At 1.40 the battle was over. The battle cruisers turned to the northward, and the _Queen Mary_ for the second time that day was attacked by a submarine. Again she avoided a deadly torpedo by a quick turn of the helm. The great gray monsters covered the retirement of the destroyers, and by 6 p.m. all were making for port. Before midnight the whole British force was safely back in its own waters. The enemy had lost two new cruisers--the _Mainz_ and the _Köln_--and an older vessel, the _Ariadne_. The vessel which I have called the _Strassburg_ was seriously damaged; one destroyer was sunk, and at least seven others suffered greatly. Some seven hundred Germans perished, and about three hundred were taken prisoners, amongst them the son of Admiral von Tirpitz, the chief of the German navy. Our casualties were thirty-two killed and fifty-two wounded, and we did not lose a single ship. The _Arethusa_ was badly damaged, it is true, but she was ready for sea a week later. Every British ship that took part in the battle was entitled to paint upon her honour-board in letters of gold the words, "Heligoland, August 28, 1914." As a tribute to the gallant part which the _Arethusa_ had played in the fight, the Admiralty ordered the famous old song to be engraved on a brass plate and set up on the ship. The first verse runs as follows:-- "Come, all ye sailors bold, Whose hearts are cast in honour's mould, While English glory I unfold. Huzza for the _Arethusa_! Her men are staunch To their favourite launch. And when the foe shall meet our fire, Sooner than strike we'll all expire On board of the _Arethusa_." * * * * * Before we leave the story of the Battle of Heligoland Bight let me try to describe the experiences of the men behind the big guns. "Gun crews, stand to your stations!" comes the terse order. Instantly every man drops his job, whatever it may be, and the various squads fall in and march off to their barbettes or casemates, straining their eyes as they go to catch a sight of the enemy. All the wooden fittings which are likely to catch fire, or form what sailors call "shell traps," have been thrown overboard, the stanchions and the davits and the chains around the decks have been unshipped, and the vessel is now a mere skeleton of its former self. Everything that might get loose and "take charge" has been securely lashed. The guns and torpedoes have been made ready; the ammunition has been carefully examined and arranged, so that it can be quickly hoisted to the guns; and the engines have been overhauled. Hose pipes have been run along the decks, and everything likely to take fire has been plentifully soused with sea-water.