_Experiences Aboard a Gallant Little Fighting Ship_
_By Kapitanleutnant Hellmuth Von Mücke, of His Emperor's Ship, The
"Emden"--Translated by Helene S. White_
The tale of the _Emden_ is one of the greatest sea stories in all
history. Fighting its way through the China Seas, into the Bay of
Bengal, and across the Indian Ocean, knowing that sooner or later it
must face death, the crew of this gallant ship defeated and captured
twenty-four enemy ships, destroying cargoes and property valued at
$10,000,000--in two months roving the high seas. The romantic voyage
began on September 10th and ended on November 9th, 1914. It was a
crew of "jolly good fellows" that sailed under Commander von Müller;
their adventures won the admiration not only of their enemies but of
the whole world. An authentic story of this epic of the seas is told
by Lieutenant Captain von Mücke, of the _Emden_ in a volume relating
its exploits. He has also written a book bearing on the adventures
of the landing squad in "The Ayesha." There is nothing more
sensationally adventuresome in fiction than these voyages. The most
improbable romance is outdone by the exploits of the gallant German
seamen. Commander von Müller of the _Emden_ is a prisoner of war in
England at the time that these accounts are written. Selections are
here given from the volume on the _Emden_, with permission of the
publishers, _Ritter and Company_, Copyright 1917.
[2] I--STORY OF ADVENTURES ON THE YELLOW SEA
"All hands aft," shrilled the whistles of the boatswain's mate through
all the ship's decks. Quickly all the officers and crew assembled on
the after deck. Everyone knew what it was for.
It was at two o'clock on the afternoon of the second day of August,
1914, while our ship lay far out in the Yellow Sea, that Captain von
Mueller appeared on the poop, holding in his hand a slip of paper such
as is used for messages by wireless. In eager expectancy three hundred
pairs of eyes were fixed upon the lips of our Commander as he began to
speak.
"The following wireless message has just been received from Tsingtao:
'On August first, his Majesty, the Emperor, ordered the mobilization
of the entire land and naval forces of the Empire. Russian troops have
crossed the border into Germany. As a consequence, the Empire is at war
with Russia and with France...."
* * * * *
Three cheers for his Majesty, the Emperor, rang out over the broad
surface of the Yellow Sea. Then came the order that sent every man to
his post,--"Clear ship for action."
And so it had come to pass--the war was upon us!...
* * * * *
"Guns ready!" "Torpedo service ready!" "Engines and auxiliary engines
ready!" "Leak service ready!" "Steering service ready!" "Signal and
wireless service ready!"
Rapidly, one after the other, the reports from all over the ship were
now coming in, and demanded my attention to the exclusion of all
further thought and reflection. A quick tour of inspection through the
ship assured me that all was in readiness, and I could report to our
Commander, "The ship is clear for action."
At a speed of fifteen nautical miles we were proceeding toward the
Strait of Tchusima. When darkness came on, the war watch was begun on
the _Emden_, which is done in the following manner: Half of the men of
the crew remain awake and on duty at their posts,--at the guns, at the
searchlights and lookouts, in the torpedo room, in the engine and fire
rooms, etc., while the others are allowed to go to sleep with their
clothes on, and ready, at a moment's notice, to get to their posts. The
commander of the ship takes charge of one of these watches, and the
other one is in command of the first officer.
After passing through the Strait of Tchusima, the _Emden_ steered
northward. There was no moon, and the night was pitch black. It was
too dark to see anything even in our immediate vicinity. We were,
of course, traveling with all lights screened. Not a ray of light
was allowed to escape from the ship, nor the least bit of smoke from
her funnels. There was a moderate sea running, and the water was
unusually bright with phosphorescence. The water churned up by our
screws stretched away behind the ship in a shimmering wake of light
green. The waves dashing high up against the bow, and the water
tumbling and breaking against the sides, splashed the whole ship with
a phosphorescent glitter, and made her appear as though she had been
dipped into molten gold of a greenish hue. Occasionally, there appeared
in the water large shining spots of great length, so that a number of
times the lookouts reported undersea boats in sight.
At four o'clock in the morning the port war watch, which I commanded,
was relieved. The Commander now took charge. The day was just dawning.
I had just gone to my cabin, and had lain down to rest, when I was
wakened by the shrill call of the alarm bells and the loud noise of
many hurrying feet. "Clear ship for action," the order went echoing
from room to room. In an instant everyone was at his post. Were we
really to be so fortunate as to fall in, on our very first day, with
one of the Russian or French ships that had been reported to us as
being in the vicinity of Vladivostok?
By the trembling of the ship we could tell that the engine had been
put on high speed. In the gray of the early morning we sighted, ahead
of us and a little to the right, a vessel somewhat larger than our
own, which was also traveling with screened lights, and looked like a
man-of-war. Our commander ordered a course toward her at high speed.
Hardly had she seen us when she turned hard about, took the contrary
course, and ran away from us, the dense column of smoke rising from her
funnels indicating that her engines were working at maximum power. The
pursued ship took a course directly toward the Japanese Islands, lying
about ten miles distant. A black cloud of smoke streamed behind her,
rested on the water, and, for a while, hid her from sight entirely. We
could see nothing of her but the mast tops, and so found it impossible
to discover the nature of the vessel with which we were dealing. That
she was not a neutral was evident enough from her behavior. Therefore,
after her with full speed!