The U-boat huntersConnolly, James B. (James Brendan)
History
The U-boat hunters
Connolly, James B. (James Brendan)
United States. Navy; World War, 1914-1918 -- Naval operations
Later another of the same class came nosing up out of the depths, and
bumped head on and into a breakwater down that same country--a solid
stone wall of a breakwater. What did she do? She bounced off, and, after
a look around, also went on about her business.
* * * * *
In the morning our sub up-anchored for her run across the open bay. On
the conning-tower was rigged a little bridge of slim brass stanchions
and thin wire-rope rail, with the canvas as high as a man's chin for
protection; and away she went in a wind that was still blowing hard
enough to drive home-bound Gloucester fishermen down to storm trysails
and sea enough to jump an out-bound destroyer of a thousand tons under
easy steam to her lower plates whenever she lifted forward.
There was not a soul standing around on the main deck of the destroyer
as we passed her, nor on her high forward turtle-deck, which was being
washed clean; and surely not much comfort being bounced around on
transoms in that destroyer below, nor too much dryness on her flying
bridge. And yet here was our little sub--full speed and all--heading
straight into high-curling seas and making fine weather of it.
Plunging her bow under, and through she'd go; and when she did the seas
would go swashing up atop of her make-believe deck and come rolling down
her round-top plates and squishing through the hundreds of round holes
in her deck sides. But steady? Up on her little bridge we did not half
the time have to hold on to her little steel-rope rail lines to keep our
balance. She kept on going, hooked-up all the way, seas and wind and all
to hinder her, and finished her five-hour run without so much as wetting
our coat fronts up on the conning-tower bridge. A great little sea
boat--a submarine.
Now for the personnel of the crew. The crew of the sub described were
not sailors. The captain was an old seagoer--yes; and it would be a safe
guess that the diving-rudder man had a seagoing experience; and one
other perhaps; but the fellows who stood by the other things below came
straight from the boat works. They had helped, most of them, to build
her: which was one good reason for having them along on her trial trip.
And there are thousands of young fellows working around garages and in
machine-shops and electric-light plants ashore who are the very men
needed for submarines. There will always have to be a sailor or two in a
submarine; or there should be, for a real sailor is always a handy man
to have around--he knows things that nobody else knows.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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