast of England a temporary farewell, we made another
(19:42):
good catch. We sighted a broad bottomed, fore masted steamer,
also coming from America, laden down as we soon ascertained,
with five thousand tons of oats, and making its way
to Havre. We started after it, and as usual it
tried to escape, but a well directed shot through the
(20:04):
bridge and chart house brought it to a stop, and
it signaled that the engines were being reversed. The boats
were lowered, and on drawing near we perceived the captain
with others on the bridge, holding up their hands as
a token of surrender. As soon as those on board
had taken their places in the lifeboats. They rowed toward
(20:25):
us and showed the liveliest interest in the final torpedoing
of their steamer. They looked upon it as a new
kind of sport, and under the present conditions they could
watch the performance in the most comfortable way. The sea
was like a mirror and reflected the smiling spring sunshine,
whose warming rays were most agreeably felt. The English captain
(20:49):
had scarcely been on board by submarine a moment when
he begged that we might go together and verify the
excellent aim of our first shot through the forward part
of his ship, which which he told me, had nearly
grazed his ear. I consented to go on his lifeboat
and admire with him, to our mutual enjoyment, the irreproachable
(21:10):
marksmanship of my gunner. Although I did not accept a
drink of whiskey one of the English officers offered me.
Unseeing the gaping hole in the forecastle, the captain and
his men clapped their hands and cried out a very
good shot. The captain congratulated me for securing, as he asserted,
(21:30):
the richest prize I had ever made, but I assured
him we had sunk even more valuable cargoes than the
present one. I decided, as the sea was calm and
no ship was in sight, to spare our torpedoes and shells,
and to put an end to the steamer with little
hand grenades. The Englishman took a sportsmanlike interest in the proceedings,
(21:54):
and one of the officers even volunteered to show me
the most effective position for the explosive. I naturally did
not gratify his wish to place it there himself, for
I knew myself very accurately the most vulnerable spot in
the ship. In a few moments, a big hole was
torn in the side of the Crown of Castile, and
(22:16):
with a gurgling sound, the waters rushed in. At the
same time, long yellow threads of the finest oats floated
out on the sea, and, glistening with a golden shimmer,
gave proof long after the steamer had sunk of the
precious cargo which had lain within its flanks. You poor
(22:37):
French army horses, I fear your rations were cut short.
For a while. I had made an interesting study of
the manner in which the English crews of the present
day were composed. Apart from the British officers. There were
but few experienced seamen on board. This was made evident
(22:57):
by the awkward way the men usually handled the lifeboats.
Even with the enormous increase of wages, sailors could not
be found to risk their lives in the danger zone,
and a lot of untrained fellows, negroes and chinamen revealed
by their clumsy rowing that they had only recently been
pressed into service. Various other interesting incidents occurred on our
(23:22):
return trip, which I shall not mention now, But having
safely reached our newly conquered port of Ostend, we read,
to our amusement in a French paper that our U
boat had been sunk in the Channel by a fleet
of six fishing steamers. We were again warmly welcomed by
our comrades from the Army and Navy, all anxious to
(23:45):
hear the news we had to tell, and we had
the special honor of a visit from His Royal Highness,
the Crown Prince Rupert of Bavaria, who, after inspecting our boat,
permitted me to give him a detailed account of our
recent splendid crews. We had many other experiences during the quiet,
warm summer months, with their long clear nights, which enabled
(24:09):
us to achieve the further destruction of a large number
of steamers. It was glorious to work in fine weather
on our U boat on the waters of the Atlantic Ocean,
so peaceful at this season of the year, and so
doing we indulged in much friendly intercourse with the various
fishermen we met. Fishing steamers have replaced the old sailboats
(24:31):
to a great extent, and they represent an enormous fishing industry.
Our larder was daily replenished with fresh fish, which was
a greatly appreciated item on our monotonous bill of fare.
One windy evening in August we captured a Belgian steamer
bringing home coal from Cardiff, the crew having left the ship.
(24:55):
The latter was rapidly sinking, when, to our astonishment, a
man sprang on deck from below. He had evidently been forgotten,
and our shot going through the steamer had warned him
of his danger. He hesitated to obey my repeated orders
to jump overboard, until finally encased in two life belts,
(25:17):
he plunged into the water and began to swim, but
the screw was still slowly revolving, and he was drawn
deep down by the suction of the water. We had
given him up for lost, when we were amazed to
see him reappear on the other side of the ship.
The screw, which had slowly pulled him down, had thrown
(25:41):
him up again, and he swam towards us a big wave,
having tossed him onto our low deck. We were glad
to find he was unhurt, and we gave him the
best of care. He was a Dutchman, and after a
fortnight spent in our midst he was so happy he
no longer wished to leave us. When it came to
(26:03):
our sinking of the Midland Queen, a similar incident occurred.
A Negro had been forgotten by his white fellow countrymen,
and on finding himself abandoned and alone, he was so
greatly scared that he did not dare to leave the
sinking ship. We watched him and beckoned to him to
come to us, but he refused and swore at us furiously. Presently,
(26:27):
the Midland Queen pitched violently forward and stood nearly erect
with her nose in the water. Then, with a shrill
whistling sound, she dived below the surface of the waves.
The Negro's black head vanished in the turmoil of the waters.
Then suddenly, a loud detonation occurred. An explosion of compressed
(26:50):
air within the ship threw up sky high barrels and boards,
and among them, to our unbelieving eyes we saw the
wriggling body of the Negro. He was projected into the
sea and swam towards us, apparently none the worse after
this strange and violent experience. We rescued him and handed
(27:13):
him over to his mates, who had rowed back to
his assistance. On our return voyage through the North Sea,
we met a large sailboat with a Swedish flag flying
from the topmast. She lay completely becalmed and signaled for
us to draw nearer. We saw a large crowd gathered
(27:34):
on her deck, and we approached cautiously, fearing some trap, when,
to our joyful surprise we found she had one hundred
and fifty German officers and sailors on board. They belonged
to one of our auxiliary cruisers, the Meteor. Her captain,
after many exploits, had been pursued by several English cruisers,
(27:56):
and to save his little vessel from being captured, he
had liberately centered to the bottom of the sea, and
the Swedish sailboat had picked up the crew. Our shipwrecked
comrades told us they were desperately hungry, but our own
provisions were exhausted, so we took them in tow. For
not a breath of wind stirred the sails. By clear sunshine,
(28:19):
we merrily covered the short distance to our nearest port,
and towards midday the sailing ship and ourselves let down
our anchors, once more off the German coast. End of
Part four.
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