World War, 1914-1918 -- Naval operations -- Submarine; World War, 1914-1918 -- United States
The Allied submarines, like many other patrol craft, spent much of their
time in those restricted waters which formed the entrances to the
British Isles. Their favourite places were the English Channel, St.
George's Channel, which forms the southern entrance to the Irish Sea,
and the northern passage-way between Scotland and Ireland. At these
points, it may be remembered, the cargo ships could usually be found
sailing singly, either entirely unescorted, or escorted inadequately,
while on their way to join a convoy or to their destinations after the
dispersal of a convoy; these areas were thus almost the only places
where the German submarines had much chance of attacking single vessels.
The territory was divided into squares, each one of which was indicated
by a letter: and the section assigned to each submarine was known as
its "billet." Under ordinary circumstances, the Allied submarine spent
all its time, while patrolling, on its own particular "billet"; only in
case the pursuit of an enemy led it outside the "square" was it
permissible to leave. Allied submarines also hunted the U-boats in the
North Sea on the routes which the latter had to take in coming out or
returning through the passages in the German mine-fields of the
Heligoland Bight, or through the Skager Rack.
As previously explained, in the daytime the Allied submarine remained
under the water, its periscope exposed for a short time every fifteen
minutes or so, sweeping the sea for a distance of many miles. As soon as
darkness set in, the boat usually emerged, began taking in new air and
recharging its batteries, the crew seizing the opportunity to stretch
their legs and catch a welcome glimpse of the external world. The simple
fact that the Allied submarines spent the larger part of their time
under water, while the German spent the larger part of their time on the
surface, gave our boats a great military advantage over the foe, but it
likewise made existence in our submarine service more arduous. Even on
the coldest winter days there could be no artificial heat, for the
precious electricity could not be spared for that purpose, and the
temperature inside the submarine was the temperature of the water in
which it sailed. The close atmosphere, heavily laden also with the smell
of oil from the engines and the odours of cooking, and the necessity of
going for days at a time without a bath or even a wash, added to the
discomfort. The stability of a submerged submarine is by no means
perfect; the vessel is constantly rolling, and a certain number of the
crew, even the experienced men, are frequently seasick. This movement
sometimes made it almost impossible to stay in a bunk and sleep for any
reasonable period; the poor seaman would perhaps doze off, but a lurch
of the vessel would send him sprawling on the deck. One could hardly
write, for it was too cold, or read, for there was little light; and
because of the motion of the vessel, it was difficult to focus one's
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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