At Tsingtao our commander found orders awaiting him from the Admiral of our squadron, Count von Spee, who, with the armored cruisers, _Scharnhorst_ and _Gneisenau_, and the small cruiser, _Nürnberg_, was in the South Pacific, steering northward. The _Emden's_ orders were to join this squadron at a stated point of meeting in the South Pacific. * * * * * At sunrise on the following day the _Emden_ left Tsingtao in the company of a large number of German ships, all bound for the south, where they were to join the Admiral's squadron. * * * * * With fair weather and a smooth sea the _Emden_ slipped out of the harbor moles. Our band played "The Watch on the Rhine." The entire crew was on deck, singing as the band played. Cheers rang from ship to shore, and back again. Everyone was confident and in high spirits. * * * * * Cautiously the _Emden_ made her way between the mines which barred the entrance to the harbor. The sun had just risen. Behind us lay Tsingtao, the gem of the far East, brightened by the golden-red beams of the young day--a picture of peace.... As we gazed, there was not one of us who was not conscious of a strange tugging at his heart. But duty called with an imperative voice. Therefore, farewell to the fair scene we were leaving behind us! For us, it was, "Onward, to the South!" We were accompanied by the _Markomannia_, the other ships taking different courses. The _Markomannia_ remained our faithful companion for a number of months. * * * * * On our way to the South Pacific we learned, by wireless, of the rupture in the relations between Germany and England, and of the latter's declaration of war. A few days later we learned of Japan's remarkable ultimatum, without its causing us any special anxiety. It might as well all be done up at one and the same time, was the general feeling among us. * * * * * On the twelfth of August, in the evening, we had reached the vicinity of the island where we were to join our cruiser squadron, and soon we fell in with some of the ships that were serving as outposts. As we approached the group of assembled warships, we saw the stanch cruisers _Scharnhorst_ and _Gneisenau_ lying in the midst of them, each with a coal tender alongside, and engaged in coaling. To the left lay the slender _Nürnberg_, also busy with taking on coal. Distributed about the bay, many larger and smaller auxiliary ships and tenders of the squadron could be seen. The _Emden_ was ordered to an anchorage close beside the flagship, in the right-hand half of the bay. Rousing cheers were sent from deck to deck, as we passed by the other ships, and soon our anchor rattled seaward, and to the bottom,--it was to be the last time for many a long day.